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From the Plots section of the action bar, click Contour Plot
to create a plot of colored contours for a selected
variable.
The plot editor appears and contains three tabs:
Definition,
Options, and
Rendering. These tabs contain
options that enable you to change the deformation of your
model, control model translucency, and change the display of
model edges.
- Optional:
Enter a
Name for the plot.
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In the Definition tab , specify the plot content as
follows:
Template
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This option populates
the dialog box with a specific set of
variables pertaining to the chosen
template. Any customizations that you
make reset the
Template to
<none>. |
Variable
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The output variable you want to plot.
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Render
values at
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This option is
displayed for contour plots only and is
used to determine where and how values
are displayed on the mesh:
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Ply
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This option is available for plots of
composite sections only. Select the ply
for which you want to plot results:
- Select Overall
to plot the top and bottom sections (the
outer plies).
- Select an individual ply.
- Select Min/Max/Max abs
envelope to display a
contour or symbol plot of the selected
variable at the ply where the minimum,
maximum, or absolute maximum value
occurs.
- Select Min/Max/Max abs
envelope ply ID to display a
symbol plot at the element centroid of
the ply where the minimum, maximum, or
absolute maximum value occurs. You can
probe the symbol to display the name of
the ply.
Note:
Envelope and envelope ply ID plots
are available only for scalar field
variables, such as Tsai-Hill criterion
and equivalent plastic strain. They are
not available for tensor and vector
variables, such as stress and strain.
The three envelope ply ID settings are
available only for display of elements.
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Section
points
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This option is
available for plots of composite
sections only. Select
Top or
Bottom to
determine which section point of the
chosen ply is used to compute the
envelope data. |
Symbol Shape
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This option lets you plot
Symbols for the
selected quantity. For symbol plots the
following additional controls are
available:
- Points or
Vectors/Tensors:
Plot the selected variable as a colored
point or as a vector or tensor.
- Nodes,
Centroids, or
Element faces:
Plot the selected variable at each node,
centroid, or element face.
For symbol plots of tensors, you can
select Principal
directions to display arrows
that represent all principal components.
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Averaging
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This option is available only for
contour plots or point symbols and only
for display of elements. It determines
if result value averaging occurs and, if
so, where the averaging occurs. You can
choose to Use section
boundaries or use
No boundaries.
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Quantity
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This option is available only for
vector or tensor fields, but not for
scalar display, and only for display of
contours or point symbols. It is the
specific quantity you want to plot,
which can include the overall magnitude
of the variable or one of its invariants
or components. For vector fields, the
individual vector components are plotted
along the global coordinate system.
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In the Options tab ( ),
specify the scale factor, entity labels, SPH display,
symbols, threshold, and section points:
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Click Show node labels to
display node labels on the model.
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Click Show element labels to
display element labels on the model.
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Select a threshold Type and
Value to view local
extrema. Local minima and maxima are computed from a
smaller range of data than is present in the model
as a whole.
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For contour plots of SPH models, activate
SPH display to show SPH
particles only, SPH surfaces only, or both SPH
particles and surfaces. SPH surfaces are constructed
around the SPH particles to aid in visualization of
the volume occupied by the elements.
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For symbol plots, specify the symbol visibility
(exterior only or exterior and interior), symbol
density, and symbol node type and size.
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In the
Rendering tab
, specify the transparency, visible edges, and edge angle.
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For symbol plots, click
Hide model to show symbols only.
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For symbol plots, from
Model render style, select either
Shaded or
Wireframe.
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For contour plots, click
Apply transparency to make the model
translucent.
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For contour plots, select a
Visible edges option:
- Outline:
Creates a single solid outline around the model, and enables you to specify an
Edge angle.
- Mesh: Displays
the mesh element edges in the model.
- None: Edges of
the model are defined only by the contrast between the color of the model and
the background colors and textures.
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If your model includes shells, in the
Rendering tab specify the rendering style,
data source, and scale factor.
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Specify the shell rendering style:
- None: The shell
is rendered with no thickness.
- Offset: The
shell is rendered with no thickness at the mid-plane of the thick shell. The
displacement of the shell from the reference surface is determined by the
Thickness Scale Factor and thickness
(Offset) data specified in the analysis element property
definitions.
- Thick: The
shell is rendered with thickness at the actual location. The thickness is
determined by the value selected for the
Thickness Scale Factor and thickness
data specified in the analysis element property definitions.
Offset and thickness are derived from the model definition for the shell elements. The
thickness represents the actual material thickness of the shell or
membrane elements. The offset represents how the actual material is
positioned in the shell normal direction relative to the modeled
element.
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Specify the
Thickness Data Source for the rendering
thickness, either
Section or
Field.
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Specify the
Thickness Scale Factor, expressed as a
multiplier, to enhance visibility.
The
Thickness Scale Factor allows you to scale
up (exaggerate, factor > 1.0) or scale down (diminish, factor < 1.0) the
displayed thickness of shell elements. For
Offset shell styles, the
Thickness Scale Factor multiplies the
offset value.
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Click
Apply to activate your changes, or click
OK to activate your changes and to close the
plot dialog box.
The plot of your model is updated according to the selected
results and is available for additional analysis using the postprocessing
toolbar.
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