Selecting the Physics Interface
The structural mechanics products contain a number of physics interfaces for a wide range of applications. This section contains some guidelines for how to select an appropriate physics interface for your analysis.
The basic physics interfaces for structural mechanics are:
Solid Mechanics — General modeling of objects with extension in all directions
Shell and Plate — For objects which are thin in one direction, but have significant bending stiffness
Membrane — For objects which are thin in one direction, and have negligible bending stiffness
Beam — For objects where two directions have significantly smaller dimensions than the third; significant bending stiffness
Truss — For objects where two directions have significantly smaller dimensions than the third; only axial forces can be transmitted