Fields

Use the Fields tool to create a compliant connection between two bodies where stiffness or damping in one direction can be a function of displacement in another direction.

For information on how to add or edit an entity like a field, see Entity Creation.

Field Properties

Descriptions of field properties in the Property Editor.

Table 1.
Property Name		Description
General
Name		Name of the entity
Variable Name		The variable name, a unique identifier string of the entity
ID		A unique identifying integer If the field is a pair entity, separate IDs are set for the Left and Right sides.
Part 1		First part on which field is applied.
Part 2		Second part on which the field reacts.
Origin		Location where the field is applied
Symmetry		To make the entity symmetric about the x-z plane, set Symmetry to LEFT or RIGHT. The side on the positive y-axis is considered the RIGHT side and will act as the leader if selected. The opposite side will follow. To make the entity asymmetric, set Symmetry to NONE. For more information, see Pairs and Symmetric Modeling in Inspire Motion.
Stiffness Symmetry		If the field is a pair entity, select whether you want the stiffness values to be symmetric by selecting either the left or right side to be the "leader" so the other side will follow the values on the leader side.
Damping Symmetry		If the field is a pair entity, select whether you want the damping values to be symmetric by selecting either the left or right side to be the "leader" so the other side will follow the values on the leader side.
Preload Symmetry		If the field is a pair entity, select whether you want the preload values to be symmetric by selecting either the left or right side to be the "leader" so the other side will follow the values on the leader side.
Length Symmetry		If the field is a pair entity, select whether you want the length values to be symmetric by selecting either the left or right side to be the "leader" so the other side will follow the values on the leader side.
Properties
Stiffness		Enter stiffness values for each of the 36 fields of the array, which represents a 6x6 matrix. The stiffness values along the diagonal of the matrix represent stiffness in the direction of displacement, whereas the other values represent cross-coupling stiffness.
Preload		Enter initial forces along the six primary directions of the field connection.
Freelength		Enter initial free lengths along the six primary directions of the field connection.
Damping Type		Damping allows you to enter damping values into an array representation of a 6x6 matrix or enter a single ratio value. The damping values along the diagonal of the matrix represent stiffness in the direction of velocity, whereas the other values represent cross-coupling damping. Select one of the following options from the dropdown and then edit their respective fields: MATRIX CRATIO
Damping		If Damping Type is set to MATRIX, enter a damping value in each of the 36 fields of the array. The rows and columns of the matrix are, from the top left: X, Y, Z, Rx, Ry, Rz.
Cratio		If Damping Type is set to CRATIO, enter a value in the field and the given fraction is applied to the damping.
Orientation
Method		Select the method of orientation from the dropdown: Orient two axes: Specify two axes. The second axis is constrained to a plane. Orient one axis: Specify one axis. The other axes are oriented automatically. Orient by angles: Define orientation using Euler angles relative to a reference point.
	1st Axis	Shown if Orientation Method is set to Orient one axis or Orient two axes.
	Direction	Select X, Y, or Z Axis
	Method	Point Vector DxDyDz
	Point	Shown if 1st Axis Method is set to Point.
	Vector	Shown if 1st Axis Method is set to Vector.
	Dx	Shown if 1st Axis Method is set to DxDyDz. Enter the x-coordinate.
	Dy	Shown if 1st Axis Method is set to DxDyDz. Enter the y-coordinate.
	Dz	Shown if 1st Axis Method is set to DxDyDz. Enter the z-coordinate.
	2nd Axis	Shown if Orientation Method is set to Orient two axes.
	Direction	Select X, Y, or Z Axis
	Method	Point Vector DxDyDz
	Point	Shown if 2nd Axis Method is set to Point.
	Vector	Shown if 2nd Axis Method is set to Vector.
	Dx	Shown if 2nd Axis Method is set to DxDyDz. Enter the x-coordinate.
	Dy	Shown if 2nd Axis Method is set to DxDyDz. Enter the y-coordinate.
	Dz	Shown if 2nd Axis Method is set to DxDyDz. Enter the z-coordinate.
Z		Shown if Orientation Method is set to Orient by angles. Enter the angle in degrees.
X'		Shown if Orientation Method is set to Orient by angles. Enter the angle in degrees.
Z''		Shown if Orientation Method is set to Orient by angles. Enter the angle in degrees.
Reference		Shown if Orientation Method is set to Orient by angles.
Left		If the field is a pair entity, the previous Properties, Orientation, and Signal sections are repeated for each side.
Right		If the field is a pair entity, the previous Properties, Orientation, and Signal sections are repeated for each side.
Signal
User-defined		Use a subroutine to define the field. For User expr, provide an expression with the USER solver function with parameters being passed to the user subroutine. Turn on Use local file and function name to provide a local file for the subroutine. Otherwise, Inspire Motion will search for the subroutine within its search path. Specify a Local file where the subroutine code can be accessed by the solver. If this option is not specified, the application will search for a subroutine following its user subroutine loading rules. Note: The type of file to be specified will depend on the selected function type. For example, if DLL/SO is selected, you can specify a file with a `.dll` extension (for Windows) or an `.so` extension (for Linux). Select a Function type from the dropdown menu: DLL/SO Python MatLab Compose Specify the Function name in the subroutine that defines the entity, or accept the default name provided by the application.