About Forces

A force consists of three components:

• Transmission area
• Direction
• Magnitude

The force, always acting in a single direction, is applied across the transmission area.

The direction of the forces greatly influences the results. In many models the forces are aligned with an axis direction. If the model does not move or deform or if the direction of the forces is constant, the global axis directions allow you to specify an accurate direction. You can use a local coordinate system to accurately align your forces along other directions rather than calculating force vectors based on the global directions. For example, you might have a part that can be oriented differently in an assembly and is subject to different loads based on its orientation.