t e c h n i c a l p a p e r

UNDERSTANDING
CONNECTORS

Overview
SolidWorks® helps you move through the design cycle smarter. With fast and accurate virtual connectors,
your team will be able to focus on the behavior of the design as a whole, instead of wasting precious
time modeling and remodeling hundreds of pins, bolts, springs, and welds.

www.solidworks.com
Introduction

Connectors may be one of the most frequently overlooked aspects of design

engineering. Though we use countless products every day that incorporate
them, connectors rarely receive a lot of attention. But if you ever stop to think
about how many things have pins, bolts, springs, welds, and other pieces of
hardware, you’ll soon see how vital connectors are. They quite literally hold
everything together.

Trying to understand how a design works without studying its connectors is When solving a structural problem,
like trying to read an essay without its conjunctions. “And” versus “but” makes a the system breaks the model down
major difference—so does a pin versus a bolt. In the past, you could spend days into many discrete elements, which
modeling the connections for an assembly analysis, only to find that a modification are then solved.

in the design meant going right back to square one and starting all over again.

But what if you didn’t have to? What if the software were smart enough to do
the tedious parts for you?

SolidWorks Simulation is. SolidWorks has made working with connectors quick
and easy, replacing the geometry of the “real” hardware with idealized virtual
connectors. These simulated connectors impose the behavior of their “real”
counterparts on the rest of the design without requiring the painstaking analysis
of each pin or bolt. SolidWorks Simulation takes no shortcuts in accuracy with
its virtual connectors. Yet by putting many of the tasks formerly performed by
analysts into the software, it speeds up the simulation process, leaving you more
time to do what you do best: designing.

This paper describes the different types of virtual connectors provided in

SolidWorks Simulation and discusses how they are modeled in Finite Element
Analysis (FEA) in SolidWorks. By understanding how the connectors are
constructed, one can better judge when and where to use them.

Background Information
In order to understand how connectors work, it is worth recapping a fundamental
part of FEA theory. When solving a structural problem, the system breaks the
model down into many discrete elements, which are then solved. There are many
classes of elements that can be used, but SolidWorks Simulation connectors use
only a small subset.

• Beam elements: elements in which a line representation of the model is

meshed and solved; the user defines the beam’s cross-sectional values
and the solution is then calculated

• Rigid elements: a special beam element of infinite stiffness

• Spring elements: a special beam element of finite stiffness, in which the

user specifies individual stiffness values

SolidWorks Simulation uses a mixture of beam, rigid, and spring elements to

mimic the behavior of the “real” connector in its simulation virtual counterpart.

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SolidWorks Simulation connectors can be classified into two groups: “hardware
replacement connectors” and “specialized simulation connectors.” The first
category includes connectors that model everyday objects like pins, bolts,
and welds. The second comprises more theoretical connectors that have more
idealized applications.

HARDWARE REPLACEMENT CONNECTORS

Springs
A spring connector, modeled using a spring element, offers you the opportunity to SolidWorks Simulation connectors
see spring behavior in simulation without detailing specific spring geometry and can be classified into two groups:
parameters. Modeling a spring in the traditional way with FEA is very complicated. “hardware replacement connectors”
The spring’s stiffness has to be divided by the number of nodes on each face and “specialized simulation
connectors.”
connected by the spring, but intricate adjustments are required if the numbers of
nodes on each face vary. Furthermore, uneven mesh distribution can intrinsically
alter stiffness values. Fortunately, SolidWorks software can quickly evaluate the
proper stiffness of a spring connector based on the mesh distribution.

Spring connectors can join flat parallel faces, concentric cylindrical faces, or two
point locations (vertices). For the two face-defined spring connectors, the springs
appear only on the common areas of projection to prevent unintended moments
from forming (Figure 1).

component 1
FACE 1

common area
of projection
FACE 2

component 2

Figure 1. The springs between components with these faces appear to be placed
in the same way, not differently.

There are three types of spring connectors: tension-only, compression-only, and

tension-compression. Tension-only springs are useful for modeling cables and strings,
whereas the compression-only springs are useful for bumpers. Tension-compression
spring connectors are a useful catchall that model regular springs effectively. In
addition to the locations and spring type, the spring connector requires two further
parameters to be defined: the stiffness and any preload.

The stiffness can be defined as either a total (i.e., a total force per unit length)
or distributed (i.e., “stiffness density,” or a pressure per unit length) value. A total
stiffness value is useful for parallel faces, while a distributed setting is more
valuable when the connecting faces have different shapes and sizes. In this case,
you may have to run several iterations based on area calculations to make sure that
the overall desired stiffness is achieved.

