Patent ID: 7398696

Claim:
A method employing a computer for predicting a deformation in a body, comprising the steps of: defining, using the computer, a system within the body and surroundings within the body about the system; specifying, using the computer, a sum of external forces (f ext ) exerted on the system by the surroundings; specifying, using the computer, a sum of system forces (m syst ) exerted by the system on the surroundings; specifying, using the computer, material properties of the system; specifying, using the computer, boundary conditions acting at the interface between the system and the surroundings; predicting, using the computer, the deformation of the body according to the formula: f ext +m syst +m A +f s(ext) +m s(syst) =0; wherein: m A represents surface-bonding constraining forces, f s(ext) represents the shear component of f ext , and m s(syst) represents the shear component of m syst ; and displaying, using the computer, the deformation of the body.