Selecting Inside Surfaces of a part

[BromanSillito]

I'm a newbie to Sim Mechanical, having used Solidworks Simulation Pro and Inventor Simulation basic in the past. I have Simulation Mechanical 2014. I want to apply a pressure to the inside surfaces of an enclosed part, but I have not been able to select the inside surfaces. How do I select inside surfaces on a part that cannot be seen directly on the model?

[KubliJ · Accepted solution]

Hi Broman,

The best method for selecting internal surfaces to hide the external surfaces.  Selecting them all could be difficult, especially if there are small features.  If you have access to version 2016, there is a new workflow that makes selecting all the internal surfaces easier.  Check out this video to see how.

[Anonymous]

Is it possible to create a cutting plane in the FEA editor?  I know it can be done in the results window, but it would be much more efficient for me to use that approach to get at buried internal contact surfaces than the ones shown in the video of this thread.  Or, is there a toggle select for the mouse?  I didn't see that on the controls fly-out window in the interface.

[AstroJohnPE]

Hi John,

The FEA Editor does not have slice planes (as of Sim Mech 2016).

When selecting items, the following keys can be used in combination with the mouse. These should work whether you click an item or use a rectangle/polygon/circle to select.

• Shift key: selects additional items
• Ctrl key: toggles the selection (selects things that are not selected, and unselect things that are selected)
• Shift+Ctrl keys: unselect items.

Also, you can use Ctrl+A to select all, and "Selection > Select > Invert" to switch what is selected and unselected.