Ram Load Combination Generator

RAM Structural System
V8i (SELECTseries 6)
Load Combination Generator

Last Updated: January 16, 2014
Legal Notices
Trademark Notice
Bentley and the B Bentley logo are registered or non-registered trademarks of Bentley Systems,
Incorporated.
RAM SBeam, RAM Structural System, RAM Manager, RAM Modeler, RAM Steel, RAM Frame, RAM
Foundation and RAM Concrete are registered or non-registered trademarks of Bentley Systems,
Incorporated.
All other marks are the property of their respective owners.
Copyright Notice
Copyright (c) 2013 Bentley Systems, Incorporated. All Rights Reserved.
Including software, file formats, and audiovisual displays; may only be used pursuant to applicable
software license agreement; contains confidential and proprietary information of Bentley Systems,
Incorporated and/or third parties which is protected by copyright and trade secret law and may not be
provided or otherwise made available without proper authorization.
Acknowledgements
Objective Grid C++ Library Copyright Rogue Wave Software, Inc.
Virtual Print Engine (VPE) Copyright IDEAL Software
Contains CM2 MeshTools by Computing Objects
Math Kernel Library (MKL) Intel Corporation
The Boost Graph Library (BGL) Siek, J.G., Lee, L., and Lumsdaine, A.
Ultimate Toolbox Dundas Software Ltd.
TurboDXF Ideal Engineering
Portions Copyright Microsoft Corporation
Includes Adobe PDF Library technology. Portions Copyright Adobe Systems, Inc.
Clipper library Angus Johnson
zlib software Jean-loup Gailly and Mark Adler.
Restricted Rights Legends

If this software is acquired for or on behalf of the United States of America, its agencies and/or
instrumentalities (U.S. Government), it is provided with restricted rights. This software and
accompanying documentation are commercial computer software and commercial computer
software documentation, respectively, pursuant to 48 C.F.R. 12.212 and 227.7202, and restricted
Legal Notices
Restricted Rights Legends
computer software pursuant to 48 C.F.R. 52.227-19(a), as applicable. Use, modification, reproduction,
release, performance, display or disclosure of this software and accompanying documentation by the
U.S. Government are subject to restrictions as set forth in this Agreement and pursuant to 48 C.F.R.
12.212, 52.227-19, 227.7202, and 1852.227-86, as applicable. Contractor/Manufacturer is Bentley
Systems, Incorporated, 685 Stockton Drive, Exton, PA 19341-0678.
Unpublished - rights reserved under the Copyright Laws of the United States and International treaties.
Disclaimer
The software and related documentation, including this documentation, are protected by both United
States copyright law and international treaty provisions. Any unauthorized copying or reproduction is
strictly prohibited and subject to civil and criminal penalties. Please refer to the License Agreement
(EULA) for authorization to make a backup copy of the software. You may not sell this software or
documentation or give copies of them to anyone else.
Except as expressly warranted in the License Agreement (EULA), Bentley Systems, Incorporated
disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, including but not limited to implied warranties or
merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose, with respect to the software, the accompanying
written materials, and any accompanying hardware. All results should be verified to the user's
satisfaction. The contents of these written materials may include technical inaccuracies or typographical
errors and may be revised without prior notice.
Disclaimer
This page intentionally left blank
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction ........................................................................................................9
Chapter 2: The Load Combination Generator ..................................................................... 11
2.1
2.2
2.3
Load Case Symbols ...................................................................................................................................................................11

Generated Load Combinations ........................................................................................................................................... 12
Custom Load Combinations ................................................................................................................................................. 13
Entering Custom Combinations Manually ................................................................................................. 14
2.3.1
Creating Custom Combinations using Templates ...................................................................................15
2.3.2
Chapter 3: Load Combination Templates ............................................................................17

3.1
3.2
3.3
Template Format ...................................................................................................................................................................... 17

ID: .................................................................................................................................................................................20
3.1.1
NAME: ........................................................................................................................................................................ 21
3.1.2
CONTROL1: ..............................................................................................................................................................22
3.1.3
CONTROL2 and CONTROL5: ............................................................................................................................ 23
3.1.4
CONTROL3: ..............................................................................................................................................................25
3.1.5
CONTROL4: ..............................................................................................................................................................26
3.1.6
Reserve Words ....................................................................................................................................................... 28
3.1.7
COMBINATIONS: ................................................................................................................................................... 28
3.1.8
Dropping Combinations and Dropping Terms .........................................................................................30
3.1.9
Notional Loads ....................................................................................................................................................... 30
3.1.10
Creating Template Files .........................................................................................................................................................31
Copying and Editing Templates ......................................................................................................................31
3.2.1
Comments in the Template File ......................................................................................................................32
3.2.2
Testing the New Template ................................................................................................................................. 33
3.2.3
Errors .............................................................................................................................................................................................33
Introduction
The Load Combination Generator is a tool that is used by RAM Frame, RAM Concrete and RAM
Foundation for creating load combinations. It provides a means for generating combinations based on
specific codes and also allows the user to manually enter custom load combinations.
Load Combinations are generated from Load Combination template files. While most users will never
need to concern themselves with these files, templates can be modified to generate customized
combinations to meet the specific needs of an engineer's work environment. New templates can also be
created. See Chapter 3, Load Combination Templates for more information on template files.
Introduction
10
The Load Combination Generator
The Load Combination Generator is used to either generate load combinations based on a selected
code's requirements or to enter load combinations manually. This chapter explains how both are done.
2.1 Load Case Symbols

