visualplate 5.0 user's guide - iesweb.com

1 Welcome

VisualPlate will help you solve a wide variety plate bending problems using any material. This powerful analysisprogram is designed to be flexible so that you can efficiently solve your unique problem. It automates much of the workinvolved in finite element modeling that can be tedious in a more general tool. The software will analyze your model todetermine stresses, moments, shears, and displacements using finite element analysis.

Getting Started

How-To Tutorial VideosUse File | Open Example to see sample projects.Feature ListProgram LayoutUpgrade Guide (what's new)FAQ Answers at iesweb.com for business, licensing, installation issues.Downloadable PDF Help file.

Help Notation

Menu items appear like this: File | New.

Keystrokes or mouse commands appear like this: Shift+Click.

Disclaimer

VisualPlate is a proprietary computer program of Integrated Engineering Software (IES, Inc.) of Bozeman, MT. Thisproduct is intended for use by licensed, practicing engineers who are educated in structural engineering, students in thisfield, and related professionals (e.g. Architects, Building Inspectors, Mechanical Engineers, etc.). Although every efforthas been made to ensure the accuracy of this program and its documentation, IES, Inc. does not accept responsibilityfor any mistake, error, or misrepresentation in, or as a result of, the usage of this program and its documentation.(Though we will make every effort to ensure that problems that we can correct are dealt with promptly.) The resultsobtained from the use of this program should not be substituted for sound engineering judgment.

License and Copy Restrictions

By installing VisualPlate on your computer, you become a registered user of the software. The VisualPlate program is thecopyrighted property of IES, Inc. and is provided for the exclusive use of each licensee. You may copy the program forbackup purposes and you may install it on any computer allowed in the license agreement. Distributing the program tocoworkers, friends, or duplicating it for other distribution violates the copyright laws of the United States. Futureenhancements and technical support depend on your cooperation in this regard. Additional licenses and/or copies ofVisualPlate may be purchased directly from IES, Inc.

IES, Inc.

Integrated Engineering Software, Inc.519 E. Babcock St.

VisualPlate 5.0 User's Guide

1 VisualPlate 5.0 User's Guide

https://www.iesweb.com/faq

https://www.iesweb.com/vp/5/vp5-users-guide.pdf

Bozeman, MT 59718Sales or Licensing: 406-586-8988, [email protected] Support: [email protected]



mailto:[email protected]


2 Key Features

Modeling

Quick-start with typical geometriesCreate any plate geometry by sketching boundariesImport from CAD for complex and detailed boundariesWork with column-lines to organize and modify structuresCreate plates with various thicknessesDefine line stiffeners (e.g. beams) with various shapes and material propertiesDefine point supports (e.g. columns)Define line supports (e.g. walls)Easily refine finite element meshCreate new model objects by copying existing items

Loading

Model objects can be loaded in multiple service load cases (e.g. Dead, Live, etc.)Automatic building code load combinations are availableIncludes IBC, ASCE, and NBC Load CombinationsCustomizable building code combinations (see Load Case Manager)Create custom load combinations in any projectApply point loads, line/distributed loads, and area load pressures to the structureCopy and paste loads to objectsCopy and scale loads to other load cases

Analysis

FEA model is constructed automatically by the softwareAutomated "background" analysis is fastPlate elements use a "thick-plate" formulation for accurate shear resultsAdvanced error-checking and reportingExport FEA model to VisualAnalysis to better understand model details or to perform a more sophisticatedanalysis

Reporting

Quick Full Report includes graphics and all details, with optionsCustom reporting to include just the information you needPrint Preview mode while working with reportsPaste any graphics into your reportCustomizable page margins, fonts, colorsUse your own company logo in report page headersPrint to any printer including PDFExport to text clipboard or save to other formats like .xlsx



General

3D GraphicsSimple, standard Windows interface for easy navigationUnlimited Undo & Redo commandsWork in any unit system, perform math on input, use custom unit 'styles'Program is self-documenting with tooltips on commands and input parametersNumerous preference settings for better defaultsFree training videos provided for learning efficiencyFree technical support email with fast, friendly turnaround

Limitations

Does not perform member design or check design specificationsDoes not produce structural drawingsCannot model a system of disconnected plates.

