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Contact Visualization Plot

With a contact visualization plot, you can view how bodies are connected in multibody parts and assemblies. Before you run the analysis, you can detect the areas of contact applied by the global contact settings and any local contact sets.

To open the Contact Visualization Plot PropertyManager:

  • Right-click Connections icon_connections.gifand click Contact Visualization Plot UI_contact_visualization_plot.png, or
  • Click the down arrow on Connections Advisor tool_connections_simulation.gif (Simulation CommandManager) and click Contact Visualization Plot UI_contact_visualization_plot.png.

Select Components

Select either the assembly or components (two and more) to view the regions of contact.
Calculate Calculates all areas of contact between the selected components and renders them with a unique color according to the contact type. Lists all detected contact pairs under Results.
Include solver generated contacts (mesh required) Active after meshing the model. Select to view at the mesh level the areas of the model detected by the solver (before starting the analysis) with an assigned contact definition.
Contact Type Color Rendering
Bonded contact_code_red.png Red
No Penetration contact_code_purple.png Purple
Allow penetration (Free contact) contact_code_green.png Green
Shrink Fit contact_code_orange.png Orange
Virtual Wall contact_code_yellow.png Yellow
Thermal Contact Resistance contact_code_purple.png Purple
Insulated contact_code_green.png Green

Results

PM_geometry_based_contacts.png Show Geometry Based Contacts Toggles the visibility of the geometry-based contacts. When activated, renders the touching geometric entities (edges, faces or bodies) between the components participating in a contact definition (global or local).

All detected contact pairs are listed accordingly under Manual Contact or Global Contact.

  • Click a contact definition in the list to view the color rendering of the area of contact. The components associated with the contact definition are listed under each contact node.
  • Right-click a contact node, and select Zoom to Selection.
  • You can render one contact pair at a time, or click Show all contacts to render all contact sets simultaneously.
    The geometry-based contacts inlcude these areas of the components with touching geometric entities. To view a no-penetration contact set between faces that are not initially touching, select Include solver generated contacts (mesh required).
PM_solver_based_contacts.png Show Solver Based Contact Sets Toggles the visibility of the solver-based contacts. When activated, renders the areas of contact at the mesh element level detected by the solver before starting the analysis.
Show unselected bodies Active if you select components and not the whole assembly in Select Components.
geometry-based-contact.png solver-based-contact.png
Plot of geometry-based no-penetration contact. Rendering of the touching edge between the two components. Plot of solver-based no penetration contact. Rendering of mesh elements that participate in contact formulation.


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