You can create connectors between two points in an assembly or between a point in the assembly and ground. When you create a connector between a point in the assembly and ground, you can specify that you want to connect either point of the connector, but not both, to ground.
To create and edit connectors:
Display the connector editor using one of the following methods:
To create a new connector, select Connector
Create from the main menu bar.
Tip:
You can also create a connector using the 
tool in the Interaction module toolbox.
In the Create Connector dialog box that appears, name the connector and click Continue. For more information about naming objects, see “Using basic dialog box components,” Section 3.2.1.
The connector editor appears.
To edit an existing connector, select ConnectorManager from the main menu bar to display the Connector Manager. Select the name of the connector, and click Edit.
Tip:
You can also initiate this procedure from the Connector menu in the main menu bar by selecting Editconnector name.
The connector editor appears, and the connector symbol becomes highlighted in the current viewport.
In the Edit Connector dialog box, select a connector property. If desired, click Create to create a new connector property.
The connection type is displayed in the dialog box; you can click Show diagram to see a schematic drawing of the connection type along with the ABAQUS idealization of the connection.
Click Edit Point 1 to select the first connector point using one of the following methods:
Select a point in the viewport.
Tip:
The 
Select the Entity Closest to the Screen tool in the Options toolbox is toggled off by default. If you make an ambiguous selection, ABAQUS/CAE highlights the point and displays a description of the point in the lower left corner of the viewport. Use the Next and Previous buttons to cycle through the possible selections, and click OK to confirm your selection.
The selected point is highlighted red in the viewport.
Click Connect to Ground to fix the displacements and rotations of the first connector point. You can specify only one connector point to ground.
The connector editor reappears and displays a description of the selected point.
Click Edit Point 2 to select the second connector point using one of the following methods:
Select a point in the viewport.
Tip:
The Select the Entity Closest to the Screen tool in the Options toolbox is toggled off by default. If you make an ambiguous selection, ABAQUS/CAE highlights the point and displays a description of the point in the lower left corner of the viewport. Use the Next and Previous buttons to cycle through the possible selections, and click OK to confirm your selection.
The selected point is highlighted magenta in the viewport.
Click Connect to Ground to fix the displacements and rotations of the second connector point. You can specify only one connector point to ground.
The connector editor reappears and displays a description of the selected point.
Depending upon the connection type, a local orientation for the first connector point is required, optional, or not applicable. Click Edit Orientation 1 to specify a local orientation for the first connector point using one of the following methods:
Select a predefined datum coordinate system by name.
From the prompt area, click Datum CSYS List to display a list of datum coordinate systems.
Select a name from the list, and click OK.
Select a predefined coordinate system in the viewport.
Tip:
The tool in the Options toolbox is toggled off by default. For coordinate systems with coincident origins, when you cycle through all of the possible selections, ABAQUS/CAE highlights the coordinate system and displays the description of the coordinate system in the viewport.
From the prompt area, click Unselect CSYS to unselect the previously selected local orientation.
Depending upon the connection type, a local orientation for the second connector point is optional or not applicable. If the orientation is optional, ABAQUS/CAE uses the orientation for the first connector point as the default selection. Click Edit Orientation 2 to specify a local orientation for the second connector point using one of the following methods:
Select a predefined datum coordinate system by name.
From the prompt area, click Datum CSYS List to display a list of datum coordinate systems.
Select a name from the list, and click OK.
Select a predefined coordinate system in the viewport.
Tip:
The tool in the Options toolbox is toggled off by default. For coordinate systems with coincident origins, when you cycle through all of the possible selections, ABAQUS/CAE highlights the coordinate system and displays the description of the coordinate system in the viewport.
From the prompt area, click Unselect CSYS to return to the default selection.
Click OK to save your connector definition and to close the editor.
