Managing Object Properties

You can display and edit the graphic properties of a selected object through a dedicated panel and viewer.

This task shows you how to:

Before you begin:
  • You cannot apply a color or any object properties to a pad, unless its parent's properties are set.
  • When selecting multiple objects, the Object Properties panel impacts the selection as a whole, whatever the geometry types selected (Assembly, mesh, point, etc.). This means that in a multiselection, you can simultaneously modify Assembly and linear objects, for example. This is not the case with the Properties dialog box which differs according to the object type: if you select an Assembly object, a specific dialog box opens. Therefore, you cannot modify the color of a mesh, a line, a point or an Assembly object at the same time.
  • When you modify a pad's graphic property, this new property supersedes the one applied to the parent element (i.e. the part body). The pad no more inherits the part body's graphic properties, even if you reset the modified graphic property to its original state. To reset inheritance, set the modified graphic property to Auto in the Object Properties panel.

Use the Object Properties Panel

You can display and edit the graphic properties (color, transparency, line type and thickness, etc.) of a selected object. The values you set in this panel are kept from one app to another in the same session.

Before you begin:
  • The default values of the Object Properties panel are stored in preferences files (which are identified by the suffix *.CATPreferences and cannot be administered). This means that default values are kept throughout sessions.
  • This scenario only details options common to all apps. For additional elements that might be displayed, see the guide of interest.
  • The Object Properties panel is immersive which means that you can perform layout modifications.
  1. To access the Object Properties panel, do one of the following:
    • From the Tools section of the action bar, click Object Properties .
    • Right-click inside the work area or the top bar, and select Display > Object Properties.
  2. Click the arrow next to Graphic Properties.
  3. Use the appropriate list or icon to define the graphic properties of the selected element:


    List/Icon Purpose
    (1) Color Lets you select the color to be applied to the object.

    If a line or a curve is selected, you can change the color the same way as for parts.

    Note: The No Color option is relevant for Assembly objects only and lets you apply a color onto a face without having to modify the product color. To do so:
    • Select the product in the tree.
    • Choose No Color in the Color list.
    • Select the face onto which you want to apply the color.
    • Select the desired color from the Color list.

    The Properties dialog box modifies the color of the selected object whereas the Object Properties panel may sometimes modify the color of a non-selected object to make the color displayed on screen change.

    (2) Thickness Lets you define the line weight.

    If a line or a curve is selected, you can change the thickness the same way as for parts.

    (3) Point symbol Lets you set the symbol to be used to represent points.
    (4) Layers Lets you assign the selected objects to a layer.

    When pointing at the Layers list, a tooltip displays the layer name (if any), the layer number as well as the storage location of the layer definition.

    (5) Opacity Lets you define the object's visibility: "100%" corresponds to a full visibility, "50%" to a semi-transparency and "0%" to a non-transparency (the object is opaque).

    When setting an Assembly object as transparent, any other element located at a lower level in the tree inherits this opacity and the list displays the visibility of the Assembly object. However, the opacity modification impacts only the display at rendering level and not the graphic properties. This can be useful to make an object transparent without altering its graphic properties.

    To deactivate the inheritance mechanism, select an element then click the Opacity list and choose No Opacity: all the elements located at a lower level have their own transparency back.

    Note that the visual feedback differs according to the transparency mode you set in Me > Preferences General > Display > Performance.

    Important: The opacity you set on an Assembly object modifies its visibility. Therefore, the Graphic Properties Wizard and the Object Properties panel give you the visualized property of the sub-element (inherited from the Assembly object) but when you access the graphic properties of the sub-element itself, you can see its true properties.
    (6) Linetype Lets you define the edge line type (dashed, etc.).

    If a line or a curve is selected, you can change the line type the same way as for parts.

    (7) Rendering style Lets you select the style to be used to render the selected object, provided that it supports rendering styles.

    This option is identical to the one provided in the Properties dialog box.

    (8) Painter Lets you apply graphic properties from one object to another.

    To do so:

    • Select the objects on which you want to apply new graphic properties.
    • Click to start the Painter.
    • Select the reference object (i.e. the object from which you copy the graphic properties): the graphic properties of the objects selected in the first step are applied to the reference object.

    Important: The Painter does not allow you to copy all the graphic properties of an object, but only a set of graphic properties for each list. For example, you cannot modify the color of edges and faces of a part body at the same time but only the color of faces. The reason is that the Painter has the same effect as the lists displayed in the Object Properties panel: when you use the Color list, you modify only the color of faces. Therefore, when you use the Painter to modify a color, only the color of faces is impacted.
    (9) Wizard Lets you access the Graphic Properties Wizard.

Use the Graphic Properties Wizard

You can use a specific viewer to display the graphic properties of a selected object and those of its parents. This makes it easier to identify from which parent each object's graphic property derives.

Before you begin: The Graphic Properties Wizard cannot be used for Drafting documents.
  1. To access the Object Properties panel, from the Tools section of the action bar, select Object Properties .
  2. In the tree or in the 3D area, select the item on which you want information (you cannot select multiple objects at the same time).

    If no item has been selected prior to launching the wizard, the dialog box displays No Selection and lets you select an element from the tree or the 3D area.

  3. From the Object Properties panel, click Graphic Properties Wizard .
  4. At the bottom of the panel, click the icon of your choice in the icon box or select the appropriate item from the list.
    The information displayed in the dialog box is updated accordingly.
    Icon Graphic Property Purpose


    		Color Displays the color of each object in the path.


    		Opacity Displays the opacity value applied to each item in the path.

    The background color also reflects the opacity. The lighter the color, the less opaque the object.



    		Linetype Displays the line type applied to edges.

    The boundary of the box displayed to the right of each item is drawn according to the associated type.



    		Thickness Displays the line thickness.

    When a thickness has been defined, a line is displayed next to the object along with the corresponding value in millimeters. The higher the value, the thicker the line.



    		Symbol Displays the symbol used to represent the object, if any.


    		Show Indicates whether an object is displayed in Show or No Show mode.

    These two different modes are identified by two different background colors.



    		Pick Indicates whether an object can be selected or not.

    These two different modes are identified by two different background colors and two different icons.



    		Layer Indicates which objects are visible or invisible.

    • The Layer box indicates which objects are visible or invisible. To assign objects to layers, see 3DEXPERIENCE Native Apps User's Guide: Native Apps Advanced: Additional Viewing Commands: Using Layers.
    • The layer to which each object is assigned is identified by a different background color and the layer number is displayed opposite the visibility information.



    		Low Intensity Indicates whether a low intensity color has been applied to an object or not.

    The default low intensity color is "dark green" but you can change it in Me > Preferences General > Display > Visualization. When a low intensity color has been applied, it is displayed in background. Otherwise, there is no background color and the state is "Normal".

    Note: When no information is found on a graphic property, Not Defined is displayed next to the object name.