Free body cuts display the resultant forces and moments transmitted across a selected surface of your model. The Free Body toolset is available only in the Visualization module, and you can create a free body cut only when the current step and frame of the output database includes element force nodal output (NFORC).

This chapter explains how to use the Free Body toolset to create and delete free body cuts, display or hide them in the viewport, and customize several aspects of their appearance. The following topics are covered:

• “Resultant forces and moments on free body cuts in Abaqus/CAE,” Section 64.1

• “Creating a free body cut,” Section 64.2

• “Selection methods for free body cross-sections,” Section 64.3

• “Displaying, hiding, and highlighting free body cuts,” Section 64.4

• “Customizing free body cut display,” Section 64.5

You can also display free body data along an arbitrary plane through your model by toggling on free body display for a planar view cut. See “Understanding view cuts,” Section 46.1.