Abaqus/CAE offers several methods for you to display field output results stored in the output database. Some of these methods require that field output data originally saved to the output database at element centroid or integration point locations be calculated at nodal locations. Such calculations apply to line- and banded-type contour plots, probing at nodal locations, forming a display group or color coding based on result values, and extracting element-based X–Y data along a path. You can control some of the options related to these computations, such as how element-based results are averaged.

In addition, you can choose to apply coordinate system transformations to your field output results; you can choose from several display forms for complex results: the magnitude, phase angle, real component, imaginary component, or value at a specified angle; and you can choose whether or not to cache results in memory to improve performance.

Select ResultOptions to locate the options that control the result calculations, result transformations, display of complex results, and result caching. This section discusses the result computations and the options that affect these computations. The following topics are covered:

• “Understanding how results are computed,” Section 42.6.1

• “Understanding result value averaging,” Section 42.6.2

• “Understanding complex results,” Section 42.6.3

• “Understanding results caching,” Section 42.6.4

• “Displaying field output values or discontinuities,” Section 42.6.5

• “Controlling result averaging,” Section 42.6.6

• “Controlling computations at region boundaries,” Section 42.6.7

• “Transforming results into a new coordinate system,” Section 42.6.8

• “Controlling the form of complex results,” Section 42.6.9

• “Controlling results caching,” Section 42.6.10