Tutorial A8: Define Properties and Mesh

In this task, we select materials and material properties for the three parts of this assembly, apply physical properties (idealizations) to the parts, and mesh the model.

To define materials

1. In the Model tree, right-click Materials > New.
2. In the Material dialog, click Select Material. The Material DB dialog will show some available material libraries.
3. Expand the Autodesk Material Library, select Copper, and click OK. This material will be chosen for the Billet.
   
4. Click the Nonlinear button, then in the Nonlinear Material Data dialog select Elasto-Plastic (Bi-Linear). Click OK in this dialog and OK to close the Material dialog.
5. In the Model tree, right-click Materials > New again.
6. In the Material dialog, click Select Material, expand the Autodesk Material Library, select Alloy Steel, and in the Material dialog, rename it to Alloy Steel_Base Rigid.
7. In the third column of the Material dialog, select Rigid. Doing this tells the analysis code to treat the bottom base plate part as a rigid body. The code will compute the center of mass and inertial properties of the part.
8. In the lower left corner of the Material dialog, click the Duplicate button. The Alloy Steel_Rigid Base material is added to the model, and the Material dialog remains open for definition of a third material.
9. Click Select Material, expand the Autodesk Material Library, and again select Alloy Steel.
10. In the Material dialog, rename the material to Alloy Steel_Top Plate, and deselect the Rigid option.
11. Click OK to close the dialog.

To define idealizations

1. In the Model tree, under Idealizations, delete any existing Solid materials, then right-click Solids > New.
2. In the Idealizations dialog, set the following values:
   • Name: Solid 1_Rigid Plate
   • Type: Solid Elements
   • Material: Alloy Steel_Base Rigid
3. Select Associated Geometry, then click the base of the model to apply this idealization.
   
4. In the lower left of the Idealizations dialog, click the New button and set the following values for the Copper billet:
   • Name: Solid 2_Copper Billet
   • Type: Solid Elements
   • Material: Copper
5. Select Associated Geometry, then click the middle part of the model to apply this idealization.
6. Again click the New button and set the following values for the Top Plate:
   • Name: Solid 3_Top Plate
   • Type: Solid Elements
   • Material: Alloy Steel_Top Plate
7. Select Associated Geometry, then click the top part of the model to apply this idealization.
8. Click OK to close the Idealizations dialog.

To mesh the model

1. In the Assembly tree, right-click Mesh Model > Edit.
   
2. In the Mesh Settings dialog, set Element Size to 0.25 mm, Element Order to Parabolic, deselect Continuous Meshing, then click Generate Mesh to generate the mesh.
3. Click OK to close the dialog.