About Playing Mechanisms

Introduction

Playing a mechanism allows you to analyze the kinematic or dynamic motion.

There are two ways to play a mechanism, using the kinematic or dynamic motion.

Play Parameters

The play parameters allow you to customize the motion parameters.

In the Play Parameters dialog box, two modes for playing a mechanism are available: Kinematics or Dynamics.

In the Graphics Update section, you can define how the graphical representation is updated, either by possibly specifying an update every n frames per second or a refresh every m simulation steps.

In the Simulation section you can specify:

For the Kinematics type, a time step.
For the Dynamics type, the minimum and maximum range for the time step, and the maximum value allowed for component penetration during the simulation.

Note: When a mechanism includes not-opened engineering connections, the component relation exists but is unresolved and you cannot play the mechanism. Not-opened engineering connections are missing joints or assembled mechanisms not visible in the tree or in the Mechanism Manager dialog box.

To configure the mechanism, use the Duplicate Mechanism command. You can manage the relations and retrieve the mechanism object by reconnecting the components manually. Thus, you can keep one set of mechanism per configuration filter. See Duplicating Mechanical Representations.

Play Configurations

Depending on the selection and the active play mode (kinematic or dynamic), a mechanism is played as described is the table below:


App Name	Selection	Kinematics Mode	Dynamics Mode
Assembly Design	No selection	3D tour of the active product.	3D tour of the active product.
Assembly Design	Product	3D tour of the selected product.	3D tour of the selected product.
Assembly Design	Mechanism or command	3D tour of the product containing the mechanism or the command.	3D tour of the product containing the mechanism or the command.
Mechanical Systems Design	No selection	3D tour of the active product.	3D tour of the active product.
Mechanical Systems Design	Product	The mechanism to play is, by order: the current mechanism, the first mechanism, the implicit mechanism. A 3D tour of the selected product, if there is no mechanism set.	The mechanism to play is, by order: the current mechanism, the first mechanism, the implicit mechanism. A 3D tour of the selected product, if there is no mechanism set.
Mechanical Systems Design	Mechanism	A 3D tour of the active product if you do not define a command or specify the gravity. If you define no command or motor but specify the gravity, the mechanism plays dynamically. A 3D tour of the product containing the mechanism, if you do not define a motor or specify the gravity. Otherwise, the motor animates the mechanism (kinematics simulation).	A 3D tour of the active product if you do not define a command or specify the gravity. A 3D tour of the product containing the mechanism, if you do not define a motor or specify the gravity. Otherwise, the motor animates the mechanism with the gravity (dynamics simulation).
Mechanical Systems Design	Command	If you define no motor, the selection swaps to the mechanism. Otherwise, the motor animates the mechanism (kinematics simulation).	A 3D tour of the product containing the command, if you do not define a motor or specify the gravity. Otherwise, the motor animates the mechanism with the gravity (dynamics simulation).
Mechanical Systems Design	Animation	The animation plays itself.	The animation plays itself.

Contact Management

During the kinematics simulation of a mechanism, only modified command values are enforced. This allows other joints to be moved by motors or during contacts without blocking the mechanism movement.

If no contact is defined between products of the mechanism, the value specified for each command enforced in the mechanism is maintained during the simulation, when possible.

Tip: To maintain the value of a joint during the simulation, in the Mechanism Player dialog box, lock the command, or create a law excitation for each of the corresponding command. By default, a constant formula is created with the value of each controlled constraint.

For more information, see Animating with the Mechanism Player.