Plane wall
Use the Plane wall tool to define vertical or inclined structural wall elements with constant or variable thickness.
When you select Plane wall, a tool palette opens.
Main tools
- Define - create a new plane wall using line definition methods
- Properties - check or edit parameters of an existing plane wall. Opens the Default settings dialogue for the selected walls
- Convert - only works on vertical elements. Convert existing plate, wall, fictitious shell, cover and some compatible solid shape elements into plane walls
- Hole - define openings within a wall using supported line contours
- Edge connection - define edge interaction and end behavior (read more below)
- Physical extent - adjust the visible range of the wall’s geometry
- Info - display geometric and analytical data for the selected wall
- Default settings - set default values for geometry, material, and stiffness (read more below)
To read more about the Physical extent tool, see the topic:
User interface ➔ Tab menus ➔ Structure ➔ Additional dialogues ➔ Physical extent
To read more about the Info tool, see the topic:
User interface ➔ Tab menus ➔ Structure ➔ Additional dialogues ➔ Shell Info
Line definition methods
Available when the Define tool is selected.
- Straight line - define the wall with a straight segment between two points
- Arc by center, start point and angle - define an arc using its center point, the start point of the arc, and the angle
- Arc by 3 points - define an arc by selecting three points along the arc
- Arc by start, end point and tangent - define an arc using the start and end points and a tangent at the start
- Line by selection - select an existing line or edge to define the wall’s path
Definition settings
- Alignment - drop-down menu to align the wall cross-section. Options: Top/Left, Center, Bottom/Right
- h - height of the wall
- Above - place the wall above the defined line
- Below - place the wall below the defined line
- t1 - thickness at the start of the wall
- t2 - thickness at the end of the wall
- ɑ - maximum angle between straight segments for curved walls. Activates when the line definition is set to any of the Arc by… method
Connection tools
- Setup > - opens a dialogue for editing edge connection properties and endpoint behavior
- Presets > - opens a list of previously saved edge connection setups created using the Setup dialogue
The content of the Setup dialogue is the same as for other shell elements.
To read more, see:
User interface ➔ Tab menus ➔ Structure ➔ Additional dialogues ➔ Shell Default Connections
Edge connection functions
Available when the Edge connection tool is selected.
- Edge connection properties - select an edge of a wall to view or edit connection settings
- Endpoint behavior - define how the ends of the wall edge connect or terminate
To read more about these settings, see the relevant topics below:
- For Edge connection properties see:
User interface ➔ Tab menus ➔ Structure ➔ Additional dialogues ➔ Edge connections - For Endpoint behavior see:
User interface ➔ Tab menus ➔ Structure ➔ Additional dialogues ➔ Endpoint behaviour
Default settings dialogue
When you press the Default settings button, a dialogue window opens.
This dialogue contains four tabs: General, Material, Default connections, and Stiffness. The structure and content of these tabs are the same as for the Simple retaining wall tool.
To read more about these settings, see the relevant topics below:
- For General tab see:
User interface ➔ Tab menus ➔ Structure ➔ Additional dialogues ➔ Shell general - For Material tab see:
User interface ➔ Tab menus ➔ Structure ➔ Additional dialogues ➔ Regular Material - For Default connections tab see:
User interface ➔ Tab menus ➔ Structure ➔ Additional dialogues ➔ Shell Default Connections - For Stiffness tab see:
User interface ➔ Tab menus ➔ Structure ➔ Additional dialogues ➔ Shell Stiffness