Learning Forum

[Jacob Ellis]

Leaving this option to Program Controlled

Sometimes it seems the wrong side of the shell face is chosen. For example, like in the situation below. I can fix it by manually specifying which side. This happens a handful of times out of hundreds of contacts and it becomes very tedious to check. Is choosing the ride shell side important for contact (bonded or otherwise) or does the solver figure that out?

 

 

EDIT: I just tried a very simple example and bonded contact worked regardless of choosing top or bottom. So I am guessing it doesn't matter? If anyone can verify, it is appreciated.

[Chris Quan]

If you are using MAPDL solver to model contacts between shell & shell or shell & solid bodies, it is important to specify the right shell face for contact or target. This is because the MAPDL contact direction is going from one-side only.

If you are using LS-DYNA solver to model contacts between shell & shell or shell & solid bodies, it is not necessary to specify shell faces for contact or target. This is because the LS-DYNA contact direction is going from both sides.

Thus, the answer is Yes. You don't need to specify the top or bottom of shell face for contact/target. You can just use the default "Program Controlled".