& Construction

Integrated BIM tools, including Revit, AutoCAD, and Civil 3D
& Manufacturing

Professional CAD/CAM tools built on Inventor and AutoCAD
Integrated BIM tools, including Revit, AutoCAD, and Civil 3D
Professional CAD/CAM tools built on Inventor and AutoCAD
Any referenced datasets can be downloaded from "Module downloads" in the module overview.
Transcript
00:09
In this unit, we will be discussing setting up an Inventor Nastran analysis.
00:15
So taking a look at this flowchart here, working your way left to right,
00:19
you'll start by activating the Nastran environment and choosing your analysis type.
00:24
Then you'll define the materials being used in the study as well as the constraint and load conditions.
00:29
Finally, you'll mesh your model and confirm the settings before solving the analysis and validating your results.
00:38
So we'll start by defining the Inventor Nastran analysis type.
00:43
This can be the default study, which would be Linear Statics or one of the many studies available within the Inventor Nastran environment.
00:51
When first opening up the Inventor Nastran Model Tree,
00:53
you'll see at the top Analysis 1 and next to it, the default analysis type in red parentheses, Linear Static.
01:01
You may change the analysis being used by double clicking on "Analysis 1" and choosing from the drop-down menu.
01:07
It's important to choose the analysis type that most appropriately models the physics required.
01:13
Within one part or one assembly, you can have multiple analyses,
01:16
meaning you could have a Linear Static analysis as well as a Modal and a frequency response or whatever is required.
01:24
To create a new analysis, you'll right-click on the part name at the top of the tree and select "New Analysis".
01:31
If the only thing changing in your study is the Load, Magnitude, Direction or the Constraint settings,
01:37
you may consider using a new Subcase instead of a New analysis.
01:42
You can have multiple subcases to account for variations in the loads and constraints without affecting the Mesh settings,
01:49
the Material settings or the Idealizations.
01:53
If you create a new Subcase, all you have to do is right click on "Subcases" from the Analysis tree and select "New".
01:60
This will open up a panel where you can choose the name,
02:02
as well as activate any existing loads or constraints that are going to be copied over.
02:08
You may also create new loads and constraints once that Subcase has been created.
02:14
Next step in the process is going to be assigning materials and idealizations.
02:18
This is where we will assign any material that needs to be applied within the part or assembly,
02:23
as well as the element type being used for each solid.
02:28
So within an analysis, multiple idealizations can be created.
02:32
These can be Solid, Shell or Line elements.
02:35
Those can also be combined within the same analysis.
02:38
To create a new idealization, you can choose it from the ribbon or right-click on "Idealizations" from the tree and select "New".
02:46
From the Idealizations panel, you can then decide what element type is being used,
02:51
as well as the name coordinate system and the material.
02:56
The color of the mesh is also defined from this panel.
03:03
Once an Idealization has been created, you can choose whether or not you'd like to add it to the existing analysis,
03:08
using the check box, you can also drag and drop idealizations from the model tree into the analysis as necessary.
03:21
There are many materials that can be defined with Inventor Nastran.
03:25
One thing to keep in mind is that materials can only be used in a study if they are assigned to an existing idealization.
03:33
However, you can create as many materials as you'd like for reference in the Model Tree.
03:38
To create a new material, you can choose the Materials button from the ribbon, or right-click on "Materials" from the Node and select "New".
03:47
This allows you to predefine all your materials before assigning them to Idealizations.
03:55
While working in the Material dialog box, you can name your material as well as input custom properties.
04:02
If you'd like to choose a Material from an existing library, you can choose the "Select Material" option in the top left corner,
04:08
and then choose whether or not you'd like to pull Material from the Autodesk Material Library,
04:13
Inventor Material Library or the Inventor Nastran Material Library that's automatically installed.
04:23
To edit an existing material, you can edit from the Idealization or from the Model Tree at the bottom of the browser.
04:31
You may also drag and drop materials onto existing idealizations to override the current material being used.
04:40
Next, we'll be defining the Constraints and Loads for each study.
04:45
This is typically done the same time in the process, when we are setting up the boundary conditions of the model.
04:52
Your constraints represent your true supports,
04:55
whether that be a rigid foundation or an adjoining structure that has been attached to via bolts, welds or other connections.
05:04
These are typically applied to the model boundary at faces, edges or vertices.
05:09
And this is where you will be restricting the number of degrees of freedom available to the entire system.
05:15
You can have as many constraints as necessary in a model,
05:18
but it's important to not over constrain a model and make sure the movement allowed is realistic.
05:25
To create a new constraint, you can choose the icon from the ribbon,
05:28
or once again, right-click on the "Constraints" node and select "New".
05:33
From the constraint dialog box, you can choose the type of constraint as well as the degrees of freedom available,
05:41
as well as whether or not it is a symmetry constraint being applied to a symmetry cut plane.
05:48
To turn on the visibility of a constraint and preview its location, you can check the eyeglasses button at the bottom of the menu.
05:58
Constraints can be added to each subcase individually.
06:01
You can also drag and drop them from the Model Tree if they've been created prior.
06:06
They can be removed from subcases as well as deleted entirely.
06:13
Your loads are used to simulate forces, pressures, motion,
06:17
maybe even temperatures that are acting on the existing model or assembly.
06:22
These can be applied to faces, edges and vertices as well.
06:26
You can also apply multiple loads within a single model as required.
06:33
To create a new load, you can choose the load button from the ribbon or right-click on the "Loads Node" and select "New".
06:40
From the Loads dialog box, you can choose a name,
06:43
a type and then the affected entities which would be your faces, edges or vertices.
06:50
You may also choose the direction of the load and the magnitude in the X, Y and Z direction where necessary.