Load Case 'symbols', or abbreviations, are assigned to each load case. These abbreviations are used in
the Load Combination dialogs, the display of the load combinations and several reports. They are also
used in the Load Combination templates.
Table 1 is a list of load cases available to the generator and the symbol associated with them. When
these symbols appear in a template, they will be included in the generated combinations provided the
load case has been analyzed.
Load Case Symbol
Load Case It Represents
Dead Load
Lp
Positive Live Load
Ln
Negative Live Load
Rfp
Positive Roof Load
Rfn
Negative Roof Load
Sp
Positive Snow Load
Sn
Negative Snow Load
Wind Load
Earthquake Load
Dyn
O (Oh, not Zero)
Dynamic (Response Spectra) Load

User Defined Story Force (type "Other")
ND
Notional Dead Load
NL
Notional Live Load
NR
Notional Roof
11

Generated Load Combinations
The load combination generator recognizes one additional load case symbol. This is NOT a symbol that
will be seen in the combo generator dialog or in reports. It is valid only in conjunction with controls 2
and 5 (see 3.1.4).
Load Case Symbol
N
Load Case It Represents

A generic reference to ANY type of Notional Load.
Positive and Negative refer to downward acting Live Loads (Positive) and upward acting (uplift) Live
Loads (Negative). The program automatically detects and treats these as separate Live Load cases, when
they occur.
2.2 Generated Load Combinations

Load combinations may be generated automatically by invoking the Combinations Generate
command. All of the Load Combination templates associated with the selected Design Code currently in
use will be listed. A template is selected by selecting a Code in the Code for Combinations combo box.
When a template is selected, the default parameters are shown and may be modified to meet the
engineers needs.
Load combinations are displayed as a text string. When in Generation mode, these load combinations
cannot be edited or deleted (although they can be de-selected). Buttons are available to Copy, Paste,
Select All, De-select All, Invert Selection and Delete. When in Generation mode the Paste and Delete
buttons are inactive (see Figure 1).
When the user exits the dialog, the Code for Combinations (i.e. the template used) and the parameters
used to generate combinations are saved along with the generated combinations.
If no generated combinations are desired, -None- should be selected from the Code for Combinations
list.
12

Custom Load Combinations
2.3 Custom Load Combinations

The dialog box for Custom Load Combinations (Figure 2) is nearly identical to that of the Load
Combination Generation command. In addition to being able to type in load combinations, the user also
has access to the load combination templates, from which load combinations can be generated and
edited.
13

2.3.1 Entering Custom Combinations Manually

As with the generated load combinations, the combinations are displayed as a text string. Custom
combinations can be created by typing in coefficients and load case symbols exactly as desired (for
example, 1.2 D + 0.5 Rfp + 1.3 W1). The load case symbols should match those shown in the Analyzed
Load Cases list. A Combination should not exceed 254 characters, including blanks. Syntax or
typographical errors are reported to the user when the combinations are validated (Figure 3). A
combination must not contain more than twenty five load cases.
14

If combinations with syntax errors exist (indicated by a red light) when the user clicks Ok, a warning
will be given asking if the user wants to fix the errors. Because the combo generator does not save load
combinations that contain errors, these combinations will be deleted if not fixed.
2.3.2 Creating Custom Combinations using Templates

Custom Load Combinations can also be created by using the templates to generate combinations and
then making changes, if desired. In the Custom Load Combinations dialog, the engineer has access to
ALL templates, regardless of design code selected. At the top of the dialog there are two drop-down
combo controls; both are defaulted to "None".
From the first drop-down combo box, the template ID is selected.
Once a template ID is selected, the Code for Combinations drop-down control lists the available
templates for that material (Figure 4). From this control, a code is selected and the dialog controls
become available and the Generate button becomes active.
At this point, combinations can be generated just as if one was using the Load Combination Generation
command. There are two important differences:
1. Existing combinations are not replaced when new combinations are generated as they are in the
Generator. New combinations are appended to the end of the existing combination list.
2. Because these are Custom Combinations, they can be modified and/or deleted from the combination
list.
To edit a load combination, select it in the Load Combinations list and make the desired changes. It
should not exceed 254 characters, including blanks and can have at most twenty five load cases.
15

