Cold-formed steel clip angle
A bent clip angle that joins a stud or joist to the structure: leg A is screwed to the member, leg B is screwed, welded or anchored to the support. To AISI S100-16 (with S2-20) Chapter J, D2 and A1.2, with the ASCE 7-22 load combinations.
Inputs of the clip angle #
- Clip: thickness (mils or custom), leg A and leg B, the length along the bend, Fy and Fu.
- Leg B bending section and factors: S100 has no provision for a flat leg bent out of its plane. This type computes it as a rational engineering analysis by S100 A1.2(c): Mn = Fy S with S = L t²/6 (prefilled) or the plastic Z = L t²/4, with the A1.2(c) factors for connections (φ 0.55, Ω 3.00, prefilled) or for members (φ 0.80, Ω 2.00). Both are your choice.
- Leg A to the member: the member's thickness and Fu, which sheet is under the screw head, the screw size and count (one line along the clip), the line's distance from the back of leg B, and the end distance.
- Leg B to the structure: screws into steel (support thickness and Fu), a fillet weld along the clip (shear only), or anchors and power-actuated fasteners whose available shear and tension you enter from the product's evaluation report at the method chosen, with an interaction exponent (1.0 linear, prefilled).
- Fastener line on leg B: its distance from the back of leg A sets the lever of leg B bending.
- Prying factor: your allowance on fastener tension for leg B prying on the support. 1.0 is no prying.
- Forces: by load type. V acts along the clip (shear in every fastener). N acts in the plane of leg A, perpendicular to the support: positive pulls leg B off the support, negative presses it on (no tension, no leg bending).
Auto-design varies the clip thickness (33 to 118 mils) and the number of fasteners in each leg. The legs, length, attachment kind, member, support and forces are kept.
Checks performed #
| Check | Basis |
|---|---|
| Screw spacing, end and edge distances | S100 J4.1, J4.2 |
| Leg A screws: sheet shear (tilting, bearing) under √(V² + N²) | S100 J4.3.1 |
| Leg A screws: screw shear | S100 J4.3.2 (CFSEI F701-12 values as printed by SSMA) |
| Leg A shear rupture toward its free edge (N) and along the clip (V) | S100 J6.1 |
| Leg A tension yielding | S100 D2 |
| Leg B bending at the bend | S100 A1.2(c), rational analysis |
| Leg B screws: sheet shear, screw shear, pull-out, pull-over, screw tension, combined | S100 J4.3, J4.4, J4.5.3 |
| Fillet weld along the clip, sheet tearing and throat | S100 J2.5 |
| Anchors: interaction of the entered strengths | Product evaluation report |
Limitations #
- Forces are shared equally among the fasteners of a leg. A moment on the fastener group, from an eccentric force, is yours to add to the forces.
- Leg B bending uses the lever from the fastener line to the inside face of leg A. Prying on the support is your factor.
- A weld takes shear only: a combination that pulls leg B off the support with a weld is not feasible here.
- Anchors into concrete and power-actuated fasteners are not designed: their strengths are your entries.
- The member and the supporting structure beyond their sheets are not designed.
Verification examples #
Verification status: 11 values compared in 6 examples (0 published, 6 hand calculations from the cited equations): 11 within tolerance, 0 recorded deviations. No published example: every value is a hand calculation. That checks the program against this reading of the code, not the reading itself. Code basis: not yet recorded for this module.
No published worked example of a cold-formed clip angle is in the free library. The values are hand calculations of the cited equations from the inputs (sheet shear, pull-out, pull-over, tension yielding, shear rupture, leg bending), shown in the test file so each can be checked on paper. A CFSEI Technical Note or AISI D110 example would replace them.