Manage Parts

About Parts, Part Assemblies, Part Instances

A part is an engineering representation of a physical part, and a part assembly is a group of part assemblies and/or parts. Part Instances, which are recognized from PDM, are automatically converted to Part Instances on import into HyperMesh.

Parts and Part Assemblies

HyperMesh supports CAE parts ( ) and part assemblies ( ) and PDM parts () and part assemblies ( ).

Parts assemblies and parts facilitate the one-to-one mapping of a CAD hierarchy into the HyperMesh environment as a CAE hierarchy. The CAE hierarchy can be created manually or can be imported from a PDM system via a neutral file format such as PLMXML.


Figure 1. PDM BOM


Figure 2. HyperMesh BOM

If a part is comprised of multiple components, such as cast parts or tailor-welded blanks, you can perform actions such as visualization view modes, model management, and connector link definition at the part level.

Parts can be used to organize a physical part that is made up of multiple components in a CAE model as a single part.



Figure 3. Cast Part in Part Browser

In the Part Browser, collapsing all folders at the part level enables you to see all owned and referenced entities. Expanding folders at the part level displays a nested list of all referenced components and their entity specific attribute values which are shown in the respective columns.

Part Instances

The Part browser provides limited support for part instances of externally sourced BOMs.

Part Instances () share UID and Part names. The name assigned to child instances is incremented by *.ixx, where xx indicates the number of the child instance. The positioning of Part Instances is dictated by the transformation matrix applied to the Part in the PDM system. Part Instances can also be created and broken interactively in a session. Upon creation, you will automatically be prompted to transform the part via the Transform tool. When broken, instances are split into two separate parts that are independent of each other.

In circular, symmetric, or rectangular patterns, certain parts may appear in a BOM multiple times. Typical examples include bolts, hinges, and symmetric parts.

Creating or saving part representations for instantiated parts saves a single representation in the repository. Importing instantiated parts positions them according to their respective 4 x 3 transformation matrices.

Create Parts, Part Assemblies, and Part Instances

Only CAE parts and part assemblies can be manually created in HyperMesh. PDM parts and part assemblies must be imported imported into HyperMesh.

Parts and Part Assemblies

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click and select Create > <entity type> from the context menu.
    The new part, or part assembly, is created and displayed in the browser. Part assembly or part level entities cannot be modified or deleted.

Part Instances

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click and select Instances > Create from the context menu.
    The new part instance is created and displayed in the browser. You will automatically be prompted to transform the part via the Transform tool.
  2. To separate the part instance, right-click on the instance and select Instances > Break.

Import Parts, Part Assemblies, and Part Instances

PDM parts and part assemblies can be imported into HyperMesh via a PDM generated PLMXML file.
  1. From the menu bar, click File > Import > BOM.
    The Import browser opens.
  2. In the File field, navigate to the file that contains the parts, part assemblies, and part instances to import.
  3. Define additional options as needed.
  4. Click Import.

Import PDM Data

Import metadata from CAD to part. This facilitates visualizing CAD-centric metadata in the Part Browser and aids in the model build workflow.

  1. From the Part Browser, right-click on a part and select Metadata > Update or Metadata > Settings.
    Note: The Metadata option is only available when you right-click on parts.
  2. If you selected Update in the previous step:
    1. From the sub-menu, select Part Data or PDM Data.
    • Choose Part Data to update part metadata. The CAD file is parsed to extract the metadata without having to load the CAD representation into the session. After extraction, part metadata is immediately visible in the metadata section of the entity editor.
    • Choose PDM Data to update PDM attributes. The updates the PDM attributes for the selected map.
  3. If you selected Settings in Step 1:
    1. From the sub-menu, select Update or Mapping.
    • The Update selection refers to the REM settings for part data and PDM data. You can choose whether to import only incoming data, or to keep both.
    • The Mapping selection refers to mapping CAD metadata to PDM attributes. These settings can vary depending on the CAD format. The following figure is an example of PDM mapping settings for the JT CAD reader.
      Figure 4.
    Note: You can also access these settings by right-clicking in the part browser and selecting Representations > Settings > Load > CAD > Load Options.

Organize Part Assemblies and Parts

Organize part assemblies, parts, and components in your model.

Entity organization rules are as follows:
  • The Model is the root of the hierarchy in the browser. It represents the contents of the HyperMesh binary file and can contain part assemblies, parts, and components.
  • A part assembly can contain part assemblies and parts.
  • A part can only contain components.
  • Reorganize part assemblies, parts, and components in the Part Browser.
    1. From the Part Browser, left-click on an entity and drag and drop it to a new location.
    In Figure 5, Component B is being reorganized into Part B.


    Figure 5.
  • Reorganize components into a new part using the Organize panel.
    1. From the Tool page, click the Organize panel, Parts subpanel.
    2. Use the comps selector to select the component(s) to move.
    3. In the dest part field, select the part to move the selected components into.
    4. Click move.

Save Assemblies as HyperMesh Binary Files

The part assembly can be saved as a self-contained binary file, which will include the part assembly based hierarchy and attributes such as components, properties, and materials.

You can perform all necessary tasks such as geometry updates and meshing in the distributed HyperMesh binary file. The completed file can then be imported into the master HyperMesh session by importing a model.

You can also update by saving representations from a standalone part assembly to the library, and loading updated representations in the second session.

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on a part assembly and select Save As from the context menu.
  2. In the Save As dialog, save the binary in the representations directory for the current binary file.
In Figure 6, the LeftRail_A_000433_Safety part assembly in the Frame_Assembly_000495 part assembly is being saved as an HyperMesh binary file.
Tip: Alternatively, you can select multiple Parts in different assemblies and select Save As from context menu.


Figure 6.
Because the saved part assembly is self-contained, all HyperMesh entities shown in the Part Browser are saved to the binary file. Opening the saved binary file in a new HyperMesh session results in the Part Browser view shown in Figure 7.


Figure 7.

Manage Representations

About Representations

The CAD representation is typically the original source of information of what a physical part will look like. It forms the basis of the Common representation, which in turn is the basis of all subsequent discipline specific mesh representations. A part can contain multiple representations.



Figure 8. Hierarchical Relationship of Representations
The Common representation component typically contains geometry, though it can also consist of FE mesh.

A folder based Representation repository stores all CAE data that is required during the model build and assembly process. CAE data stored in the Representation repository includes the geometric and FE representation of the parts that comprise the subsystem specific model hierarchy.

You can import a BOM via a neutral file format such as PLMXML or manually create a part structure using the Part Browser context menu.

Common Representation

The Common representation is derived from the CAD representation and forms the basis of all subsequent discipline specific mesh representations.

For sheet metal parts, the Common representation consists of midsurfaced geometry or FE. The CAD is sent to the BatchMesher for midsurface extraction; upon completion it is saved into the repository and you can elect to immediately import the representation into the session.

HyperMesh entities are generated from the PDM metadata, if available, in the post-run procedure of the BatchMesh operation. The PDM PID is assigned to the component and property, the PDM MID and PDM material is assigned to the material and the PDM Thickness is assigned to the Thickness attribute of the property. If the PDM Thickness is blank, the CAD Thickness calculated during the midsurface operation is automatically assigned to the Thickness attribute of the property.

For parts such as castings and tailor-welded blanks, you can save CAD representations as Common models.

Alternatively, you can send solid parts to the BatchMesher. If thin-solid detection is enabled in the Common representation parameter file, then solids will be detected and saved as the Common representation without processing. By default, the midsurface algorithm skin is used. CAD representation does not need to be loaded into the session in order to generate the Common representation since it is sent directly to the BatchMesher for processing.

When you select a discipline specific mesh representation from the Change Representation dialog, Create tab, the Common representation residing in the repository is automatically sent to the BatchMesher for processing. If the Common representation does not exist it will be automatically generated.

Discipline Specific Mesh Representations

Common representations form the basis of all discipline specific representations. When you select a discipline specific mesh representation from the Create Representation dialog, the Common representation residing in the repository is automatically sent to the BatchMesher for processing. The Common representation does not need to be loaded in the session to generate discipline specific mesh representations.
Figure 9. PDM Column Data in Part Browser

Create Representations

Representations utilize the mesh parameter and criteria files that are included with HyperMesh. You can find these files in the BatchMesher. The Param File and Criteria File fields display the representation specific mesh parameter and criteria file.

Common representations form the basis of all subsequent discipline specific mesh representations. When you select a discipline specific mesh representation from the Change Representation dialog, Create tab, the Common representation residing in the repository is automatically sent to the BatchMesher for processing. If the Common representation does not exist it will be automatically generated.

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on part assemblies or parts and select Representations > Create from the context menu.
  2. In the Change Representation dialog, Create tab, select a desired representation.
    The availability of the selected representation in the repository is displayed next to the representation type within parentheses.


    Figure 10. Available Representations. (0/11) common representations available in the repository.
  3. Optional: To save the newly created representations to the Part Library select the Save to Library checkbox.
  4. Select the Midsurface method (default is Skin).
  5. Click OK.
    All representations are sent to the BatchMesher for processing in parallel. Upon completion, all representations are automatically saved to the repository.


    Figure 11. BatchMesher Processing
  6. In the BatchMesh dialog, specify how representations are imported.
    • Click Yes to import all representations into the session.
    • Click No to not import the representations into the session.
      Note: The representations will be available in the Load Representation dialog.

Define Representations

Create your own user defined representation. User defined representations are saved to the settings and will be available in subsequent HyperMesh sessions.

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on part assemblies or parts and select Representations > Settings > User Representations from the context menu.
  2. In the User Representation dialog, click + to add a new representation.
  3. In the Representation field, enter a name for the representation.
  4. In the Param File and Criteria File fields, select the appropriate mesh parameter and criteria file.
  5. If the representation is for solids, select the Solid checkbox.
  6. Click OK.

Add Representations

Part representations can be added from external sources such as solver decks and HyperMesh binary files or from the Part Library.

Add Representations from External Sources

Add representations from external sources for a single part or for multiple parts and part assemblies.

When selecting a part assembly or multiple parts, the Add Representations dialog enables you to map and associate representation files to multiple parts simultaneously.

If appropriate metadata is available in the BOM, then the alias values will be preselected. After choosing a Representation Folder, representation files will be mapped according to the HyperMesh naming convention. You can then manually select or update any of the alias and representation file values.

Indicators are displayed for each part to indicate the status of that row.
Skip.
Any Part which does not have a mapped or selected representation.
OK.
Alias and representation are chosen for the part.
Overwrite.
Part already has a representation which will be overwritten by the selected mapping.
Duplicated.
The same representation file is chosen for more than one part, or the chosen representation file is already used by another part in the same BOM. You cannot click OK to add the representations when representations are duplicated.
  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on the part assemblies or part(s) and select Representations > Add > from Files the context menu.
  2. In the Add Representation(s) dialog, define options accordingly.
    To add representations for Do this
    Single part
    1. From the Representation field, specify a desired representation type to which a representation file will be added.
      • Choose a default representation type.
      • Enter your own user defined representation into the field.
    2. If you entered your own representation, select the appropriate mesh parameter and criteria files.

    User defined representations with defined mesh parameter and criteria files created in the Add Representation dialog will be available in the Change Representation dialog, Create tab. User defined representations with undefined mesh parameter and criteria files created in the Add Representation dialog will not be available in the Change Representation dialog, Create tab, but will appear in the Load tab if a representation is found in the repository.

    The availability of the selected representation in the repository is displayed next to the representation type within parentheses.



    Figure 12.
    Multiple part or part assemblies
    1. In the Representation Folder field, navigate to the representation file.
    2. For each part, select the representation type to be added. Use the Representation File drop-down menu for each part to map. Parts associate with the representation file. This will be done automatically if there is a matching file.
      Note:
      • You cannot add CAD or connectors.
      • You can select Part or Part Assembly for adding the representation.


    Figure 13.
  3. To save the representations to the Part Library select the Save to Library checkbox.
  4. Click OK.

Add Representations from the Part Library

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on a part/part assembly and select Representations > Add > from Library from the context menu.
  2. In the Add Representations from Library dialog, select representations to add.
  3. Optional: To simultaneously add and load representations, select representations to load from the Load Added Representations list.
  4. Click OK.


    Figure 14.

Add Representations to the Part Library

After importing a BOM, you can add CAD representations to the Part Library.

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on a part/part assembly and select Representations > Add > to Library from the context menu.
  2. In the Add Representation to Library dialog, select representations and click OK.

The Add Representation to Library dialog displays information regarding the availability of representations in library, session, and overwrite details.

In Figure 15, CAD representations are being added to the Part Library. The Library column displays 0/8, which indicates there are no CAD representations available in the Part Library. The Session column displays 6/8, which indicate 6 out of 8 representations are currently available in the active HyperMesh session. The Overwrite column displays 0/8, which indicates none of the representations will need to be overwritten.


Figure 15.

Browse Library Content

Review library content using the Library Viewer.

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on the part assemblies or part(s) and select one of the following:
    • Representations > Add > browse Library the context menu.
    • Library > Library Viewer the context menu.
    The Library Viewer opens.
  2. Select the Part that contains the representations you would like to review.
    A list of properties associated with the Part are displayed in the Properties pane.


    Figure 16. Library Viewer

Load Representations

Part representations can be loaded from your current HyperMesh session or from the Part Library.

Load Representations from Current HyperMesh Session

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on part assemblies or parts and select Representations > Load > from Session from the context menu.
  2. In the Change Representation dialog, Load tab, select a type of representation to load.
    Representations that exist in the repository are shown in the Representations column, and their availability is indicated in the Available column.