In the Custom Load Combinations command, the settings for the generator are temporary. Template ID
and code are not saved, nor are the parameters used for generating combinations; only the
combinations themselves are saved.
16
Load Combination Templates
The Load Combination Generator reads an external file to obtain a template and generate the
combinations based on that template. Templates are provided with the program for generating the load
combinations for each building code. The engineer can also create templates.
The use of the load combination templates can be as simple or as complex as the user chooses. Their
purpose is to provide flexibility and, if used correctly, can be a very powerful tool. If used incorrectly or
without careful thought and planning, they can cause more problems than they solve.
Different ways to use the template files
1. The very simplest way to use the templates is to ignore them. The use of template files should be
transparent to the user. This will be the case for most users.
2. A slightly more advanced approach is to access the templates via the Custom Load Combinations
command and modify any combinations that are generated. The Custom Load Combination
command provides access to all templates (regardless of material) and generates combinations
based on the template selected. These generated combinations can then be edited or deleted. By
accessing the templates in this way, one can use their power without having to edit them directly.
3. The most advanced option is to create and edit your own template files. These templates will then be
listed in the Load Combination dialog, along with the templates provided with the program, the same
as if they had come with the program. They will also be available in the Custom Load Combination
dialog. This is an advanced feature and is not recommended for users who are not experienced
with text editors, scripting or debugging .
3.1 Template Format

Template files must be located in the Tables directory and must have the file extension .cmb.
Each template file contains four primary sections of information:
A Template ID (ID:) is located at the beginning of each file to identify the material and design code with
which the template is associated.
The Template Name (NAME:) uniquely identifies a template within its Template ID Group.
The Control section (CONTROL1: through CONTROL5:) defines the controls that will appear in the
Parameters section of the Load Combination Generation dialog box and Custom Load Combinations
dialog box and how those controls relate to the load combinations (see Figure 1). These controls
provide a means for the user to specify variable values or to select options. Not all controls are used for
all templates; in fact, some templates do not use any of the controls.
17

Template Format
The last section in the template is the actual combination template (COMBINATIONS:), which lists all
combinations that could be generated using this template.
An example of the template file format is given in the following:
ID: TemplateIDText
NAME: TemplateNameText
CONTROL1: T/F
V10, Variable10Text , MinValue , MaxValue , DefaultValue
.
.
.
V 1n , VariablennText , MinValue , MaxValue , DefaultValue
CONTROL2: T/F , LoadCaseSymbol , LoadCaseSymbol(opt) , Text
OPTION 1: V20 = Value1 , Option1Text
.
.
.
OPTION n : V20 = Valuen , OptionnText
DEFAULT: OptionNumber
CONTROL3: T/F
TITLE: TitleText30
V30, CheckedValue30 , UncheckedValue30
18

Template Format
DEFAULT: ON/OFF
TITLE: TitleText31
DEFAULT: ON/OFF
.
.
.
TITLE: TitleTextnn
V 3n , CheckedValuenn , UncheckedValuenn
DEFAULT: ON/OFF
CONTROL4: T/F , LoadCaseSymbol , , Text
V40, Text1 , Text2 , MinV1 , MaxV1 , DefV1 , MinV2, MaxV2 , DefV2
DEFAULT: Calc/User
CONTROL5: T/F , LoadCaseSymbol , LoadCaseSymbol(Opt) , Text
V51 = Value1 (2nd option)
.
.
.
V5n = Value1 (nth option)
V51 = Value2 (2nd option)
.
.
.
V5n = Value2 (nth option)
.
.
.
OPTION n : V50 = Value n , OptionnText
V51 = Value n (2nd option)
.
.
.
19

Template Format
V5n = Value n (nth option)
COMBINATIONS:
Flag Combination1
Flag Combination2
Flag Combination3
Flag Combination4
.
.
.
Flag Combination n
END:
Those items not in italics should be capitalized as shown. Items shown in italics indicate values or text
strings specified by the user. Colons and commas must be included where shown. Each section is
separated by a blank line as shown. Each of the items in the template is defined below.
3.1.1 ID:
Purpose: The Template ID associates the template with a material (e.g., Steel) and a design code. It is
used for two purposes. When the Load Combination Generator is invoked, it reads all of the
template files (files with the extension .cmb) located in the Tables directory. When a file
with a Template ID that matches the current material and design code is found, the
template is read from that file and made available to the Load Combination Generator.
The second use for the Template ID's is related to Custom Combinations. While an engineer
can still type in Custom Combinations, it is now possible to generate custom combinations
based on the templates. In the Custom Combinations dialog, all of the templates are
available to the user (not just those associated with the current material and design code).
The Template ID's are displayed in a combo box. The user selects a template type and from
there has access to all of the templates associated with that Template ID.
Format:
ID: TemplateIDText
The Template ID line begins with ID: followed by the Template ID, TemplateIDText . It
must be the first line of the template file and there can be only one Template ID line per file.
It must be followed by a blank line.
For use in the Load Combination Generator, TemplateIDText must be one of the Template IDs listed
in Table 3:
Template ID
Material
Design Code
STEEL_ASD
Steel
ASD Standard
20

