It combines the ideas of these theories with the concept of plastic hinge[1] LDM can be defined as the fracture mechanics of complex structural systems.
[1][2] In the latter case, concepts such as the energy release rate or the stress intensity factor of a plastic hinge are introduced.
LDM allows for the numerical simulation of the collapse of complex structures with a fraction of the computational cost and human effort of its continuum mechanics counterparts.
LDM is also a regularization procedure that eliminates the mesh-dependence phenomenon that is observed in structural analysis with local damage models.
[5] In addition, LDM method has been implemented in the finite element analysis of crack propagation of steel beam-to-column connections subjected to ultra-low cycle fatigue.