    Figure 17.
  3. To send unavailable representations to the BatchMesher directly from the Change Representation dialog, select the Batch Mesh Unavailable checkbox.
    Note: Available representations will also be loaded when you click OK if the Batch Mesh Unavailable checkbox is selected.
  4. To save the representations to the Part Library select the Save to Library checkbox.
  5. Click OK.
  6. In the Confirm Load Representation dialog, specify how representations are loaded.
    • Click Load All to load all available representations into the current session for selected parts.
    • Click Skip Loaded to ignore representations that are already loaded for selected parts.
As representations are created and saved to the repository they are displayed in the Available Representations pane.

Load Representations from the Part Library

After importing a BOM that has representations saved in the Part library, you can load the saved representations.

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on a part/part assembly and select Representations > Load > from Library from the context menu.
  2. In the Change Representation dialog, Library tab, select representations and click OK.
The selected representations are loaded to the Representation folder on the file system. Similarly, every time a BOM is imported, files are loaded to the Representations folder, if you retrieve them from the Part Library.


Figure 18.

Reload Representations

Restore part representations to their original state.

In the Part Browser, right-click on parts or part assemblies and select Representation > Reload from the context menu.
Representations are reloaded from the repository.

Unload Representations

Unload part representations from a session.

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on the model, part assemblies, or parts and select Representation > Unload from the context menu.
  2. In the Confirm Unload Representation dialog, click Yes to unload the selected representations.


Figure 19.

Update Metadata From PDM

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on a part or parts to update and select Representations > Update from the context menu.
  2. Update metadata.
    • Rename the selected parts or part's component, or create if it does not already exist.
    • Create a material based on PDM Material and PDM MID.

      If a material of the given ID already exists, then it will not be overwritten or recreated in order to avoid overwriting any existing material properties.

      Only linear attributes are updated. Default steel attributes are used with the following unit system: millimeter, second, tonne, and Newton.

    • Create a property based on PDM PID and PDM Thickness*.

      If a property of the given PID already exists, its thickness will be updated based on PDM Thickness; however, the existing property will not be recreated. Only relevant metadata will be updated in order to avoid overwriting any existing property card values.

    Note: *If the PDM MeshFlag attribute is set to SMT (Solid Mesh Tetra) or SMH (Solid Mesh Hexa), than a solid card image will be assigned to the property.

Sync Metadata To PDM

Sync PDM metadata (PDM PID, PDM Thickness, PDM Material, and PDM MID) based on a selected part or part's metadata (PID, Thickness, Material, MID).

In the Part Browser, right-click on a part or parts and select Representations > Sync Metadata from the context menu.
*When a part has multiple properties, only the first property will display in the PID PDM field when you select Sync Metadata.

Save Representations

After importing a BOM and creating respective representations, you can save the representations locally or in the Part Library.

Saving Parts

Parts and part assemblies without a UID cannot be saved to the Library. Considering this, the UID field in the Save Representation dialog is user editable.

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on part assemblies or parts and select Representations > Save from the context menu.
    A checkmark in the Available column indicates that the representation already exists in the repository. A checkmark in the Library column indicates that a revision is already available in the Part Library.
    The Save Representation dialog opens.
  2. Edit the Major Revision and Study Revision columns to reflect the intended revisions.
  3. To overwrite representations that already exist in the repository, select the Overwrite available checkbox.
    Note: Original CAD representations will not be overwritten because the original file location is stored as a link on the part. Enabling Overwrite available saves an HyperMesh binary file of the modified CAD representation in the repository.
  4. To only save parts locally, disable the Save to Library checkbox.
  5. Click OK.
Unavailable parts are saved, and available parts are overwritten and saved if Overwrite available was selected.


Figure 20.

Saving Part Assemblies

Part Assemblies can also be saved to the Library. This saves all parts as one Part Assembly representation rather than individual Part representations. This enables mesh connectivity between parts to be retained upon unloading and loading of the Part Assembly.

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on part assemblies and select Representations > Save from the context menu.
    The Save Representation dialog displays.
  2. Change the Parts selection in the bottom left to Part Assemblies.
    Figure 21.
  3. Edit the Major Revision and Study Revision columns to reflect the intended revisions.
  4. Select the Representation type.
  5. To overwrite representations that already exist in the repository, select the Overwrite available checkbox.
  6. To only save parts locally, deselect the Save to Library checkbox.
  7. Click OK.

Delete Representations

Part representations can be deleted from the current HyperMesh session and from the Part Library.