Template Format
STEEL_LRFD
Steel
LRFD Standard
STEEL_BRITISH
Steel
British Standard
STEEL_CAN
Steel
Canadian Standard
STEEL_EURO
Steel
Eurocode Standard
STEEL_AS_NZS
Steel
AS 4100-98 Standard
STEEL_SP_ASD
Steel
ASD Seismic Provisions
STEEL_SP_LRFD
Steel
LRFD Seismic Provisions
CONCRETE_ACI
Concrete
ACI 318
CONCRETE_BRITISH
Concrete
BS 8110
CONCRETE_CP_65
Concrete
CP65
CONCRETE_EC2
Concrete
Eurocode 2
CONCRETE_CHINESE
Concrete
GB 50009 and GB50010
CONCRETE__AS3600
Concrete
AS/NZS 1170.0
SOIL_ACI
Soil
All U.S. codes
SOIL_BRITISH
Soil
British
SOIL_CP65
Soil
CP65
NOTIONAL_BRITISH
Steel
BS 5950
If a Template ID other than one listed above is used in a template file, that template will NOT be
available to the generator. It will, however, be available through the Custom Load Combination dialog.
Note that NOTIONAL_BRITISH is used exclusively for the BS 5950 Lambda Critical feature; it is not
anticipated that that ID will be used in any user-created templates.
3.1.2 NAME:
Purpose: The Template Name uniquely identifies a template within its Template ID group. For
example, there are several combination codes within the STEEL_ASD Template group (e.g.,
UBC, SBC, BOCA, etc.). It is necessary to be able to differentiate one template from another.
This is done through the Template Name.
When the Load Combinations Generator is initiated, it reads all of the template files and
reads into memory all templates that are associated with a specific Template ID. As it reads
21

Template Format
each file, it compiles a list of the templates that are available. This list is displayed in the
"Code for Combinations" list. The template that will be used to generate combinations is
selected here by the user.
If a Template Name is duplicated within a Template group, a warning is given.
Format:
NAME: TemplateNameText
The Template Name line begins with NAME: followed by the Template Name,
TemplateNameText. TemplateNameText is any convenient name assigned by the user
creating the template to identify the combinations contained in the template. For example,
Template Names used in the templates provided with the program include AISC ASD, IBC
2000 LRFD, ACI 318-95/99 and BS 8110 1997. The name may include blanks and may
have up to 99 characters. This name must be unique within the Template ID type group. It
must be followed by a blank line.
3.1.3 CONTROL1:
Purpose: Control 1 is a spread sheet-like grid that accepts input for variables that modify load cases
in the load combination. There can be up to 10 variables associated with Control 1. These
variables will be used as load factors or used to modify load factors as specified in the Load
Combinations.
Use this control if the value entered for the variable can be a range of numbers.
Format: CONTROL1: T/F
V11, Variable11Text, MinValue, MaxValue, DefaultValue
.
.
.
V1n, Variable1nText, MinValue, MaxValue, DefaultValue
The Control 1 line begins with CONTROL1: followed by either T or F. An F (False) indicates
that the control is not used, and no additional information is necessary. In this case the
Control 1 grids will not appear in the Load Combination dialog box.
A T (True) indicates that the control is to be used. The subsequent lines define the user
interface display.
22

Template Format
Each line begins with a variable name starting with V10. The variable name must be followed by a
comma.
After the variable name is a text string that identifies the variable to the user; it will be listed in the
first grid in the dialog box. The text string may include blanks and have up to 50 characters. The text
string must be followed by a comma.
The next three fields define the data range and default for the variable. MinValue is the minimum
allowable value for that variable; if the user specifies a value less than that, a Warning will be given
by the program. MaxValue is the maximum allowable value for that variable; if the user specifies a
value greater than that, a Warning will be given by the program. DefaultValue is the value that
will initially appear in the grid, but which the user can change. For convenience it should be given the
value that is most likely to be specified. Each of these items must be separated by a comma.
Control 1 may contain the definition for up to 10 variables, V10 through V19. Each one is listed on a
separate line, in the format as previously described. These variables can be used as load factors used to
modify load factors in the combinations listed in the COMBINATIONS: section as explained later in this
section.
This section must be followed by a blank line.
An example of a control that will appear in the dialog box:
CONTROL1: T
V10, CaI, 0.05, 2.0, 0.1
An example of a control that will be hidden in the dialog box:
CONTROL1: F
3.1.4 CONTROL2 and CONTROL5:

Purpose: Controls 2 and 5 are identical. This section will use Control 2 as an example but
descriptions and instructions apply to both commands.
Control 2 is a drop-down combo box that gives options for how one particular variable is to
behave. Based on the option selected, a value will be assigned to a variable which will then
be applied as a load factor or a load factor modifier as indicated in the Load Combinations.
Use Control 2 if there are several discrete values that can be assigned to one variable. The engineer
using the template will not be able to enter a value but rather will choose an option that will determine
a value.
In some cases, it is desirable to associate more than one value with a given option. This would be the
case when selection of a given option impacts the factors in different load combination in different ways.
To accomplish this, up to 5 additional variables can be defined for each combo box selection. When
using multiple variables with Control 2, it is imperative that each option have the same number of
variables (i.e., V20, V21, etc.) associated with it.
23

Template Format
Format with one variable
per combo box selection:
CONTROL2: T/F , LoadCaseSymbol1 , LoadCaseSymbol2 , Text

.
.
.
OPTION n : V20 = Value n , Option n Text
Format with multiple

variables per combo box
selection:
CONTROL2: T/F , LoadCaseSymbol1 , LoadCaseSymbol2 , Text

