1. INTRODUCTION

2. WELCOME TO ADAMS TRAINING
What’s in this section:
Course Objectives
What is Motion Simulation?
What is Adams?
Adams Applications
Why Build an Adams Model?
SimCompanion: Technical Articles, Documentation & Forums
Organization of Manual
Getting Help

3. COURSE OBJECTIVES After taking this course you will be:
Familiar with Adams terminology
Able to build models of moderate complexity
Comfortable with the various input/output files for Adams/View and Adams/Solver
Aware of the different simulation types in Adams
Able to effectively post-process information, creating plots, animations and reports
Familiar with function expressions, constraints and the other ‘building block’ elements in Adams.

4. WHAT IS MOTION SIMULATION?
Also called:
Mechanical Systems Simulation (MSS)
Multi-Body Dynamics (MBD)
Equations of motion generated from the model
CAD-like graphical interface or text file input
Large angles, large displacements, nonlinear forces
Differential and algebraic equations integrated directly
Result is system animation and plotting of all kinematics (displacement, velocity, etc.) and dynamics (reactions, etc.)

5. WHAT IS ADAMS? Automatic Dynamic Analysis of Mechanical Systems
Development started in 1974 at the University of Michigan
Mechanical Dynamics, Inc. started with Adams/Solver
MDI was acquired by MSC in 2002
Euler-Lagrange method to create equations of motion
Predictor-corrector methods to solve equations
Integrated animation and plotting
Powerful parametric, scripting and post-processing abilities

6. ADAMS APPLICATIONS
The general purpose graphical user interface is Adams/View
Model building, simulation submission, some animation
Equations are built and integrated with Adams/Solver
Solver is a standalone application, but typically used seamlessly from within Adams/View
Plotting and animation done with Adams/PostProcessor
Tightly integrated with Adams/View
Industry verticals (e.g., Adams/Car) for model templates

7. WHY BUILD AN ADAMS MODEL?
Verify Motion Performance (~60%)
“Will it work?”
Example: will landing gear fully deploy in these conditions?
Compute Detailed Loads in a Mechanism (~30%)
“Will it break?”
Example: what are the cyclic loads on a wind turbine driveshaft?
Examine Clearances in a Complex Mechanism (~10%)
“Will it fit?”
Example: will launch vehicle fairing deploy without hitting the payload?

8. SIMCOMPANION One stop for full online support
Find answers to your questions
Search across ALL content
Subscribe to notification
Single sign-on to ALL content
Access to other support resources
Case Management Portal
Discussion Forums
Training Information

9. SIMCOMPANION Personalized Support via the following channels Web Email
Submit a Case Online
Manage My Cases
List of Addresses in Support Contact Information
Phone
List of Phone Numbers in Support Contact Information

10. SIMCOMPANION
Product Info and Docs
Access to all Product Documentation

11. SIMCOMPANION Access to Communities simcompanion.mscsoftware.com
VPD Community Discussion Forums
Subscribe to discussion communities of interest
Encourage the students to register for relevant Discussion Forums as part of the class
Select Adams to view the Adams discussions.
simcompanion.mscsoftware.com

12. ORGANIZATION OF MANUAL
This manual is organized into modules that get progressively more complex. Each module focuses on solving an engineering-based problem and covers mechanical system simulation (MSS) concepts that will help you use Adams most optimally. The earlier workshops provide you with more step-by-step procedures and guidance, while the later ones provide you with less.
Each module is divided into the following sections:
Problem statement
Concepts
Workshop
Optional tasks
Module review

13. GETTING HELP – ONLINE HELP
To access the online help, do either of the following:
From the Help menu, select Adams/View Help to display the home page for the Adams/View online help.
On Windows, go to Start->All Programs->MSC.Software-> Adams x >Adams Online Help
While working in any Adams/View dialog box, press F1 to display online help specific to that dialog box.
Once the online help is displayed, you can browse the table of contents, use the index, or search for keywords.

14. GETTING HELP – ONLINE HELP
Index/search entire Adams help
Contents of selected tab
Table of contents
Show the students how they can search the guide to find text much as they would search through an index.

15. GETTING HELP – CONSULTING
MSC.Software provides comprehensive engineering consulting services to help you realize the benefits of Virtual Product Development quickly and confidently.
Staff Augmentation
Technology Transfer
Process Capture and Automation
Methods Development
Virtual Build and Test
For more information on MSC Consulting Services, go to: