Rigid Connector
The Rigid Connector is a boundary condition for modeling rigid regions and kinematic constraints such as prescribed rigid rotations. A rigid connector can connect an arbitrary combination of boundaries, edges, and points which all will move together as being attached to a virtual rigid object.
You can add the Rigid Connector node at the boundary, edge, and point levels.
When the selection consists of boundaries only, you can also choose to remove the assumption of rigidity, while still respecting force and moment equilibrium. With this formulation, it is possible to avoid artificial constraint effects at the connected boundaries.
If the study step is geometrically nonlinear, the rigid connector takes finite rotations into account.
Similar rigid connector features are available also in the Beam and Shell interfaces. Rigid connectors from Beam, Shell, and Solid Mechanics interfaces can be attached to each other by coupling their translational or rotational degrees of freedom manually.
You can add functionality to the rigid connector through the following subnodes:
Applied Force (Rigid Connector) to apply a force in given point.
Mass and Moment of Inertia (Rigid Connector) to add extra mass and moment of inertia in a given point.
Spring Foundation (Rigid Connector) to add a translational or rotational spring or damper in a given point.
The Rigid Connector node is only available with some COMSOL products (see http://www.comsol.com/products/specifications/).
Layer Selection
This section is only present in the in the Layered Shell interface, where it is described in the documentation for the Rigid Connector and Rigid Connector, Interface nodes.
Boundary Selection
This section is present when the Rigid Connector node has been added at the boundary level. Select one or more boundaries to be part of the rigid region.
Edge Selection
This section is present in 3D when the Rigid Connector node has been added at the boundary or edge level, and Connection Type is Rigid.
When the Rigid Connector is added at the edge level, select one or more edges that form part of the rigid region.
When the Rigid Connector is added at the boundary level, this section is initially collapsed. Here, you can add optional edges to the rigid region. The edges can not be adjacent to the selected boundaries.
Point Selection
This section is always present when Connection Type is Rigid.
When the Rigid Connector is added at the point level, select a number of points that form the rigid region.
When the Rigid Connector is added at the boundary or edge levels this section is initially collapsed. Here, you can add optional points to the rigid region. The points can not be adjacent to the selected boundaries or edges.
Pair Selection
If this node is selected from the Pairs menu, choose the pair to use. An identity pair has to be created first. The rigid connector applies to the common part of the boundaries, and makes the parts behave as if there were an infinitely stiff layer between them.
Coordinate System Selection
The Global coordinate system is selected by default. The Coordinate system list contains any applicable coordinate systems that the model includes. Prescribed displacements and rotations are specified along the axes of this coordinate system. It is also used for defining the axis directions of the moment of inertia tensor of the Mass and Moment of Inertia subnode.
Connection Type
Select Rigid or Flexible. When the connection type is rigid, the whole rigid connector acts as a virtual rigid object. In the flexible formulation, the selected boundaries are allowed to have internal deformations, and the kinematic constraints are fulfilled only in an average sense. The flexible formulation is useful for example when applying loads, since it will reduce local constraint effects.
If a selected boundary is located on a rigid domain, the connection type setting does not matter. The rigid formulation is always used,
The Connection Type section is shown only when the Rigid Connector has been added at the boundary level.
When the connection type has been set to Flexible, the Edge Selection and Point Selection sections are hidden.
If, however, an existing solver sequence was generated while Connection Type was set to Rigid, and you then change to Flexible, no such scaling will be present. In this case, you either have to regenerate the solver sequence, or set the scaling manually under the Dependent Variables node in each study step.
Center of Rotation
The center of rotation serves two purposes.
Select a Center of rotationAutomatic, Centroid of selected entities, or User defined.
For Automatic the center of rotation is at the geometrical center of the selected geometrical objects of the highest geometrical dimension.
For Centroid of selected entities select an Entity levelBoundary, Edge, or Point. The available choices depend on physics interface and geometrical dimension. The center of rotation is located at the centroid of the selected entities, which do not need to be related to the rigid connector itself. As a special case, you can select a single point, and thus use that point as center of rotation.
For User defined, in the Global coordinates of center of rotation XC table enter coordinates based on space dimension.
Select the Offset check box to add an optional offset vector to the definition of the center of rotation. Enter values for the offset vector Xoffset.
The center of rotation used is the sum of the vector obtained from any of the input methods and the offset vector.
Prescribed Displacement at Center of Rotation
To define a prescribed displacement at the center of rotation for each space direction, select one or several of the available check boxes then enter values or expressions for the prescribed displacements. The direction coordinate names can vary depending on the selected coordinate system.
For 3D components: Prescribed in z direction u0z
Prescribed Rotation at Center of Rotation
Specify the rotation at the center of rotation. Select from the By list: Free (the default), Constrained rotation, or Prescribed rotation at center of rotation.
For 2D components, the Constrained rotation and Prescribed rotation at center of rotation is always about the z-axis, so no component selection is necessary.
Constrained Rotation (3D Components)
For Constrained rotation select one or more of the available check boxes to enforce zero rotation about the corresponding axis in the selected coordinate system:
Constrain rotation about x-axis
Constrain rotation about y-axis
Constrain rotation about z-axis
Prescribed Rotation at Center of Rotation
For Prescribed rotation at center of rotation enter an Angle of rotation φ0. For 3D components also enter an Axis of rotation Ω for the x, y, and z coordinates.
Reaction Force Settings
Select Evaluate reaction forces to compute the reaction force caused by a prescribed motion. The default is to not compute the reaction force. When selected, the prescribed motion is implemented as a weak constraint.
Select Apply reaction only on rigid body variables to use a unidirectional constraint for enforcing a prescribed motion. The default is that bidirectional constraints are used. This setting is useful in a situation where a bidirectional constraint would give an unwanted coupling in the equations. This would happen if the prescribed value of the motion is a variable solved for in other equations.
Constraint Settings
On the boundaries where the rigid connector are coupled to a flexible material, all nodes on that boundary are constrained to move as a rigid body. As a default these constraints are implemented as pointwise constraints. If you want to use a weak constraint formulation, select Use weak constraints for rigid-flexible connection.
You can add a Harmonic Perturbation subnode for specifying a harmonic variation of the values of the prescribed displacements and rotations in a frequency domain analysis of perturbation type.
Assembly with a Hinge: Application Library path Structural_Mechanics_Module/Connectors_and_Mechanisms/hinge_assembly
Location in User Interface
Context Menus
Solid Mechanics>Connections>Rigid Connector
Solid Mechanics>Edges>Rigid Connector
Solid Mechanics>Points>Rigid Connector
Layered Shell>Face and Domain Constraints, Interfaces>Rigid Connector, Interface
Layered Shell>Connections>Rigid Connector
Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Connector
Multibody Dynamics>Edges>Rigid Connector
Multibody Dynamics>Points>Rigid Connector
Ribbon
Physics tab with Solid Mechanics selected:
Boundaries>Connections>Rigid Connector
Edges>Solid Mechanics>Rigid Connector
Points>Solid Mechanics>Rigid Connector
Physics tab with  Layered Shell selected:
Boundaries>Interfaces>Rigid Connector, Interface
Edges>Connections>Rigid Connector
Physics tab with Multibody Dynamics selected:
Boundaries>Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Connector
Edges>Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Connector
Points>Multibody Dynamics>Rigid Connector