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 Mesh Countour Plots or Histogram Plots

The Mesh Contour Plots option can plot numerous MPM or FEA results as a function of position along a line through the mesh as a 2D plot of plot quantity vs. distance along the contour. Multiple plots can be superposed on a single plot. For MPM analysis, this optoin can plot a histogram for the probability distribution of any quantity over all particles in the analysis (it will ignore rigid particles). The distribution will appear as a bar chart. 3D calculations can only find particles along the selected contour or do histogram plots.

To start a new mesh contour plot or histogram plot, select the Analyze→New Mesh Contour Plot Window menu command. A new window will open with a dialog box to select the quantity to be plotted. The possible settings are:

Quantity
Select the calculation result to plot from the pop-up menu. See table of calculation results for details. Any disabled items are not available for plotting either because they do not apply to the calculation results or they were not archived in an MPM analysis or output in an FEA analysis. Select the Expression... item to plot an expression of analysis results.
Tensor
If the selected plot quantity is a tensor, select which component of the tensor to plot from this pop up menu.
Vector
If the selected plot quantity is a vector, select which component of the vector to plot from this pop up menu.
Angle
For tensor or vector quantities, you can rotate the coordinate system to plot that quantity in a direction not aligned with the analysis axes. Enter a clockwise direction in degrees. For example, entering 90˚ when plotting σyy will rotate the y axis to the x axis and plot σxx instead.
Time
For MPM calculations, the plot will be for results extrapolated to the mesh at one particular time. Select the time step to plot from the "Time" dial. The dial will not be available for FEA plots.
Plot Contours x=, y=, D=, and T=
The plot can be along any path through the mesh. You can specify a path by defining x as a function of #y, y as a function of #x, distance from the origin D as a function of polar angle #T, or polar angle T as a function of distance from the origin #D. Select the contour option from the menu and then enter an expression of the complementary variable. The polar angle #T is counter-clockwise angle from the positive x axis. The resulting plot will be the selected plot quantity as a function of distance along the path.
    The expression can be a constant value. A constant for an x contour will be a vertical line. A constant or a y contour will be a horizontal line. A constant for a D contour will be a circle with the entered radius. A constant for a T contour will be a line from the origin at that polar angle T.
    The ± field can enter a region for calculating an average plot quantity. If it is not zero, the selected quantity will be averaged over that distance on both sides of the path and normal to the path.
    Some MPM results are properties of cracks. For these options, 2D mesh plots will plot along any selected crack. Enter the crack number into the field. Cracks are numbered starting from 1 and are in the ordered defined in the file.
Plot Contours p:x+dt= and p0:x+dt
Selecting one of these countours will plot data from particles that fall near a line defined by x + d*t where x is any point and t is a vector in the direction of the line. The "p" option finds particles based on their current position; the "p0" option finds them based on their initial position. The plot will include all particles within particle radius or the entered distance in the ± field (whichever is larger) from the selected line.
    For 2D, enter 1, 2, or 4 comma-separated numbers.
  • 1 Number: A vertical contour at x equal that number starting from the bottom of the grid.
  • 2 Numbers: A horizontal contour at y equal to the second number starting from the left edge of the grid. The first number is ignored.
  • 3 Numbers: An error and no plot.
  • 4 Numbers xi,x2,t1,t2: The plot will be along the line (x1,x2)+d*(t1,t2) a a function of d, which is distance along the line. Such plot can start anywhere in the grid and can go in any direction.
    For 3D, enter 4 or 6 comma-separated numbers. For 4, the plot is contour parallel to the ith axis where i is 1, 2, or 3 for x, y or z and is entered in the 4th number. The line is for the other two axes held constant at values entered in the first three number (the ith number is ignored). The plot is as a function of distance from the minimum edge of the grid along the ith axis. For 6, the first three points give a point x and the second three give a direction t. The plot is a function of the distance from the defined point x.
Histogram Plot Δ=
To get a histogram plot (MPM only), select "Δ=" from the menu in plot contour section and enter the width for bar in histogram into the field. The width must be a number and cannot be an expression. If your selection results in less the 5 bars or more than 100, the bar width will be adjusted to fall within that range. To get a fixed number of bars, set the value to minus the number of desired bars.
Import...
Click this button to plot data in a plain-text file. The file should be tab-delimited file with x axis in first column and any number of plots in subsequent columns of y data. The data can start with plotting setting up commands (e.g., to set plot color, line style, etc.). One use for this option is to plot output of custom tasks, provided those tasks output to an appropriately-formatted file.

After selecting the desired plot, click OK and a plot such as shown below will open. More details on customizing the plot are given in the time plots help. A single window can superpose any number of plots. To add a new 2D mesh plot to the current plot, select the Analyze→Add 2D Mesh Plot menu command and repeat the above plot selection process.

Results Window

Options in Mesh Contour Plots

The plot will appear in a generic 2D plotting window. There are many options for customizing the plot, plotting new data, and exporting the plot to graphics or text files. See plot option information on time plots for details.