LATT
LATT, MAT, REAL, TYPE, --, KB, KE, SECNUM
Associates element attributes with the selected, unmeshed lines.
MAT,REAL,TYPEMaterial number, real constant set number, and type number to be associated with selected, unmeshed lines.
--Unused field.
KB,KEBeginning and ending orientation keypoints to be associated with selected, unmeshed lines. Mechanical APDL uses the location of these keypoints to determine how to orient beam cross sections during beam meshing. Beam elements may be created along a line with a constant orientation by specifying only one orientation keypoint (
KB), or a pre-twisted beam may be created by selecting different orientation keypoints at each end of the line (KBandKE). (For a line bounded by two keypoints (KP1andKP2), the orientation vector at the beginning of the line extends fromKP1toKB, and the orientation vector at the end of the line extends fromKP2toKE. The orientation vectors are used to compute the orientation nodes of the elements.)SECNUMSection identifier to be associated with selected, unmeshed lines. For details, see the description of the SECTYPE and SECNUM commands.
Notes
The element attributes specified by the LATT command will be used when the lines are meshed.
Lines subsequently generated from the lines will also have the attributes
specified by MAT, REAL, TYPE,
and SECNUM. If a line does not have these attributes
associated with it (by this command) at the time it is meshed, the attributes
are obtained from the then current MAT, REAL, TYPE,
and SECNUM command settings.
In contrast, the values specified by KB and
KE apply only to the selected lines; that is, lines
subsequently generated from these lines will not share these attributes. Similarly, if a line
does not have KB and KE attributes
associated with it via the LATT command at the time it is meshed, Mechanical APDL
cannot obtain the attributes from elsewhere. See the discussion on beam meshing in Meshing Your Solid Model in the Modeling and Meshing Guide for
more information.
Reissue the LATT command (before lines are meshed) to change the attributes. A zero (or blank) argument removes the corresponding association. If any of the arguments are defined as -1, then that value will be left unchanged in the selected set.
In some cases, Mechanical APDL can proceed with a line meshing operation even when no logical element
type has been assigned via LATT,,,TYPE or
TYPE. See Meshing Your
Solid Model in the Modeling and Meshing Guide for more information about setting element
attributes.