Plotting amplitude data

The Amplitude Plotter plug-in enables you to create X–Y plots that provide a graphical display of the data from one or more of the amplitude definitions in your model. You can plot data from the following types of amplitude objects:

  • Tabular

  • Equally spaced

  • Periodic

  • Modulated

  • Decay

  • Smooth step

For more information about defining and using these amplitude types in Abaqus/CAE, see The Amplitude toolset.

You can launch the Amplitude Plotter by selecting Plug-insToolsAmplitude Plotter from the main menu bar in the Interaction module or the Load module. To plot amplitude data, select one or more amplitude rows in the top half of the dialog box and click Plot. Multiple amplitude objects can be included in the same X–Y plot if they are of the same amplitude type.

By default, the Amplitude Plotter creates an X–Y plot that is sized to include all the data in your selected amplitude or amplitudes. You can zoom in on a particular area in the amplitude data when you create your X–Y plot by specifying a custom minimum or maximum value using the Min X Value or Max X Value options. As with any X–Y plot in Abaqus/CAE, you can also customize the plot, its axes, or the plot legend by double-clicking these components of the plot; see Customizing X–Y plot appearance, for more information about these customization options. The Amplitude Plotter also includes a Display plot legend option that you can toggle to display or hide the plot legend as you plot amplitude objects.

Toggle on the Save XY Data option to create named X–Y data objects for the amplitude objects you include in the X–Y plot. You can customize the names for the X–Y data objects you create; Abaqus/CAE displays these names in the plot legend, and the X–Y data objects will be saved as session objects and will be available for use in the Visualization module. The X–Y data objects generated by the Amplitude Plotter are session-specific and cannot be saved to the model database.