17.6.4.2. Voltage Coupling

While setting up a model for analysis, you can establish relationships among the volt degrees of freedom of the model by physically modeling the part or a contact condition. However, sometimes there is a need to be able to model distinctive features of a geometry (for example, models that have equipotential surfaces) which cannot be adequately described with the physical part or contact. In this instance, you can create a set of surfaces/edges/vertices which have a coupled degree of freedom by using the Voltage Coupling boundary condition.

Coupling the degrees of freedom of a set of geometric entity constrains the results calculated for one member of the set to be the same for all members of the set.

This page includes the following sections:

Analysis Types

Voltage Coupling is available for the following analysis types:

Dimensional Types

The supported dimensional types for the Voltage Coupling boundary condition include:

  • 3D Simulation. Apply to one or more faces or edges or at least two vertices.

  • 2D Simulation. Apply to one or more edges or at least two vertices.

Geometry Types

The supported geometry types for the Voltage Coupling boundary condition include:

  • Solid

  • Surface/Shell

  • Wire Body/Line Body/Beam

Topology Selection Options

The supported topology selection options for Voltage Coupling include:

  • Face: Supported for 3D only.

  • Edge

  • Vertex

  • Nodes: Supported for Coupled field analyses only.

Applying a Voltage Coupling Boundary Condition

To apply a Voltage Coupling boundary condition:

  1. On the Environment Context tab, click Conditions>Voltage Coupling. Alternatively, right-click the Environment tree object or in the Geometry window and select Insert>Voltage Coupling.

  2. Define the Scoping Method.

Restrictions

Make sure that you meet the following restrictions when scoping Voltage Coupling.

  • You cannot specify more than one Voltage Coupling on the same geometric entity, such as two edges sharing a common vertex or two faces sharing a common edge.

  • Voltage Coupling should not be applied to a geometric entity that also has a constraint applied to it.

Details Pane Properties

The selections available in the Details pane are described below.

CategoryProperty/Options/Description
Scope

Scoping Method: Options include:

  • Geometry Selection: Default setting, indicating that the boundary condition is applied to a geometry or geometries, which are chosen using a graphical selection tool.

    • Geometry: Visible when the Scoping Method is set to Geometry Selection. Displays the type of geometry (Face, Edge, etc.) and the number of geometric entities (for example: 1 Face, 2 Edges) to which the boundary has been applied using the selection tools.

  • Named Selection: Indicates that the geometry selection is defined by a Named Selection.

    • Named Selection: Visible when the Scoping Method is set to Named Selection. This field provides a drop-down list of available user-defined Named Selections.

Definition

DOF Selection: This is a read-only field displaying the DOF selection type - Voltage (VOLT).

Suppressed: Include (No - default) or exclude (Yes) the boundary condition.

Mechanical APDL References and Notes

Coupling is achieved through the use of the CE command.