Catenary Cable Element

Microstran's catenary cable element permits the analysis of guyed masts, cable networks, and other cable structures. The catenary formulation of the cable element permits the accurate computation of the equilibrium position of each cable under load. On input, the unstrained length, which defaults to the chord length, may be specified for each cable member. Variation of the unstrained length changes the initial tension of the cable. Cable members may be subjected to acceleration loads, uniformly distributed loads, temperature loads, and axial distortions. Additional nodes may be introduced within cables if it is necessary to apply concentrated loads. The initial tension determined by the unstrained cable length is taken into account automatically.