Delete Representations from the Current HyperMesh Session

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on part assemblies or parts and select Representations > Delete > from Session from the context menu.
  2. In the Delete Representations dialog, select representations to be deleted.
  3. To remove representations from the Part Library, select the Delete representation from library checkbox.
    Note: The Study version will be incremented if a representation is deleted from the Library.
  4. Click OK.


Figure 22.

Delete Representations from the Part Library

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on part assemblies or parts and select Representations > Delete > from Library from the context menu.
  2. In the Delete Representations From Library dialog, select representations to be deleted.
  3. Click OK.


Figure 23.

Representation Load Settings

Settings to configure the representation entity management behavior.

Open the Representation Load Settings dialog by right-clicking in the Part Browser and selecting Representations > Settings > Load Settings.

The representation entity management settings work independent of the import binary and import deck entity management settings.

The following options are available for components, properties, and materials.
Offset ID.
Merges incoming attributes with conflicting IDs into the session, and offsets their IDs.
Keep Existing Attributes.
Maintains existing in-session entity attributes and incoming conflicting entity IDs.
Keep Incoming Attributes (default).
Maps incoming entity attributes to the in-session entities.

When Offset ID is selected for components, both incoming and existing geometry and FE residing in the component with conflicting IDs are kept. When Keeping Existing Attributes or Keep Incoming Attributes are selected for components, incoming geometry and FE that resides in the component with conflicting IDs are kept.

Manage Part Revisions

Manage, control and update Major, Study and Library Part revisions using the Part Library.

About Part Library and Revisions

The Part Library is an integral part of data management and revision control within the Part Browser.

Part Library

By default, a Part Library is generated when the Part Browser is enabled. There are two modes:
Unmanaged
Local file management
Managed
Uses the Part Library
The default Part Library is located at <user home>\AltairLibraries\2020.

The Part Library serves as a centralized library of HyperMesh parts, which in turn facilitates the collaboration between simulation teams both locally and abroad.

You must be connected to a Part Library to access all Part Library related options.

Parts without a UID cannot be saved to the Library. Considering this, the UID field in the Save Representation dialog is user editable.

Revisions

In the Part Browser, the Revision column displays the Major revision, Study revision, and Library Part revision. All of the appropriate workflows have entry or access points to the part library, enabling quick and easy access to previous revisions or simply generating new revisions.
Major Revision
Depicts a change or set of changes that have been finalized and released for further review. In most cases the Major Revision is mapped to the PDM Revision, but you can modify it.
Study Revision
Created locally to track experimental changes or prototyping changes that may or may not be published. The purpose of the Study Revision is to manage design and prototype exploratory concepts. You can modify the Study Revision.
Library Part Revision
Locally, published revision within the Part Library. You cannot modify the Library Part Revision. The library revision is incremented each time you save a part representation.
You can review and edit a part's Major Revision, Study Revision, and Library Part Revision in Entity Editor.


Figure 24. Revisions for the LeftOuter_A_000435_Safety.c01 Part. Major Revision = A (mapped to the PDM revision, user editable), Study Revision = 1 (can be any letter or numerical value, user editable), Library Part Revision = 1 (library version, not editable)

Register and Connect Libraries

Register and connect to new libraries of your choice.

A default Part Library is generated when the Part Browser is enabled, and is located at <user home>\AltairLibraries\2020.

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click and select Library > Libraries from the context menu.
    The Libraries dialog opens.
  2. Register new library.
    1. Click +.
    2. Select Library type.
      • Local
      • Shared (see PostGres installation for a shared Library)
    3. Enter Library host/port.
      If you are working with a shared Library, enter a Library port.
    4. Enter a Library Name and Library Path.
    5. Click Add.
  3. Disconnect currently connected library.
    Before you can connect to a new library, you must disconnect from the currently connected library.
    1. Select the currently connected library.
    2. Click Disconnect.
  4. Connect library.
    1. Select a disconnected library.
    2. Click Connect.


Figure 25.

Sync Library Revisions

Sync the in-session version with the latest, available version in the Part Library.

If the version available in the current session is out of sync with the Library reversion, use Sync to update the session version with the Part Library version.

Before you can sync library revisions, you must Register and Connect Libraries.
In the Part Browser, right-click on a part/part assembly and select Library > Sync from the context menu.

Edit Study Revisions

Study Revisions are a way to explore design space, and can be promoted to a Major Revision as required.

Assign and edit Study Revisions in the Entity Editor.

  1. In the Part Browser, select a part/part assembly.
  2. In the Entity Editor, edit the Study Revisions field.

Manage Configurations

Group common and unique parts/part assemblies together in part sets, and organize parts and part sets that are unique to a configuration.