Be a Squeaky Wheel

If you need a new feature, please let us know. We are always looking for ways to improve products in ways that youdesire. See Technical Support.



3 Program Layout

Explore

The best way to learn VisualPlate is to poke around and try things yourself. Get to know what is available under eachbutton or menu. Also try the tutorial videos

Screen Layout

The image below introduces the program terminology used in the help or training videos. Panels may be resized bydragging their dividers or repositioned by dragging their title bars or right-clicking on the title. Use the "pushpin" iconto collapse panels temporarily to gain more space for working. Hold your mouse over the screen image below forinformation about each area of the program.

Main Menu / Toolbar

Each command on the menu or toolbar is accessed with a click. They have helpful descriptions or tool-tips available byhovering your mouse over the command.

Project Manager

Modify Tab: Use this tab to change properties of selected objects.Filter Tab(s): Use this tab to control what is shown or hidden in the active view.Drawing Grid: Define and show or hide drawing grids. These help you place or sketch objects in the Model andLoad view.



Graphic Views

These views provide a way to view the model, analysis results, and reports. Each tab displays different options and willprovide different information in the Project Manager and Find Tool. Some Graphic tabs will only appear based onobjects in your model, such as the Beam diagrams.

Project Status

This panel provides a quick update on what is done, what is in-progress, and whether things are working or failing inyour model or checks. Click on any item that is underlined for more information, a report, or a dialog containing quickactions.

Status Bar

Shows background meshing/analysis progress. Background processing is done on a separate thread of your processor,so you may continue working while they run. The only time you need to wait for the program is when the mouse cursorchanges into an hour-glass or if you wish to view the analysis or design checks that are currently in-progress. Detailedprogress bars are available for background activity by double-clicking on the status-bar at the bottom of the screen.

Find Tool

The Find Tool window provides an alternate way to view properties or results and to select items that may be difficult toselect graphically. You can sort the lists by clicking on header names. If you do not want or need this tool you maycollapse it using the "Push-pin" icon in the upper right corner.

Units & Precision

VisualPlate can display physical quantities in a variety of unit-systems, including your own custom setup. Select the unitsystem to use for all displayed values and adjust the precision (number of decimal places) using the controls in theupper right corner.

Data Entry: Physical Quantities

You may enter values in any unit: enter any number or math expression followed by a known abbreviation. Length unitsmay be entered in "ft-in-16ths" notation as well. Entered values are converted and then redisplayed in the current'display' units.

Mouse and Keyboard Commands

Selection:

Click to select (mouse hover indicates what object will be selected)Ctrl+Click to toggle object selection without affecting other objectsShift+Click to select all objects of a given type.Shift+Drag: draw a selection box (left-to right selects fully enclosed objects, right-to-left selects any partiallyenclosed objects)Click in the 'whitespace' of a view to unselect everything and access Project Settings.

Zoom:

Use the mouse wheel, position the mouse over the point you wish to zoom in to or out from.Ctrl+ (plus) and Ctrl- (minus) keys.



Ctrl+Home for zoom all/extents

Pan:

Hold the mouse wheel down (like a button, not scrolling it) and drag the mouse.Shift+Arrow keys will also pan.

Rotate:

Hold the mouse wheel down (like a button, not scrolling it) with the Ctrl key and drag the mouse.The Cube in the lower-left corner of the graphics: Click on a face, edge or corner to orient the view.Ctrl+Arrow keys will also rotate.

Context Menu:

Right-Click the mouse for a short menu of relevant commands based on the view and what is selected.

Middle-Mouse "Button" in Windows

Depending on your system, you may need to go into Control Panel, Hardware, Mouse, and set the wheel button tobehave like a "middle button click". Some mouse utility programs may override that setting or it may not be set up onsome versions of Windows.



