Prescribed conditions in ABAQUS/CAE are step-dependent objects, which means that you must specify the analysis steps in which they are active. You can use the load, boundary condition, and predefined field managers to view and manipulate the stepwise history of prescribed conditions. You can also use the Step list located under the toolbar to specify the steps in which new loads, boundary conditions, and predefined fields become active by default.

You can use the Amplitude toolset in the Load module to specify complicated time or frequency dependencies that can be applied to prescribed conditions. The Set and Surface toolsets in the Load module allow you to define and name regions of your model to which you would like to apply prescribed conditions. The Analytical Field toolset allows you to create analytical fields that you can use to define spatially varying parameters for selected prescribed conditions.

Load cases are sets of loads and boundary conditions used to define a particular loading condition. You can create load cases in static perturbation and steady-state dynamic, direct steps. For information on load cases, see “Modeling load cases,” Section 21.7.