[Gmsh] how to mesh rods

[jean pierre aubry]

hello




i have to model a structure made of beams and sustaining rods or cables,

think of a suspension brigdge

rods have no flexural rigidity and must be modelled as a single element along their length

otherwise the matrix will be singular




here is a small example model, 4 nodes and 3 lines




P1                                         P2

+--------------------L1--------------------+

                                            |

                                            |

                                            L3

                                            |

                                            ||

+--------------------L2--------------------+

P3                                         P4




i want Line L1 and L2 to be meshed as beams with (ideally) equally spaced nodes along them

but

i want Line L3 to be meshed as a ROD i e one single finite element along its length -NO INTERMEDIATE NODES-

how to apply « Charcateristic Length » at the Points to do that

or any other clever way to it




I mean more clever than altering *.msh file by hand the saving it as *.med or *.unv and repeating that process every time a change is made




anybody has a good idea




thanks




jean pierre

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