Mass Property Analysis

The size, weight, surface area, and other

properties available from a solid model
are most often part of the design
constraints your design must satisfy.
The following are mass property calculations available in
today’s solid modelers:
Volume Density Mass
Surface area Centroid Moment of Inertia
Product of Inertia Radii of Gyration Principal Axes
Principal Moments
Volume
 Volume is the amount of three-dimensional
space that an object takes up.
 Design engineers use this value to determine
the amount of material needed to produce a
part.
V=HxWxL
V=4x4x8 4
8
V = 128 in3 4
Density
 Density is defined as mass per unit
volume.
 Density is different for every material
and can be found in a machinist
handbook.
 Mass
 Mass is the amount of matter in an
object or the quantity of the inertia of
the object.
 Many materials are purchased by weight;
to find weight, we need the mass.
Polypropylene has a Mass = Volume x Density
density of .035 lbs/in3
Mass = 128 in3 x .035 lbs/in3
Using the volume from the
previous example. (128 in3) Mass = 4.48 lbs.
Surface Area
 Surface area is the squared dimensions
of the exterior surface.
 Surface area is important when
determining coatings and heat transfer
of a part. A= 4in x 4in = 16 in 2

B= 4in x 8in = 32 in2

B C= 4in x 8in = 32 in2
C D= 4in x 8in = 32 in2

A D
E= 4in x 8in = 32 in2
F
F= 4in x 4in = 16 in2
E
A + B+ C + D+ E + F = 160 in2
Centroid
 A 3D point defining the geometric
center of a solid.
 Do not confuse centroid with the center
of gravity.
 The two only exist at the same 3D point
when the part has uniform geometry
and density.
 Moments of Inertia
 An object’s opposition to changing its
motion about an axis.
 This property is most often used when
calculating the deflection of beams.
 = Integral (Calculus)
I = Moments of Inertia
I   r pdV
2
r = Distance of all points in an
element from the axis
p = Density of the material
dV= Division of the entire body
into small volume units.
 Products of Inertia
 Is similar to moments of inertia only
that products of inertia are relative to
two axes instead of one.
 You will notice an XY, YZ, or ZX after
the I symbol when defining products of
inertia compared to moments of inertia.
 Radii of Gyration
 A dimension from the axis where all
mass is concentrated, and will produce
the same moment of inertia.

Ix K = Radius of gyration about an axis

kx  M = Mass

m I = Moments of inertia
Principal Axes
 The lines of intersection created from
three mutually perpendicular planes,
with the three planes point of
intersection at the centroid of the part.

The X, Y, and Z axes show

the principal axes of the
ellipsoid.
Principal Moments
 Principal moments are the
moments of inertia related
to the principal axes of
the part.