In the Steel Joint add-on, you can use not only the usual member types of "Beam", "Truss", and so on, but also the member type of "Result Beam", as well as cross-sections from surface elements. You should select a suitable cross-section for the result beam and then define any member openings in the surface model using the member editor.
The "Surface Contact" component in the Steel Joints add-on allows you to take into account a pressure contact between two parallel plates/member plates. Furthermore, you can optionally consider the friction between the surfaces.
In the Dlubal Center, there is an extensive library with connections available for the Steel Joints add-on.
You can access this library directly from the add-on and assign the predefined connections to the corresponding nodes. You can also save user-defined connections in the library in Dlubal Center.
In the Steel Joint add-on, you can arrange plates in various geometry shapes. In addition to the "Rectangle" and "Circle" shapes, the "Polygon" shape is also available. The polygonal shape is defined by entering the point coordinates.
The "Stub" component is available to you in the Steel Joints add-on. It allows you to extend a member using a purlin joint with another member (stub) and to connect it to a reference component.
In the Steel Joint add-on, you can define several ribs at the same time on one member or plate. The distribution can be carried out according to an orthogonal and a polar pattern.
The "Base Plate" component allows you to design base plate connections with cast-in anchors. In this case, plates, welds, anchorages, and steel-concrete interaction are analyzed.
The seismic design result is categorized into two sections: member requirements and connection requirements.
The "Seismic Requirements" include the Required Flexural Strength and the Required Shear Strength of the beam-to-column connection for moment frames. They are listed in the ‘Moment Frame Connection by Member’ tab. For braced frames, the Required Connection Tensile Strength and the Required Connection Compressive Strength of the brace are listed in the ‘Brace Connection by Member’ tab.
The program provides the performed design checks in tables. The design check details clearly display the formulas and references to the standard.
Using the "Rib" component, you can define any number of longitudinal ribs on a member plate. By defining a reference object, you can automatically specify welds on it.
The "Rib" component can also be arranged on circular hollow sections. This requires an additional definition of the angle between the ribs.
You can now insert a cap plate in Steel Joints with just a few clicks. You can enter the data using the known definition types "Offsets" or "Dimensions and Position". By specifying a reference member and the cutting plane, it is also possible to omit the Member Cut component.
This component allows you to easily model cap plates on column ends, for example.
The modal relevance factor (MRF) can help you to assess to which extent specific elements participate in a specific mode shape. The calculation is based on the relative elastic deformation energy of each individual member.
The MRF can be used to distinguish between local and global mode shapes. If multiple individual members show significant MRFs (for example, > 20%), the instability of the entire structure or a substructure is very likely. On the other hand, if the sum of all MRFs for an eigenmode is around 100%, a local stability phenomenon (for example, buckling of a single bar) can be expected.
Furthermore, the MRF can be used to determine critical loads and equivalent buckling lengths of certain members (for example, for stability design). Mode shapes for which a specific member has small MRF values (for example, < 20%) can be neglected in this context.
The MRF is displayed by mode shape in the result table under Stability Analysis → Results by Members → Effective Lengths and Critical Loads.
You can use the "Plate Cut" component to cut plates (for example, gusset plates, fin plates, and so on). Various cutting methods are available:
Plane: The cut is performed on the closest surface to the reference plate.
Surface: Only the intersecting parts of plates are cut.
Bounding Box: The outermost dimension consisting of width and height is cut out of the plate as a rectangle.
Convex Hull: The outer hull of the cross-section is used for the plate cut. If there are fillets at the corner nodes of the cross-section, the cut is adapted to them.
Plates and structural elements can be precisely cut using the "Auxiliary Solid" component in the Steel Joint add-on. Within this component, you can use the shapes of a box, a cylinder, or any cross-section as a guide object.
In the Steel Joints add-on, you can connect circular hollow sections using welds.
It is possible to connect the circular sections to each other or to planar structural components. The fillets of standard and thin-walled sections can also be connected with a weld.
The Concrete Design add-on allows you to perform the seismic design of reinforced concrete members according to EC 8. This includes, among other things, the following functionalities:
Seismic design configurations
Differentiation of the ductility classes DCL, DCM, DCH
Option to transfer the behavior factor from a dynamic analysis
Check of the limit value for the behavior factor
Capacity design checks of "Strong column - weak beam"
Detailing and particular rules for curvature ductility factor
Detailing and particular rules for local ductility