In the traditional model build and assembly workflow, subsystems that contain multiple variants are stored in multiple HyperMesh binary files. This complicates the model build and update process as part updates and revisions will need to be performed on each binary file.

An example of a subsystem that may contain multiple configurations is a vehicle body-in-white (BIW). A typical sedan BIW may have the following configurations:
  • Left-hand drive (LHD)
  • Right-hand drive (RHD)
  • Fixed roof (Fixed)
  • Panoramic roof (Pano)


Figure 26.

All common and unique parts that appear in all configurations for a given subsystem are stored in a single HyperMesh binary file, known as a Layered Model. In a Layered Model, common parts are active in all configurations. Unique parts are active only in a specific configuration. You must deactivate unique parts not appearing in a configuration.

Part sets and configurations are written to the solver deck as XML comments. The XML block is added at the bottom of the solver deck so that when importing a deck the info can be rebuilt. In this case, the HyperMesh binary is not used.


Figure 27.

About Part Sets and Configurations

Part sets group common or unique parts, and configurations organize parts and part sets that are mutually exclusive to a configuration.

Example: Configuration Management Workflow

Configuration management workflow for a Dash and Cowl subsystem.

The configuration management workflow for a Dash and Cowl subsystem is shown in Figure 28, along with the Left-hand drive (LHD) and Right-hand drive (RHD) configurations contained in the Layered HyperMesh binary file.


Figure 28.
Common parts are active in all configurations and unique parts are active only in a specific configuration. The model hierarchy is shown in Figure 29.


Figure 29.
To activate the LHD configuration of the Dash and Cowl assembly, perform one of the following:
  • Clear the Active column for the following individual, unique parts that belong to the RHD configuration.
    • Dash Panel RHD
    • Dash Bracket Large RHD
    • Dash Inner Bracket RHD
    • Dash Cross Member RHD
  • If all unique parts are nested in a single part assembly, clear the Active column for Dash RHD Assembly.
  • If all parts and part sets that are unique are organized in a configuration, enable the LHD configuration’s associated checkbox in the Active column of the Configuration view.
All RHD unique parts are removed from the modeling window and are automatically set to do not export. Export the solver deck for the LHD configuration using the Export Solver Deck Browser.


Figure 30.

Create Part Sets

  1. Open the Part Browser.
  2. In the Part Set view, right-click and select Create > Part Set from the context menu.
    A new part set is created.
  3. From the Part view, click-and-drag parts and part assemblies that are common and/or unique onto the part set.
Tip: Dragging-and-dropping selected parts/part assemblies into the white space of the Part Set view automatically creates a new part set for the selected.

Create Configurations

  1. Open the Part Browser.
  2. In the Configuration view, right-click and select Create > Configuration from the context menu.
  3. From the Part and/or Part Set views, click-and-drag parts, part assemblies, and part sets that are unique to a configuration onto the configuration.
Tip: Dragging-and-dropping selected parts, part assemblies, and part sets into the white space of the Configuration view automatically creates a new Configuration for the selected.

Remove Contents of Part Sets and Configurations

In the Part Browser, remove the contents of part sets and configurations in the following:
  • Right-click on the entity and select Remove from the context menu.
  • Drag the entity into the white space of the respective browser view.

Activate/Deactivate Configurations

Control the display and export state of parts and part assemblies by changing the active/inactive state of configurations.

Entities set to inactive are still visible in the Part Browser. Deactivated components will not be visible in the Model Browser, Display panel, and panel entity collectors.

  • Set configuration to active.
    1. Go to the Part Browser, Configuration view.
    2. In the Active column, select the configuration's checkbox.
    Note: Only one configuration can be activated.
    Tip: For simple models you can activate a configuration in the Part view by setting all unique parts not appearing in the configuration to inactive.
    • All of the parts, part assemblies, components, and part sets organized in the active configuration are isolated in the modeling window.
    • All of the parts, part assemblies, components, and part sets not associated with the active configuration become inactive and their display is turned off in the modeling window.
    • Inactive components are set to do not export.
  • Set part assembly to inactive.
    • Removes all nested parts and owned components from the modeling window.
    • Sets all owned components to do not export.
  • Set part to inactive.
    • Removes the part and its owned components from the modeling window.
    • Sets all owned components to do not export.

Create and Organize Part Sets from PDM Variants

  1. In the Part Browser, Part Set view, right-click on a part set entity (if available) or in the white space and select Create Variants from the context menu.
  2. In the Confirm Create Variants dialog, click Yes.
The created part sets are nested under a Variants Part Set.
Note: Part sets are recreated on each invoke of the Create Variants operation.


