Choosing the type of a new part

Use the Type radio buttons in the Create Part dialog box to choose the type of the part you are creating in an Abaqus/Standard or Abaqus/Explicit model.

Abaqus/CAE carries a part's type through the modeling process; for example, you cannot assign section and material properties to a rigid part, you cannot mesh an analytical rigid part, and you can assign Eulerian sections and material assignment fields only to Eulerian parts. If allowed, you can change the type of a part after you have created it by clicking mouse button 3 on the part in the Model Tree and selecting Edit from the menu that appears.

Related Topics
Part types
How is a part defined in Abaqus/CAE?
Creating a new part
Using the Create Part dialog box
The reference point
The Set and Surface toolsets
In Other Guides
Analytical rigid surface definition
Rigid body definition

Context:

In an Abaqus/Standard or Abaqus/Explicit model a new part's type can be set to one of the following:

Deformable

Any arbitrarily shaped axisymmetric, two-dimensional, or three-dimensional part that you can create or import can be specified as a deformable part. A deformable part represents a part that can deform under load; the load can be mechanical, thermal, or electrical. By default, Abaqus/CAE creates parts that are deformable.

Discrete rigid

A discrete rigid part is similar to a deformable part in that it can be any arbitrary shape. However, a discrete rigid part is assumed to be rigid and is used in contact analyses to model bodies that cannot deform.

Analytical rigid

An analytical rigid part is similar to a discrete rigid part in that it is used to represent a rigid surface in a contact analysis. However, the shape of an analytical rigid part is not arbitrary and must be formed from a set of sketched lines, arcs, and parabolas.

Eulerian

Eulerian parts are used to define a domain in which material can flow for an Eulerian analysis. Eulerian parts do not deform during an analysis; instead, the material within the part deforms under load and can flow across the rigid element boundaries. For more information about Eulerian analyses, see Eulerian analyses.

After you create either a discrete rigid part or an analytical rigid part, you must also do the following:

  • Assign the rigid body reference point. You apply constraints or prescribe motion to the rigid body reference point in the Load module, and the same constraints or motion are applied to the entire rigid part. For more information, see The reference point.

  • If the part is a discrete rigid part or an analytical rigid part, you must use the Surface toolset in the Assembly module to choose which side of the part represents the outer surface. For more information, see The Set and Surface toolsets.

  1. From the middle of the Create Part dialog box, choose the desired Type radio button.

  2. When you have finished choosing options, click Continue to close the Create Part dialog box.

    The Sketcher starts, and you sketch the profile of the new part's base feature.