4 Release History

Version 5.0 released November 2018Version 4.0 released December 2017Version 3.0 released May 2015Version 2.0 released January 2014Version 1.0 released January 2011

Version 5.0 Features

General

Graphic wire-frame in picture view modeProject Manager: Categories remember last open/collapsed stateProject Manager: drop-lists are activated by clicking anywhere, not just on arrowImproved warning message formattingImproved Print Preview display for graphicsColumn-line graphics are "filtered" to avoid clutterImproved area load graphics with shaded topsGraphics performance is up to 20x fasterRemoved 'memory leaks', which slowed program over time

Modeling

Full area support (rigid and flexible) can now be applied to an areaAbility to insert a vertex along an area sideDXF import shows bounds and an option for centering at the originPolygon boundary defined by side length in addition to radius

Loading

Ability to move area loads by side coordinatesLine stiffener loads can now be applied relative to wall orientation (parallel and perpendicular)Multiple selection in Load Case Manager

Analysis

Line supports now insert a "drilling" spring supportIndividual service cases can be analyzedAnalysis is now 12% faster

Reporting

Name filters are now enabled for both graphic and report filtersUnavailable tables shown disabled with reason for not being availableTable drop position used to locate when adding new tables in Text ReportsFull report can now have categories filtered (model, loads, results, design, graphics)Flexure and Shear Design Report Tables now include key intermediate design details

Version 4.0 Features

The concrete design module of VisualPlate 3.0 was removed and ConcreteBending 4.0 was created



General

64-bit implementation, no more out-of-memory issuesMultiple-threaded architecture uses all processor coresNew UI, Ribbon toolbar, consistent with other IES tools3D model/viewing (ctrl+mouse wheel or click the cube)Preference settings (fonts, colors, sizes, options, etc.)History Flies (automatic daily backups of a project-file, see preferences)Your Logo in a Text Report (see preferences)

Modeling

No merge/intersection necessary for boundariesEasier to editAutomatic split/connect meshing for crossing or overlapping line supports, beamsControl over overlapping for plate thicknessesDXF import has insertion point so huge coordinate files can be moved.

Loading

Implements ASCE 7 load combinationsMore Direct full-boundary loading

Analysis

Automated behind-the-scenesMuch faster analysis (using all processor cores)Accurate results

Reporting

Powerful Report ViewerMany tables and optionsSaved reports in project filesPaste graphics into reportsComplete project reportPredefined, customizable reports



5 Preferences

Most of the preference settings are self-explanatory. A few are documented below. Preference settings are saved onyour machine in the IES folder: C:\Users\your.login\AppData\Local\IES\Customer.

Project History Files

We create copies of a project-file when it is saved. These are stored in theC:\Users\your.login\AppData\Local\IES\Customer.\HistoryProjects folder. If you have data corruption or lost a project,you might be able to recover from one of these. The number of days these files are kept is set in the Project section ofthe preferences. You can turn this feature off (to save disk space or use your own backup mechanisms) by setting thevalue to zero.

Crash Protection

In addition to history files, for crash protection we will save a copy of your project every few minutes while you areworking. The number of minutes used for this auto-save is also shown in the Project section of the preferences. In theevent of a program crash the next time VisualPlate is started a message indicating a recovery project is available and youhave the option of opening this saved file. You can turn this feature off by setting the value to zero.

Project, Next Inspector Field on Enter

By default, in the Project Manager, Modify area, when you press the Enter key it sets your input data but does notchange focus to the next entry field. The Tab key lets you move from one field to another. You can enable themovement to the next field on the Enter key with this option.

Reports, Customer Logo

You can use your own company logo in text reports (Report Viewer). Ideally you'll use a .bitmap, .jpeg, or .png that is areasonable shape and size. Most printers print at 300 dpi, so a 2" logo might be 600 pixels square. We will scale yourimage to fit the header area of the report. You can use a logo anywhere on your machine, but if you drop one in theIES\Customer\ReportLogo.jpg location, we'll find it automatically.

Reports, Maximum Table Rows

Sometimes report tables can be HUGE. This can cause significant performance problems. To avoid this, we willautomatically truncate long report tables to avoid long delays. If you have a fast machine or just need to see the entiretable, change this number to something large. We've found that 3000 will generate reports in about 30-45 seconds. Setit to ten million to always see the full table. You can sort a truncated table to see any extremes. Generally, changing yourreport filter settings, say to show a single result-case will shorten up the table.



