Symmetric

Use the Symmetric tool on the Structure ribbon to apply symmetry planes to a design space.

Symmetry planes are valid for optimization but not analysis.



Apply Symmetry

Select a design space and a symmetry plane.

  1. On the Structures ribbon, select the Symmetric tool on the Shape Controls icon.


  2. Click the Symmetric tool on the secondary ribbon.


  3. If you selected a design space before invoking the tool, symmetry planes are automatically applied to that design space. Otherwise, click on a design space to select it.
    A microdialog appears, and a set of three orthogonal red planes appear on the selected design space indicating that symmetry planes have been applied in three directions.


  4. Click on a plane to deactivate it.
    Symmetry planes toggle on and off with each successive click. Active symmetry planes are shown in red and disabled planes in gray.
  5. Right-click and mouse through the check mark to exit, or double-right-click.

Microdialog Options

Double-click a shape control to edit it and access the microdialog options.

Icon Description
Apply Symmetry and Cyclic Repetition Click to convert to a different type of shape control.
Translate or rotate the shape control.
Align a shape control to a design space after moving it. By default, the symmetry planes are positioned and aligned to capture the natural shape and orientation of the design space, however it is oriented in space.
Align a shape control to the global axes.

Symmetric Examples

When you use an asymmetric design space or apply asymmetric load cases and then run an optimization, you usually generate an asymmetric shape, as shown below:


Figure 1. An asymmetric load case


Figure 2. Optimization of an asymmetric load case
You can generate symmetric shapes, even under asymmetric conditions, by defining symmetry planes in the design space. Below, two symmetry planes have been applied to ensure that the resulting optimized shape is symmetric. You don't always get a perfectly symmetric shape, but you do get a result that is very nearly symmetric.


Figure 3. An asymmetric load case with symmetry planes applied


Figure 4. Optimization of an asymmetric load case with symmetry planes applied
You can apply up to three symmetry planes to a design space. The planes are always orthogonal to one another and can be rotated as a group in any orientation relative to the design space.