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Finally, another stiffness parameter known as “preload” can be defined. If a spring is
compressed (e.g., a push-down ballpoint pen) or extended in standard operation, its
strength and stiffness change. SolidWorks Simulation allows you to define
those preload conditions so the software can quickly evaluate how the spring’s
behavior changes.

If a spring is compressed (e.g. a push-

down ballpoint pen) or extended in
standard operation, its strength and
stiffness changes

Figure 2. An actuator with an elastic support (the small cones and the rod appear in red)

Elastic Supports
The elastic support is a type of fixture which acts much like a spring connector: it
resists tension and compression between two surfaces. The main difference is that
spring connectors connect two parts or assemblies together whereas the elastic
support connects a face of the part or assembly to the virtual ground. In other words,
the elastic support attaches a flexible part or assembly to an infinitely stiff location.
A simple example of an actuator with this connector is shown in Figure 2 above.

The elastic support is created using tension-compression spring elements and

defined by setting two parameters, the normal and shear stiffnesses. As with the
spring connector, the stiffness can be expressed as a distributed or total value. The
elastic support fixture saves significant time compared with hand calculations when
studying a device with flexible supports.

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Spring-Dampers
Spring-damper connectors are, in fact, spring elements, but they differ in a few
ways from the more common spring connectors. First and foremost, as the
hyphenated word implies, damping conditions can be defined. This damping
coefficient opposes the velocity of a device moving in simulation, just as one would
expect with a drag force. There is another parameter, too: rotational stiffness. In
studies with spring-dampers, rotation is also accounted for, instead of simply
dealing with extension and compression.

Surface connections are another major difference. Although spring connectors join Spring-damper connectors are, in fact,
overlapping projections of faces, spring-damper connectors join individual vertices. spring elements, but they differ in a
This is somewhat like the link versus the rigid connector (see page 13). few ways from the more common
spring connectors.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, spring dampers can be used only in linear
dynamic (modal time history) studies. Springs are very versatile and can be
implemented in a wide variety of studies, but the role of damping is most useful in
linear dynamics. A section view of a part with spring-damper connectors is shown in
Figure 3 below.

Figure 3. Section view of a piston with a spring-damper connector (in blue)

Here, spring-damper connectors are placed at each corner between the

bottom surface of a piston rod and the casing. Note that the assembly calls
for a noncircular design to use spring-damper connectors because individual
vertices (i.e., corners) are required. With a pressure and a fixture defined,
you can use this SolidWorks model to perform a modal time history
analysis of the assembly.

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Bearings
A bearing connector is a combination of spring elements that joins two concentric
cylindrical parts and mimics the behavior of a real-life bearing, allowing for
translation and/or rotation between the two parts. Bearings are essential
components of many designs because they allow smooth motion while reducing
friction as compared with other connectors.1 SolidWorks provides you with virtual
ball bearing and roller bearing connectors that replace manually generated models
of these parts but create the same effects on the rest of the system. A gearbox
(in Figure 4 below) contains an example of a bearing connector, shown in blue in
the close-up on the right.

Bearing connectors can be defined as “rigid”, or “flexible” with their radial and
axial stiffness values defined. Rigid bearing connectors prevent some motion,
while flexible bearing connectors allow for limited local flexibility. Figure 5 more
explicitly demonstrates how the bearing connector behavior is modeled.

Figure 4. The gearbox bearings (pink) can be replaced by bearing connectors (blue) tO accelerate the simulation solution.

Figure 5 shows how typical bearing behavior compares with three possible
models. A ball bearing or roller bearing normally provides little resistance to
rotation up until some specified angle. At that point, the resistance to rotation
increases dramatically. Figure 5 shows this in red, where the stiffness slope K1 is
much less than K2. It is clear why bearings are actually like spring elements: this
behavior is much like a spring with two linear regions of spring constants.

1
General Types of Bearings and How They Work. Retrieved August 5, 2009, from the ThomasNet website:
http://www.thomasnet.com/articles/machinery-tools-supplies/bearing-types

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 Actual Bearing F
Restraint
Remote Load “Pin”
Bearing Connector
α
Applied Force

K2
K=∞

0<K<∞ but easily understood

K1
K=0
Off-Axis Rotation, α

Figure 5. Actual bearing behavior (red) compared with three linear models that can be defined in SolidWorks.

