The joint constant for this joint was calculated in the Joint Properties tab as: The once the stiffnesses are known, the joint constant is calculated as: The value of the joint constant is determined by calculating the stiffness of the bolt, k bolt, and the stiffness of the clamped parts in the grip, k grip. After separation, all applied load is taken by the bolt and so the bolt load line has a slope of 1.
The bolt load line in this region has a constant slope equal to the joint constant. Before joint separation, only a portion of the applied load is carried by the bolt, and the other portion acts to relieve compression in the clamped parts.
