Parametric Structural Analysis

Comment

Comment by Sangsu Lee on June 25, 2010 at 9:50am

To Guy Balter,
There may be some misunderstanding. We use rhino and grasshopper as new kind of structural modeler for FEM analysis. It means we make our model with only curves(mostly lines) and plates, not with solid as it is in the BIM modeler like Revit. So the conversion process is rather simple. For example, the lines are converted to 1d elements(beams or curves) directly, generating end nodes automatically. However, for analysis, we have to provide it with some structural properties (like sectional and material properties) and structural boundary condistions and loadings, etc. Our main work is making all those things available parametrically to grasshopper as custom components.

Comment by Jon Mirtschin on June 25, 2010 at 8:59am

Great, well done. Are you planning on making these components available to the public?
For others interested in this, it seems very similar to components I've created for various Structural analysis programs, Sap2000, Oasys GSA, Autodesk Robot, SpaceGass, Strand7/Straus7, SCIA and shortly BIM neutral formats such as IFC, CIS/2, SDNF etc There's some updated examples (including plug-in builds) where you bake the elements and nodes to make them active, for the time being http://geometrygym.blogspot.com/2010/04/parametric-structure-models... is the best example. The plug-in is freely available to students, commercial companies can request an evaluation license (sorry to bomb your thread).

Comment by Guy Balter on June 25, 2010 at 8:14am

it looks very good and very useful.
can you please elaborate on the conversion process of the geometries into structural elements?

Comment by Sangsu Lee on June 25, 2010 at 7:04am

We've developed some custom components(Strauto) to build structural analysis model parametrically with grasshopper.
They convert geometries into structural elements and nodes and add structural properties. So all basic elements(beam, truss, and plate), sectional, material properties, boundary conditions, and point loads can be defined and transmitted seamlessly to the structural analysis progam (for the time being it is Sap2000).

Then Sap2000 instantly analyze the model and return the results to grasshopper.

We made the whole process fully automatic and parametric so that we can evaluate structural performances of many variations of one model in one go.

And now we are studying Genetic optimization of structure with this tool.
The possibility is really great.

Comment by skywoolf on June 25, 2010 at 4:12am

Good job!! Have any more information?

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