V21 = Value2
V22 = Value3
V21 = Value2
V22 = Value3
.
.
.
OPTION n : V20 = Value 1 , Option n Text
V21 = Value 2
V22 = Value 3
The Control 2 line begins with CONTROL2: followed by either T or F . An F (False) indicates that the
control is not used, and no additional information is necessary. In this case the Control 2 list will not
appear in the Load Combination dialog box.
A T (True) indicates that the control is to be used. The rest of the line contains the additional
information
LoadCaseSymbol1 , LoadCaseSymbol2(optional) , and Text .
LoadCaseSymbol1 and LoadCaseSymbol2 are Load Case symbols as given in Table 1 and Table 2 in
Chapter 2.1. These are called dependent load cases. That is, load cases of both types must have been
Analyzed in order for this control to be visible. If the visibility of the control is based on just one load
case, either enter the same load case symbol twice or leave the second load case symbol blank.
Text is the text that will appear above the option list. Notice the location of the commas separating
items. If the second load case symbol is not used, the commas must still be present to preserve the
empty space.
Subsequent lines for control 2 contain the information for each combo box option. Each option is
defined on a separate line and must be formatted as follows:
24

Template Format
Each Option line begins with the word "OPTION" followed by a number and then a colon.
After the colon is the variable name V20= followed by the value that will be assigned to V20 when
that option is selected. The value must be followed by a comma.
Next is the text string that will appear in the combo box for this option. It may contain blanks and
may have up to 99 characters
If additional variables are defined with each option, the definition of the additional variables follows
each option line. Indentation is not necessary but makes the template more readable. Formatting for the
additional variable lines is:
Variable name V21= followed by the value that will be assigned to V21 when that option is selected.
Up to 5 additional variables (V21 - V25) can be added.
A special value, Ignore, can be specified for V20 or any of the variables. If the option line lists V20 =
Ignore, the program will ignore every load combination that contains both of the dependent Load Case
symbols. For example, this can be used to provide an option to ignore all load combinations that contain
both Snow and Seismic load cases.
Be aware that Ignore and the value 0 (zero) are NOT the same. Ignore can result in an entire load
combination being eliminated. A value of zero can potentially result in a term with a zero factor which
will result in that term being dropped from the load combination (but the rest of the combination will
still be created).
The lines listing the options are followed by a line that says DEFAULT: followed by OptionNumber
where OptionNumber is an integer indicating which of the options is to be initially selected by default.
An example of Control 2:
CONTROL2: T, S, E, Snow Factor
OPTION 1: V20 = 1.0, Use Full Factor (1.0) on Snow in Combinations with Seismic
OPTION 2: V20 = 0.25, Use Reduced Factor (0.25) on Snow in Combinations with
Seismic
OPTION 3: V20 = Ignore, Do Not Include Snow in Combinations with Seismic
DEFAULT:1
3.1.5 CONTROL3:
Purpose: Control 3 is a set of options with check boxes. Depending on whether the option is selected
or de-selected, values will be assigned to variables used as factors or to modify factors in
the Load Combinations. There can be up to 10 variables associated with Control 3.
25

Template Format
Use Control 3 in "Either/Or" situations. In the example above, the user has the option to
either suppress the 1.1 Factor or to apply it.
Format:
CONTROL3: T/F
TITLE: TitleText30
DEFAULT: ON/OFF
TITLE: TitleText31
DEFAULT: ON/OFF
.
.
.
TITLE: TitleText3n
V 3n , CheckedValue3n , UncheckedValue3n
DEFAULT: ON/OFF
control is not used, and no additional information is necessary. In this case, the Control 3 list will not
appear in the Load Combination dialog box. A T (True) indicates that the control is to be used, and
additional lines of information are required for each item in the list.
Each item consists of three lines. The first line begins with TITLE: followed by the text string that will be
displayed for that option. The next line begins with the variable V30 followed by two values,
CheckedValue30 and UncheckedValue30 . CheckedValue30 is the value that will be assigned to
V30 if the option is selected and UncheckedValue30 is the value that will be assigned to V30 if the
option is not selected. The third line begins with DEFAULT: followed by either ON or OFF . ON indicates
that the initial default for the check box associated with that option is for it to be selected, OFF indicates
that it is not to be selected. It is advised to set the default to the setting most commonly selected.
These three lines are repeated for each option desired, using a different variable for each. The variables
V30 through V39 can be used.
An example of Control 3 is:
CONTROL3: T
TITLE: Suppress 1.1 Factor on Seismic Combos.
V30, 1.1, 1.0
DEFAULT: ON
26

Template Format
3.1.6 CONTROL4:
Purpose: Control 4 consists of two selection buttons; one to indicate the use of program calculated
values and one to indicate the use of values entered by a user.
Control 4 is a special control that is used in the RAM Structural System to apply the
Redundancy Factor, Rho, to the seismic load in combinations. As currently implemented,
the Use Calculated option will always assign the calculated value of Rho to the variable. This
control can also be used, however, for other purposes if the Use Calculated option is not
used. It is useful when the value of the load factor is dependent upon the direction of the
load case.
Format:
CONTROL4: T/F, LoadCaseSymbol, ,Text V40, Text1, Text2, MinV1, MaxV1,