The first model, shown in green, is nonconservative: it assumes no rotation is

possible and provides infinite resistance. This corresponds to the “rigid” condition
that is available for bearing rotation. On the opposite side of the spectrum, the
blue line (K = 0), acts like a frictionless ball joint. This model is fairly accurate for
small angular displacements because K1 is small, but it is inaccurate for large
values. When you define stiffness values, SolidWorks Simulation splits the
difference between these approaches and produces a model like the gray line.
Though none of these models are particularly accurate, the gray line approach
does the best job of accommodating both of the stiffness values.

The bearing fixture is related to the bearing connector, the difference being that
the part or assembly to be analyzed is connected to the virtual ground. So a
bearing fixture attaches a flexible part or assembly to an infinitely stiff location.

The major benefit of using the bearing connector instead of modeling a bearing
within SolidWorks Simulation is the amount of time saved. Engineers and
designers are interested in bearings mostly for the behavior that they induce in
the rest of the system. In other words, if bearings are placed between the handles
and the handle rods of the crankshaft, what can someone do with it? Bearings are
often assumed to be strong enough if made with the proper material, so modeling
a connector avoids unnecessarily analyzing the stresses on the bearing.

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Bolts
A bolt connector models a device that connects two components, multiple
components, or a component and the ground. It fixes these parts together—
one piece can’t move or rotate with respect to the rest of the assembly. Of course,
bolts are vital fixtures in many mechanical designs. Consider the pipe rout below:
many bolts are used to bolt each section together.

Bolts can be difficult to simulate because of bolt pretension and shear, two
factors that do not affect other connectors. But SolidWorks Simulation simplifies
the analysis by replacing the bolt with a bolt connector made up of a beam and
rigid bars instead of a complete, intricate part. A tension-only beam (i.e., it resists
tension but not compression) is used for the bolt’s shank, which allows preloading
to be modeled as an axial force on the beam. If the shank tightly fits with the
holes (i.e,. they have the same diameter), the software connects bar elements
between the shank and the hole to model the shear effect.

Figure 6. A pipe route contains many bolted flanges, modeled with bolt connectors shown in blue (right).

Because of those rigid bars that connect the beam with flange faces, stresses
close to the area of the bolt/nut may not be accurate. However, errors
significantly decrease a short distance (approximately one bolt diameter) from the
bolt. SolidWorks Simulation also calculates axial and shear reactions at the bolt
to determine bolt sizing, or whether the clamping force generated by the bolt size
and the tightening torque is sufficient to overcome the external loads.

SolidWorks Simulation is designed with built-in analysis intelligence, so that you

need only define a few required parameters, and then let the program perform the
difficult calculations. It allows you to pick one of five different generic types of
bolts, shown below (L to R, top to bottom): counterbore with nut, countersink with
nut, counterbore screw, countersink screw, and foundation bolt.

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SolidWorks Simulation can also simulate the behavior of a foundation bolt (or
grounded bolt) that attaches a part to a virtual ground (which is infinitely stiff).
These are used in situations like road sign or traffic light posts, where the bolts
are embedded in the concrete pavement. In this case, SolidWorks Simulation uses
a virtual wall option to simulate the presence of a concrete floor, simplifying the
analysis model size.

As with other connectors, saving time

is the primary benefit of using bolt
connectors in SolidWorks Simulation.

Figure 7. The five bolts available in SolidWorks Simulation software.

After defining what type of bolt is to be created, the shank diameter, head
diameter, material, and preload conditions are required. The bolt strength data—
including pitch, bolt strength, and factor of safety—can be set for the in creation
of results plots.

All these inputs can be defined in a single dialog. After reaching the solution,
SolidWorks Simulation provides the resultant axial force, shear force and bending
moments acting on the bolt. A check plot shows bolt connectors that are below
(passed) or above (failed) the defined bolt strength, allowing for rapid review of the
possible failure of the bolt connectors.

Virtual bolt connectors don’t provide data about the stress distribution on the bolt/
nut, but rather the effect of the bolt on the parts adjacent to it, or on the overall
assembly. If the stress distribution on the bolt/nut is important, you can model bolt
behavior by including the solid model of the bolt and nuts and then using contact
conditions rather than the virtual bolt connector.

As with other connectors, saving time is the primary benefit of using bolt
connectors in SolidWorks Simulation. Specifically designing and defining these
bolt parameters would take even an expert engineer a significant amount of time.
Though full-scale modeling of a bolt may improve accuracy very near the bolt itself,
through this approach, the effects on the general structure and the bolt’s behavior
can be predicted quickly and fairly accurately with only a few inputs.

