MAPDL Intro 13.0 L05 Basics

Customer Training Material
Lecture 5
Basics
Introduction to ANSYS
Mechanical APDL
ANSYS, Inc. Proprietary Release 13.0

© 2011 ANSYS, Inc. All rights reserved. L5-1 September 2011
Basics
Overview Customer Training Material
• This chapter introduces the following techniques used to

display and manipulate entities
– Plotting
– Picking
– Coordinate Systems
– Select Logic
– Components and Assemblies

Basics
Plotting Customer Training Material
• It is often advantageous to plot only certain

entities, rather than the full model.
/replot
• Individual entities can be plotted from the kplot
Utility Menu > Plot menu lplot
aplot
– can also be plotted using xPLOT commands vplot
• NPLOT plots nodes, EPLOT plots elements, etc. nplot
eplot
gplot
• Multi-Plots plots a combination of entities
– GPLOT command

Basics
PloCtrls Menu Customer Training Material
• “PlotCtrls” menu controls how the plot is displayed

– plot orientation
– zoom
– colors
– symbols
– annotation
– animation
– etc.
• Changing the plot orientation (/VIEW) and zooming

(RMB) are the most commonly used functions.

Basics
Control Methods Customer Training Material
• Default view is looking down the +Z axis of the model (FRONT View).
• Several methods available to manipulate model view.

– dynamic mode
– Model Control toolbar
– Pan-Zoom-Rotate menu
– RMB

Basics
Dynamic Mode Customer Training Material
• Dynamic mode uses Control key and mouse buttons.
– Ctrl + Left mouse button pans the model.

– Ctrl + Middle mouse button:
zooms the model
spins the model (about screen Z)
– Ctrl + Right mouse button rotates the model:
about screen X
about screen Y
Ctrl P Z R
• Note: the Shift-Right button on a two-button mouse is

equivalent to Middle mouse button on a three-button mouse.

Basics
Model Control Toolbar Customer Training Material
• Model Control Toolbar Icons can be used to manipulate the model.

– also includes a dynamic rotate option.
Model Control Toolbar
Dynamic Model Mode Icon performs

same function as CTRL key
Basics
Pan-Zoom-Rotate Customer Training Material
• Dynamic Mode setting is also available

using the “Pan-Zoom-Rotate” dialog box
– same mouse button assignments
– with 3-D graphics devices, the light source
can be dynamically oriented. Useful for
creating different light source shading
effects.
With 3-D driver

Basics
Pan-Zoom-Rotate Customer Training Material
• Other functions in the Pan-

Zoom-Rotate dialog box: Front +Z view, from (0,0,1)
Back -Z view (0,0,-1)
– Preset views Top +Y view (0,1,0)
Bot -Y view (0,-1,0)
– Zoom-in on specific regions
Right +X view (1,0,0)
of the model Left -X view (-1,0,0)
– Pan, zoom, or rotate in Iso Isometric (1,1,1)
Obliq Oblique (1,2,3)
discrete increments (as WP Working plane view
specified by the Rate slider)
• Rotation is about the screen
X, Y, Z coordinates. Zoom By picking center of
– Fit the plot to the window a square
Box Zoom By picking two
– Reset everything to default corners of a box
Win Zoom Same as Box Zoom,
• Most of these options are but box is
proportional to
also available in the Model window.
Control Toolbar. Back Up “Unzoom” to
previous zoom.

Basics
Plotting with RMB Customer Training Material
• Many of the plotting features are also available by RMB in the

graphics window.

Basics
Picking Customer Training Material
• Picking can be used to identify model entities or

locations by clicking in the Graphics Window.
• A picking operation typically involves the use of

the mouse and a picker menu. It is indicated by a
+ sign on the menu.
– a “p” in the appropriate field of many commands
also invokes the picking menu (e.g. NLIST,P)
• For example, you can create keypoints by picking

locations in the Graphics Window and then
pressing OK in the picker.

Basics
Type of Picking Customer Training Material
• Retrieval picking
– Picking existing entities for a subsequent
operation.
Example of Example of
– Can directly enter entity numbers in the Retrieval Location
Picker Window. Picker Picker
– Use the Pick All button to indicate all entities.
• Location picking
– Locating coordinates of a point, such as a
keypoint or node.
– can enter coordinates directly in the Picker
Window.
• Note: must hit the <Enter> key after entering

information in the Picker Window, and then hit [OK] or
[Apply].

