Using Advanced Springs
You can use an advanced spring to model a connection between two objects characterized by stiffness, and in FEM mode, by damping as well.
The characteristics of an advanced spring, such as its stiffness components, are evaluated regardless of the location of its ends, but only with regard to the X, Y, Z directions of its coordinate system.
Use these areas on the advanced version of the Spring Definition dialog box to define an advanced spring:
Properties—Use any stiffness properties previously defined for your model, or define new spring properties.
Orientation—Select a method to define the orientation of the spring properties. Advanced springs can have a zero length—that is, they can have coincident ends. An example might be a spring between a point on a surface and the surface itself.
For 2D zero length springs this area of the dialog box is modified to display two options. Refer to the topic Orientation for Zero Length Springs in 2D Models for details.
Additional Rotation—Type a real-number value for the number of degrees to rotate the spring's Y axis.
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You cannot define the orientation of the XY plane or specify additional rotation for 2D models.
To learn how the FEA solvers treat advanced springs, see ANSYS and MSC/NASTRAN.
Return to About Springs.