Member Load tab
Used to apply loads on the span of frame members or physical members (select the appropriate parent tab).
Uniform Force / Moment
Used to specify a Uniformly Distributed Force or Uniformly Distributed Moment along a member.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| W1 | Value of the load in currently selected units. |
| d1, d2 | Distance of starting and ending points of the load from the starting node (Node A) of the member. If these values are zero, then the load is applied over the entire length of the member. |
| d3 | Perpendicular distance from the member’s shear center to the plane of loading. |
| Direction | Click on the appropriate radio button to specify the direction of the load. X, Y, Z indicate the direction in local coordinates; GX, GY, GZ indicate the loads in global coordinates; PX, PY, PZ indicate the loads along the projected length of the member in the corresponding global direction. However, d1, d2 and d3 are still measured along the length of the member and not along the projected length. |
Concentrated Force / Moment
Used to specify a concentrated force or moment load on a member.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| P | Value of the load in currently selected units. |
| d1 | Distance of the load from the starting node (Node A) of the member. If this value is not specified, then the load is applied at the midpoint of the member. |
| d2 | Perpendicular distance from the member’s shear center to the plane of loading. |
| Direction | Click on the appropriate radio button to specify the direction of the load. X, Y, Z indicate the direction in local coordinates; GX, GY, GZ indicate the loads in global coordinates; PX, PY, PZ indicate the loads along the projected length of the member in the corresponding global direction. However, d1 and d2 are still measured along the length of the member and not along the projected length. |
Linear Varying
Used to specify a linearly varying load on a member. The load is applied over the entire length of the member.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| W1, W2 | For a linearly increasing or decreasing load, enter the values of force W1 at the start of the beam and W2 at the end of the beam in currently selected units. |
| W3 | For a triangular load distribution, enter the value W3 of the force in the middle of the beam. |
| Direction | Select the direction of the force in local coordinates from the radio buttons X, Y or Z. |
Trapezoidal
Used to specify a trapezoidal load on a member.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| W1, W2 | Starting and ending load values in currently selected units. |
| d1, d2 | Distance of starting and ending points of the load from the starting node (Node A) of the member. If these values are zero, the load is applied over the entire length of the member. |
| Direction | Click on the appropriate radio button to specify the direction of the load. X, Y, Z indicate the direction in local coordinates; GX, GY, GZ indicate the loads in global coordinates; PX, PY, PZ indicate the loads along the projected length of the member in the corresponding global direction. However, d1 and d2 are still measured along the length of the member and not along the projected length. |
Hydrostatic
Used to specify loads due to hydrostatic pressure on one or more adjacent beams. The Hydrostatic load is converted to Trapezoidal loads on the beams. The load is applied over the entire length of the members.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| W1, W2 | Type the value of the load at the minimum and maximum global axis in currently selected units. For example, to model a retaining wall with soil pressure, W1 is the force at the bottom of the wall and W2 is the force at the top of the wall. |
| Direction | Select the direction in which the force is applied by clicking on the appropriate radio button. X, Y, Z indicate the direction in local coordinates; GX, GY, GZ indicate the loads in global coordinates; PX, PY, PZ indicate the loads along the projected length of the member in the corresponding global direction. |
| Interpolate along Global Axis | Specify the global axis along which the load would vary from W1 to W2. For example, the load would vary along the Y axis on a vertical retaining wall. |
| Select Member | Opens a Selected Item(s) dialog, which is used to generate a list of selected members. The Create Loads dialog is dismissed until all loads are added using the Beams Cursor tool in the View Window. Once the Done button is clicked, the Create Loads dialog re-opens with the member table populated. Unlike other load definition options, we must select members for this option to become active. |
Pre/Post Stress
Used to apply Poststress and Prestress loads on members.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Type | Select either the Prestress or Poststress radio button. |
| Load | Type the Force as a positive value in current units. |
| Eccentricity Distances | If applicable, specify the Eccentricity of the cable with respect to the center of gravity of the cross section at the Start, Middle and End of the member. |
Fixed End
If a load acts at an intermediate point along the span of a frame member, there are two ways of assigning the load. a) It could be specified using the member load option. In this case, the magnitude and position along span are specified. b) It could be converted to fixed end actions and defined as a FIXED END load as shown below.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Start / End Node |
Type values for FX, FY, FZ, MX, MY and MZ (axial, shear-y, shear-z, torsion, moment-y, and moment-z) in the local coordinates for the Start node and /or the End node. |