LoadTraceSPATIAL LAB
EDUCATIONAL MODEL

SEE THE STRUCTURE. UNDERSTAND THE LOAD.

Your building, from every angle.

One connected model. From a single floor to the foundation.

MODEL READYGravity study / SI units
FOUNDATION LOAD14,520 kNService combination
AVERAGE / COLUMN1,210 kN12 support columns
PEAK COLUMN LOAD1,210 kNEqual-share distribution
BALANCE CHECKBalancedΣ reactions = Σ loads
01 / SPATIAL MODEL

Structural assembly

5 levels · 17.5 m · 400 m²
FrameFloor plateSelected level
Drag to orbit · Scroll to zoom · Click a floor or column
CONNECTED INSPECTOR

Roof / Level 5

Added at this level2,136 kNFloor + façade + snow
Cumulative below2,136 kNLoad passed to level below
Average column178 kNSelect a column in the model
WHAT IF?

Change a load. See the consequence.

Move the live-load slider. Every view follows the same calculation.

Baseline not pinned

READ THE STRUCTURE

A different lens on every load.

Click a bar or support to inspect it in 3D.

01 / COMPOSITION

What each level carries

kN

Applied combination contributions. Click a level to inspect.

02 / ACCUMULATION

The journey to the ground

kN

Cumulative force, roof to base. A dashed line shows a pinned study.

03 / SUPPORT REACTIONS

Where the load lands

kN

Equal-share distribution. Click any support to follow its vertical path.

04 / SENSITIVITY

Which input moves the result?

Δ kN

One input increased by 10%, others held constant. Local linear response.

THE AUDIT TRAIL

Every number, accounted for.

Load takedown ledger. Dead, live, snow and façade columns include the chosen load factors.
Level Dead (kN) Live (kN) Snow (kN) Façade (kN) Added (kN) Cumulative (kN) Avg / col (kN) Live override

Façade per story = wall-area load × perimeter × story height. Beam, slab and column self-weight must be included in your dead-load inputs.

LEARNING LAB

Follow the force.

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Step-by-step explanation

MODEL COMPANION

Ask the numbers.

AI TUTOR

When you ask a question, your key is sent over HTTPS to the LoadTrace worker and then to Google Gemini. It is remembered in this browser; clear the field to remove it. Avoid shared devices.

Ready to use the shared tutor.

Hi, I am the LoadTrace agent. Set the stories and loads, run the takedown, then ask me things like "How much load reaches the foundation?" or "What is the load per column at level 1?"
LOADTRACE / FIELD GUIDE

Explore first. Understand always.

A spatial workflow

  1. Set geometry and loads, then select Update structure.
  2. Drag to orbit, scroll or pinch to zoom, and right-drag to pan. Camera buttons and arrow keys give alternative navigation; + and − zoom.
  3. Use X-ray to reveal the frame, Exploded view to separate levels, or Section cut to remove part of the model along X.
  4. Click a floor, chart bar or support. The connected inspector follows your selection.
  5. Pin a comparison, then change loads or geometry. Use the ledger to audit the differences.

What the model computes

For each supported elevated level, including the roof:

Qᵢ = γD(Dᵢ A + f P h) + γL Lᵢ A + γS Sᵢ A
Nᵢ = Qᵢ + Nᵢ₊₁

The roof has snow but no floor live load; other levels have live load but no snow. There is no additional ground-floor slab. Façade is added once per story.

Equal share divides each load among all columns. Tributary mode uses rectangular influence areas and boundary-length shares for façade. Both enforce force balance; neither solves a stiffness system.

Important boundaries

The combination presets are transparent teaching examples, not a code-complete ASD/LRFD envelope. No live-load reduction, wind, earthquake, foundation sizing, strength, buckling, deflection, vibration, redistribution, or material design is performed. Relative force colors are not utilization, stress or a safety rating.

Slabs, beams, footings and columns have schematic dimensions. X-ray, animation and exploded spacing do not alter the calculations. Load-flow particles show direction, not physical velocity. All dead weight must be included in the user inputs.

Project JSON and CSV are local downloads. When you ask the agent, your question and current model are sent to the original LoadTrace tutor service. An entered Gemini API key is sent over HTTPS in the x-goog-api-key header to loadtrace-gemini.mirindiderick.workers.dev, which forwards it to Google Gemini for this request only. If the field is empty, the worker uses its configured server-side key. The entered key is remembered under lt_key in this browser, not in project exports. Clearing the field removes the saved key. Browser storage is not an encrypted credential vault; avoid saving a key on a shared device.