LAUSR

Abstract Contact detection algorithm is a critical constituent of discontinuous calculation method, the accuracy of contact detection directly affects the simulation results. Algorithms for contact detection between irregular blocks are difficult to achieve because of the complexity of geometry and the diversity of contact types. A half-space based contact detection algorithm is proposed, it can accurately identify the contact relationship between convex polygonal and polyhedral blocks. The proposed contact detection approach is implemented into continuum-discontinuum element method. This contact detection algorithm consists of two stages: first to identify potential contact pairs and then to judge the contact status by half-space. Half-space is defined by the boundary of the block, by judging the half-space inclusion relation between potential contact pairs, the contact status between two blocks can be detected, there is no need to calculate the distance between blocks in the process of contact state detection. This algorithm is realized through programming, several examples validated the accuracy of this algorithm.