Dr.

LAM Heung Fai

Department of Civil and Architectural Engineering
City University of Hong Kong
iSA: instant Structural Analysis

Outline

Introduction
Graphical User Interface and Toolbars
Getting Started:

A Truss Analysis Example

A Frame Analysis Example

Basic Skills
Hands-on
Concluding Remarks

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

Introduction:
What is iSA?

iSA (http://www.bc.cityu.edu.hk/isa) is a user-friendly 2dimensional structural analysis program.

It can be used to do:

1st and 2nd order static analysis

Dynamic modal analysis
Stability analysis

It can be used for the analysis of:

Truss
Continuous beam
Frame
Frame with different types of pinned connections

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

Introduction:
Calculation assumptions

The member axis is straight.

Material is homogeneous, isotropic and linear elastic.
The length of a member is large when compared to the
section dimensions, and shear deformation is neglected.
Plane sections remain plane after deformation.
Hooks law is valid without any restrictions.
All loads are assumed to act statically and do not change
the direction due to deformation.
* The deformations are small so that equilibrium on the
undeformed structure can be assumed.

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

iSA: Graphical user interface

(New project)
Toolbar
Menu bar
Drawing
area
Load tree

Status bar

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

iSA:
Toolbars

General

Results: axial force, shear force, and bending moment diagrams, etc.

Presentation: node and element numbers

Zoom

System (Model components): node, support, member, and hinge

Load: point, distributed and temperature loads, lack of fit etc.

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

Getting Started:
Truss Analysis Example

Given:
E = 200 GPa,
2
A = 0.0077 m
Determine:
Nodal displacements
Support reactions
Internal member forces
What are the horizontal
and vertical displacements
at the top right corner?

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

Getting Started:
Adding nodes

Press the
Nodes
button, and
add nodes
at the grid
points.
Press the
Zoom all
button if
necessary.

Nodes

Zoom all

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

Getting Started:
Adding elements

Press the
Members
button, and
connect two
nodes by an
element.
Left mouse
click to
connect and
right mouse
click to
stop.

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

Members

Right mouse
click to stop
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Getting Started:
Define pinned joints

Press the
Full
hinges
button, and
change the
four rigid
joint
(default) to
pinned joint
(truss).

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

Full hinges

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Getting Started:
Define supports
Release the
horizontal
constraint for
roller support

Supports

Pin support

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

Roller support

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Getting Started:
Select all members

Press the
Members
button to
select
members.
Draw a
rectangle
from left to
right; or
Draw a
rectangle
from right
to left (try).

Members

Draw a rectangle
from left to right to
select all members
that are enclosed by
the rectangle.

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Getting Started:
Define member properties

Right mouse click on any

one of the selected
members to open the
member properties
window.
Change the default E and A
values accordingly.
You may select material
and cross-sectional
properties from the
databases.

Youngs modulus

Cross-sectional area

Material database
Cross-section database
iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Getting Started:
Apply point loads at nodes

Press the
Concent.
node load
button to
add point
load on
nodes.
The
analysis can
be
completed
instantly.

Concentrated node load

The deflection shape

can be calculated
instantly and presented
as green lines.

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Getting Started:
Analysis results

Switch
on/off the
display of
support
reactions
and axial
forces.
Switch
on/off nodal
values and
max/min
values.

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

Result presentation buttons

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Getting Started:
Nodal displacements
Analysis report

Parallel to member
iSA: instant Structural Analysis

Perpendicular to member
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Getting Started:
Frame Analysis Example

Calculate the support reactions and the deflection of

the structure. Determine the axial force, shear force,
and bending moment on the structure.
Take E = 200 GPa,
A = 0.0077 m2,
and I = 2.5 104
m4 for all
4.5 m
members in this
example.

44 kN/m
B
C

A
6m

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

6m
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Getting Started:
Define grid size

Model components, such as element and support, must be

added AFTER the definition of nodes.
By default, nodes can ONLY be added to the grid
points in the drawing area.
In order to put nodes at the desired positions, one may
need to re-define the grid spacing in the drawing area.

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Getting Started:
Define nodal coordinates

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Getting Started:
Define member collectivity

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Getting Started:
Define member properties

With the member

button pressed:

Left click a
member to select
it.
Right click a
member to edit
the default
member
properties.

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Getting Started:
Define supports

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Getting Started:
Edit support conditions

Support must be added on a node but not grid point.

With the support button pressed, one can edit the support
properties by the right-mouse-button.

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Getting Started:
Apply distributed load

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Getting Started:
Distributed load properties

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Getting Started:
Support reactions

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Getting Started:
Axial force diagram

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Getting Started:
Shear force diagram

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Getting Started:
Bending moment diagram

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Getting Started:
Max/min values

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Getting Started:
Details

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Basic Skills:
Display model information

You can switch on/off the display of:

Loads
Node number
Element number
Material properties
Geometrical properties (e.g., length of member)

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

32

Basic Skills:
Display model information

You can display the element

stiffness matrix and its
contribution in the system
stiffness matrix (recall the
matrix stiffness method).
On the top menu:

View Stiffness matrix of structure

View Stiffness matrix of member

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Basic Skills:
Views and Zooming

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Basic Skills:
Select items: [Ctrl] key

One can use left-mouse-button + [Ctrl] or [Shift] to select

more than one member in the drawing area (with the
member or pointer button pressed).
With the [Ctrl] or [Shift]
key pressed, one can
select and unselect a
member with the leftmouse-button.
The same method can
be used to select other
model components.

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Basic Skills:
Select items: Mouse drag
Drag the pointer from
left to right to select all
members inside the
rectangle.

Drag the pointer from

right to left to select all
members touched by
the rectangle.

The [Ctrl] key and mouse drag methods can be used

together.

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Basic Skills:
Different types of supports

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Basic Skills:
Warning messages!!

If the supports of a structure are improperly defined, the

system will become unstable.
iSA will automatically check the kinematical stability of
the structure.
Warning message will be given to the user through the
status bar if the system is improperly supported.

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Basic Skills:
Different types of hinges

Three are three types of hinges in iSA. They are:

Full hinge: all members are connected to this joint as a pin

connection.
Half hinge: this allows users to define pin joints at the end of
individual members.
Pinjointed hinge: this allows users to define the situation when
two members are hinged at the middle.
Select

Split member

Node

Half hinge

Support

Pinjointed hinge

Member

Full hinge

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

Member polygon

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Basic Skills:
Split members

There are many ways to split a member.

Select the member to be split and press the Split
member button on the toolbar.

OR, you can press node button and click on the member.
Then, answer Yes to subdivide the member!!

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

40

Basic Skills:
Forces on node and member

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Basic Skills:
Distributed loads on member

Three type of distributed loads are available in iSA. They

are summarized in the table below.

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Basic Skills:
Temperature load on member

Two types of temperature

loads are available in iSA.
The constant temperature
across the depth of a section,
and
Linear varying temperature
along the depth of a section.

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Basic Skills: Lack of fit and

support settlement

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Basic Skills:
Structure generator

The Structure
Generator (the template
system in iSA) can be
called by selecting the
Generate structure
item from the Structure
menu.

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

45

Hands-on: Question 1
Truss Analysis

Take: E and A for all bars are equal to 200 GPa and
0.0077 m2, respectively.
Determine the axial force in all members.
15kN H
15kN
G

15kN

6m
F

E
B
5m

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

C
5m

5m

5m

46

Hands-on: Question 2
Simply supported beam

Consider a simply supported beam with 6 m span under a distributed

load of magnitude 12 kN/m as shown below.
Take: E = 200 GPa and I = 2.5 104 m4.
Plot the bending moment and shear force diagrams
Determine the maximum bending moment and the corresponding
location.
Determine the maximum deflection and the corresponding
location.
12 kN/m

2m
iSA: instant Structural Analysis

4m
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Hands-on: Question 3
Continuous beam

Take E = 200 GPa, A = 0.0077 m2, and I = 2.5 104 m4 for

all members in this example.

30kN

2m
iSA: instant Structural Analysis

2m

2m
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Hands-on: Question 4
Portal frame

Columns: UC30530597
Beam: UB30516554
Plot the axial force, shear
force, and bending
moment diagrams of all
12 m
members.
Determine the horizontal
and vertical displacements
of nodes B and C.

8m

10 kN

C
8m
EI = constant
5 kN

8m
D
16 m

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Hands-on: Question 5
Lack of fit
UB 305 x 165 x 54

UC 305 x 305 x 97

If the beam is 20 mm
too long during
installation,
determine the
displacement and
4m
internal member
forces induced.

UC 305 x 305 x 97

5m

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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Hands-on: Question 6
3-story frame

Columns: UC30530597
Beam: UB30516554
Determine the max. and min.
axial forces, shear forces and
bending moments of each
member under the following
loading conditions:

ONLY the vertical loads

ONLY the horizontal loads
Both vertical and horizontal
loads

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

3 kN/m
5 kN

D
3m

3 kN/m

5 kN

C
3m

3 kN/m

5 kN

B
3m

E
6m

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Hands-on: Question 7
Support settlement

If the support F is settled 20 mm downward, determine

the induced displacement and internal member forces.
Given:

Youngs modulus = 30 GPa (concrete).

The I & A of the bridge desk are 2.13 107 cm4 and 4.00 104 cm2.
The I & A of the columns are 1.80 107 cm4 and 2.25 104 cm2.

C
10 m

16 m
iSA: instant Structural Analysis

10 m

12 m

G
22 m

22 m

16 m
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Concluding Remarks

An introduction to a user-friendly 2D structural analysis

program iSA was given.
The basic features of iSA were introduced through a
simple frame example.
iSA is the implementation of the matrix stiffness method,
and it works as a simple but powerful tool for the analysis
of 2D structures.
If you want to buy a copy of iSA, please contact Ms. HO
Ming Chong Fanny at fanny.ho@cityu.edu.hk. CityU
students will have special discount.

iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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iSA: instant Structural Analysis

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