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Hello!
I create a model in STKO using the Hinged Beam element, to model beam end releases. If I mesh the Edge with a single finite element everything is ok. However when I try to refine the mesh (multiple elements for an Edge) I have numerical issues due to singularities. Does anyone know what the problem is?

Hello!
The Hinged Beam element in STKO is an automatism that creates (for each element of the mesh) 1 internal element and 2 hinges at the element ends.
If you are modeling beam-end releases it means that the hinges at the beam ends have zero rotational stiffness;
when you mesh the edge with more than 1 element, every interior node of the mesh has rotational hinges at both sides, thus rendering the stiffness matrix at that interior node singular!

What I can tell you is that when you assign a Hinged Beam to a geometrical Edge, mesh that edge with just 1 element