Chris Wachter | Portfolio

Assembly analysis

  • This lesson covers contact hierarchy, pin and spring connectors.
  • Apply material to pin connectors to analyze their strength.
  • Create springs with preload to account for spring tension.
  • Use contact hierarchy to control contacts.

This example uses a wrench assembly made of cast carbon steel to demonstrate how connectors (pins and springs) and local interaction definitions are used to simplify and accurately model the complex contact behavior between moving parts in an assembly analysis.

Mesh plot

Mesh plot of wrench model including pin and spring connector types

The spring connector is used to simulate spring tension with a defined preload, which applies an initial force to the components being clamped by the vise grip.

Contact hierarchy is managed by defining various interactions (global, local, etc.). The local interaction properties specify rules that refine contact definitions and control the simulation, such as the maximum distance between components for the solver to actively look for and calculate contact forces.

Stress plot

Stress plot of assembly (capped at the yield strength of 248 MPa to identify weak points)
Deformed stress analysis of vise grip assembly in exploded view, showcasing von Mises stress distribution.

Connector forces

Analysis of the connector forces, showcasing resultant and individual forces on components
A closer view of the table of connector forces, showcasing shear, axial, bending, and torque values

Source

This content (including the analysis setup, simulation execution, and all resulting visual content—screenshots and videos) was individually performed and generated by me in SolidWorks Simulation, utilizing a combination of custom and existing parts provided by SolidWorks as guided by the MySolidWorks Training curriculum.