FAQ: Why are some of my displacement results all zeros in the superposition files?
Cause: The default option is not to include displacements as leading components in the envelopes. These have been set as off as default in RM Examples with the purpose of saving computational space and effort. This is due to the fact that the smaller the superposition matrix, the faster the calculation time.
Answer: Usually, these displacement results are checked with other leading components that have similar behavior. Like, for example, Mz/Vy, the longitudinal moment, and the vertical displacement. See the last results plot below for reference.
SOLUTION: If the user desires to check their specific envelopes' maximum and minimum, it's necessary to include the respective DOF in the RM Bridge Recalculation window > Structure Type > Max/Min Displ..
Step-by-step instructions in Analyzer:
1. Access the Recalculation Window by clicking in the Recalculate Analyzer button, in the line above the main graphics window, as shown below.
2. a) Directly access the Structure type menu at the top-right
2.b) Or, alternatively, click on the double arrow button "<<" to show schedule variants and advanced options
2.b) 1. Then, select the Structure Type from the Tree menu to open and view the current settings
3. In both options, the user will access the Structure Type, where they can select the Maximum/Minimum Displacements characteristics as the leading components for the envelopes that have their respective results stored in the superposition process.
4. Click on Ok, Cancel, Reset, or Recalc to either Save the changes, ignore the modifications, reset to the default options, or run the calculations.
Note that, as these are the configurations that set them as active or inactive, only for the ticked DOF and their respective result components, will the result vectors be stored in the envelope (superposition) files.
Once this is included in the calculation, the results are available in the envelope superposition files for post-processing, results, plots, and RM-sets. Before including the displacement leading superposition results, these will all be zeros, as shown in the plot below for Max/Min Vy in blue.
More related technical information can be found in the KB articles at the links below.