What Do Engineers and Architects Need to Know about the Finite Element Method?
Helen Chen, Ph.D., PE Course Outline The Finite Element Method is a powerful engineering analysis tool, and has been widely used in engineering since it was introduced in the 1950s. This course presents the basic theory and simple application of the Finite Element Method (FEM) along with the common FEM terminology. The emphasis of this course is the fundamental concepts of finite element analysis. A list of major finite element software is also presented in this course along with their features and capabilities. This course includes a multiple-choice quiz at the end, which is designed to enhance the understanding of course materials. Learning Objective At the conclusion of this course, the student will understand: • the concept of the Finite Element Method (FEM); • the advantages of the FEM; • the disadvantages of the FEM; • the applications of the FEM; • the concept of matrix and vector; • the important role played by the FEM in today’s engineering world; and will be familiar with: •
