Load transfer at trimmed ends of beams

In many cases, we need to model only some detail (part) of a structural member, such as beam support, opening in the middle of the beam, etc. This approach can lead to support configurations that are unstable but admissible in IDEA StatiCa Detail (including the case of no supports). However, in such cases, it is also necessary to model the section representing the connection to the adjoining B-region, including internal forces at this section which satisfy the equilibrium. In certain cases (e.g., when modeling beam support), these internal forces can be determined automatically by the program.

Between B-region and the analyzed discontinuity region, a Saint-Venant transfer zone is automatically created to ensure a realistic stress distribution in the analyzed region. The width of the transfer zone is determined as half of the section’s depth. As the only purpose of the Saint-Venant zone is to achieve a proper stress distribution in the rest of the model, no results from this area are displayed in verification, and no stop criteria are considered here.

The edge of the Saint-Venant zone that represents the trimmed end of the beam is modeled as rigid, i.e., it may rotate, but must rest plane. This is done by connecting all the FEM nodes of the edge to a separate node at the center of inertia of the section using a rigid body element (RBE2). The internal forces of the element may then be applied at this node, as shown in Fig. 12.

\[ \textsf{\textit{\footnotesize{Fig. 12\qquad Transfer of internal forces at a trimmed end.}}}\]