Welcome to this tutorial on creating and testing the deflection of a Simple Beam using Karamba. This guide will walk you through the process of setting up a structural model, applying loads, and analyzing the beam’s behavior under various conditions. By focusing on a straightforward example, you’ll gain a clear understanding of the fundamental principles and tools needed for structural analysis in Karamba. Let’s dive in and get started! 

In this tutorial, you will learn: 

• Translate geometry to structural elements
• Specify cross section and material properties
• Define loads and supports
• Assemble and analyze the model
• View the results of the analysis

Simple Beam Analysis using Karamba3D 1/8

Workflowlink copied

Let’s first summarize the workflow of the analysis process. There are some basic steps that we must follow:

• Create Rhino Geometry (lines or meshes)
• Translate Rhino Geometry to Structural Elements
• Specify Cross Sections
• Specify Materials
• Specify Supports
• Specify Loads
• Assemble the Model
• Analyze the Model
• Get the Results

Simple Beam Analysis using Karamba3D 2/8

Step 1: translate rhino geometry to structural elementslink copied

Create Rhino Geometry: Columns and Beams

In Karamba3d solid elements such as beams and columns are represented by lines.

• Create two points in top view as shown in the image on the right and connect them to the Point parameter

Params

Geometry

Point

• Connect the two points using the Line component 

Curve

Primitive

Line

 

Line to Beam

All structural elements in Karamba3D are 2D dimensional. To specify the lines as columns:

• Connect the column lines to the Line to Beam component 

Simple Beam Analysis using Karamba3D 3/8

Step 2: Specify Cross Sectionlink copied

Beam Cross Section

As mentioned in step 1, in Karamba3D all structural elements are 2D dimensional. The third dimension is specified as a cross-section property. Karamba has a library of ready profiles. Through the Cross Section Range Selector, we can specify the dimension limits and select the cross section that fits our criteria:

We can view the list of the IPE cross sections that meet our criteria:

• Connect a panel to CrosSec output in the Cross Section Range Selector.

For now, we can choose the third cross section in our list:

• At the Cross Section Selector connect a number slider to the Name|Ind input

Simple Beam Analysis using Karamba3D 4/8

Step 3: Specify Materials and Supportslink copied

Specifying Materials

We are now going to create a steel material:

• Create a new material through 

Karamba3D

5.Material

Material Selection

• Karamba3D offers various ready material families, let’s choose the steel family and S235 from the name list.

Specifying Supports

To create supports: 

• Connect the points from Point parameters, representing the supports, to the Support component found at 

Karamba3D

1.Model

Support(Karamba3D)

• The support plane is by default it is the xy plane so there is no need to specify it.

Simple Beam Analysis using Karamba3D 5/8

Step 4: Specify Loadslink copied

Gravity

Create a load through 

Karamba3D

2.Load

Loads (Karamba3D)

Specify the Type of the Load by clicking the white box and selecting Gravity.

Specify the vector of the gravity load. Gravity is negative to the global z direction therefore the vector must be reversed.

Specify the Load Case Name by connecting a panel with a unique name to LCase, in this case is “LC0”.

 

The Load Case input is important for retrieving results for each Load Case effect in our structure separately. For example, we may need to examine the deflection due to live loads separately from the dead loads.

Line Load

Now let’s create a live load of 3KN/m2 on the beam. For that we will use a mesh surface, and we will apply a constant load to it.

• Create another load through 

Karamba3D

2.Load

Beam Loads (Karamba3D)

• This time the Type of the Load is Block.

Simple Beam Analysis using Karamba3D 6/8

Step 5: Assemble and Analyze the Modellink copied

The Model is an entity that contains all the information related to the structure and it is essential to retrieve the analysis results.

• Use the Assemble Model component through 

Make sure you connect all the following entities to the Assembly component.

1. Structural elements (beams, mesh shells)
2. Supports
3. Loads
4. Cross Sections
5. Materials

• Connect the entities to Assemble Model

Simple Beam Analysis using Karamba3D 7/8

Step 6: View Reslutslink copied

Let’s view the displacement results for beams and shells on the rendered meshes:

• Connect the Analysed Model to the Model View component found at 

Beam Results

• Connect the Model from the Model View to the Beam View found at 

Karamba3D

7.Results

Beam View (Karamba3D)

• Choose in the Render Settings the property that you want to see rendered, in this case it is the Displacement.
• Connect the Legend C (Legend Colores) and the Legend T (Legend Tags) to the Legend component found at 

Display

Graphs

Legend

To render the displacement:

• From the Model View open the Display Scales option, choose the Deformation and tweak slider to change the scale of the displacement

Simple Beam Analysis using Karamba3D 8/8

Conclusionlink copied

Congratulations on completing this tutorial! You’ve gained the skills to transform a simple line into a beam, define supports, apply loads, assign materials, and specify cross-sections. Additionally, you’ve learned how to assemble, analyze, and visualize your model. Now, it’s time to put your knowledge into practice—give it a try and start creating!

Useful Tutorials

Useful tutorials below: