Question

When editing elements via the COM interface, selecting elements is often a problem because it cannot be carried out visually via the work window. The selection can be particularly difficult for models that have been created via the program interface and are then to be modified using a separate program. Apart from the exception, when the selection was made previously via RFEM, there are several alternatives for programming.

RFEM and RSTAB are able to cover a large number of branches in the building and construction industry with their generally usable structural frame analysis and FEM programs. Designing cable structures is thus also possible in both software solutions. Some assistance tools for modeling and design will be presented in the following text.

RF-COM/RS-COM is a programmable interface that allows the user to expand the main programs RFEM and RSTAB with customized input macros or post‑processing programs. A tool to copy and move selected guidelines in RFEM will be developed in this article. It is also possible to copy or move the guidelines to another work plane. VBA in Excel will be used as the programming environment.

In the "Edit Section" dialog box, you can display the buckling shapes of the Finite Strip Method (FSM) as a 3D graphic.

In RFEM 6 and RSTAB 9, you have the option to enter "Visual Objects" as guide objects. You can import the file formats 3ds, stl, and obj.

These objects allow you to create a better reference to the dimensions.

Do you have individual column sections and angled wall geometries, and need punching shear design for them?

No problem. In RFEM 6, you can perform punching shear design not only for rectangular and circular sections, but for any cross-section shape.