Figure 31.

PDM Variant Conditions

PDM Variant Conditions are utilized in PDM systems, such as Teamcenter, to mark similar parts in BOMs that may contain multiple variants, such as an automotive BIW.

Attributes supported in the Part Browser via BOM Import and user editing via the Entity Editor include:
PDM Variant Condition
If non-empty, the part is used as a variant in one or more part configurations.
PDM Variant Scope
Along with the Variant Condition attribute, it describes which part configurations the part belongs to as a variant.

Part sets are created per PDM Variant Condition attribute found in the global part assembly/part hierarchy. The operation can be invoked at model, part assembly, or part level.

You can organize part sets from PDM Variants in any view of the Part Browser.

Teamcenter - HyperMesh Integration

All BOM-related information, including part/assembly hierarchy, part attributes, and representation information is organized and displayed in the Part Browser.



Figure 32.

Representation (HyperMesh session) attributes are now displayed independent of the PDM attributes. Attribute columns can be turned on/off in the Column Visibility dialog, which can be accessed by right-clicking in the Part Browser and selecting Column Visibility from the context menu.

InFigure 32, the session attributes (PID, MID, Material, Thickness) are blank because representations have yet to be created or loaded. The corresponding PDM attributes, from the imported PLMXML BOM file, show their values from Teamcenter.

Representation Options

Option Description
Create Creates HyperMesh representation(s) via BatchMesher.
Save Saves representations for selected part(s) based on the chosen alias and file type.
Add Adds representations for selected part(s) based on the chosen alias and file type or from the Part Library.
When adding representations for multiple parts or part assemblies from external sources, the Add Representations dialog enables you to map and associate representation files to multiple parts simultaneously.


Figure 33.

If appropriate metadata is available in the BOM, then the alias values will be preselected. After choosing a Representation Folder, representation files will be mapped according to the Teamcenter naming convention. You can then manually select or update any of the alias and representation file values.

Indicators are displayed for each part to indicate the status of that row.
Skip.
Any Part which does not have a mapped or selected representation.
OK.
Alias and representation are chosen for the part.
Overwrite.
Part already has a representation which will be overwritten by the selected mapping.
Duplicated.
The same representation file is chosen for more than one part, or the chosen representation file is already used by another part in the same BOM.

You cannot click OK to add the representations when representations are duplicated.
Load Load part representations from your current Teamcenter-HyperMesh session or from the Part Library.

If any of the selected parts currently have a representation loaded in the session, you will be prompted whether or not to unload them before loading new representations.

If representations are not unloaded first, incoming representations will be imported on top of the existing representations, and Load Settings will be used.

Unload Unloads representations for selected part(s).
Delete Deletes representations for selected part(s) from your current Teamcenter-HyperMesh session or from the Part Library.
Reload Restores part representations to their original state.
Settings Displays the current load settings, which are used when representations are imported.

Setup the Teamcenter - HyperMesh Environment

The Teamcenter integration environment requires an additional layer, on top of the out-of-the-box Part Browser behavior.

When launching HyperMesh via Teamcenter, the environment will be set automatically. However, all of the integration features may be accessed by manually setting the environment.

To manually set the Teamcenter-HyperMesh environment:

  1. Locate the Teamcenter-HyperMesh custom layer in your installation.
    By default, the custom layer is located in <ALTAIR_HOME>\hm\scripts\br\views\modules\custom\TC, where <ALTAIR_HOME> refers to the base installation folder where HyperWorks is installed, for example C:\Program Files\Altair\HW2020.
  2. Set the environment variable HW_CONFIG_PATH=<ALTAIR_HOME>\hm\scripts\br\views\modules\custom\TC\properties.
  3. Set the environment variable HM_CAT_CUSTOM=<ALTAIR_HOME>\hm\scripts\br\views\modules\custom\initTC.tcl.
    Note: For customer-specific customization that are above and beyond the standard Teamcenter-HyperMesh integration, set HM_CAT_CUSTOM to the init<XYZ>.tcl file, where XYZ refers to customer “XYZ’s” individual custom layer.

Update Teamcenter

Update Teamcenter via Teamcenter-HyperMesh Integration

If HyperMesh was launched via the Teamcenter - HyperMesh Integration, you will be prompted to import updated data back to Teamcenter.



Figure 34.

Update Teamcenter via Manual PLMXML Import in Teamcenter

If the BOM was loaded manually, for example HyperMesh was not launched via the Teamcenter-HyperMesh Integration, then the updated PLMXML package can be manually imported into Teamcenter.

