Creating Gap Contacts

This feature enables you to create gap contacts between two tool parts. This tool automatically detects possible contacts in your model for the displayed parts.

Defining Surface Contacts

  1. Display the necessary tool parts where contacts need to be applied.


  2. From theTool Deflection ribbon, click the Contacts tool.

    Inspire Extrude automatically finds the contact region and displays the contact surface in blue. A guide bar is populated.


    Note: Inspire Extrude supports only contacts with Surfaces.
  3. Click the contact surface in the model.
    A microdialog to change the contact type will appear.


    Contact Type Details
    No Contact This contact type is not supported by Inspire Extrude. If selected, the behavior will be the same as Bonded contact type.
    Contacting In data deck creation, gap contact BCs will be created between the two parts.
    Bonded In data deck creation, connected mesh will be created between the two parts.
  4. Click Contacting to create gap contacts between the parts.

Auto Search Distance

This is a global search threshold that uses default tolerances to find locations where contacts can be created. When the checkbox is enabled, it is calculated automatically.
  1. Click the Find Options icon on the guide bar to change the Auto search distance.
  2. To change the search distance, deselect the checkbox and enter a value in the text box.

Any contacts with a minimum separation less than the entered search distance will be found. (The minimum separation is the exact minimum distance between the two parts.)

Friction Coefficient

You can define the friction coefficient between two parts using the Contacts table.

  1. Click the Tool Deflection tab.
  2. On the Contacts icon, click List Contacts.
  3. Right-click on the Property heading row.


  4. Select Frictional Value to enable it, and click OK.


  5. Define the friction coefficient for any contact with type Contacting.