You can replace a connecting rod of an assembly with a linkage rod
connector to reduce the mesh size and speed-up the simulation. Specify the geometric
entities to which you attach the linkage rod connector and the support conditions of the
connector's end joints.
The linkage rod connector is available with SOLIDWORKS Simulation
Professional and SOLIDWORKS Simulation Premium.
The representation of a linkage rod connector is a beam element with two
end joints that connect a linkage rod to other parts of an assembly. The type of support
for the end joints can be rigid, pivot, or spherical depending on the actual mounting
configuration of a linkage rod connector.
The connector's two end joints are located at the center of the selected
cylindrical faces or circular edges. A distributed coupling formulation connects the
beam's end joints (reference nodes) to all the coupling nodes of the face, edge, or
vertex to which the linkage rod connector is attached. Distributing coupling constrains
the motion of the coupling nodes to the translation and rotation of the reference nodes.
The coupling nodes are located within a radius of influence (radius of a circular rod or
the square root [width x depth] of a rectangular rod). The distributed coupling produces
more realistic stress and displacement fields at the connector's joints.
After running a simulation with linkage rod connectors, you can list the
connectors' forces, such as shear force, axial force, bending moment, and torque. A
negative axial force indicates that the linkage rod connector is under compression.
Right-click Results
and click List Connector Force.
The linkage rod connector is not available for nonlinear and thermal studies.
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| In this five-bar mechanism, you can
replace the top rod with a linkage rod connector that has a solid
circular cross-section and two pivot end joints. |
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| Displacement plot for a five-bar
mechanism. The undeformed shape (light yellow) is superimposed on the
deformed shape. |
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| Displacement plot for a four-bar
mechanism with a linkage rod connector that replaces the top rod. The
two displacement plots are identical. |