Updating the Swept Volume after Track Modification

Due to associativity between the swept volume and the track, you can easily identify and regenerate a swept volume that requires updating due to a track modification.

Before you begin: Query and open the desired simulation object, then start the 3D Simulation environment of Assembly Evaluation.

For swept volume associativity with tracks, it is essential to have the following entities present:

  • valid simulation objects such as tracks
  • a Manufacturing Scenario that contains valid simulation objects
  • a result generated on the Manufacturing Scenario

  1. From the Verification section of the action bar, click New Manufacturing Scenario .

    See Creating a Manufacturing Scenario.

  2. Include the desired track in the scenario.
  3. Right-click the Scenario object and select Simulate and Generate Results.
    The Result of Scenario is created.



  4. Select the Results tab .
    The Results panel appears.
  5. Right-click the Result of Scenario thumbnail and select Swept Volume.

    Note that Swept Volume is also available on the context menu of the Result node in the tree, so it is not always necessary to switch to the Results tab for creating the swept volume.

    The Swept Volume: Representation DS dialog box appears.
  6. Make any desired modifications (for example, representation name or description) in the dialog box and click Finish.

    The Swept Volume dialog box appears.



    The Result of Scenario is automatically selected as the Simulation object in the dialog box. The elements to sweep are selected from the track and the PPR Context is selected as the reference product by default.

  7. Click OK.
    A swept volume is generated. A new tab opens showing the representation.



  8. Switch to the 3D Simulation tab again.
    Note that a Swept Volume object is included under Result of Scenario in the tree.
  9. Select the Results tab and press F5.
    A thumbnail appears for the swept volume.



    Note: If you press F5 to update the results panel, the swept volume thumbnail of the result includes an image of the swept volume representation. In this case, the representation must still be open in the session.
  10. Double-click the Track object in the tree.
    The Track Authoring dialog box appears.
  11. Change the Interpolation Type of the track from Linear to Spline and click OK.
    The trajectory of the track is now curved and not linear. The Scenario and Result of Scenario objects are now out-of-date (as indicated in the tree by the symbol on Scenario and the symbol on the Result of Scenario).



  12. Right-click the Scenario and select Update Scenario.
    The scenario is updated: the symbol is removed from the Scenario icon in the tree.
  13. Right-click the Result of Scenario and select Simulate and Generate Results.
    The Result of Scenario is updated.

    A symbol appears on the Swept Volume node in the tree, indicating that it is out-of-date with respect to the Result of Scenario.



    Note that the Swept Volume thumbnail in the Results panel also has a symbol.

  14. Right-click the Swept Volume node in the tree and select Update.
    The swept volume is updated with respect to the Result of Scenario and takes into consideration the design modifications of the track.

    The new swept volume appears in the previously opened representation tab.



    Note that the symbol no longer appears on the Swept Volume node under the Result of Scenario.

  15. Save the changes and open the document again.
    The updated swept volume is persistent and is present under the Result of Scenario in the tree.
  16. Select the Results tab and press F5 to see the Swept Volume thumbnail.
  17. Run Open Representation on the Swept Volume node or Swept Volume thumbnail to open the representation in a new tab.

Notes:
  • The example above explains how to update the swept volume after a track modification.

    However, since the swept volume is generated on the Result of Scenario, any modification which leads to the change in the Result of Scenario (for example, trajectory changes or addition or deletion of excitation objects in the Manufacturing Scenario) can be taken into account in the updated swept volume.

  • When you create a swept volume on the Result of Scenario, all the product occurrences currently considered in the manufacturing scenario are taken as the elements to be swept during the swept volume creation.

    However, if a scenario is edited and more excitation objects are added (tracks, for example) this means that additional elements can be moved or simulated during the simulation. In such cases, all the additional elements are not appended automatically as elements to be swept, and running Update on the swept volume may not actually lead to the updated swept volume. To obtain a correctly updated swept volume, you must edit the swept volume and select all the added elements manually.

  • If a track is modified, the scenario result and the swept volume on the scenario result are no longer up to date.

    You can update the scenario result and the swept volume of the result using the Update contextual command.

    The thumbnail of the swept volume in the 3D Simulation results panel is not updated automatically. You must use F5 to update the swept volume thumbnail. This must be done before closing the representation of the thumbnail.