The analysis defines the conditions applied to a model. It accounts for internal properties such as material density, elasticity, and stiffness. It also applies external conditions. For example, you can apply loads to gravity, pressure, and torques. You can add restraints (boundary conditions) such as clamps and ball joints. You can also create bolted connections, define contact, and specify and "fixed" (immobile) regions within the model. Once defined, you can validate the analysis to ensure that the mechanics of the model are correct before optimizing a design. The validation runs a simulation using the Abaqus solver and displays results, including stress and displacement plots, to help you visualize the reaction of the model. When the basic model meets your requirements, you can proceed with the optimization. | |||||||||