6 Analysis

VisualPlate uses finite element analysis (FEA) to determine the displacements, shears, moments, and stresses in yourstructure. Exporting the model as a VisualAnalysis project (File | Export a VA Project) will allow you get a better sense ofwhat VisualPlate is doing behind the scenes. VisualPlate attempts to handle many of the details of FEA for you. However,some knowledge of FEA is still required to use the program successfully.

Mesh Settings

To control the number of plate elements, you can pick between: course, medium, fine, or specify a desired numberdirectly. The meshing algorithm takes this request into consideration along with the project geometry and otherconstraints when generating the mesh. The actual number of plates may not reflect your request very closely. You canview the plate mesh by turning on Meshed Plates in the Filter of the Project Manager.

Mesh Options

For advanced finite element meshing control there are options available. Generally, you can ignore these, but they mightbe used to help with meshing 'issues' that arise. One that may come in handy in VisualPlate is the segment lengthoverride that can help you tame a wild or complex mesh near beams, line supports, or adjacent slab boundaries.

Approximations in FEA

Finite element analysis is inherently approximate. To insure your analysis results are accurate you should follow a meshrefinement technique, which is outlined below. The goal is to get accurate results, without spending hours waiting forresults. Generally, you use a coarse mesh to get fast preliminary results, and then use finer meshes for final results.

1. You must run multiple analyses with increasing numbers of plate elements2. Compare the results between each successive run3. If the displacements, shears, or moments are changing significantly, your results have not converged and may not

be accurate.4. Repeat the mesh refinement until your results stabilize.5. If results do not converge even with a very large number of plates, consider ways to simplify or improve your

model.



Plate Bending

The bending part of the FEA plate element is based on the triangle formulation originally presented by Xu et. al.1 in1992. This element accounts for transverse shear effects present in structures that might contain areas with thick plates,such as footings or thick floor slabs.

Statics Checks

A statics check is made for each load case analyzed. You can see the check in a Report View or view the check in theFEA Result tab of Project Manager.

The total applied force and moment in each coordinate direction is calculated. During the calculation loads are appliedon the deflected shape of the structure. A comparison is made against the sum of all support reactions. If the structure isin equilibrium, the values are equal and opposite. An imbalance usually indicates displacements too large for a firstorder FEA analysis. The large displacements may result from modeling problem or (rarely) a software defect.

If there is a significant imbalance, VisualPlate warns you about the condition. The warning threshold for the imbalance isarbitrarily set. If you get this warning message, you will need to use your best judgment after inspecting the checkdifferences, your model, and results carefully. Just because there is a warning does not mean there is a problem. Youshould check to see if displacements and forces in your model are "reasonable" and "expected". A large force imbalance,either in percentage or in absolute value is a problem that cannot be ignored.

References

1. Xu, Zhongnian, "A thick-thin triangular plate element" International Journal for Numerical Methods in Engineering,Vol. 33, 1992, pp. 963-973.



7 Boundaries

Modeling

VisualPlate is primary used to model and analyze plate elements. A wide variety of shapes can be modeled in VisualPlateusing the Ribbon | Boundary and Support tab. The plate size is defined by vertices at boundary points. A singlematerial is used for all boundaries throughout the project. Plates can be supported by Point Supports and LineSupport. Stiffness can be added by modeling Line Stiffeners into the plate boundary.

You may sketch arbitrary polygon boundaries in the Model and Load view or create rectangular, polygonal, or circularboundaries. You typically define a drawing grid before sketching, but you can also draw to existing vertex points. Thereis a drawing mode on the Ribbon to control what happens when you drag or click your mouse. Boundaries have "snap"points, specified in the Project Manager | Filter tab. These snap points can be used as drawing "connections" when youare drawing a boundary with the mouse. Any arbitrary geometry can be constructed by drawing multiple platesconnected to or overlapping one another (disconnected plates are not allowed). Each individual plate boundary can havea different thickness. Adjoining plates are modeled as continuous, with common displacements and flexural rotations atboundaries. At locations of overlapping plates, the thickness is determined from the Overlap Handling setting (ProjectManager | Modify tab) and can be set to Add Thicknesses, Smallest Thickness, or Largest Thickness.

