Swapping the diagonal of a pair of adjacent triangular elements

The Edit Mesh toolset allows you to swap the diagonal of a pair of adjacent triangular elements.

Related Topics
What can I do with the Edit Mesh toolset?

Context:

Select MeshEdit from the main menu bar to swap the diagonal of a pair of adjacent triangular elements, as shown in the following figure:

The adjacent triangular elements must have consistent normals. If necessary, you can use the Edit Mesh toolset to flip the normals; for more information, see Reversing the surface normal direction of shell elements.

  1. Enter the Mesh module and do one of the following:

    • From the Object field in the context bar, select Assembly.

    • From the Object field in the context bar, select Part and select a part from the list.

  2. From the main menu bar, select MeshEdit.

    Abaqus/CAE displays the Edit Mesh dialog box.

    Tip: You can also display the Edit Mesh dialog box using the tool, located at the bottom of the Mesh module toolbox.

  3. In the dialog box, do the following:

    1. In the Category field, select Element.
    2. From the Method list, select Swap diagonal (tri).

  4. Select the edge of the adjacent triangular elements to swap. You can select only a single edge.

    Abaqus/CAE highlights the selected edge and prompts you to confirm that you want to swap the selected edge.

  5. Click Yes to swap the element edge.

    Abaqus/CAE prompts you to select the next element edge to swap.

    Tip: If you make a mistake while swapping a diagonal, click Undo in the Edit Mesh dialog box to undo the change. Abaqus/CAE restores the original diagonal in the two adjacent elements.

  6. When you have finished swapping diagonals, click mouse button 2 or the cancel button in the prompt area to exit the procedure.