Basics
Mouse Buttons for Picking Customer Training Material
• Left mouse button picks (or unpicks) the entity or

Apply
location closest to the mouse pointer. Pressing and
dragging allows you to “preview” the item being Toggle
Pick
Pick / Unpick
• Middle mouse button “applies” action. Saves time
required to move mouse to Picker and press Apply
button. Use Shift-Right button on a two-button
mouse.
• Right mouse button toggles between pick and unpick

mode. Cursor display:
Note: Shift-Right button on a two-button mouse is equivalent

to Middle mouse button on a three-button mouse.
Pick Unpick

Basics
Entering Picking Values Customer Training Material
Cannot use the Command Line to enter values
Type input followed by Enter, then [OK]
Prompt area indicates expected items

Basics
Hotspot Locations Customer Training Material
• To “pick” an entity - pick the hotspot
• Areas and Volumes have one hotspot near the centroid
• Lines have three hotspots - one in middle and one near each end.

Basics
Coordinate Systems Customer Training Material
• MAPDL has several types of coordinate systems

– Global and local coordinate systems are used to locate entities (nodes,
keypoints, etc.) in geometric space.
– Display coordinate systems control how entities are listed or displayed.
– Nodal coordinate systems define the degree of freedom directions at each

node and the orientation of nodal results data.
– Element coordinate systems control the orientation of material properties

and element results data.
– Results coordinate systems control the system used for post-processing

operations (list results, plot results, etc.)

Basics
Global Coordinate Systems Customer Training Material
• Global reference system for the model.

– may be Cartesian (system 0), cylindrical (1), or spherical (2).
– For example, location (0,10,0) in global Cartesian is the same as
(10,90,0) in global Cylindrical.

Basics
Local Coordinate Systems Customer Training Material
• User-defined systems
– must have ID number 11 or greater.
• Location may be:
– At WP origin [CSWP]
– At specified coordinates [LOCAL]
– At existing keypoints [CSKP] or nodes [CS]
• May be Cartesian, cylindrical, or spherical.
• May be rotated about X, Y, Z axes.
Y12
Y X12
Y11
X X11

Basics
Display Coordinate Systems Customer Training Material
• Used to show and list entities
• Default is Global Cartesian
• Used mostly for listing and plotting models in non-Cartesian systems.
• Rarely used, but useful in several applications

– If a cylinder is displayed in its cylindrical coordinate system (with a
1,0,0 view), it will be unrolled (developed) into a flat plane (with
theta along the Y direction).
– DSYS,1 - List nodal coordinates in r,theta,z

Basics
Active Coordinate Systems Customer Training Material
• Defaults to global Cartesian.
• Use CSYS command (or Utility Menu > WorkPlane >

Change Active CS to) to change it to
– global Cartesian [csys,0]
– global cylindrical [csys,1]
– global spherical [csys,2]
– working plane [csys,4]
– [csys,5] cylindrical coordinate system with Y as the axis (X
is in the global +X direction, local Y is in the global -Z
direction, and local Z (the cylindrical axis) is in the global
+Y direction)
– or a user-defined local coordinate system [csys, n]
• Used for geometry input , generation, and Select Logic

Basics
Select Logic Customer Training Material
• Select Logic activates a subset of entities
• For example:
– Plot only areas located in the second quadrant
– Delete all arcs of radius 0.2 to 0.3 units
– Apply a convection load on all exterior lines
– Write out all nodes at Z=3.5 to a file
– View results only in elements with material property steel
• All of these tasks operate only on the selected portion (i.e., active set)
of the model.

Basics
Selecting Subsets Customer Training Material
• Most selecting tools are available in

the Select Entities dialog box: Utility
Menu > Select > Entities... entity to select
• xSEL family of commands can be selection

used to efficiently select entities: criterion
KSEL, LSEL, ASEL, VSEL, NSEL, etc.
• NSEL,S,LOC,X,0,10
– selects all nodes with a X coordinate selection type
greater than or equal to zero and less
than or equal to 10
• ESEL,S,ELEM,,2,8
– selects elements 2 to 8

Basics
Select Logic Customer Training Material
• Selection criterion
– By Num/Pick: select based on entity numbers or by
picking
– Attached to: select based on attached entities.
• For example, select all lines attached to the current
subset of areas.
– By Location: select based on X,Y,Z location.
• For example, select all nodes at X=2.5 based on the
active coordinate system.
– By Attributes: select based on attribute (e.g.,
material number, element type, etc).
– Exterior: select entities on model exterior.
– By Results: select entities based on results data
(e.g, displacements, stresses, etc.)

Basics
Selection Types Customer Training Material
• From Full: selects from full set of

entities.
• Reselect: selects from currently From Full
active subset.
Reselect
• Also Select: adds to currently
active subset. Also Select
• Unselect: deactivates from
currently active subset. Unselect
• Invert: toggles between active and
inactive subsets. Invert
• Select None: deactivates full set of
entities. Select None
• Select All: reactivates full set of

entities. Select All

Basics
Select Logic Operations Customer Training Material
• Most MAPDL operations, including solving, act only

on currently selected subset (“active set”).
– e.g. applying loads, listing results, plotting entities, etc.
• “[Pick All]” button and “ALL” label in commands

can be used to specify the entire active set for any
operation
– It is often simpler to select entities first and then apply
to “ALL”, rather than picking entities during the
operation

Basics
Reactivating Entities Customer Training Material
• Common error when using select operations, is not to “reselect”

entities before next operation
– Note: if all nodes and all elements are not active for solution, solution will
proceed, but solver will issue a “Warning Message”
• Simplest method to reactivate the full set is to select “everything”

– Utility Menu > Select > Everything
– or issue “ALLSEL,ALL,ALL” command
• simpler form “ALLS” will also reselect everything
• “[Sele All]” button in the Select Entities dialog box can be used to
reactivate each entity type separately
– or use xSEL series of Commands (e,g., KSEL,ALL; LSEL,ALL; etc.)

