Components of calculations

Tekla Tedds
2020
Tekla Tedds Tekla Tedds for Word

Components of calculations

This presents the components of calculations which you can find in Tedds for Word. When you are familiar with the components, you can easily proceed to writing your own calculations.

Note:

The following only applies to Tedds for Word.

Overview (SI Metric)



Note: The first three components (1–3) are mandatory key components in all Tedds calculations. The components 4–7 are optional.
  1. An expression

    that is the part of the calculation that needs to be evaluated.

  2. An equal sign (=)

    that tells Tedds for Word that this is a calculation which it should to calculate.

  3. A results field

    that defines the location of the result. If necessary, you can set a format and precision for the result.

  4. An explanation

    that helps the user of the calculations to understand a calculation.

  5. One or more delimiters

    that separate explanatory text from a calculation and calculations from one another.

  6. A variable

    that assigns the result of the expression to a variable. You can use the variable later in your calculations.

  7. Units

    that you use both when you define calculations and when you define results.

For further information about the components, see the following paragraphs.

Overview (US Imperial)



Note: The first three components (1–3) are mandatory key components in all Tedds calculations. The components 4–7 are optional.
  1. An expression

    that is the part of the calculation that needs to be evaluated.

  2. An equal sign (=)

    that tells Tedds for Word that this is a calculation which it should to calculate.

  3. A results field

    that defines the location of the result. If necessary, you can set a format and precision for the result.

  4. An explanation

    that helps the user of the calculations to understand a calculation.

  5. One or more delimiters

    that separate explanatory text from a calculation and calculations from one another.

  6. A variable

    that assigns the result of the expression to a variable. You can use the variable later in your calculations.

  7. Units

    that you use both when you define calculations and when you define results.

For further information about the components, see the following paragraphs.

Expressions



The expression is the part of a calculation that is evaluated during the calculation process.

Tedds for Word recognizes an expression by the presence of an equal sign (=).

You can write expressions yourself, or use the expressions available in the Tedds engineering library.

Examples

(45 x 23)

a + b

0.6 x Fy

Equal signs



Equal signs are a crucial component of calculation documents. They allow Tedds for Word to find and evaluate the calculations in a document.

Equal signs separate the different parts of your calculation:

  • An expression from the results field, to show a result:

    a + b = ?

  • A variable from an expression:

    c = a + b

  • A variable from an expression from a results field

    Fa = 0.6 x Fy = ?

If you type text and do not include an equal sign, Tedds for Word considers the text an explanation.

Tip: To insert an equal sign (=) that is not calculated, click the Equals not calculated button () in the Insert ribbon group.

Results fields



Results fields tell Tedds for Word where to place the result of an expression.

Tedds for Word calculated all results to a precision of 15 decimal places.

  • # indicates that you want to view an intermediate result.

  • ? indicates that you want to view a final result.

Explanations (SI Metric)



Explanations are optional elements that can make your calculations easier to follow.

You do not need to mark explanations with any special characters. However, if you want to add an explanation in the same paragraph as your calculations, remember to separate the explanation and the calculation with a semicolon delimiter ;.

Explanations (US Imperial)



Explanations are optional elements that can make your calculations easier to follow.

You do not need to mark explanations with any special characters. However, if you want to add an explanation in the same paragraph as your calculations, remember to separate the explanation and the calculation with a semicolon delimiter ;.

Delimiters (SI Metric)



Delimiters are special characters which you can use to separate text from a calculation, or calculations from one another.

Tedds for Word recognizes the following delimiters:

  • Paragraph marks ()

    If you write your calculations in separate paragraphs, you can press Enter to separate the calculations from each other. When you do so, Word automatically adds a paragraph mark ().

  • Semicolons (;)

    If you want to place explanatory text in the same paragraph as an expression, or if you want to place several calculations in the same paragraphs, use a delimiter to separate the items from each other.

    Note:

    Semicolon is the default delimiter within paragraphs. However, certain locales allow you to use another delimiter within paragraphs. For more information, see Regional settings.

Note:

Line breaks (Shift + Enter) within an expression have no significance in Tedds for Word. You can therefore use them to improve the layout of long calculations on the page.

