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Rotated and inclined supports

Tekla Structural Designer
Modified: 9 Jan 2023
2024
Tekla Structural Designer

Rotated and inclined supports

A support placed under a column or wall is constrained to have its x and y axes aligned to the column/wall principal axes and its z axis vertical. If the column/wall is subsequently rotated the support will rotate with it.

All other supports can be orientated as required by setting inclination, azimuth and rotation angles in the support properties, where:
  • Inclination - rotates the support about Global X
  • Azimuth - rotates an inclined support about Global Z
  • Rotation - rotates the support about its local z axis
By default, for a new support the above values are zero.
Accepting the defaults creates a support with its local x, y and z axes aligned to Global X, Y and Z.
Tip: To see the support local x, y, and z axes as shown above, open the Scene Contents window and select Supports > DOF.
When viewed from above this alignment can be seen more clearly:

Apply a rotation (only)

To just rotate a support on plan specify a Rotation in the support properties.
A positive rotation rotates the support about its local z axis. This is an anti-clockwise rotation when viewed from above.

Apply an inclination

To incline a support specify an Inclination in the support properties.
A positive inclination rotates the support about Global X. This is a clockwise rotation when looking in the positive Global X direction.
In a top down view a support inclined at 30 degrees would be shown as follows.

Apply an azimuth to an inclined support

To rotate an inclined support about Global Z specify an Azimuth in the support properties.
An Azimuth can only be applied to an inclined support. It rotates the support about Global Z, which is an anti-clockwise rotation when viewed from above.
Note:

When viewed from above the local z axis appears to point in the direction of Global X for an Azimuth of 90 degrees, or Global Y for an Azimuth of 180 degrees.

Switching back to an isometric view, for an inclination of 30 degrees and an azimuth of 30 degrees, the support would be aligned as follows.

Apply a rotation to an inclined support

To rotate an inclined support about local z specify a Rotation in the support properties
A positive rotation rotates the support about its local z axis, which is a clockwise rotation when looking in the positive local z direction.
Note: Once an Inclination has been applied, a rotation about the local z axis is not the same as a rotation about Global Z.
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