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Use Design Properties to select between Rapid Sizing, Detailed Sizing, or Analysis only. Identify material, laminate and optimization bounds per variable. Read more in the context of a larger workflow here.
Design Properties - which hold material selections, geometry variables and ranges, and many other sizing inputs - define the design space applied to each Zone or Joint. They are akin to property cards or section definitions in the FEA world in terms of their purpose and functionality. Design Properties are stored and managed in the Design node of the Property Tree. An example sandwich panel design property is shown in the image below.
Tip
HyperSizer Pro users will notice familiarity between Design Property forms and the HyperSizer Pro Sizing Form.
There are three types of Design Property.
Panel
A Panel Design Property defines the Sizing and Analysis inputs required for a 2-dimensional Zone (made up of shell elements). Once a 2D Zone has been assigned a Panel Design Property, HyperX will see that Zone as a 'Panel' and sort it accordingly in the Structure Tree. This Design Property - including Sizing Mode, dimensional bounds, fabrication considerations, etc. - is explicitly defined on the Panel Design Property Form.
Important
A Panel Design Property must be assigned to a 2D Zone before it can be Analyzed or Sized.
There are several different panel concepts available in HyperX, each with their own respective Design Property inputs.
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Plates - Unstiffened isotropic concept.
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Laminates - Composite solid laminate concepts; one, two, or three stack.
An example Laminate Design Property is shown below.
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Sandwich Panels - All concepts with a top and bottom facesheet (metallic or composite) separated by a core (foam, honeycomb, grid, trusscore, etc.).
An example Sandwich Panel Design Property is shown below:
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Stiffened Panel - Open Sections - Concepts with a skin and attached stiffener that has open geometry (I, Zee, etc.).
An example Open-Concept Stiffened Panel Design Property is shown below:
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Stiffened Panel - Closed Sections - Concepts with a skin and attached stiffener that has closed geometry (Hat, etc.).
An example Closed-Concept Stiffened Panel Design Property is shown below:
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Grids - Concepts with multiple integral stiffeners at various intersecting angles (orthogrid, isogrid, waffle grid, etc.).
An example Grid-Stiffened Panel Design Property is shown below:
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Frames - For panels with an attached frame.
An example Frame-Stiffened Panel Design Property is shown below:
Beam
A Beam Design Property defines the sizing and analysis inputs required for a 1-dimensional Zone (made up of bar elements). Once a 1D Zone has been assigned a Beam Design Property, HyperX will see that Zone as a 'beam' and sort it accordingly in the Structures Tree.
There are several different beam Design Property concepts available in HyperX, each with their own respective inputs:
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Open Sections - Concepts that have an open geometry (I, Zee, etc.), shown in the rise-up list below.
An example Design Property for an open section beam concept is shown below.
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Closed Sections - Concepts that have a closed geometry (tube, box, etc), shown in the rise-up list below.
An example Design Property form for a closed beam concept is shown below.
Joint
Connections between two Zones, whether physically represented in the model or considered along the edge between two Zones, are defined for Sizing and Analysis using a Joint Design Property.
Important
A Joint Design Property must be assigned to a Joint before it can be Analyzed or Sized.
HyperX offers a multitude of different Joint Design Properties:
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Edge Allowable - Generalized joint concept where only the overall joint allowable load is used.
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Fastened - Joints with one or more rows of fasteners (single lap or doubler).
An example Fastened Joint Design Property is shown below:
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Riveted - Joints with one or more rows of rivets.
An example Riveted Joint Design Property is show below:
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Bonded - Joints with bonded adherends (single lap, scarf, clevis, etc).
An example Bonded Joint Design Property is shown below:
A Design Property can be created from both the Property Tree and the Design tab of the Ribbon.
Note
For each type of Design Property, the inputs may vary, but the overall creation process remains the same.
Option #1: From the Property Tree
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Navigate to the desired Design Property type (Panel, Beam, or Joint) and right-click.
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Navigate through the resulting concept list and select the desired one by left-clicking.
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In the resulting Design Property Form, select between Sizing or Analysis.
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(If selected 'Zone' in (3)), choose between element or Zone mode. See Overview of Sizing Modes for more information on the implications of each selection.
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(If selected 'Zone' in (4)) Select a Sizing Mode. See Overview of Sizing Modes for more information on the implications of each selection.
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Fill out resulting dimension and material inputs. For composite concepts, there is also the option to fill out ply angle percentages, layup rules, and fabrication criteria (see "Sizing Options" here).
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Select 'Apply' to save the Design Property.
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Click 'Close' to close the form.
Option #2: From the Ribbon
The Design tab of the Ribbon contains buttons to launch Design Property creation for each Design Property type and concept.
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Navigate to the desired Design Property type (Panel, Beam, or Joint) and select the appropriate concept icon.
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Navigate through the resulting list (if applicable) and select the desired one by left-clicking.
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In the resulting Design Property Form, select between Sizing or Analysis.
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(If selected 'Zone' in (3)), choose between element or Zone mode. See Overview of Sizing Modes for more information on the implications of each selection.
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(If selected 'Zone' in (4)) Select a Sizing Mode. See Overview of Sizing Modes for more information on the implications of each selection.
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Fill out resulting dimension and material inputs. For composite concepts, there is also the option to fill out ply angle percentages, layup rules, and fabrication criteria (see "Sizing Options" here).