However, if you want to use line breaks and have several calculations within the same paragraph, you still need to use semicolons to separate the calculations.

Delimiters (US Imperial)



Delimiters are special characters which you can use to separate text from a calculation, or calculations from one another.

Tedds for Word recognizes the following delimiters:

  • Paragraph marks ()

    If you write your calculations in separate paragraphs, you can press Enter to separate the calculations from each other. When you do so, automatically adds a paragraph mark ().

  • Semicolons (;)

    If you want to place explanatory text in the same paragraph as an expression, or if you want to place several calculations in the same paragraphs, use a delimiter to separate the items from each other.

    Note:

    Semicolon is the default delimiter within paragraphs. However, certain locales allow you to use another delimiter within paragraphs. For more information, see Regional settings.

Note:

Line breaks (Shift + Enter) within an expression have no significance in Tedds for Word. You can therefore use them to improve the layout of long calculations on the page.

However, if you want to use line breaks and have several calculations within the same paragraph, you still need to use semicolons to separate the calculations.

Variables (SI Metric)



Variables allow you to re-use a calculated value later in your calculations.

To recall the value, you can simply type the variable. Tedds for Word automatically looks up the value that was assigned to the variable, and allows you to use the value in the current calculation.

Variables must follow some simple rules. Variables must:

  • Only contain alphanumeric characters (A-Z, a-z, 0-9), Greek characters, underscores (_), and full stops (.).

  • Not be longer than 32 characters.

  • Not start with a number.

  • Not be the same as a Tedds function name (for example sin or median).

  • Not contain superscript characters.

  • Not contain any formatting other than subscripts.

    Note: When a part of a variable is in subscript, the part can contain spaces and a list separator (, or ;).
Note:
  • Variables are case-sensitive.

    For example, Area and area are two separate variables.

  • Variables take subscripts into account.

    For example, Aeff and Aeff are two separate variables.

Variables (US Imperial)



Variables allow you to re-use a calculated value later in your calculations.

To recall the value, you can simply type the variable. Tedds for Word automatically looks up the value that was assigned to the variable, and allows you to use the value in the current calculation.

Variables must follow some simple rules. Variables must:

  • Only contain alphanumeric characters (A-Z, a-z, 0-9), Greek characters, underscores (_), and full stops (.).

  • Not be longer than 32 characters.

  • Not start with a number.

  • Not be the same as a Tedds function name (for example sin or median).

  • Not contain superscript characters.

  • Not contain any formatting other than subscripts.

    Note: When a part of a variable is in subscript, the part can contain spaces and a list separator (, or ;).
Note:
  • Variables are case-sensitive.

    For example, Area and area are two separate variables.

  • Variables take subscripts into account.

    For example, Aeff and Aeff are two separate variables.

Units (SI Metric)



You can define units as you create your calculations. Tedds for Word allows you to both use its internal system units, called base units, and add new units into the system. In addition, Tedds for Word analyses whether the selected units are dimensionally correct.

You can define the desired units for both the variables that you define, and the results which you expect, by simply typing the units in your calculations.

The units which Tedds for Word uses as its base units depend on the locale option that you selected during installation. Some locale options only allow a single set of units, while others allow you to select the set which you prefer to use: SI Units or US units. To change the locale, see Regional settings.

See the base units of each set in the following table.

Tedds for Word base units
Quantity SI Metric
Length m
Mass kg
Time s
Temperature °C
Angle °

Units (US Imperial)



You can define units as you create your calculations. Tedds for Word allows you to both use its internal system units, called base units, and add new units into the system. In addition, Tedds for Word analyses whether the selected units are dimensionally correct.

You can define the desired units for both the variables that you define, and the results which you expect, by simply typing the units in your calculations.

The units which Tedds for Word uses as its base units depend on the locale option that you selected during installation. Some locale options only allow a single set of units, while others allow you to select the set which you prefer to use: SI Units or US units. To change the locale, see Regional settings.

See the base units of each set in the following table.

Tedds for Word base units
Quantity US Imperial
Length ft
Mass slugs
Time s
Temperature °C
Angle °
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