GiD mesh

Menu: Files->Import->GiD mesh...

With this option it is possible to read a GiD ASCII mesh (saved with Export GiD Mesh) in order to visualize it within GiD.

It is also possible to read a new mesh and add it to the existing one. In this case, you are prompted to keep the former one or join it to the new mesh.

The format of the file describing the mesh must have the following structure:

mesh dimension 3 elemtype tetrahedra nnode 4
coordinates
1 0 0 0
2 3 0 0
3 6 0 0
4 3 3 0
5 3 1.5 4
6 3 1.5 -4
7 1.5 0 2
end coordinates
elements
1 1 2 4 5 1
2 2 3 4 5 1
3 1 4 2 6 1
4 2 4 3 6 1
5 1 2 5 7 1
end elements

The code nnode means the number of nodes per element and dimension can be either:

• 2: 2 dimensions. Nodes have just two coordinates.
• 3: 3 dimensions. Nodes have three coordinates.

Where elemtype must be:

• Linear
• Triangle
• Quadrilateral
• Tetrahedra
• Hexahedra
• Prism
• Pyramid
• Point
• Sphere
• Circle

For sphere and circle elements after the connectivities the radius must be specified, and for circle elements also the three normal components could be written (z direction is considered by default)

Every element may have an optional number after the definition of the connectivity. This number usually defines the material type and it is useful to divide the mesh into layers to visualize it better. GiD offers the possibility of dividing the problem into different layers according to the different materials through the option Material (see Layers and groups (only Preprocessing) ). For sphere elements is necessary to additionally specify its radius.

Note: The = sign is optional, but if it is present it is necessary to leave a space.

If it is necessary to enter different types of elements, every type must belong to a different mesh. More than one mesh can be entered by writing one after the other, all of them in the same file. The only difference is that all meshes except the first one have nothing between coordinates and end coordinates. They share the first mesh's points. Example: to enter tetrahedron elements and triangle elements,

mesh dimension = 3 elemtype tetrahedra nnode = 4
coordinates
1 0 0 0
2 3 0 0
3 6 0 0
4 3 3 0
5 3 1.5 4
6 3 1.5 -4
7 1.5 0 2
end coordinates
elements
1 1 2 4 5 1
2 2 3 4 5 1
3 1 4 2 6 1
4 2 4 3 6 1
5 1 2 5 7 1
end elements
mesh dimension = 3 elemtype triangle nnode = 3
coordinates
end coordinates
elements
1 1 2 4 1
2 2 3 4 1
3 1 4 2 1
4 2 4 3 1
5 1 2 5 1
end elements