DefV1, MinV2, MaxV2, DefV2
DEFAULT: CALC/USER/USE_ONLY
control is not used, and no additional information is necessary. In this case, the Control 4 options will
not appear in the Load Combination dialog box.
A T (True) indicates that the control is to be used, and the Control 4 line must contain the additional
information LoadCaseSymbol , a blank, and Text . The items must be separated by commas as shown
and the blank must be included (it is not currently used but is to provide for a future expansion of the
capability of the control).
LoadCaseSymbol is a Load Case symbol as given in "Error! Reference source not found.." Load cases
of this type must have been Analyzed in order for this control to be available. If LoadCaseSymbol is left
blank, the control will always be available (unless the control flag was set to F). Text is the text that will
appear above the option.
When CONTROL4 is set to True, the subsequent line in the file must be as follows: it begins with V40 ,
followed by parameters associated with that variable. Text1 is a text string that will be associated with
the first of two edit boxes. The text string may include blanks and may have up to 4 characters. Text2 is
a text string that will be associated with the second edit box. MinV1 is the minimum allowable value for
that variable as specified in the first edit box; if the user specifies a value less than that, a Warning will
be given by the program. MaxV1 is the maximum allowable value for that variable as specified in the
first edit box; if the user specifies a value greater than that, a Warning will be given by the program.
DefV1 is the default value that will initially appear in the edit box, but which the user can change. For
convenience it should be given the value that is most likely to be specified. MinV2 , MaxV2 and DefV2 are
the minimum, maximum and default values, respectively, associated with the second edit box. Each of
these items must be separated by a comma.
27

Template Format
The value assigned to the variable V40 is dependent upon the direction of the load case to which it is
assigned. If the load case acts in the global X-axis direction, the value assigned to V40 is the value
specified in the first edit box. If the load case acts in the global Y-axis direction, the value assigned to
V40 is the value specified in the second edit box. If the load case acts at an angle or has components in
both the X- and Y-axis directions, the greater of the values specified in the two edit boxes will be
assigned to V40 .
The final line must begin with DEFAULT: followed by either CALC , USER or USE_ONLY . If CALC is
specified, the default selection will be the "Use Calculated" option. If USER is specified, the default
selection will be the "Use" option. USE_ONLY is a special value which should be specified if Control 4 is
used for anything other than Rho; it causes the Use Calculated option to be disabled.
An example of Control 4 is:
CONTROL4: T, E, , Rho
V40, RhoX, RhoY, 1.00, 1.5, 1.0, 1.00, 1.5, 1.0
DEFAULT: CALC
3.1.7 Reserve Words

At times, the template controls are used to implement a feature specific to the RAM Structural System. In
these cases, a reserve word is used to signal the load combination generator of the specific nature of the
variable. It is recommended that users NOT use these reserve words as this will result in unintended
results (unless they are used in precisely the same way as is done in some of the templates supplied
with the program).
Reserve Word
Control
Purpose
CALC
To apply the Redundancy Factor,

Rho, to the seismic load
Combinations.
ReserveDirVar
2 or 5
To control how notional loads

are combined with lateral loads.
3.1.8 COMBINATIONS:
Purpose: The COMBINATIONS section of each template is used to explicitly define the load
combinations. The load factors associated with each load case in each load combination are
specified.
Format:
COMBINATIONS:
Flag Combination1
Flag Combination2
28

Template Format
Flag Combination3
Flag Combination4
.
.
.
Flag Combination n
END:
The Combinations section begins with the keyword COMBINATIONS: .
Each subsequent line consists of a flag and a mathematical expression describing a single combination,
as described below. Each combination must be listed.
The Combinations section ends with END: .
Flag is either T: or blank. It indicates whether the combination is to be included when the Tensiononly option is invoked in the analysis performed by RAM Frame.
Combination1 , Combination2 , etc, are mathematical expressions consisting of Factors, Load Case
Symbols, Operators and Variables that define a single combination.
Factors can be any number, positive or negative. Generally there should be one combination with a
positive factor on the Wind and Seismic load cases and another with a negative factor, to account for the
reversal of those load cases. If the factor is 1.0, it can be omitted.
Variables can also be used, either instead of or in conjunction with Factors. The variables and their
definition were described previously in the CONTROLS section. Variables should only be used if the
corresponding Control has been activated and defined. Acceptable variable names are V10 through V19
(from Control 1), V20 through V25 (from Control 2), V30 through V39 (from Control 3), V40 (from
Control 4) and V50 through V55 (from Control 5). No other variable names will be recognized. The
program will automatically assign to the variable the value entered by the engineer in the dialog box.
The Load Case Symbols are given in Table 1 in Chapter 2.1. They are used to specify the general Load
Case type. In RAM Frame, there may be multiple Wind, Earthquake, Dynamic or Other load cases; each
of them are of the general Load Case type W, E, Dyn, and O, respectively. Any Load Combinations
containing those load cases need only be generically defined once; the program will automatically
generate actual load combinations for each load case of that type.
Operators can be + , - , * (multiply), and / (divide). Parentheses can also be used. Operators must be
used between Factors, Variables and Load Case Symbols.
An example of a Combinations section is given in the following:
COMBINATIONS:
T: 1.0 * D
T: 1.0 * D + 0.75 * Lp + 0.75 * Rfp
T: 1.0 * D + 0.75 * Ln + 0.75 * Rfn
T: 1.0 * D + 0.75 * Lp + 0.75 * Sp
T: 1.0 * D + 0.75 * Ln + 0.75 * Sn
.
29

