Interactive Computer Graphics in Steel Analysis and Design--A Progress Report

This is a progress report of research on the development of a system of computer-aided design. It will provide for the description of a two- or three-dimensional steel frame to the computer, preliminary and final analysis of the frame, and review of its adequacy under both service and ultimate loads. Included are provisions for conducting interactively the normal iterative procedures for refining a trial design to its final state. Several levels of analysis are available, from conventional linear elastic analysis, to full geometric and material nonlinear analysis. Design equations are incorporated for use in checking compliance with common standards such as the Specification of the American Institute of Steel Construction and the Limit States Specification of the Canadian Standards Association. The system is flexible; the user does not have to follow a rigid, prescribed routine. It is a progress report in several respects. Some basic provisions, such as procedures for handling local and lateral buckling, need refinement. Also, of course, a computer-aided design system can never be truly complete. There will always be need to incorporate advances in analysis and in the understanding of structures. Further, the system to be described is not a commercial software package. It is the product of continuing research in structural engineering and the ways in which advanced technology can enhance the analysis and proportioning of civil engineering structures. Nevertheless, although the work continues, it has reached the stage where the procedures described are believed to be of practical utility and suited to the needs of many structural design organizations.