Hinge

A section cut may be classified as a plastic hinge by using this option. Assigning a section cut as a hinge identifies that location in the Wall Design Group as forming part of the failure mechanism when the structure has reached its maximum lateral-resisting capacity.

The effects of this assignment are dictated by the provisions of the design code that has been selected. This assignment activates the pertinent code strength and detailing requirements for hinge formation due to lateral loads. For example, for the ACI 318 design code the hinge assignment will invoke the special boundary element calculations of Chapter 21 for the respective Section Cut.

In addition to the hinge assignment, the additional following conditions are necessary for the special boundary element checks to be performed by the program:

At least one of the load combinations considered must have an earthquake term ("E" or "Dyn" load case).
For ACI 318, the "Special" Wall Category must be considered. This is set in the design code criteria menu.

Note: All Section Cuts in the model, by default, are Hinges when they are created. These assignments should be changed by the engineer to reflect the desired failure condition of each Wall Design Group. Otherwise, the resulting design will have little physical significance and will take longer to complete than if hinge assignments were made more selectively.