Bicycle frame

This simulation tutorial will guide you through:

• Applying a force load to a bicycle frame.
• Running a simulation.
• Viewing the stress in the simulation results to determine if the bicycle frame can support a passenger weight of 181 pounds.

Import the CAD file

1. From the Projects tab of the dashboard, create a new project.
2. In the ToolBar, click (+) and then Library. Within the OnScale Library, Select Bicycle Frame.
3. In the Initial Contact dialogue, select Unbonded.

Assign a material

1. Using either the Model  tree or the 3D viewer, select Body Frame.
2. Using the Material dropdown in the properties panel, assign Structural Steel to this part.

Add a fixture

1. Select the tab.
2. In the toolbar, ensure that the Mechanical Physics tab is on.
3. Select Restraint as the constraint to fix the appropriate surfaces for the study.
4. Using either the Model tree or the 3D viewer, select the Right Inner Dropout.
5. Ensure that the restraint type is a fixture in the properties panel.
6. Select Done in the properties panel.
7. Repeat steps 4 - 6 for the Left Inner Dropout, Inner Bottom Bracket Shell and Inner Head tube.

Add a force load

1. Select  Force in the toolbar to add a force load.
2. Using either the Model tree or the 3D viewer, select the Top Outer Seat tube which represents the location where the passenger would be sited.
3. In the properties panel, for Force, enter 1780 N and then select Done.

Run a simulation

1. Select the Simulator tab.
2. Click on the Launcher to run the simulation.
3. Once the meshing and estimation is complete, Select Launch to run the simulation study.

Analyze the results

1. Once the simulation has finished, select Open results to open the results in the Results tab.
2. There’s a wide range of output categories to choose from. Select Von Mises Stress from the options.
3. Analysis:

• To determine if the design would support a passenger weight of 181 pounds, We need to compute the factor of Safety using the formula below:

\text{factor of safety} = \frac{\text{Actual Strength}}{\text{Required Strength}}

• The actual strength is the yield stress of the material which is \text{0.35~GPa}.
• The required strength to support the current loading is represented by the Von Mises Stress which has a maximum value of \text{4.32~MPa}.
• Therefore, the safety factor is  \text{8.1} and the design would need to be revisited.
• Designing for a safety factor greater than  \text{1.2} would serve as a good design practice to follow.