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RISA Frame Design Procedures

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Table of Contents
1)

Define your Sections for each type of member ...................................................................... 1

2)

Draw your members................................................................................................................ 2

3)

Set the Boundary Conditions .................................................................................................. 3

4)

Input the Loads ....................................................................................................................... 4

5)

Analyze the structure for the appropriate loads to compare with hand-calculations.............. 5

1) Define your Sections for each

type of member
a) Display the Data Entry
menu if it is not already
displayed by clicking on
the D icon
After solving a load
combination, RISA should
display the Results menu.
If it doesnt, you can click
on the R icon

b) Click on Section Sets and type a label (e.g. Joists)

c) Specify the type of material

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2) Draw your members

a) Turn on the graphic editing toolbar if it is not already by right-clicking anywhere in the
middle of the screen and selecting the third item on the drop-down list.
b) Click on Modify the Drawing Grid icon

and type in the spacing of your joints

also specify to show grid as Points

c) Click on the Draw new members

icon

Select Assign a Section Set

and select the appropriate set from
the drop down list
Also select the appropriate memberend release codes
Click Apply and draw your members from node to node.

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You can check that your sections are correctly assigned to your members by clicking Plot
Options,

then Members,
then Section
Set under
Labeling.

3) Set the Boundary Conditions

a) Click on the Boundary
Conditions icon

b) When modeling a 2-D tstructure in RISA3D, you

must always restrain the model from moving out of
plane. Select Fixed for the following
displacement components:
Z Translation
X Rotation
Y Rotation
Click Use? for each,
Then Apply Entries to All Selected Joints
Then Apply

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c) Set the boundary conditions for the supports as appropriate. For example, for a pinned
joint select Reaction for X-Translation and Y-Translation.
4) Input the Loads
a) Set up the Basic Load Cases and the Load Combinations
Its a good idea to set up separate
basic load cases without self weight
and with self weight

RISA will include the self weight of

all members in your model when
you type a -1 under Y Gravity
Combine the appropriate basic load
cases in the Load Combinations
dialog box. If you later want to
analyze several Load Combinations at the same time, check the Solve box next to each
load combination you want to include
b) Input the loads for each load case graphically.
Input loads at the joints using Joint Loads and loads between joints using Point
Loads.

Be careful to specify the correct Basic Load Case before

drawing the loads.

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5) Analyze the structure for the appropriate loads to compare with hand-calculations.
a) Turn off shear deformations when
running RISA to compare against your
hand calculations. Click on Global
then the Solution
then uncheck the Shear Deformation
and Torsional Warping boxes

b) Analyze the load combination that does not include self weight.

c) If this is the first time youve analyzed the model, its a good idea to check the deflected
shape of the structure. This can catch a multitude of different errors.
Click on Plot
Options
Then Deflection
Diagrams
The Load
Combination
You may need to
increase the
Magnification
Factor

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d) Display the appropriate member force (axial forces, shear forces or bending moment) to
compare with the hand-calcs.
Click on Plot
Options
Members
Axial under
Member Results
Outline
Magnitudes