Introduction

StressCheck provides several types of visual feedback to assist in the interpretation of graphic display information. This is accomplished by varying the cursor icon, the color of individual object types, the colors/symbols (i.e. attributes) associated with loads and constraints, and the type of lines used to display objects.

Mouse Cursors

Each time you change the Action combo-box in the StressCheck C/A/O/M, the mouse cursor will change in the Model View display area to reflect the current action (i.e. Check, Create, Edit, Move To, and Select). Once you learn the different icons used by StressCheck, you will be able to determine quickly what action the program is waiting for.

For example, Action: Select uses the following icon: . As long as this icon appears on the screen, StressCheck is ready to mark the next object as selected.

For each action in the Action combo-box, the following cursor icon will appear in the Model View display area:

• Check:
• Create:
• Edit:
• Move To:
• Select:

No matter what icon is displayed, you are free to make menu selections or to manipulate any buttons or text fields available to you in the user interface. The only information the cursor icon conveys is the currently selected action, which will be invoked by a graphic cursor pick (left mouse button click in the Model View).

For more information on mouse function and model interaction, refer to Dynamic Display Operations Overview, Object Creation Overview, Object Selection/Deselection Overview, and Object Query/Modification Overview.

Object Colors

Each type of object is displayed in a different color. For example, boundaries are displayed in one particular color, elements in another color, etc. When an object is selected or edited, it is displayed in yet another color. This makes it easy to interpret the status of each object displayed.

The following are default colors used for systems, points, sheet (surface) bodies, solid bodies, nodes, and elements:

• Systems are displayed in three colors (X = blue, Y = green, Z = red):
• Selected systems are displayed in red:
• Points are displayed in light brown:
• Selected points are displayed in red:
• Sheet body surfaces (e.g. planes) are displayed in blue:
• Solid body surfaces (e.g. solid boxes) are displayed in steel blue:
• Selected surfaces (sheet body or solid body) are displayed in red:
• Selected solid bodies are displayed in light blue:
• Nodes are displayed as green squares:
• Selected nodes are displayed as red squares:
• Elements without assigned material properties are displayed in a soft pink:
• Mesh elements with material properties assigned can be assigned a number of different color properties. StressCheck has 5 pre-saved color properties for easy assignment. They are Same as Solid, Steel (Dark Grey), Titanium (Light Blue), Fastener (Light Yellow), Aluminum (Light Grey), and Beam (Dark Blue). Users can also create custom colors by entering RGB values or selecting a basic color from the menu shown in Figure 1:

• Selected elements are displayed with blue faces and red edges. Below, two elements are selected:

Additionally, colors may be used to differentiate objects during a multi-step operation. For example, during a Boolean-Union operation between two solids, the first body selected will be highlighted green and the second body selected will be highlighted in red:

For more information about object colors, refer to Display Menu Overview.

Display Attributes

The Display Attributes toolbar enables/disables the display of load and/or constraint ID symbols, as well as other attributes like element thickness and material property assignments.

Load Attributes

Load attributes may be displayed for meshed geometry by enabling the Load Attributes  toggle in the Attributes toolbar and selecting the desired load case ID (e.g. “LOAD”) from the toggle drop-down. Scaled symbols will be drawn relative to 1) the applied load magnitude(s) for a given load case ID and 2) the current Model View.

By default, load attributes are rendered in red and the following symbolic convention is used:

• Spring Displacement:
• All Other Load Methods:

To reset the display of the load attribute symbols, click the Display Reset  button in the Edit Toolbar.

Constraint Attributes

Constraint attributes may be displayed for meshed geometry by enabling the Constraint Attributes  toggle in the Attributes toolbar and selecting the desired constraint case ID (e.g. “CONST”) from the toggle drop-down.

By default, constraint attributes are rendered in pink and the following symbolic convention is used:

• Antisymmetry:
• Built-In:
• General/Spring Coefficient:
• Homogeneous/Node/Rigid Body:
• Symmetry:

To reset the display of the constraint attribute symbols, click the Display Reset button in the Edit Toolbar. For more information about display attributes, refer to Attributes Toolbar Overview.

Line Types

Line type is another way to distinguish objects. Boundaries are usually displayed with dashed lines and elements with solid lines when both elements and boundaries are selected for display:

This is so that when you select a boundary, it is still possible to see the underlying element edge between the dashes of the selected boundary. When elements are not selected for display, geometric boundaries are displayed with solid lines: