The structural analysis software RFEM 6 is the basis of a modular software system. The main program RFEM 6 is used to define structures, materials, and loads of planar and spatial structural systems consisting of plates, walls, shells, and members. The program also allows you to create combined structures as well as to model solid and contact elements.
RSTAB 9 is a powerful analysis and design software for 3D beam, frame, or truss structure calculations, reflecting the current state of the art and helping structural engineers meet requirements in modern civil engineering.
Do you often spend too long calculating cross-sections? Dlubal Software and the RSECTION stand-alone program facilitate your work by determining section properties of various cross-sections and performing a subsequent stress analysis.
Do you always know where the wind is blowing from? From the direction of innovation, of course! With RWIND 2, you have a program at your side that uses a digital wind tunnel for the numerical simulation of wind flows. The program simulates these flows around any building geometry and determines the wind loads on the surfaces.
Are you looking for an overview of snow load zones, wind zones, and seismic zones? Then you are in the right place. Use the Geo-Zone Tool to determine quickly and efficiently snow loads, wind speeds, and seismic data according to ASCE 7‑16 and other international standards.
Would you like to try out the capabilities of the Dlubal Software programs? You have the opportunity to do so! The free 90-day full version allows you to thoroughly test all our programs.
Saving Graphic Template
Once you have assigned the concrete material and activated the design properties in the member input dialog box, the display of the reinforcement layout for the selected member is available.
In the Display Reinforcement Layout window, you can proceed as follows. 1. Use the options in the menu bar to customize the display according to your preferences. 2. This configuration can send "Directly to a printer" as a template.3. When saving the template, it is stored globally and is also available for future models.
Multi Print of Reinforcement Layout for Selected Members
Use this graphic template to print the reinforcement of any members with a similarly formatted reinforcement layout in a multi print.
In the RSECTION program, you can analyze general steel or aluminum cross-sections and determine the effective section properties. For this, you need the Effective Sections program extension of RSECTION. If you have licensed this add-on, you can activate the Effective Section option for the calculation in the Base Data of the cross-section.
Then, define the standard according to which the calculation should be performed. Currently, the following options are available:
The effective section properties depend on the internal forces of the cross-section. Therefore, create a load case and define one or more internal force constellations.
After the calculation, the effective section properties are displayed in the table. In the graphic, you can check the stresses on the effective section.
Once you have saved the cross-section, you can import it into RFEM or RSTAB to use it for further analyses.
The webinar Determination of Section Properties and Stress Analysis in RSECTION shows the modeling and calculation of a cold-formed section. You can find further information there.
Both RFEM and RSTAB provide solution: There are numerous European and international standards as well as add-ons available for both programs that can facilitate your daily design work of aluminum and lighweight structures.
Main Programs RFEM and RSTAB
The main programs RFEM and RSTAB are used to define the model with its properties and actions. In addition to spatial beam structures, such as scaffolding or frame structures, you can also model membrane structures with RFEM. Thus, RFEM is the more versatile variant—especially if you work in other areas, such as solid construction.
Available Standards
Add-ons for Aluminum and Lightweight Structure
Design add-ons supplement the functionality of the main programs. Use the Aluminum Design add-on to perform the ultimate and serviceability limit state design, as well as the stability analysis according to the standards listed above. The Torsional Warping (7 DOF) add-on allows you to also perform lateral-torsional buckling analysis with up to seven degrees of freedom.
The design checks can be carried out for a large number of standardized and parameterized cross-sections. Lightweight structures often includes special cross-sections, such as extruded sections. You can define it with the program RSECTION and use it for the design in RFEM or RSTAB.
In the case of membrane and cable structures, the Form-Finding add-on facilitates your task to determine the shape of member and surface models subjected to axial forces.
In case of any questions about the Dlubal solution for aluminum and lightweight structures, our sales team will be happy to assist you.
A splice connection using end plates can be easily created using the “Plate to Plate” template from the Components library (Image 01).
For a splice joint without end plates, the configuration can be created manually by adding individual components (Image 02).
The configuration includes the following components. Each component can be easily deleted or copied by right-clicking on the component.
It is required that a small gap is created using “Member Cut” and “Auxiliary Plane”. The gap is divided between the two members (that is, 1/16” gap is applied as 1/32” displacement to each member).
Alternatively, a sample model “AISC Splice Connection” can be downloaded and saved as a user-defined template (Image 03).
By default, the Shear plane in thread option is activated and the lower strength according to the selected design standard is considered for the bolt shear check.
In AISC, the bolt nominal shear strengths are listed in Table J3.2. As an example, Group A (for example, A325) bolt has a nominal shear strength of 54 ksi (372 MPa) when the threads are not excluded from the shear planes. To use the higher strength of 68 ksi (469 MPa), the option can be unchecked to exclude threads from the shear planes.
If line hinges are to be defined on several boundary lines of surfaces at the same time, the following procedure is recommended:
Update: It is not necessary to click the "+" sign. After selecting a surface and the corresponding lines, you can simply select the next surface and the corresponding lines, and so on.
To create an imperfection based on a mode shape, the Structure Stability Add-on is required. In this way, mode shapes can be determined for a load case or a load combination based on its axial force state. The resulting mode shape can be selected and scaled after creating an imperfection case. The video shows the procedure.
It can happen that all design checks are fulfilled for a particular member or set of members, but a "Not Covered Reinforcement" result is still output. See also Image 01 and Image 02.
The reason for this is that the distribution of the "Provided Reinforcement" on the upper and lower positions is generated from the rebar arrangement within the cross-section.
The rebars above the center of gravity are assigned to the "upper position" and the rebars below the center of gravity are assigned to the "lower position". This means that the distribution of the "Provided Reinforcement" does not consider the actual distribution of the zero line within the cross-section, and checks which rebar is actually in the tension zone.
However, the actual distribution of the zero line within the cross-section is checked during the design. Thus, the rebars that have been geometrically assigned to the "lower reinforcement" (the provided reinforcement distribution) can be mathematically assigned to the tension reinforcement. This can be seen in Image 03. The rebars marked in red have been assigned geometrically to the lower reinforcement. However, the stress distribution within the cross-section shows that they are also subjected to tension and apply to the design checks accordingly. In the design, all members (marked in red and green in Image 03) are applied. Therefore, all the design checks are fulfilled at this location, although the distribution of the "Not Covered Reinforcement" suggests otherwise.
Yes, this is possible in RFEM 6.First, check whether there is a printer with the DIN A0 format available in the Windows control panel. If so, this printer is available in the printer settings in RFEM 6.
You can find an example with a printout report in the DIN A0 format under Downloads.
The punching results can also be found in the Results navigator.The results are divided into the design checks "On Nodes" and the reinforcement "On Nodes".The punching loads as well as the distribution of the shear forces at the critical perimeter (smoothed and unsmoothed) are the intermediate results of the design checks and are arranged accordingly in this part of the navigator.