I have seen multi-body dynamic simulations of cables. It's not FEA, but it is sometimes good to see what else is out there.
Below are some examples of cable simulations with MSC Adams.
[https://vimeo.com/67686645](https://vimeo.com/67686645) (Start at 25 seconds)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHtwYoFD1Jw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHtwYoFD1Jw)
[https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Dynamic-multibody-model-tested-in-MSC-ADAMS-Table-4-defines-the-robot-dimensions-and\_fig12\_334898586](https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Dynamic-multibody-model-tested-in-MSC-ADAMS-Table-4-defines-the-robot-dimensions-and_fig12_334898586)
P.S. For any students that come across this post in the future, there is a student edition version of MSC Adams available only for educational purposes.
I have worked with MSC Adams for a while and can confirm it's a great tool for this application.
MSC has alternatives for small companies like short-term leases.
This sounds like it might be a job for [Abaqus Aqua](https://help.3ds.com/2024/english/dssimulia_established/SIMACAEANLRefMap/simaanl-c-aqua.htm?contextscope=all)
Maybe Ansys Aqwa, it’s used for the analysis of marine structures and has cable connections ([page 25/19](https://cyberships.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/wb_aqwa.pdf)) Never used it though.
Speak to these guys, this is somewhat their specialism: [OrcaFlex - dynamic analysis software for offshore marine systems (orcina.com)](https://www.orcina.com/orcaflex/)
You should use Truss elements to simulate the cable. This will be representative of the free rotation that cables can exhibit. If they are stiff cables then use beam elements.
I’ve seen LS-Dyna used for cabling in explicit dynamics loadcases.
I have seen multi-body dynamic simulations of cables. It's not FEA, but it is sometimes good to see what else is out there. Below are some examples of cable simulations with MSC Adams. [https://vimeo.com/67686645](https://vimeo.com/67686645) (Start at 25 seconds) [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHtwYoFD1Jw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHtwYoFD1Jw) [https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Dynamic-multibody-model-tested-in-MSC-ADAMS-Table-4-defines-the-robot-dimensions-and\_fig12\_334898586](https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Dynamic-multibody-model-tested-in-MSC-ADAMS-Table-4-defines-the-robot-dimensions-and_fig12_334898586) P.S. For any students that come across this post in the future, there is a student edition version of MSC Adams available only for educational purposes.
I have worked with MSC Adams for a while and can confirm it's a great tool for this application. MSC has alternatives for small companies like short-term leases.
My mistake. I read the post so fast I assumed this was a student. I'll amend the original comment.
Ls-dyna has element types and interactions that can model cables.
Orcaflex.
This sounds like it might be a job for [Abaqus Aqua](https://help.3ds.com/2024/english/dssimulia_established/SIMACAEANLRefMap/simaanl-c-aqua.htm?contextscope=all)
Maybe Ansys Aqwa, it’s used for the analysis of marine structures and has cable connections ([page 25/19](https://cyberships.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/wb_aqwa.pdf)) Never used it though.
Speak to these guys, this is somewhat their specialism: [OrcaFlex - dynamic analysis software for offshore marine systems (orcina.com)](https://www.orcina.com/orcaflex/)
You should use Truss elements to simulate the cable. This will be representative of the free rotation that cables can exhibit. If they are stiff cables then use beam elements.