I am trying to investigate LEAP Steel as a viable option for Steel Design and have run into a few problems. I am currently working on a 3 span curved plate girder.
1. If I have multiple units within a bridge (2 bearing lines at a pier), is there a way to have the girder section end before the CL of Pier? I have offset the bearing and stopped the slab where I need to, but the member definition states that the girder section has an incomplete section. I do not want to include this additional length of girder section for bearing reactions.
2. Under Pier/Abutment locations, what is the intent of the "Offset to Bridge CL" option? My baseline is not centered on the bridge, so I assumed that I should enter a value here to offset the center of piers and abutments. Graphically this did not occur and the piers are still centered on the baseline. Also, it appeared to alter my span lengths when it came to member definition.
3. When defining crossframes, the graphics do not match the intent from cross-frame/diaphragm definition. I have defined my diagonals based on the top of the member. At the top of the crossframe the offset appears to be correct in the graphics. In the bottom of the crossframe, the offset is shown much larger than the input value.
Thank you for your assistance.
QUESTION 2 :
Let me try to answer your second question first as additional testing is going on question 1 and 3 .
The offset to Bridge CL is basically the offset provided between alignment and centerline of bridge (Center of Piers).
Please see the attached screenshot.
Question 3 :
Please let me know LBS version you are working . There is a possibility that you might be working on older version.
The Latest commercial release version is 01.02.00.01 and in this version I tested the cross frame graphic issue and it looks like the issue has been resolved.
For top and bottom Strut I had assign L8 and for left and right diagonal strut I had assigned L5. I checked the graphics and the cross frame looked proportional.
Please see the attached screenshot. I would suggest you to download the latest version from Bentley select server.