The graphical display of the results of a geometric nonlinear analysis have been improved. The Graphs are now easier to read and a new control has been added to limit the maximum Load Step displayed.

When a structure is analyzed with a geometric nonlinear analysis, the nodal displacements can be viewed by selecting the Node | Nonlinearity page in the Post-Processing mode. The Node Displacements Curve has been enhanced and a new control has been added to the Node Displacements table to limit the maximum Load Step plotted.

In the event that a load level is specified which exceeds the non-linear buckling capacity of a structure, the analysis performed by STAAD.Pro will produce exceedingly large post-buckling displacements. This signifies that the load steps in this post-buckling level are beyond the scope of designed performance of the STAAD engine (and likely beyond the load level and effects intended by the engineer). In these cases, the scale of the non-linear load displacement curve was did not adequately display the pre-buckling characteristics due to the very large scale required to display the post-buckling displacements.

Now, in the event of a large post-buckling load, the maximum load level scale of the Load Level vs. Displacement graph can be limited to the currently selected load step by selecting this option on the Node Displacements table, thus allowing you to see the pre-buckling behavior.