hi, i hav

huangyhg

hi, i hav
hi,
                        i have a question regarding the nnlink elements in sap2000. is it possible to model a simple beam with an additional support
                        in the middle which has a prescribed gap between the beam and the support? basically, the beam behaves like a simple beam
                        until deflection in the middle reaches the gap value. from there on it becomes two-span continuous beam. is there a way to
                        do this in one step instead of breaking it into two steps (with some manual computation in between). i was hoping that the
                        gap element in sap2000 may provide a capability to do things like that.
anybody knows a structural analysis  package which can handle problems like that?
                        thanks.
'sacs' package developed by engineering dynamics inc., used for design of offshore
platforms has such a gap element. any nonlinear analysis package can be used with
the support point being defined with a bilinear stiffness curve as a spring constant.
you may need a bit of improvisation in case of some packages! frankly, it may be easier to use your available software and improvise (perform multiple steps)
rather than scout for and learn to use new software.