Basics
Components Customer Training Material
• “Components” are user-named subsets of entities.

– component name can then be used in dialog boxes or commands in place
of picking, entity numbers, or “ALL” label
• Any selected group of entities (nodes, elements, keypoints, etc.) can

be defined as a component.
– only one entity type can be associated with any one component
• Components can be selected or unselected (CMSEL command)
• Component Manager is used to manage Components.

Basics
Creating Components Customer Training Material
• Utility Menu > Select > Component Manager

• Pick “Create Component” Icon and enter a name
– Up to 32 characters: letters, numbers, and the
underscore character ( _) are allowed
– Beginning a component name with an
underscore creates a “hidden” component
• used internally by ANSYS development
• NOT recommended for users
– Common to use the first or last letter of the
name to indicate the entity type.
• e.g., N_FLANGE for a nodal component.

Basics
Assemblies Customer Training Material
• Assemblies are groups of Components
• To creating an assembly
– Activate Component Manager
– Highlight the desired components
– Click on the Create Assembly Icon and enter a name
– Note: checking the box next to a component under the assembly number
will also put a component in an assembly

Basics
Workshop Customer Training Material
• Refer to your Workshop Supplement for instructions on:

WS5A Select Logic and Component Management


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Customer Training Material

ANSYS, Inc. Proprietary Release 13.0

Overview Customer Training Material

• This chapter introduces the following techniques used to

ANSYS, Inc. Proprietary Release 13.0

Plotting Customer Training Material

• It is often advantageous to plot only certain

ANSYS, Inc. Proprietary Release 13.0

PloCtrls Menu Customer Training Material

• “PlotCtrls” menu controls how the plot is displayed

• Changing the plot orientation (/VIEW) and zooming

ANSYS, Inc. Proprietary Release 13.0

Control Methods Customer Training Material

• Several methods available to manipulate model view.

ANSYS, Inc. Proprietary Release 13.0

Dynamic Mode Customer Training Material

• Dynamic mode uses Control key and mouse buttons.

– Ctrl + Left mouse button pans the model.

• Note: the Shift-Right button on a two-button mouse is

ANSYS, Inc. Proprietary Release 13.0

Model Control Toolbar Customer Training Material

• Model Control Toolbar Icons can be used to manipulate the model.

Dynamic Model Mode Icon performs

Pan-Zoom-Rotate Customer Training Material

• Dynamic Mode setting is also available

With 3-D driver

ANSYS, Inc. Proprietary Release 13.0

Pan-Zoom-Rotate Customer Training Material

• Other functions in the Pan-

ANSYS, Inc. Proprietary Release 13.0

Plotting with RMB Customer Training Material

• Many of the plotting features are also available by RMB in the

ANSYS, Inc. Proprietary Release 13.0

Picking Customer Training Material

• Picking can be used to identify model entities or

• A picking operation typically involves the use of

• For example, you can create keypoints by picking

ANSYS, Inc. Proprietary Release 13.0

Type of Picking Customer Training Material

• Note: must hit the <Enter> key after entering

ANSYS, Inc. Proprietary Release 13.0

Mouse Buttons for Picking Customer Training Material

• Left mouse button picks (or unpicks) the entity or

• Right mouse button toggles between pick and unpick

Note: Shift-Right button on a two-button mouse is equivalent

ANSYS, Inc. Proprietary Release 13.0

Entering Picking Values Customer Training Material

Cannot use the Command Line to enter values

Type input followed by Enter, then [OK]

Prompt area indicates expected items

ANSYS, Inc. Proprietary Release 13.0

Hotspot Locations Customer Training Material

• To “pick” an entity - pick the hotspot

• Areas and Volumes have one hotspot near the centroid

ANSYS, Inc. Proprietary Release 13.0

Coordinate Systems Customer Training Material

• MAPDL has several types of coordinate systems

– Display coordinate systems control how entities are listed or displayed.

– Nodal coordinate systems define the degree of freedom directions at each

– Element coordinate systems control the orientation of material properties

– Results coordinate systems control the system used for post-processing

ANSYS, Inc. Proprietary Release 13.0

Global Coordinate Systems Customer Training Material

• Global reference system for the model.