Template Format
.
.
T: (0.75 + 0.375 * V10) * D + 0.75 * E
(0.75 + 0.375 * V10) * D - 0.75 * E
T: (0.75 + 0.375 * V10) * D + 0.75 * E
(0.75 + 0.375 * V10) * D - 0.75 * E
END:
An example of how a Control works with the Combinations section is the SBC '99 requirements for
concrete design combinations, which call for Av to modify the Dead Load in certain combinations. To
accomplish this, Control 1 of the template is used to assign a value to a variable for Av. It looks like this:
CONTROL1: T
V10, Av, 0.05, 2.0, 0.1 Av is assigned to variable V10
This control will appear in the Load Combination dialog box, providing a means for the Engineer to
specify a value of Av. In the combination template, V10 is used to modify Dead Load.
(1.1 + 0.5*V10)*D + 0.5*Lp + 1.0*E
When the combinations are generated, the value that the Engineer enters for Av will be substituted for
V10 to calculate the correct factor for Dead Load.
3.1.9 Dropping Combinations and Dropping Terms

The load combination generator has the ability to drop an entire load combination or drop out terms
from a load combination based on following criteria:
A combination will be dropped if an error occurs when a factor is solved. For example, a divide by
zero error will cause a combination to be dropped.
A combination can be dropped by using the keyword "Ignore" in either control 2 or 5. If "Ignore" is
the value of the selected and the combination includes both dependent load cases, the combination
will be dropped.
A term will be dropped from a combination if it has a factor that evaluates to zero.
If a combination includes a notional load term and that notional load is not analyzed, the term will be
dropped from the combination.
3.1.10 Notional Loads

Notional load cases are treated differently than other load cases with respect to whether the load case in
the combination has been analyzed or not. If the combination includes a notional load, but no notional
loads of that type have been analyzed, the load combination will be generated without the notional load
term. On the other hand, if a combination includes some other type of load that has not been analyzed
(e.g., the combination includes a Wind load term but no Wind load cases have been analyzed), the entire
combination will be dropped, it will not be generated at all.
30

Creating Template Files
Sets of notional loads share a common direction. Notional loads acting in different directions will not be
included in the same combination (e.g., an X-direction notional dead load will not be included in the
same combination as a Y-direction notional live load).
If more than one group of notional loads are created (e.g., one group of British notional loads and one
group of user defined notional loads), these groups remain independent of each other. Notional loads
from one group will not be combined with notional loads from another group.
3.2 Creating Template Files

Templates can be created and then reused from project to project. This eliminates the need to recreate
combinations for every project. It is not always necessary, however, to create templates. A number of
templates are included with the RAM Structural System. Before creating template files, first determine if
the desired template has already been supplied or not. If not, determine if a new template should be
created, or if custom combinations should simply be entered manually.
When to Create In situations where you will repeatedly use a set of combinations (in several
Your Own
projects), it is useful to create a template.
Template File
For example:
1. You often design to a building code that has combinations that are not provided
with the program.
2. The design philosophy employed by your office is such that it is not satisfied by
the combinations provided with the program, so some modification to the
combinations is necessary.
When Not to
Create Your
Own Template
File
You should not create a template file if one has already been provide with the
program that creates the combinations you need. You should not create a template
file for a model with specific peculiar conditions that require special combinations
that will not be used again for future models. That is, the combinations are used only
for that one project and not reused. For this situation you should use the Custom
Load Combinations command and create the combinations manually within the
program rather than create a template to generate your project-specific
combinations.
3.2.1 Copying and Editing Templates

While it is possible to create a template from scratch, a simpler approach is to copy an existing template
and make the necessary changes. It is strongly recommended that template files provided by RAM
International NOT be modified; make modifications to copies ONLY.
The template files are located in the Tables directory and have the extension .CMB. Select a template to
copy that is most like the template that you want to create. Generally it is best to copy a template that is
associated with the same material, if available. This will ensure that the template ID is correct.
31

Creating Template Files
An example of a template that uses all five Controls is the IBC 2006 Steel ASD template
(RamSteelIBC2006_ASD.cmb). An example of a template that has all Controls turned off is the AISC ASD
Steel template (RamSteelAISC_ASD.cmb).
The templates provided by RAM International are write protected. If you copy an existing file using
Windows Explorer, you will need to remove the Read Only property before editing the file. If you open
the file in a text editor such as Notepad and save it to a new name, the Read Only property will be
removed for you.
After a template has been copied, it can be edited using a simple word editor such as Notepad.
Verify that the ID: field is correct, or specify an ID as explained in Section 3.1.1.
Specify a new name for the NAME: field in the template as explained in Section 3.1.2 . This must be a
unique Name from that used in any other templates that have the same ID.
Determine which Controls are needed, if any. Ask yourself these questions:
Question: Do any of the combinations that I am going to create use any Factors that might vary from one
project to another?
If the answer to that question is "No", then you do not need any Controls. Set them all to False and
you're done with the Controls.
Question: Do I have a factor that could have any of a range of values associated with it?
If the answer is "Yes", you want to use Control 1. See Section 3.1.3 for the specifics of implementing
Control 1.
If the answer is "No", hide Control 1 by setting it to False.
Question: Do I have a factor that could be one of two or more explicit values?
If the answer is "Yes", you want to use Control 2 or 5. See Section 3.1.4 for the specifics of implementing
Control 2 or 5.
If the answer is "No", hide Control 2 and 5 by setting them to False.
Question: Do I have a factor that falls into an Either/Or situation (i.e., either apply this value or that
value)?
Control 3.
Question: Do I have a factor that varies with the direction of the applied to loads (i.e., the Factor is
different for X-direction load cases than for Y-direction load cases), or do I need to access and apply the
Redundancy Factor, rho?.
Control 4.
After the Controls have been established, edit or add the load combinations as explained in Section
3.1.5 .
32