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Pins
A pin connector is a solid beam element that allows rotation and/or translation
between bodies. Think of putting a bead on a straw: it is easy to spin the bead
around the straw, and it can move up and down the straw, but it can’t turn easily in
another direction. Alternatively, if the straw is very short, the bead might only be
able to spin around it without translating. These simple examples aside, pins are
crucial elements in many mechanical designs. See, for instance, the pair of pliers
modeled below in SolidWorks.

The pin connector can simulate pins

that rotate, slide back and forth, or
both rotate and slide.

Figure 8. A pair of pliers modeled in SolidWorks. A pin connector is shown (in red)
toward the center.

In conventional FEA, the analyst typically simulates the pin behavior by modeling
the pin part in a finite element mesh and then defining contact between the pin
and the cylindrical faces of the pliers’ arms. In a SolidWorks simulation study, a pin
connector is used (Figure 8) to join the two arms of the pliers about one axis. You
simply select the cylindrical face of the hole in each arm in the pliers. SolidWorks
Simulation allows you to define strength and connection characteristics. You also
need to select the desired movement; the pin connector can simulate pins that
rotate, slide back and forth, or both rotate and slide. Obviously, in the case of a
set of pliers, the faces are free to rotate against the pin but not slide. When the
simulation is complete, the red marks denote where the pin connection is placed.

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Despite the easy-to-use interface, the software performs the same complex tasks
needed to define the FEA simulation of the pin described for traditional analysis.
SolidWorks models the pin with a beam element, and connects it to the cylindrical
faces of the two parts with bar elements for which you have specified axial and
rotational stiffness. The relative axial movement of the faces depends on the
axial force that develops in the joint and the specified axial stiffness. Similarly,
the relative rotation depends on the moment that develops in the joint and the
specified rotational stiffness. If you want to model a pure pin connection with free
rotation, you can choose the option of “no translation,” and SolidWorks Simulation
will automatically define axial stiffness so that there is no translation while
allowing free rotation.

Designers and engineers usually want to know the effect of the pin on the parts
adjacent to it or on the overall assembly, rather than the stress distribution on
the pin itself. The virtual pin connector in SolidWorks Simulation was designed for
just such scenarios, and makes analysis faster and easier. With this capability, you
can learn the forces and moments acting on the pin, and use the information to
determine the size of the pin.
Another advantage of pin connectors in SolidWorks Simulation is repeatability.
While an expert designer doing hand calculations may once have done separate
models for each pin, SolidWorks designers can place multiple pins and need only
define some simple features such as tensile strength and connection limitations.
In doing this, you can save many hours and improve productivity.

Spot Welds
Spot welds can be used to join two very thin pieces of metal—they function best
when the parts are less than 3 mm thick. A SolidWorks spot weld connector is
modeled as a beam element that is shear-flexible. The two required parameters are
the user-defined weld diameter and the distance between the parts being welded.
Ultimately, this model mimics the functionality of spot welds in real life. After all,
spot welds are formed by melting metal pieces together without any “filler.” 2 The
same effect is true here:
there is no filler. Spot
weld connectors in a
model car are shown
below in Figure 9 in blue.
Creating spot welds is
easy in SolidWorks
Simulation.

Figure 9. Spot welds (in blue) join the roof to the sides of
a model car.
2
Srikunwong, C., Dupuy, T. , and Bienvenu, Y. Numerical Simulation of Resistance Spot Welding Process using FEA Technique

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You simply define the two contact faces, the weld locations, and the diameters of
the welds. A “no penetration” contact condition should be used to ensure proper
system behavior. The surfaces should not slip past each other, for example. With
those contact conditions defined, the program computes stresses based on the
forces applied, but you must be particularly careful with meshing. A coarse mesh
may cause the program to join the spot weld and the nearest vertex in the mesh
together. This may lead to unreasonable results. You should first run a coarse mesh
and then add split lines to mesh the red areas, the “warning areas”, at a finer level.
This will save computation time and be more accurate than taking the coarse mesh
at face value.

In hand calculations, it is important for the engineer to know the material’s thickness SolidWorks automatically alerts
and melting point, among other properties. Calculating the strength of the weld you when there is a problem with a
according to its size is another large undertaking. SolidWorks keeps all the material proposed weld.
data within its databases. The software alerts you when there is a problem with
the proposed weld and provides a detailed description of the stresses and strains
around the weld, provided proper mesh refinement is implemented.

Edge Welds
Edge weld connectors simulate how a weld would behave if applied between a
face and an edge or between two edges. The software accomplishes this through
bonded contacts: all the nodes within the projection of face set 1 onto face set 2
are bonded together. Edge welds are very common features in engineering designs,
like in the brace shown in Figure 10 below.

