Instantiating Text Templates

You can instantiate the text template stored in a current layout or a catalog and then resolve the link template it contains (if any).

Important: An instantiated text template can associatively reflect the value of a PLM attribute. As a result, if there is any change in the PLM attribute value, the text template associative to PLM attribute needs an update. However, if texts created using text templates are not associative to the PLM attributes, a tooltip is displayed informing that at least one of the link templates you instantiated has not been linked to the selected element.

This task shows you how to:

Before you begin: Create a Text Template and store the text template in a catalog. Open the layout in which you want to instantiate text templates.
See Also
About Text and Table Templates

Instantiate Text Templates Stored in a Catalog

You can instantiate the text template stored in a catalog.

  1. From the Tools section of the action bar, click Catalog Browser .
  2. The Catalog Browser panel, select the catalog and then the chapter that contains the text templates you want to use.
    The text templates are displayed in the right-hand pane, in the Item name column.
  3. Right-click a text template and select Use Item > Instantiate Text.
  4. Perform either of the following operations:
    • If at least one of the link templates in the text template is associated to the element you want to annotate, select the element or indicate the text anchor point.
    • If none of the link templates in the text template is associated to the element you want to annotate, select the element to annotate and then the element to which the text template is associated to.
    • If you do not want to annotate any particular element, click anywhere in the free space and then select the element to which the text template is associated to.

    If in any of these cases you add a leader to the text template and instantiate, you can select a datum target to associate the leader extremity to the datum target's upper or lower compartment.

    Important: You can select a dimension or its extension line to associate the instantiated text. This creates the positional and orientation links between the instantiated text and the selected entity. When the instantiated text contains a link template, the instantiation command routes these links using the geometry related to:
    • The extension line on which the text is associated or, if required, the other extension line of the dimension, if the text is associated to an extension line.
    • The first extension line or, if required, the second extension line of the dimension, if the text is associated to the value or to the dimension line.

  5. Select an object (a geometrical element, an axis line or a center line.) or a target to which the compatible link template is to be routed or resolved.

    When you resolve the text template, you need to select an object that is compatible with the link template type. The template is then immediately routed to this object.

    The link template is resolved and the annotation is created with the relevant information. If required, you can use the Route Link Template from the context menu to reroute the existing template.

Instantiate Text Templates Stored in the Current Layout

You can instantiate the text template stored in the current layout.

  1. From the Annotation section of the action bar, click Instantiate Text .

    You can also instantiate an existing text by right-clicking it and selecting Instantiate Text.

  2. In the detail sheet, select the text template you want to instantiate.
  3. Double-click the sheet that contains the element you want to annotate.
  4. Perform either of the following operations:
    • If at least one of the link templates in the text template is associated to the element you want to annotate, select the element or indicate the text anchor point.
    • If none of the link templates in the text template is associated to the element you want to annotate, select the element to annotate and then the element to which the text template is associated to.
    • If you do not want to annotate any particular element, click anywhere in the free space and then select the element to which the text template is associated to.

    If in any of these cases you add a leader to the text template and instantiate, you can select a datum target to associate the leader extremity to the datum target's upper or lower compartment.

    Important: You can select a dimension or its extension line to associate the instantiated text. This creates the positional and orientation links between the instantiated text and the selected entity. When the instantiated text contains a link template, the instantiation command routes these links using the geometry related to:
    • The extension line on which the text is associated or, if required, the other extension line of the dimension, if the text is associated to an extension line.
    • The first extension line or, if required, the second extension line of the dimension, if the text is associated to the value or to the dimension line.

  5. Select an object (a geometrical element, an axis line or a center line.) or a target to which the compatible link template is to be routed or resolved.

    When you resolve the text template, you need to select an object that is compatible with the link template type. The template is then immediately routed to this object.

    The link template is resolved and the annotation is created with the relevant information. If required, you can use the Route Link Template from the context menu to reroute the existing template.

Notes:
  • You can also instantiate a text template without routing the link templates it contains.
  • You can also query links in the text templates by right-clicking the text and selecting Query Object Links.