CATIA V5-6R2018: Generative Structural Analysis
1–4 © 2020, ASCENT - Center for Technical Knowledge®
Therefore, the key FEA concept is the use of piece-wise
polynomials to approximate the sought field quantity in the
model, which effectively replaces a continuum problem with an
infinite number of degrees of freedom (DOF) with a discrete
problem with a finite number of DOF (hence the terms finite
elements and discretization).
For example, consider how the FEA method works when applied
to calculate deflections in a simple beam, as shown in
Figure 1–2. The beam is clamped at the left end, has a couple of
supports in the middle, and is loaded by a couple of transversal
forces and a moment. The bottom graph shown in Figure 1–2
represents the unknown true deflection of the beam, which you
are trying to determine using the FEA method.
Figure 1–2
The first step in the process (shown in the example in
Figure 1–3) is to mesh the beam by breaking it into a collection
of shorter pieces (i.e., finite elements) connected at their ends
(i.e., the nodes).
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