Figure 10. Edge welds (dark blue) join parts of a brace together

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You can select among four types of welds and then choose the faces and
intersecting edges where the program should apply the weld. A weld material must
also be defined, and an estimated weld size can be added to make the program run
fairly quickly. (If weld size cannot be estimated, the program will require more time
to run further iterations to provide a proper weld size estimate.)

FEA software utilizes the throat shear method to evaluate edge welds. Rather than With finite element analysis, your
rely solely on stresses—which can be unreliable and difficult to obtain near welds in evaluation relies on more than Stress.
any FEA software—the program computes normal, bending, and shear forces when
estimating the welds as lines. Then, SolidWorks can determine an appropriate weld
size for the forces attained in accordance with industry standards. In SolidWorks
Simulation, the edge weld sizes follow the guidelines set forth by the American
Welding Society, Section D1.1. 3 Other standards are currently
being investigated.

SolidWorks Simulation can provide you with data that compare the minimum
required weld size and the current weld size at all points on the seam. An
example is shown in Figure 11 below based on a static study of a weld on the
aforementioned brace.

Figure 11. A sample plot comparing required weld size (blue) and the current weld size (red).

Based on these results, you should take care that the weld is at least as thick
as the largest required thickness. This will ensure that the entire weld is
structurally sound.
3
Structural Welding Code-Steel., American Welding Society, (D1.1), 2006.

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SPECIALIZED SIMULATION CONNECTORS
Rigid
The rigid connector is a simple concept, but it should be applied only if you are
certain this is what you want. This connector does exactly what it sounds like:
it makes two faces rigid with respect to one another. SolidWorks places rigid
bar connectors in between the selected surfaces. Figure 12 shows how these
connectors function.

Figure 12. A rigid connector keeps the two middle surfaces fixed with respect to one another
even after significant loading

Here, the square on the right is fixed while pressure (purple) is applied to the left
square. Note that these surfaces neither translate nor rotate with respect to one
another. The rest of the square deforms, but these two faces do not. This is more
extreme than the bonded contact simulation setting which still allows for some
localized bending. The stiffness here is infinite. You should be aware when applying
this idealized setting that infinite stiffness can significantly affect the results in the
rest of the system and may inappropriately model some real-life cases. Be careful!

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Links
A link connector acts much like a rigid connector except it joins points instead
of faces. A link is infinitely stiff: if two points are connected through a link, the
distance between them will not change. A link connecting solid bodies at two points
produces a rigid joint. If it connects shell bodies, it allows for rotation—more like
a hinge. In either case, the distance between the two points does not change. The
pictures in Figure 13 below show one example.

Figure 13. Two rods connected via a link, before testing (left) and after testing (right). A link joins the two end vertices no circle.
These points maintain the same distance apart in testing.

Here, a link joins the two top corners in between the bars. The right bar and the
base of the left bar are fixed (left, in green). A small force (left, purple) is exerted
on one edge. The picture on the right demonstrates how the link works within
the no circle region: the two linked corners remain equidistant before and after
the load is applied. The unlinked area on the bottom (colored yellow and red)
moves more, as expected—after all, the link does allow rotation of other points on
the bodies.

The major caveat with the link connector is that it can be used only for small
displacements. SolidWorks Simulation may not solve correctly if displacements
are too large. Moreover, it is important for you to recognize that the link, like
the rigid connector, is highly idealized. It can cause unpredictably high stresses if
implemented improperly, so exercise caution and use it sparingly.

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Conclusion
Connectors are some of the most important parts of many engineering
designs. Countless devices incorporate pins, bolts, springs, welds, and all the
other types of connectors. In the past, each connector would take significant,
intensive time and effort for even the most experienced analysts—and
if some parameters were changed, you would have to begin your analysis
anew. Imagine a large crane with hundreds or thousands of pins and bolts.
The stresses on each of those pins and each of those bolts may not be
very important: you may care far more about the stresses on the crane’s
arm, to ensure that it can hold the proper weight without breaking. Why
waste computation time and resources with a full model when you can use
connectors?

The connectors that make up SolidWorks Simulation allow for faster

computation and faster adjustments than traditional FEA and hand
calculations, and each connector requires only a few select parameters
to perform the proper analysis. SolidWorks Simulation connectors play a
vital role in saving you time and money in every step along the way toward
designing better products.

Additional ideas and help are available on the SolidWorks website

at www.solidworks.com.

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SolidWorks Corp.
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Email: info@solidworks.com
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