There are no features in VisualPlate for modeling expansion-joints or other discontinuities in the plates.

Holes

Any boundary can be turned into a hole by setting its "Hole?" property to true in the Project Manager | Modify tab.Loads falling within holes are not included in analysis. If portions of Area Loads lie partially over holes, only the loadinglying over plates are considered (i.e. the loading that occurs over holes is not distributed to adjacent plate elements).

Loading

Boundaries may be loaded with Full Area, Circular, Rectangular, Tubular, and Ring distributed area loads or byconcentrated Point loads. They may also have loads transferred through the applied line stiffener loads. In VisualPlate,the Z-axis is defined as the vertical axis and the self-weight of the elements can be set on an individual basis.

Analysis

Finite element analysis is approximate and numerical. Use mesh refinement and examine results carefully, beforetrusting analysis results.

FEA Model

Plates in VisualPlate are meshed into triangular FEA plate elements. See the Analysis page for more information on theFEA mesh density, including available settings and options. For a more low-level view and understanding of the modelthat is built, you can save your project to VisualAnalysis and examine the FEA model in more detail. More information onintegration between VisualPlate and other IES tools can be found on the Integration page.

Plate Results Sign Convention

1. Positive moments put the top of the plate (Global +Z) in tension.2. MX and VX moments and shears act on the Global X-face of the plate elements.3. MY and VY moments and shears act on the Global Y-face of the plate elements.



4. Tensile stresses are positive and compressive stresses are negative.

Plates are only subject to bending stresses in VisualPlate. Therefore, the mid-plane is the neutral axis and the normalstresses at this plane are zero. The stresses at the top and bottom surfaces are equal in magnitude and opposite in sign.

Viewing Analysis Results

The results from the finite element analysis can be displayed graphically from the Analysis Results view. The ProjectManager | Results tab displays the numerical results that correspond to the colored graphics. With nothing selected,the results displayed in the Project Manager are a summary for the selected result case, whereas if one or moreindividual plates are selected, the Project Manager shows the result range for the selected plates. The various ResultCases that were included in the finite element analysis can be selected using the Result Case drop down from theRibbon | Home tab. The Project Manager | Result Filter tab allows you to change the Plate Results and look at thedisplacements, moments, shears, bending stresses, and Von Mises stresses. While the stresses are only displayed for thebottom of the plates, the stresses at the top of the plates are equal and opposite.

Plate Diagrams

Plate result moment and shear diagrams are available from the Analysis Results view by dragging a line across the slab.A window will pop up showing the diagrams at the location of the line, for the result case displayed.

Reporting Analysis Results

Analysis results can also be viewed in text form using the Text Reports tab. Once on the Text Report tab, a list ofavailable tables is shown on the Project Manager | Tables tab and can be added to the text report by double-clickingan individual table or dragging and dropping a table into the report. Plates can also be reported on an individual basisby selecting one or more plates from the Analysis Results view and using the right-click context menu to ReportSelected.



8 Load Points

Load Points are used in VisualPlate to apply a concentrated force or moment to the model at a specified point (or node)in the XY-plane. VisualPlate only allows deflection in the Z-direction and rotation about the X-axis and Y-axis. Therefore,Load Points only have the option applying force in the Z-direction and moments about the X-axis and Y-axis.



9 Point Supports

Point Supports are used in VisualPlate to restrain the model at a specified point (or node) in the XY-plane. VisualPlateonly allows deflection in the Z-direction and rotation about the X-axis and Y-axis. Therefore, Point Supports have theoption of being set to Fixed, Free, or Specified-K (stiffness) for Force-Z, Moment-X, and Moment-Y.

Analysis Results

The force in the Z-direction and the moments in the X-direction and the Y-direction are calculated for each load caseand reported for the Point Supports in VisualPlate. The displacement in the Z-direction and the rotations about the X-axis and the Y-axis are also reported for the Point Supports.



10 Line Supports

Line Supports are used in VisualPlate to restrain the model along a series of nodes that fall on a straight line which isdefined by a start coordinate and an end coordinate in the XY-plane.

