Managing Shapes within a FEM Representation

You can manage the shapes that contribute to a finite element model representation.

You can select the shapes that are included in the FEM representation for a simulation, and you can review the included shapes in either a tree or list format.

Only one shape per product is meshed in the finite element model. If there is only one shape, it is meshed. If there is an abstraction shape and one or more 3D shapes, the abstraction shape is meshed. If there are multiple abstraction shapes or 3D shapes, you must choose the shape to mesh.

  1. From the Setup section of the action bar, click Contributing Shapes .
    The Contributing Shapes dialog box appears. While this dialog box is open, connection glyphs are hidden and shapes that do not contribute to the FEM representation appear translucent in the work area.
  2. In the Select Contributing Shapes tab, select the abstraction shapes or 3D shapes to include in the FEM representation.

    You can expand the tree to view and select components of a subassembly.

    The tree lists the total number of contributing shapes.
  3. Optional: You can limit the display to show a particular type of shape.
    OptionDescription
    3D Shapes Hide or show 3D shapes.
    Abstraction Shapes Hide or show abstraction shapes.
    Invalid shapes Hide or show invalid shapes; for example, those that are not linked to the current model.
    Unused shapes Hide or show any unused shapes so that you can remove them from the FEM. This option can also help you identify shapes that you want to include in the scenario but that are currently not assigned any simulation features.
  4. Optional: Use the review tabs to review the contributing shapes in either a tree or list format.

    In the list view you can select multiple shapes at once and remove them in one step.

  5. Click one of the following:
    • OK to save the contributing shapes selection and to close the dialog box.
    • Cancel to cancel the modifications and to close the dialog box.