Interface Concepts

You can create a geometric element by selecting other elements as inputs.

When creating a geometric element, you often need to select other elements as inputs. When selecting a sketch as the input element, some restrictions apply, depending on the feature you are creating.

• You should avoid selecting self-intersecting sketches as well as sketches containing heterogeneous elements such as a curve and a point for example.

• However, the following elements accept sketches containing non connex elements (i.e. presenting gaps between two consecutive elements) as inputs, provided they are of the same type (homogeneous, i.e. two curves or two points):
  
  • Creating Intersections
  • Creating Projections
  • Creating Extruded Surfaces
  • Creating Revolution Surfaces
  • Joining Surfaces or Curves
  • Splitting Geometry
  • Trimming Geometry
  • All transformations: Translating Geometry, Rotating Geometry, Performing a Symmetry on Geometry, Transforming Geometry By Scaling, Transforming Geometry by Affinity and Transforming Elements from an Axis to Another
  • Developing Wires and Points (Developed Shapes)

The geometric modeler works with a set of two tolerances:

You can control the color of 3D shape by selecting appropriate option.

A new option is available from Tools > Options > 3D Shape Infrastructure > 3D Shape that lets you control how Generative Shape Design features are colored.

For more information, refer to 3D Shape in the Customizing section of Part Design User's Guide.

You can stack commands, that is create another basic object in the current command without leaving it. All Generative Shape Design commands can be stacked.

Before you begin: Create a 3D shape containing a point and an axis system. Let's take an example with the Creating Lines functionality.

1. Click Line .

   The Line Definition dialog box appears.

2. In the Line Type list, select the desired line type.

   Here we selected the Point-Point line type: two points are required to create the line.As no point already exists, you will have to create them.

3. Right-click the Point 1 box.

4. Select Insert Wireframe > Create Point.

   
   
   

   Creation commands are now gathered in submenus (as in the Insert menu bar). Other default commands, such as Center Graph, are kept at first level. The same organization is available when right-clicking in the 3D area.

   The Point Definition dialog box appears, as well as the Running Commands window that shows you the history of commands you have run. This informative window is particularly useful when many commands have already been used and stacked, in complex scenarios for instance.

   
   
   

5. Use the combo to choose the desired point type and select the On surface type.

6. Choose the xy plane as the Surface.

7. Right-click the Direction field and select the X Component contextual item.

   
   
   

   You can select the Edit Components contextual item to edit the components directions (X, Y or Z).

   Important: When the command is launched at creation, the initial value in the field is the current local axis system. If no local axis system is current, the field is set to Default. Whenever you select a local axis system, the direction's coordinates are changed with respect to the selected axis system so that the direction is not changed. This is not the case with coordinates valuated by formulas: if you select an axis system, the defined formula remains unchanged. This option replaces the Coordinates in absolute axis-system option. You can also select the Compass Direction contextual item to create a line corresponding to the Z axis of the current compass direction. This line will pass through the compass origin if the compass is attached to geometry; otherwise it will pass through the absolute axis' origin.

8. Select 50mm as the Distance.

9. Click OK.

   
   
   

   The Point Definition dialog box closes and you return to the Line Definition dialog box.The Point 1 field is valuated with the point you have just created.
10. Right-click the Point 2 field.

11. Repeat steps 5 to 9 (select 150mm as the Distance).

    The Point Definition dialog box closes and you return to the Line Definition dialog box.The Point 2 field is valuated with the point you have just created and a line is previewed between Point 1 and Point 2.
    
    
    
    

12. Right-click the Up-to 1 field and select the Y Axis contextual item.

    
    
    

    An infinite datum line corresponding to the Y Axis of the compass direction will be created.

    
    
    

13. Click OK to create the line.

    Features created using stacked commands are aggregated under the parent command that created them and put in no show in the specification tree.

    
    
    

    If you replace Point.1 by another point (Point.3 for instance), Point.1 is no longer aggregated under Line.1 and goes one level up:
    
    

    Even if it is now considered as unused, Point.1 has not been removed. If you edit the line, you can right-click in any editable field and select the Delete Unused Contextual Features item: checking this command automatically removes all contextual features that are no longer pointed by other features:
    
    

    Here is the result, Point.1 has been deleted:
    
    

This capability displays immersive flags in the 3D area to identify the features used as inputs in the dialog box and give the possibility to remove or replace them whenever possible from the dialog box or contextual menu.

It is available with all commands that use selectors, multi-selectors and multi-lists.

Warning: It is not available with the Extract, Multi-Sections Surface and Junction commands.

Let's take an example with the Line and Projection commands.

1. Click Line .

   The Line Definition dialog box is displayed.

2. Select the Point-Point type.
3. Select the two points and the support.

   The Support field is optional, therefore it can be freely cleared and reselected through the Clear Selection contextual item. This capability is also available from the remove icon contained in the 3D flag:
   
   

4. Click OK in the Line Definition dialog box.
5. Click Projection .

   The Projection Definition dialog box is displayed.

6. Select the support, the previously created line and a second feature as the elements to be projected.

   The bag icon opens a dialog box that displays selected elements as well as Remove and Replace buttons.
   
   

   These capabilities are also available from the remove and replace icons contained in the 3D flag:
   
   

7. Click OK in the Projection Definition dialog box.

Tip: You can also use remove and replace capabilities that appear in multi-lists, such as in the Spline command, whenever correspondings buttons are available in the dialog box.