Support Properties

Line Supports only provide restraint along a single line of nodes in the FEA model. VisualPlate only allows deflection inthe Z-direction and rotation about the X-axis and Y-axis. Line Supports fix the deflection of the nodes on the line in theZ-direction. Also, the rotation of the nodes perpendicular to the direction of the line in the XY-plane are fixed. The threesupport options (Pinned, Fixed, and Spring) allow the rotational restraint about the line defined by the Line Support inthe XY-plane to be specified.

Analysis Results

The total force in the Z-direction and the total moment about the Line Support is calculated and reported for each loadcase.



11 Line Stiffeners

Modeling

Modeling line stiffeners in VisualPlate is done by setting the drawing mode to "Draw Line Stiffeners" from the Ribbon |Boundary and Support tab and sketching them onto the plate boundary defined in the model. Line stiffeners candistribute applied loads to the plate boundary and add stiffness to the plate model. Line stiffeners that adjoin oneanother, regardless of orientation, are modeled such that load transfer (i.e. shear and moment) occurs between themembers. In other words, there are no end release options with line stiffeners.

Shape Properties

You define the size, shape, and vertical offset of selected line stiffeners through the Shape section on the Modify Tab ofProject Manager. There are four types of shapes available for use in VisualPlate. You can create custom shapes in IESShapeBuilder and add them to the shape database.

Database Shapes

IES includes a large database of steel, wood, cold-formed, aluminum, and other shapes common in the USA and someforeign countries. The database is customizable through using IES ShapeBuilder, not directly within VisualPlate. Selectinga database shape will usually also define your material--most shape categories in the database have a default materialassociated with them.

The shape database contains Virtual Joists and Virtual Joist Girders which are developed by the Steel Joist Institute.There website has information on the basic concept and purpose. While, you may create models with these shapes,please understand their purpose and limitations before using them.

Standard Parametric Shapes

These shapes are defined by dimensions like width, depth, and thickness, which you provide. These types of shapesare often used for concrete (square, rectangle, round) analysis. There is an infinite number of shape possibilities so it iseasier to use the parametric definition rather than pre-building a list of possible shapes. VisualPlate offers the followingtypes of parametric shapes: Angle, Channel, Circle, I-Shape, Pipe, Rectangle, Rectangular Tube, Spandrel, Tee, and Zee.

Custom "Blobs"

Custom blobs are a quick and dirty or academic tool. You define the member without a shape, just numerical propertiesfor analysis. In this way you can analyze any shape. You supply a name and it is available for use in the active projectonly.

Quick Shape Pick List

The Shape tab of Project Manager shows the types of shapes available in the Source drop-down list: Database Shape,Standard Parametric, <Add Custom Blob...>, <ShapeBuilder...>, followed by a list of shape names for shapes that arealready in use in your project. You can normally use this list to quickly find an existing shape in your model to use for anew line stiffener element.



https://www.iesweb.com/sb

https://www.iesweb.com/sb

https://steeljoist.org/

Loading

Vertical loads and moments in two directions may be placed on line stiffeners. Applied loads are uniformly distributedalong the full length of the member and may be entered as linear quantity (per unit length) or as the resultant total.Loads can also be applied in the Global directions or the member's Local directions, allowing the loads to be easilyplaced parallel or perpendicular to skewed members.

Analysis

During the finite element analysis, line stiffeners are member elements within the same plane as the plate elements withstiffness adjustments based on the Vertical Offset (parallel axis theorem).

Displaying Results Graphically

Line stiffener results can be viewed graphically from the Analysis Results tab. The line stiffener's displacement, shearforce, moment, torsion, and stresses can be viewed by changing the Result Type drop-down menu under the LineStiffener Results category of the Project Manager | Result Filter tab.

The results from the finite element analysis can be displayed graphically from the Analysis Results view. The ProjectManager | Results tab displays the numerical results that correspond to the colored graphics. With nothing selected,the results displayed in the Project Manager are a summary for the selected result case, whereas if a single line stiffeneris selected, the Project Manager shows the result range for the selected line stiffener. The various Result Cases that wereincluded in the finite element analysis can be selected using the Result Case drop down from the Ribbon | Home tab.Furthermore, moment, shear, torsion, and displacement diagrams for each result case can be viewed using the MemberGraph tab. Analysis results can also be reported in tabular form using the Text Reports.

