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abaqus-interaction

Define contact and interactions - contact pairs, tie constraints, connectors. Use when user mentions contact, friction, tie, parts touching, or bonded surfaces.

personAuthor: jakexiaohubgithub
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Abaqus Interaction Skill

Define contact pairs, tie constraints, coupling, and connectors between parts in an assembly.

When to Use This Skill

Route here when user mentions:

  • "Contact between surfaces"
  • "Friction", "sliding contact", "frictionless"
  • "Tie constraint", "bonded surfaces", "welded"
  • "Parts touching", "parts can separate"
  • "Coupling", "connector", "spring element"
  • "Join different meshes"

Route elsewhere:

  • Complete contact analysis workflow → /abaqus-contact-analysis
  • Fixed supports or displacements → /abaqus-bc
  • Applied forces or pressures → /abaqus-load

Key Decisions

1. What Type of Connection?

| User Describes | Interaction Type | Key Feature | |----------------|------------------|-------------| | Welded, glued, bonded | Tie constraint | Permanent, no relative motion | | Parts can slide and separate | Surface-to-surface contact | Friction, gap allowed | | Load from point to surface | Coupling | Reference point control | | Spring, damper, hinge | Connector | Stiffness/damping behavior | | Adhesive, delamination | Cohesive | Damage initiation criteria |

2. Contact Formulation

| Formulation | When to Use | |-------------|-------------| | Surface-to-surface | General contact (recommended default) | | Node-to-surface | Legacy compatibility, special cases | | General contact | Automatic detection (explicit dynamics) | | Self-contact | Folding, buckling, large deformation |

3. Typical Friction Coefficients

| Surface Pair | Friction Coefficient | |--------------|---------------------| | Frictionless | 0.0 | | Lubricated metal | 0.1 - 0.3 | | Dry metal-to-metal | 0.3 - 0.5 | | Rubber on surface | 0.5 - 0.8 | | No slip (rough) | Use ROUGH formulation |

What to Ask User

If unclear, ask:

  1. Bonded or sliding?

    • Bonded (no relative motion) → Tie constraint
    • Sliding allowed → Contact with friction

  2. Friction coefficient?

    • If not specified, suggest typical value for material pair
    • Frictionless is valid for lubricated or normal-dominant cases

  3. Which surface is master/slave?

    • User may not know - guide them (see below)

  4. Can surfaces separate?

    • Yes → allowSeparation=ON
    • No (always in contact) → allowSeparation=OFF

Master/Slave Selection Guidelines

| Criterion | Master Surface | Slave Surface | |-----------|----------------|---------------| | Stiffness | Stiffer body | Softer body | | Mesh density | Coarser mesh | Finer mesh | | Size | Larger surface | Smaller surface | | Geometry | Flat/convex | Curved/concave |

When in doubt: The coarser mesh should be master.

Workflow: Setting Up Interactions

Step 1: Identify Contact Pairs

List all surfaces that interact. For each pair determine:

  • Type (contact vs tie)
  • Master and slave assignment
  • Friction requirements

Step 2: Create Surfaces

Surfaces must be defined on assembly instances before creating interactions.

Step 3: Define Contact Properties

For contact interactions, define:

  • Normal behavior: Hard contact, allow separation
  • Tangential behavior: Friction formulation and coefficient

Step 4: Create Interaction

Assign contact property to surface pair in appropriate step.

Step 5: Verify Setup

Check for:

  • Correct master/slave assignment
  • Appropriate initial gap/overclosure
  • Contact pair is active in correct step

Common Gotchas

| Symptom | Likely Cause | Solution | |---------|--------------|----------| | Contact not detected | Surfaces too far apart | Use adjust=ON or reduce initial gap | | Severe discontinuity warnings | Contact chattering | Add stabilization, use smaller increments | | Negative eigenvalue | Wrong master/slave | Swap master and slave surfaces | | Overclosure too large | Initial interference | Use shrink fit option or adjust geometry | | Tie not working | Surfaces not close enough | Increase position tolerance |

Validation Checklist

Before running analysis:

  • [ ] All contacting surface pairs identified
  • [ ] Master/slave correctly assigned
  • [ ] Contact properties defined (normal + tangential)
  • [ ] Interaction assigned to correct step
  • [ ] Initial gaps/overclosures within tolerance
  • [ ] Friction coefficient appropriate for materials

Code Patterns

For API syntax and code examples, see: