Create Joint Hubs

Use the Joint Box tool to define junctions in your skeleton model.

Figure 1. Original Model


  1. From the Skeleton ribbon, click the Joint Box tool.
    Figure 2.


  2. Select the node or elements around which to create a bounding box.
    Any elements found within the box are used for joint creation.
    Figure 3.


  3. Click on the guide bar to define options.
    Create joint box
    Use the box as a mechanism to select elements to generate the joint location and legs.
    Remove joint legs
    Create a joint without the corresponding legs.
    Mesh member joint
    Automatically create 1D mesh on the joint legs and apply the beam sections.
    Auto weld section
    Will create an enclosed section by stitching flanges together.
    Auto detect thin solids
    Is a classification process of solid geometry to enhance the output of the member creation.
    Create sketch
    Will allow full ease-of-use edit capabilities in sketcher.
    Section cleanup
    Will remove overspill areas of a section to reduce the section to only what’s desired. The option will remove a large amount of manual cleanup.
    Figure 4.


    Figure 4 shows the current behavior without section cleanup. The over-capture of the section cut plane includes areas that are not desired. When the 1D mesh is created, the 1D sections include the over-capture which would need to be cleaned up manually.
    Figure 5.


    Figure 5 shows the behavior with the section cleanup capability enabled. Despite the section cut plane intersecting additional regions, those additional regions are filtered out automatically resulting in a clean output.
    Figure 6.


    In a real-world example, the difference between the two outputs is notable. The left side of Figure 6 is not using cleanup, while the right side of Figure 6 is using cleanup. The section cleanup capability will remove hours of manually cleaning up multiple sections.
    Dimensions

    Controls the length, width, and weight of the bounding box.

    Use orientation and dimensions
    For repeated operations, the previous box attribute information can be used so that the box can be created the same repeatedly.
  4. Edit the box size in the following ways:
    • Click in the microdialog to move the box globally.
    • Click in the microdialog to update the box's dimensions. You can click a face and drag its arrow or entire a precise value.
    Figure 7.


  5. If the member joint is being meshed, set the parameters in the microdialog drop-down.
    This automatically creates 1D mesh on the joint legs and applies the beamsections.
    Figure 8.


  6. Optional: Click the Exclude selector on the guide bar then pick entities to exclude from the joint if required.
  7. On the guide bar, click one of the following:
    • - Apply and stay in the tool
    • - Apply and close the tool
    • - Exit the tool without applying

Assign Beam Sections to Member Joints

Use the Assign tool if a member joint is created without a beam section or the beam section needs to be changed.

  1. From the Skeleton ribbon, Joint Box tool group, click the Assign tool.
    Figure 9.


  2. Select the member joint(s).
  3. Select the beam section to assign.
  4. On the guide bar, click one of the following:
    • - Apply and stay in the tool
    • - Apply and close the tool
    • - Exit the tool without applying