07:01
With loads, you can also drag and drop them onto existing subcases or remove them as required.
07:07
You may also right-click on an existing load and select "Edit", if you need to make a change to the direction or the magnitude.
Video transcript
00:09
In this unit, we will be discussing setting up an Inventor Nastran analysis.
00:15
So taking a look at this flowchart here, working your way left to right,
00:19
you'll start by activating the Nastran environment and choosing your analysis type.
00:24
Then you'll define the materials being used in the study as well as the constraint and load conditions.
00:29
Finally, you'll mesh your model and confirm the settings before solving the analysis and validating your results.
00:38
So we'll start by defining the Inventor Nastran analysis type.
00:43
This can be the default study, which would be Linear Statics or one of the many studies available within the Inventor Nastran environment.
00:51
When first opening up the Inventor Nastran Model Tree,
00:53
you'll see at the top Analysis 1 and next to it, the default analysis type in red parentheses, Linear Static.
01:01
You may change the analysis being used by double clicking on "Analysis 1" and choosing from the drop-down menu.
01:07
It's important to choose the analysis type that most appropriately models the physics required.
01:13
Within one part or one assembly, you can have multiple analyses,
01:16
meaning you could have a Linear Static analysis as well as a Modal and a frequency response or whatever is required.
01:24
To create a new analysis, you'll right-click on the part name at the top of the tree and select "New Analysis".
01:31
If the only thing changing in your study is the Load, Magnitude, Direction or the Constraint settings,
01:37
you may consider using a new Subcase instead of a New analysis.
01:42
You can have multiple subcases to account for variations in the loads and constraints without affecting the Mesh settings,
01:49
the Material settings or the Idealizations.
01:53
If you create a new Subcase, all you have to do is right click on "Subcases" from the Analysis tree and select "New".
01:60
This will open up a panel where you can choose the name,
02:02
as well as activate any existing loads or constraints that are going to be copied over.
02:08
You may also create new loads and constraints once that Subcase has been created.
02:14
Next step in the process is going to be assigning materials and idealizations.
02:18
This is where we will assign any material that needs to be applied within the part or assembly,
02:23
as well as the element type being used for each solid.
02:28
So within an analysis, multiple idealizations can be created.
02:32
These can be Solid, Shell or Line elements.
02:35
Those can also be combined within the same analysis.
02:38
To create a new idealization, you can choose it from the ribbon or right-click on "Idealizations" from the tree and select "New".
02:46
From the Idealizations panel, you can then decide what element type is being used,
02:51
as well as the name coordinate system and the material.
02:56
The color of the mesh is also defined from this panel.
03:03
Once an Idealization has been created, you can choose whether or not you'd like to add it to the existing analysis,
03:08
using the check box, you can also drag and drop idealizations from the model tree into the analysis as necessary.
03:21
There are many materials that can be defined with Inventor Nastran.
03:25
One thing to keep in mind is that materials can only be used in a study if they are assigned to an existing idealization.
03:33
However, you can create as many materials as you'd like for reference in the Model Tree.
03:38
To create a new material, you can choose the Materials button from the ribbon, or right-click on "Materials" from the Node and select "New".
03:47
This allows you to predefine all your materials before assigning them to Idealizations.
03:55
While working in the Material dialog box, you can name your material as well as input custom properties.
04:02
If you'd like to choose a Material from an existing library, you can choose the "Select Material" option in the top left corner,
04:08
and then choose whether or not you'd like to pull Material from the Autodesk Material Library,
04:13
Inventor Material Library or the Inventor Nastran Material Library that's automatically installed.
04:23
To edit an existing material, you can edit from the Idealization or from the Model Tree at the bottom of the browser.
04:31
You may also drag and drop materials onto existing idealizations to override the current material being used.
04:40
Next, we'll be defining the Constraints and Loads for each study.
04:45
This is typically done the same time in the process, when we are setting up the boundary conditions of the model.
04:52
Your constraints represent your true supports,
04:55
whether that be a rigid foundation or an adjoining structure that has been attached to via bolts, welds or other connections.
05:04
These are typically applied to the model boundary at faces, edges or vertices.
05:09
And this is where you will be restricting the number of degrees of freedom available to the entire system.
05:15
You can have as many constraints as necessary in a model,
05:18
but it's important to not over constrain a model and make sure the movement allowed is realistic.
05:25
To create a new constraint, you can choose the icon from the ribbon,
05:28
or once again, right-click on the "Constraints" node and select "New".
05:33
From the constraint dialog box, you can choose the type of constraint as well as the degrees of freedom available,
05:41
as well as whether or not it is a symmetry constraint being applied to a symmetry cut plane.
05:48
To turn on the visibility of a constraint and preview its location, you can check the eyeglasses button at the bottom of the menu.
05:58
Constraints can be added to each subcase individually.
06:01
You can also drag and drop them from the Model Tree if they've been created prior.
06:06
They can be removed from subcases as well as deleted entirely.
06:13
Your loads are used to simulate forces, pressures, motion,
06:17
maybe even temperatures that are acting on the existing model or assembly.
06:22
These can be applied to faces, edges and vertices as well.
06:26
You can also apply multiple loads within a single model as required.
06:33
To create a new load, you can choose the load button from the ribbon or right-click on the "Loads Node" and select "New".
06:40
From the Loads dialog box, you can choose a name,
06:43
a type and then the affected entities which would be your faces, edges or vertices.
06:50
You may also choose the direction of the load and the magnitude in the X, Y and Z direction where necessary.
07:01
With loads, you can also drag and drop them onto existing subcases or remove them as required.
07:07
You may also right-click on an existing load and select "Edit", if you need to make a change to the direction or the magnitude.
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