Load variation is based upon a scalar surface. This allows three dimensional load variation. The variation has linear and quadratic distance weighted formulation so the distribution may not be exactly identical, but the load distribution will be very close. The use of the quadratic/parabolic distance weighted formulation allows less data points to be used for a “better” distribution.
This will be available in the Load form when you click on the Advanced Options button.
Consider a plate to which you want to apply a distributed load as shown in the images below.
Define a unit load along the edge.
Check the Variable Load Definition box. Points and vertices may be used as Selected Entities, so it may be beneficial to create reference geometry when creating a variable load distribution for future models.
Click the Add button to add the three dimensional locations to the table.
The first point has a scalar value of 0.0 and the second point has a scalar value of 5.0. Double-click in the Scalar boxes to enter a value.
Notice that the curve is not a perfect linear curve, but parabolic. Based upon the dimensions above, it can be verified that the total load is 2.5.
Notice that you will not be able to see the load arrows as the third point is missing for the surface. Select the third point and add it to the list and enter the same value of 5.0 as shown in the image below.
To define a variable load on cylindrical surfaces (ex: bearing load), it is recommended to use the Linear option rather than Linear (Equation Based), as shown in the image below.
To define a hydrostatic variable load, it is recommended to use the Linear (Equation Based) option rather than Linear, as shown in the image below
Using the same scalar surface points on a surface creates the following load distribution. The load distribution levels off to 1.0 (the unit value) the further the location from the data points.