Errors
3.2.2 Comments in the Template File

Comments can appear anywhere in the template file EXCEPT on the first line. The first line MUST be the
Template ID.
To indicate that a line is a comment, it is preceded by //.
3.2.3 Testing the New Template

To test the new template, open a model in RAM Frame, RAM Concrete or RAM Foundation and open one
of the combination generation dialogs. Select the new template from the list of codes.
Test the following:
1. Do the Controls look the way you expected them to look?
2. When you click Generate, do you get the combinations you expect?
3. If you change values in the dialog Controls, are these changes reflected in the newly generated
combinations?
You should thoroughly test and verify your custom templates.
3.3 Errors
While there are many advantages to using external template files for creating load combinations, it does
open up the possibility for errors to occur. Here are some common problems to watch out for.
Syntax error in the template. These can occur in the dialog Control section of the template or the
Combinations section of the template. There is a fairly exhaustive syntax checker in the generator. If it
encounters a line it cannot read, an error message is given that shows the errant line. This template will
not be available until the syntax error is corrected.
Changing the name of a template that is being used by a model . In this situation, when the model
loads, the template name that is saved with the model will not match what is now in the template file. An
error message will be given stating that the existing load combinations will be deleted. Solution: return
to the Load Combination generator, select a new template and regenerate the combinations.
Incorrect data entered. Otherwise known as typos. If the user creating the template types in 100 as a
dead load factor rather than 1.0, there is no way for the generator to know that this is incorrect. Custom
templates should be tested and verified very carefully before they are used.
33

Errors
34
Index
C
Code for Combinations 12
Combinations 28
Combinations Template Section
17
Comments 32
Control 1 22
Control 2 23
Control 3 25
Control 4 26
Control 5 23
Control Section 17
Copying Templates 31
Custom Load Combinations 13
D
Dropped Combinations 30
Dropped Term 30
E
Editing Templates 31
Entering Combinations 14
Error Messages 33
L
Load case symbols 11
T
Table of Symbols 11
Template Creation 31
Template Format 17
Template ID 15, 17, 20
Template Name 17, 21
Templates 15, 17
Testing 33
U
Using Templates 17
N
Notional Loads 30
V
Validate 15
R
Reserve Words 28
35
36

Ram Load Combination Generator

Загружено:

Сведения о документе

Авторское право

Доступные форматы

Поделиться этим документом

Поделиться или встроить документ

Параметры публикации

Этот документ был вам полезен?

Это неприемлемый материал?

Авторское право:

Доступные форматы

Ram Load Combination Generator

Загружено:

Авторское право:

Доступные форматы

RAM Structural System

Load Combination Generator

Restricted Rights Legends

RAM Structural System

Load Combination Generator

RAM Structural System

Load Combination Generator

RAM Structural System

Load Combination Generator

This page intentionally left blank

RAM Structural System

Load Combination Generator

Load Case Symbols ...................................................................................................................................................................11

Chapter 3: Load Combination Templates ............................................................................17

Template Format ...................................................................................................................................................................... 17

RAM Structural System

Load Combination Generator

This page intentionally left blank

RAM Structural System

Load Combination Generator

RAM Structural System

Load Combination Generator

This page intentionally left blank

RAM Structural System

Load Combination Generator

The Load Combination Generator

2.1 Load Case Symbols

Load Case It Represents

Positive Live Load

Negative Live Load

Positive Roof Load

Negative Roof Load

Positive Snow Load

Negative Snow Load

Dynamic (Response Spectra) Load

Notional Dead Load

Notional Live Load

RAM Structural System

Load Combination Generator

The Load Combination Generator

Load Case It Represents

2.2 Generated Load Combinations

RAM Structural System

Load Combination Generator

The Load Combination Generator

2.3 Custom Load Combinations

RAM Structural System

Load Combination Generator

The Load Combination Generator

2.3.1 Entering Custom Combinations Manually

RAM Structural System

Load Combination Generator

The Load Combination Generator

2.3.2 Creating Custom Combinations using Templates

RAM Structural System

Load Combination Generator

The Load Combination Generator

RAM Structural System

Load Combination Generator

Load Combination Templates

3.1 Template Format

RAM Structural System

Load Combination Generator

Load Combination Templates