Contacts reference

Contact dialog boxes

Access

Ribbon: Stress Analysis tab Contacts panel Automatic , or Manual .

Or, in the browser, right-click the Contacts node , and click Automatic Contacts or Manual Contacts.

Contact type

Available contact types differ based on the simulation type.

Selections

Specify the first contact edge or face.

Specify the second contact edge or face.

Specifies that you want to pick the part first, before the contact face. Useful when one or more parts lie atop one another and graphic selection is tedious.

Contact types

Bonded

Bonds contact faces to each other rigidly.

Separation

Separates contact faces partially or fully while sliding.

Sliding / No Separation

Bonds contact faces in normal to face direction while sliding under deformation.

Separation / No Sliding

Separates contact faces partially or fully without their sliding against each other.

Shrink Fit / Sliding

Provides conditions like 'Separation' with initial parts overlapping. The initial distance between the contact faces is negative.

Shrink Fit / No Sliding

Provides conditions of Separation/no sliding with initial parts overlapping, meaning negative initial distance

Spring

Creates equivalent springs between the two faces. You define total Normal and/or Tangential stiffness.

Normal Stiffness

Specifies the equivalent normal stiffness value. Applicable to Spring contact only.

Tangential Stiffness

Specifies the equivalent tangential stiffness value. Applicable to Spring contact only.Note: Normal and tangential directionality is based on the best approximation between the two faces that follow each other in a parallel way. Examples are parallel planes, concentric cylinders, and so on. Otherwise it can be ambiguous.

Edit Contact

Displays the Edit (Type) Contact dialog box so you can edit the contact type.

Suppress

Suppresses the select contact.