Reporting Line Stiffener Results

Results can also be viewed in text form using the Text Reports tab. Once on the Text Report tab, a list of availabletables is shown on the Project Manager | Tables tab and can be added to the text report by double-clicking anindividual table or dragging and dropping a table into the report.



12 Material Properties

Material properties for plates and line stiffeners come from the IES material database, which includes most typicalmaterials you might need. To change a material, use the [...] button in the Material tab of Project Manager, to bring upthe material database dialog. All materials in VisualPlate are linear, elastic, and isotropic. If you cannot find thematerial you need, you can add a custom material to the database.

For line stiffeners, select a shape before selecting a material. Most database categories for line stiffeners have a defaultmaterial that will be automatically assigned when you select the shape. If you specify the material first, your materialmay get replaced.

Custom Materials

You can add custom materials to your system by clicking the Add Custom Material button in the Material Databasedialog box. When defining a material, you can specify the material "type" making it possible to define custom materialsthat will be categorized as wood, steel, concrete etc. After selecting a material type, the defining properties have defaultvalues that can be modified for your custom material. If you do not know all of the defining properties for your materialtype, consider using a General material type where you only need to define four basic material properties: modulus ofelasticity (E), Poisson's ratio (nu, n), the weight density (gamma, g), and the coefficient of thermal expansion (alpha,a). The Shear Modulus, G, is calculated internally as: G = E / (2*(1 + nu)). These materials are available in all IES products.



13 Load Combination Criteria

Load Combination Sets

Several sets of building code load combinations are built into VisualPlate. Custom load combinations may also becreated in the Load Combinations tab of the Load Case Manager. Service level load combinations may be added if youwant to look at results.

Importing Load Combinations

Custom factored load combinations can be imported from the clipboard using the Import From Clipboard button inthe Load Combinations tab in the Load Case Manager. Text must be tab delimited and copied to the clipboard in thefollowing format:

{ComboName} {Factor} {ServiceCaseName} {Factor} {ServiceCaseName2} …

For example:

ComboName 1.2 D 1.6 L 0.5 Lr

MyCombo 0.9 D 1.3 W

Seismic Criteria

To correctly generate load combinations that contain seismic loads, several additional parameters are required. Pleaserefer to ASCE 7, Section 12.4, for how these parameters are used in generating load combinations. It is important to notethat these parameters (such as SDS and SD1) are only used to generate load combinations. For example, ASCE 7 saysthat Seismic Category A does not require the combined orthogonal direction combinations (e.g. X+30%Y), but CategoryD does.

VisualPlate does not automatically generate any loads, just the combination cases.



14 Self Weight

Orientation

In VisualPlate, the Z-axis is defined as the vertical axis. Therefore, gravity can only act perpendicular to the plateboundaries defined in the model. The self-weight of the elements can be set on an individual basis.

Plates and Line Stiffeners

To include a plate or line stiffener's weight in the Dead-Load load case, switch to the Model and Load view, select theobject, and check the Add Self Weight box in the Project Manager | Modify tab. The item's density is determined bythe selected material.

Point Supports, Line Supports, and Load Points

These items do not have self-weight.



15 Integration with IES Tools

VisualAnalysis

VisualAnalysis is installed and licensed separately from VisualPlate by IES.

You can use the VisualAnalysis project file created by VisualPlate to start a more sophisticated finite element analysis ofyour model using VisualAnalysis. You might use this project file to perform a dynamic analysis. VisualAnalysis alsoprovides more advanced capabilities for or flexibility in modeling unusual situations. The VisualAnalysis could also helpyou understand what VisualPlate does for you behind the scenes in building the model to analyze. A current version ofVisualAnalysis is required. To create a VisualAnalysis project from your VisualPlate project, go to File | Export a VAProject. This create a .vap file that you can open in VisualAnalysis.



https://www.iesweb.com/va

16 Reporting

Reports are easily created to document your work. Switch to the Report View tab and drag available tables from thepanel on the left onto the report. Use the Project Manager | Modify tab to rearrange the tables. Click within a table toadd or remove the table's columns, or to define other settings.

