Structural Temperature Loads
Click > to create a thermal load resulting from a temperature change over a geometric entity or a set of geometric entities. You can apply the load uniformly across the selection geometry, use a function of coordinates to define the spatial variation or use an externally calculated temperature field. The load can be applied to edges or datum curves, faces, surfaces, volumes or the entire model. If your model is an assembly, you can apply the structural load to specific assembly components.
When you click > , the Structural Temperature Load dialog box opens. The following items are displayed on the dialog box:
• Name—The name of the load.
• Member of Set—The name of the
load set. You can select an existing load set from the drop-down list, or create a new set by clicking
New to display the
Load Set Definition dialog box.
• References—Selects the entity to which you want to apply the load. You can select edges or curves on the model, faces, surfaces or volumes, or the entire model. If you have selected valid geometric references before opening the dialog box, your selections appear in the References collector when the dialog box opens. Otherwise, select valid geometric entities after you open the dialog box.
| You need to define a beam on an edge or curve to which you want to apply a structural temperature load. Similarly you need to define a shell for a surface to which you want to apply a structural temperature load. |
• Entity Temperature—Specifies the temperature to which you wish to bring the geometric entity as well as the spatial variation you want Creo Simulate to use.
◦ Spatial Variation—Defines load distribution. The following options are available:
▪ Uniform—The load is uniformly distributed over the entity.
▪ Function Of Coordinates—Click
to select an existing function or create a new function. The temperature load distribution varies as per the defined function. The function is multiplied by
Value to calculate the entity temperature.
▪ External Field—Select this option to import an externally calculated or measured temperature field defined in a specific text file. The external temperature field must contain connectivity of a linear solid element mesh, node locations, and temperature values at the nodes. External field is multiplied by Value to calculate the temperature. This option is not available in FEM mode.
File—Specifies the name of your external temperature file that defines the temperature field. Alternatively, click the selection button and
Creo Simulate displays a dialog box where you can select an external temperature file with the
FEM Neutral Format (FNF).
Creo Simulate adds a .fnf extension to your external temperature field file.
◦ Value—For uniform spatial variation specify the temperature you want the entity to be at. You can enter a real number or an expression incorporating Creo Parametric parameters. For function of coordinates and external field, the function or external field is multiplied by value to calculate the temperature.
• Reference Temperature—Specify the zero stress temperature of the referenced region in your model. The reference temperature is the stress-free temperature of the model—it could be room temperature or some other temperature that is the normal or no load temperature of the model.
The difference between the entity temperature and the reference temperature is the amount of temperature change over the referenced region of the model.