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BeamPal
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BeamPal
Technical Specification
Overview: BeamPal is an analytical computer program developed for use on PC computers to calculate Bending Moments, Shear Forces and Deflections for any continuous beam of uniform properties, and resting on knife-edge supports that are either rigid or have spring stiffness. A facility, not available on many expensive programs, is that beams may be allowed to lift off supports i.e. not tied down. Results of the analysis are displayed on screen and can be printed; values at specific points may be investigated, stored and printed with the output.
Beam length: BeamPal suits a continuous beam of length between 0.30 and 30.00 metres. Elastic properties of the beam [Bending Stiffness (EI); Shear Stiffness (GA)] and its Self-weight (w) per metre, may be defined by the user and stored, or selected from pre-defined standard sections included on installation.
Supports: Up to 24 knife-edge supports are possible, subject to a minimum spacing of 1/50 th of the beam length. User defined spring stiffness may be applied at each support. The number of supports allows analysis of a 2.44m sheet of plywood spanning over eleven bearers; each bearer being considered as two supports.
Each end of the beam may either be free or clamped against rotation and deflection. When the loading pattern generates an upward reaction at a support(s) the user has the option to either tie the beam down, or to allow it to lift off the support(s). This is a useful facility when analysing soffit formwork members with lightweight beams etc..
Loading Patterns: Up to 12 concentrated and 12 trapezoidal distributed loads may be applied at any position, subject to a user-defined minimum spacing. Trapezoidal loads can be triangular if one end is zero. In addition, a uniformly distributed load may be applied, usually the unit weight, covering the full length of the beam.
Analysis: BeamPal automatically analyses its current data set whenever results are displayed, so no complex "run" procedure is necessary. If the data set is outside the BeamPal parameters or the analysis is not technically feasible, the program tells you.
View Results: On-screen display 800 x 600 with clear images of the selected loading pattern together with either the bending moment diagram, shear force diagram or the deflected beam shape can be displayed. Each diagram is labelled and the largest positive and largest negative values are separately displayed.
An example is shown on the BeamPal Home Page.
Print Results: Prints the diagrams and data sets of BeamPal Jobs onto A4 size paper to any selected Windows printer. The program can store your "company name" for the heading, and you can input the "contract name" and a "title" for the analysis. Three separate modes of output of data are possible, summary, larger diagrams, and the full data set. Click to see a sample of the Mode - One Page Output.
Storage: Work may be saved to your disc as *.bpl files, and retrieved, edited and re-analysed in a later run of the program.
Units: BeamPal generally uses kiloNewtons (kN) and metres (m) in accordance with UK documents on formwork and falsework:
Beam length (m), Deflections and minimum spacing (mm), Stiffness of supports (kN/mm), Bending stiffness (kN m²), Shear stiffness (kN), Concentrated loads (kN), Trapezoidal (distributed) loads (kN/m), Bending moment (kNm), Reactions and shear force (kN), deflections (mm).
Help Facility: Written specifically to provide the occasional user with assistance on 'what-to-do-next' and, for the advanced user, offers guidance on the technical aspects of the program. An introductory tutorial session in setting up a BeamPal Job is available for new users. This demonstrates some of the features of the program.
Manual: A separate BeamPal manual is not considered necessary, but pages of the Help file may be printed on A4 in either colour or black and white. To print the Help File to a printer other than the Windows default printer, save any work, close BeamPal, reset the default printer in the Windows Printer Folder, and on re-opening BeamPal the Help File will now print.
Verification: The structural accuracy of the BeamPal analysis output has been independently checked by Slender Structures Ltd. against output from another reputable analysis program. They reported that "In each case checked, the figures obtained from both programs for reactions, bending moments, shear force and deflection were the same within the number of significant figures output by BeamPal."
Single User: The BeamPal program is designed as a standalone program for an individual PC, and is supplied as a single-user executable file. It is not available in a multi-user version for Network operation.
For other information, or to order your copy, click on buttons below:
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