Reports may be filtered by selection, or by names and load cases or combinations. There is a Report All command thatwill construct a large report, including graphics. Once this report is generated you may adjust or remove items beforeprinting or saving. Export the entire report or individual tables (select, right-click) to a spreadsheet or any text-basedprogram. You may also copy and paste any graphic from within VisualPlate or any product to include in your report.

Custom Report Logo

The report may be customized to include your own (company) logo in the header. All you need to do is create a logoimage: ReportLogo.png or ReportLogo.jpg, and place it in the IES\Customer folder, which you can access via the Tools |Custom Data toolbar command. The image should be kept to less than 5 times wider than it is tall. It will be scaled to fitin the header area, but wide images may cause other text to start wrapping or get truncated. If the image works you'llsee it in the report/preview immediately after restarting VisualPlate. (This logo works for many other IES tools as well.)



17 Support Resources

Did you Search this Help File?

Be sure you make use of the help and support built into the software, as described in the Program Layout section of theUser's Guide. This document may be searched, and you should try various search terms, sometimes less is more whensearching -- use just the unique word or words. There is also a logical Table of Contents available.

Do Not Contact Support For

Licensing or Sales: use www.iesweb.com/service or [email protected] about how to model a particular structure. Such questions are your responsibility as an engineer.IES cannot validate your model or your results. If they "seem" incorrect, please figure out WHY they areincorrect. If you can document a defect, we will be happy to investigate deeper and fix things as necessary,but we cannot afford to check every customer's model.Questions about engineering theory. IES is not in the business of educating engineers. There are textbooksreferenced in this help file and we can provide more guidance as to where to look if you cannot find one.

Technical Support

Email Support: [email protected] (Replies are usually within 2 business hours, if you don't hear anythingwithin a day, assume it got spam filtered or lost and follow-up. For best results be sure to ask a question,indicate exactly which IES product & version you are using, include as much detail as is practical or relevant,including attaching a project file. "I have a problem, can you help?" is a frequently submitted question, towhich the answer is always: "Maybe, what is the problem?".

Telephone Support: No, sorry. We have found this to be too inefficient for everybody. With email you canattach a screen shot, a project file, and we can better direct your question to the IES expert for that product orarea. Phone 'tag' takes longer than you think.

Business Questions: For any licensing or sales-related questions or issues: [email protected].

Free Training Videos: Training videos can be accessed here.



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18 Training Videos

Introduction

VisualPlate is a powerful analysis tool that accurately solves plate bending problems using finite elements. Theprogram’s easy-to-use interface and versatility allows you to quickly model plate systems made of any material that areloaded out-of-plane.

Program Layout

The layout of VisualPlate is designed to maximize productivity and make it easy to create models, apply loads, viewresults, and create reports.

Boundary Manipulation

In VisualPlate, standard circular, rectangular, and polygon boundaries be created, or custom arbitrary boundaries can bedrawn. Boundaries can be modified or designated to be a hole. When boundaries overlap each other the thickness ofthe overlapping part can be designated.

Plate Supports

In VisualPlate, point supports, line supports, and line stiffeners can be used to support the plates out of plane. Theproperties of the supports can be set to standard values such as fixed, free, pinned, etc. or the stiffness of the supportscan be specified.

Working With Loads

Point loads as well as uniform and linearly varying pressures can be applied in VisualPlate. Apply service level loads andchoose from standard Load Combinations or create your own Custom Load Combinations.

Graphical Results

For the finite element plates, the displacements, moments, shears, bending stresses, and Von Mises stresses can bedisplayed graphically in VisualPlate. Also, the displacements, moments, shears, torsion, and bending stresses can be viewfor the line stiffeners.

Reporting

Reports are easily created and modified in VisualPlate. Either create a complete project report or create custom reportby adding and removing the tables and graphics as needed.



visualplate 5.0 user's guide - iesweb.com

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