Infinite Plane

Infinite plane for contact modeling

Since R2020b

• 

Libraries:
Simscape / Multibody / Curves and Surfaces

Description

The Infinite Plane block exports an infinite plane for modeling contact problems. You can model contact between the plane and many types of geometries, such as all types of solids and convex hulls in the Body Element library and the point geometry in the Curves and Surfaces library. Note that for contact, you must use the positive normal side of the plane for contact, which is in the direction indicated by the blue axis of the frame. Otherwise, the contacting part will be ejected to the normal side through the plane.

The Infinite Plane block is useful in planar contact modeling. For example, the Infinite Plane block is much more effective at modeling a ground plane than the Brick Solid block.

Ports

Frame

R — Reference frame

frame

Infinite plane reference frame. Connect this frame to another block to specify the location and orientation of the infinite plane.

Geometry

G — Geometry

frame

Geometry that represents the plane defined by this block. Connect this port to a Spatial Contact Force block to model contacts on the plane.

Parameters

Graphic

Type — Visual representation of plane

Rectangle (default) | None

Visual representation of the plane. Set this parameter to Rectangle to show the visual representation of the infinite plane as a rectangle with dash-line boundaries. Set this parameter to None to eliminate the plane from the model visualization.

Width (X) — Width of plane visual representation

1 m (default) | positive integer

Width of the plane's visual representation. Note that the actual plane has infinite size.

Dependencies

To enable this parameter, set Type to Rectangle.

Height (Y) — Height of plane visual representation

1 m (default) | positive integer

Height of the plane's visual representation. Note that the actual plane has infinite size.

Dependencies

To enable this parameter, set Type to Rectangle.

Visual Properties — Parameterizations for color and opacity

Simple (default) | Advanced

Parameterizations for specifying visual properties. Select Simple to specify diffuse color and opacity. Select Advanced to specify more visual properties, such as Specular Color, Ambient Color, Emissive Color, and Shininess.

Dependencies

To enable this parameter, set Type to Rectangle.

Diffuse Color — Graphic color

[0.5 0.5 0.5] (default) | three-element vector | four-element vector

Color of the graphic under direct white light, specified as an [R G B] or [R G B A] vector on a 0–1 scale. An optional fourth element (A) specifies the color opacity on a scale of 0–1. Omitting the opacity element is equivalent to specifying a value of 1.

Dependencies

To enable this parameter, set:

1. Type to Rectangle

2. Visual Properties to Simple

Opacity — Graphic opacity

0.25 (default) | scalar in the range of 0 to 1

Graphic opacity, specified as a scalar in the range of 0 to 1. A scalar of 0 corresponds to completely transparent, and a scalar of 1 corresponds to completely opaque.

Dependencies

To enable this parameter, set:

1. Type to Rectangle

2. Visual Properties to Simple

Specular Color — Highlight color

[0.5 0.5 0.5 1.0] (default) | three-element vector | four-element vector

Color of specular highlights, specified as an [R,G,B] or [R,G,B,A] vector on a 0–1 scale. The optional fourth element specifies the color opacity. Omitting the opacity element is equivalent to specifying a value of 1.

Dependencies

To enable this parameter, set:

1. Type to Rectangle

2. Visual Properties to Advanced

Ambient Color — Shadow color

[0.15 0.15 0.15 1.0] (default) | three-element vector | four-element vector

Color of shadow areas in diffuse ambient light, specified as an [R,G,B] or [R,G,B,A] vector on a 0–1 scale. The optional fourth element (A) specifies the color opacity. Omitting the opacity element is equivalent to specifying a value of 1.

Dependencies

To enable this parameter, set:

1. Type to Rectangle

2. Visual Properties to Advanced

Emissive Color — Self-illumination color

[0.0 0.0 0.0 1.0] (default) | three-element vector | four-element vector

Graphic color due to self illumination, specified as an [R,G,B] or [R,G,B,A] vector on a 0–1 scale. The optional fourth element (A) specifies the color opacity. Omitting the opacity element is equivalent to specifying a value of 1.

Dependencies

To enable this parameter, set:

1. Type to Rectangle

2. Visual Properties to Advanced

Shininess — Highlight sharpness

75 (default) | scalar in the range of 1 to 128

Sharpness of specular light reflections, specified as a scalar number on a 0–128 scale. Increase the shininess value for smaller but sharper highlights. Decrease the value for larger but smoother highlights.

Dependencies

To enable this parameter, set:

1. Type to Rectangle

2. Visual Properties to Advanced

Extended Capabilities

C/C++ Code Generation
Generate C and C++ code using Simulink® Coder™.

Version History

Introduced in R2020b