I've got a question that I'm not entirely sure how to ask - So this could get messy, quickly. Is there a piece of software out there that lets you simulate what would happen with a structure? Like, if you were to take material X and do Y with it, then add weight to point A, would it fall over, bend, collapse and so on? I've been looking through google, but since I don't have even the vaguest idea where to start looking, I can't find anything (Aside from a lot of sites about the structure of carbon nanotubes..) that might do the job. Or have I missed a trick and something like Sketchup does this now? Afterthought: Does this belong in General?
Yes, there applications, but since they're aimed at architects, civil or structural engineers, etc. they tend to be very expensive. There might be some more basic stuff out there, but I doubt it. Search for stress analysis as well as structural testing.
What you're looking to do is called Finite Element Analysis, if that helps your searching any. As Flibble mentioned, it's typically used in engineering fields, and as a result the software tends to be extremely expensive and extremely difficult to use. If you find any free solutions, I'd love to hear about them.
I'm currently under the influence of many beers, but so far I've not found any free solutions that're legal. I will be looking again tomorrow, more sober, and will let you know if I find anything
I have SolidWork which has Comos that does stress test (I think I have some screenshots of my stress test in the SketchUp thread)
Yes, SolidWorks is able to run FEA through COSMOS. This solution is among the easiest-to-use, but it's very Not Free. Also, please resize your image; it breaks the forum layout (though kudos to the new forum software, because it only breaks that single post). 800x600 is a fair upper limit for web use, and would have shown the detail you were looking at very comfortably.
I really wish I could think of the name, but at high school there was an app we got to play with that did this at least at a basic level. Might want to do some googling for 'structural integrity testing software' and stuff along those lines.
1) I am sure you will be able to get an educational licence for it which will be a lot cheaper, we do at uni and I would guess it was available for individuals too 2) The old forum seemed to re-size images itself edit: unless the image has just been re-sized, the forums has done the trick.
Solidworks FEA is great for a quick understanding of a components limits, but you cant model for a dynamic loading, as this gets really complex! Matlab can be used to create simulations of strutures under load, wether it be a static or dynamic force applied, however it is much more complex to understand and would take a few months to generate the key infomation required. This kinda software NEVER comes cheap, due to the amount of work that has gone into its development. I still have to calculate it all manually via pencil and paper, then use Solidworks cosmos to 'proof' my findings. Mind you its been a while since i designed any frame works, mainly been design for the medical field.
Depending on your accuracy requirements and the ccomplexity of your structure you can do this by hand by calculating the forces on various "cut planes" and then comparing it to a stress/strain graph for the material involved and the are at the plane. This will not give an accurate result and involves a considerable amount of simplification and guess work but it might give you an idea whether youre in the right ballpark. FEA is very expensive in general, it's intergrated into autodesk inventor that I get to use as an engineering student but theres no way I could afford it otherwise. On a related note, if anyone knows of a free CFD ( computational fluid dynamics ) package I would very much like to know, also if anyone has a flying pig I would be interested in purchacing it. (I can hope...) Moriquendi
