
April 15, 2015
How Do I Detach a Wall Panel From a Diaphragm?
The ability to detach a wall panel from a diaphragm was a feature added in RISA-3D V13.
In structural engineering, few design challenges are as rewarding—or as unforgiving—as the tall building. While gravity systems and code checks form the backbone of any structural project, once a structure rises beyond ten or fifteen stories, a shift occurs. Wind and seismic forces begin to dominate. Story drift and torsional irregularities become non-negligible. Load paths grow increasingly indirect. And design decisions, if not carefully made early on, can have exponential consequences higher in the structure. Tall buildings are not simply “bigger” versions of short ones. They behave differently. And understanding those differences is essential for any engineer working in an urban environment where building vertically is often the only viable path forward. Modeling for Reality, Not Just Code The foundation of any successful tall building design lies in the model—its assumptions, resolution, and degree of abstraction. Many engineers begin with simplified representations: rigid diaphragms, idealized connections, and linear material properties. This is practical and often sufficient for early design phases. But as the building increases in height and complexity, those assumptions may start to mask critical behaviors. Semi-rigid diaphragm modeling, for instance, allows engineers to capture in-plane flexibility of floor systems—especially important in buildings with irregular cores, open floor plans,…
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The ability to detach a wall panel from a diaphragm was a feature added in RISA-3D V13.
In a RISAFloor model the columns and beams can be assigned unbraced lengths, or the program may calculate them automatically. This unbraced length information can then be used in RISA-3D. A great example is the frame below:
Cold Formed Steel channels are often built-up as back-to-back sections to help strengthen them. RISA-3D can design the Cold Formed Steel back-to-back channel and track sections. The Shape Selection dialog will allow you to model the built –up sections by selecting “Back to Back” shown below.
You may be familiar with the Internal Force Summation Tool (IFST) that is currently present in RISA-3D. However, a new tool has been added which allows you to click point to point within a wall and will only sum forces between these two points. Previously when using the IFST, forces were summed...
Timber design per the Canadian CSA 086-2009 design code is now available. Canadian wood member design is very similar to the US NDS member design. There are slightly different load factors, material properties, shape tables, and capacity equations, but the overall modeling procedure in RISA is the...
New codes have been added to RISA-3D v13 and RISAFloor v9, these include: AISI S100-12: Cold-Formed Steel Design Code CSA 086-09: Canadian Wood Design Code ACI 530-13: Masonry Design Code To select these codes for your design, simply choose them from the Codes tab of Global Parameters:
It is important to submesh plate elements in your model in order to obtain the most accurate results. However, many users wonder what the approximate guidelines for plate dimensions are acceptable.
Aside from leaving an unbraced length blank or inputting a fixed distance, you can harness the program’s ability to use a limited intelligence for determining unbraced lengths. In order to do this you can simply type in the name of the Unbraced Length Commands into the unbraced length field.
Understanding unbraced lengths and how RISA software accounts for them is essential in the design of any project. In RISA there are three main types of unbraced lengths:
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