FE based structural reliability analysis using STAND environment

Abstract

An assessment of structural reliability requires multiple evaluations of the limit state function for various realizations of random parameters of the structural sys-tem. In the majority of industrial applications the limit state functions cannot be expressed explicitly in terms of the random parameters but they are specified using selected outcomes of the FE analysis. In consequence, in order to be useful in prac-tice, a structural reliability analysis program should be closely integrated with a FE module or it should be interfaced with an advanced external FE program. When the FE source code is not available, which is usually the case, the only option is to establish a communication between the reliability analysis program and an external FE software through the batch mechanism of data modification, job submission and results extraction. The main subject of this article is to present the reliability analysis capabili-ties of STAND software, which is being developed in the Institute of Fundamental Technological Research of Polish Academy of Sciences. A special emphasis is put