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Select 'Apply' to save the Design Property.
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Click 'Close' to close the form.
The Design Property Form facilitates the definition of a Design Property - with the intent of assigning said Design Property to Zones corresponding to its type. See "Create" for more information on what this means for the Sizing/Analysis process.
Note
Each Design Property type has its own unique Form - this particular Form operation reference uses Panel Design Properties as the example - but all other Design Property Forms operate in the same manner.
Basic Definition
A Design Property is primarily defined by the following 6 inputs…
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Name of Design Property.
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Select between Sizing or Analysis.
Note
Both sets of inputs can exist on the same Design Property.
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Select between Metal and Laminate material systems.
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(If Sizing) Choose a Sizing Mode.
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Define necessary dimensions.
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Select Material option(s).
Additional Options
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Composites Sizing Options (see Sizing Options section here).
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Ply Angle % - Enforce min/max limits on ply angle percentages of laminates.
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Layup Rules – Enforce rules (symmetry, balance, etc.) on generated laminates.
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Fabrication Rules – Enforce OML, IML, and midplane plies.
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Advanced Settings – Apply advanced sizing considerations (options depend on concept).
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Use Analysis - Toggle to use analysis input values for individual design variables.
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Requested Designs – (Detailed Sizing only) Force HyperX to save multiple viable designs.
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Tooling Constraints – Force sizing to adhere to tooling constraints (options depend on concept).
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Dimension Overrides – Used to apply Zone-specific bounds that override Design Property values. For more information on Dimension Overrides, look here for Sizing Overrides and here for Analysis Overrides.
Other Notable Features
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Zones Assigned - List of Zones currently assigned this Design Property.
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Zones Selected: List of Zones selected.
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Unassign/Assign - Unassign/assigning (respectively) the current Design Property to all Zones selected.
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Run - Run Analysis/Sizing on all Zones assigned this Design Property.
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Set Variables - (Detailed Sizing only) Used to auto-populate min/max bounds with inputs attained from Rapid Sizing.
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# Candidates - (Detailed Sizing only) Calculated total number of Sizing candidates resulting from the dimension and Material inputs supplied.
Design Validation
When saving the form, HyperX will check the form for invalid entries and prompt you to correct them before saving. If an invalid design is saved, and you attempt to perform Sizing/Analysis, the Design Validation Form will pop up to provide detail on invalid aspects of the design.
As of version 2025.1.4, you can choose the "Continue With Valid Zones" options which will proceed with Sizing/Analysis while ignoring Zones with an invalid Design Property assigned. Before this version, you must either fix the Design Property or de-select all Zones with it assigned to proceed with the operation.
A Design Property must be assigned to a Zone or Joint in order for that entity to inherit the prescribed Sizing/Analysis inputs. The HyperX user-interface offers several different options to do so:
Tip
No matter which option is used, Design Property assignment can be verified by clicking on the Design Property of interest in the Property Tree. All Zones that have been assigned the selected Design Property will be indicated in the Viewport.
Option #1: From the Design Property Form
The Design Property Form, pictured below, offers a selection box that accepts Zone IDs. When filled, the 'Assign' button becomes available, and clicking it assigns the current design to the selected Zones.
There are two different ways to use this feature:
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Starting from the Design Property Form:
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Click inside the "Zones Selected" box in order to enable selection.
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Use the Viewport to select all Zones that are to receive this Design Property.
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Click 'Assign'.
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Starting from the Viewport:
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Select all desired Zones in the Viewport.
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Open the desired Design Property from the Property Tree.
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Note that the 'Zones Selected' box is already populated with Zone IDs corresponding to those that have been selected. Click 'Assign' to assign the Design Property to all Zones in the list.
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Option #2: From the Property Tree
Each Design Property has a corresponding node in the Property Tree, organized by type. Using these nodes, there are several different Design Property assignment mechanisms:
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Right-Click Method
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Select relevant Zones in the Viewport.
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Navigate to the node of the desired Design Property on the Property Tree.
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Right Click > Select 'Apply to Visible Selection'.
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Click and Drag to Viewport
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(Optional) Select relevant Zones in the Viewport.
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Navigate to the node of the desired Design Property on the Property Tree.
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Click and drag the Design Property over the Viewport.
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If (1) was complete, the Design Property can be 'dropped' on the entire selection for assignment.
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If not, individual Zones can be selected by hovering over them in the Viewport.
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When hovered over the correct selection, let go of the mouse-click. The selection indicator will go from pink to green to indicate the Design Property assignment has succeeded.
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Click and Drag to Structures Tree
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Navigate to the node of the desired Design Property on the Property Tree.
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Click and drag the Design Property over the Structures Tree.
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As the mouse is hovered over specific Zones or Structures, these will be highlighted in the Viewport for visual verification. Let go of the mouse-click when the desired Zones or Structures are selected. The selection indicator will go from pink to green to indicate the Design Property assignment has succeeded.
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A Design Property can be deleted directly from the corresponding node on the Property Tree.
Important
A Design Property cannot be deleted if it is assigned to a Zone or Joint. In order to delete a Design Property, it must be completely disassociated from all Zones/Joints in the Database.
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Locate the desired Design Property to delete on the Property Tree.
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Right-click on the corresponding node and select 'Delete Design'