Mass/Section Property Options Dialog Box

Modify the measurement units and the material density used by the Mass Properties and Section Properties tools.

To modify measurement units and material density:

  • Click Options in the Mass Properties or Section Properties dialog box, select from the following options, then click OK.

Units

Scientific Notation Select to display values in scientific notation (for example, 5.02e+004 for 50200).
Use document settings Select to use the units and material properties defined in Document Properties.
If you want to change the units and material properties defined in Document Properties, click Tools > Options, then on the Document Properties tab, select:

Units

The units used for reporting mass properties are displayed under Mass/Section property units.

Material Properties

The density value is displayed under Density.

Changes made in Document Properties apply to all mass properties in the document, including those specified in custom properties in the Properties dialog box.
Use custom settings Changes the units of measure used when reporting values in the Mass Properties and Section Properties dialog boxes:

Length

Select a unit of measure for properties that involve length. For example, if you select Centimeters, then Volume is reported in cubic centimeters, Surface Area is reported in centimeters^2, and moments of inertia are reported in mass_unit * square centimeters.

Mass

Select a unit of measure for properties that involve mass. For example, if you select grams, then Mass is reported in grams, Density is reported in grams per volume_unit , and moments of inertia are reported in grams * square_length .

Per unit volume

Select a unit of measure for the volume portion of the Density unit of measure. For example, if you select inches^3, then Density is reported in mass_unit per cubic inch.

Decimal places

Set number of decimal places to display.

These custom settings apply only to values related to the Mass Properties and Section Properties dialog boxes. They do not override document properties for any other mass property functions.

Material Properties

Density When Use custom settings is selected in Units, you can type a value for Density. You can enter the density value using any units. For example, if the units of the part are grams and millimeters, you can enter a density value using pounds and inches. The software converts the value to the document’s units when you click OK.

Accuracy Level

Move the slider to adjust between the speed of calculation and the accuracy of the results.

Lower (faster) Provides faster computation, but the calculations are less accurate.
Higher (slower) Provides greater accuracy of the calculation, but the computation is slower.

Inertia Tensor (Crossproduct Convention)

Select a tensor notation convention, positive or negative, to use for displaying values in the Mass Properties dialog box for the moments of inertia that involve the output coordinate system. SOLIDWORKS displays the selected notation convention next to the Moments of inertia: Taken at the output coordinate system section.

Positive Tensor Notation Provides the inertia tensor in the default form for SOLIDWORKS.
Negative Tensor Notation A negative notation may be required for compatibility with external applications that include a negative coefficient in front of the Ixy, Ixz, Iyz, Iyx, Izx, and Izy terms.
Show output coordinate system in corner of window Select to display the tri-colored reference 3D triad in the corner of the graphics area, or clear to show the triad at the origin.