  1. Copy the exported BOM PLMXML, along with the folder(s) containing the monolithic file, if saved, and any saved/updated representations to a convenient folder accessible by Teamcenter.
  2. Select Import PLMXML to import the updates.


    Figure 35.

Import BOMs

Import BOMs in HyperMesh via Teamcenter - HyperMesh Integration

Directly launch HyperMesh and import the selected BOM.
The selected BOM and associated files will be exported from Teamcenter and automatically loaded in the HyperMesh Part Browser, which replaces the Assembly Browser used in previous versions.


Figure 36.

Import BOMs in HyperMesh via the HyperMesh Import - BOM Tab

  1. In Teamcenter, select the Pre-Processor Integration option to export the PLMXML package to the last run folder, which Teamcenter continues to interact with until the HyperMesh session is closed.
    Once closed, Teamcenter prompts you to accept or reject updates. The last run folder is then automatically cleaned up.
  2. Export the PLMXML package so that you can work on it over time by selecting the Export PLMXML for Pre-Processor option.


    Figure 37.
  3. The resulting PLMXML BOM file, along with its associated data files, will be exported to the last data folder and can be imported directly into HyperMesh via the Import - BOM tab.


    Figure 38.

The BOM is displayed in the Part Browser.

Import BOMs in HyperMesh via Teamcenter - HyperMesh Integration

Directly launch HyperMesh and import the selected BOM.
The selected BOM and associated files will be exported from Teamcenter and automatically loaded in the HyperMesh Part Browser, which replaces the Assembly Browser used in previous versions.


Figure 39.

Import BOMs in HyperMesh via the HyperMesh Import - BOM Tab

  1. In Teamcenter, select the Pre-Processor Integration option to export the PLMXML package to the last run folder, which Teamcenter continues to interact with until the HyperMesh session is closed.
    Once closed, Teamcenter prompts you to accept or reject updates. The last run folder is then automatically cleaned up.
  2. Export the PLMXML package so that you can work on it over time by selecting the Export PLMXML for Pre-Processor option.


    Figure 40.
  3. The resulting PLMXML BOM file, along with its associated data files, will be exported to the last data folder and can be imported directly into HyperMesh via the Import - BOM tab.


    Figure 41.

The BOM is displayed in the Part Browser.

Export BOMs

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on the Model part assembly and select Export PLMXML from the context menu.
    You will automatically be directed to the Export - BOM tab, where the correct name and path will be set, using the lst_output.xml file name expected by the Teamcenter-HyperMesh integration.
  2. For File Type, choose to export BOM files as either PLMXML or UDMXML.
    For the Teamcenter-HyperMesh process, PLMXML will be used.
  3. In the File field, enter the path to exported BOM file.
    For the Teamcenter-HyperMesh process, the file should be named lst_output.xml, and the file should be saved to the same location as the original BOM file, lst_input.xml.
  4. To warn you before saving a BOM file over an existing file, select Prompt before overwrite.
  5. To save the assembly monolithic file, according to the PLMXML Master Format attribute value, while exporting the BOM, select Save Monolithic HM binary file.
  6. To update PDM attributes based on part attributes prior to writing the exported BOM file, select Upload to PDM Repository.
    Using this option assures that attribute updates made in the session will be sent back to Teamcenter.
    Note: This option is only available if you select PLMXML as the exported file type and at least one PDM repository is registered.

Load CAD Representations

Load part representations from your current Teamcenter-HyperMesh or from the Part Library.

When CAD representations are loaded, components are created for the loaded CAD representations. Materials and properties, if available in the CAD file would also be created, and their values would be displayed in the Part Browser columns. Component naming conventions are not yet imposed, nor are the materials and properties created automatically at this time, therefore you can review information within the CAD files themselves prior to mesh representation creation. According to the Teamcenter-HyperMesh naming conventions, component naming and material and property handling will occur during the meshing process.

Load Representations from Current HyperMesh Session

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on part assemblies or parts and select Representations > Load > from Session from the context menu.
  2. In the Change Representation dialog, Load tab, select a type of representation to load.
    Representations that exist in the repository are shown in the Representations column, and their availability is indicated in the Available column.


    Figure 42.
  3. To send unavailable representations to the BatchMesher directly from the Change Representation dialog, select Batch Mesh Unavailable.
    Note: Available representations will also be loaded when you click OK if Batch Mesh Unavailable is selected.
  4. To save the representations to the Part Library, select the Save to Library checkbox.
  5. Click OK.
  6. In the Confirm Load Representation dialog, specify how representations are loaded.
    • Click Load All to load all available representations into the current session for selected parts.
    • Click Skip Loaded to ignore representations that are already loaded for selected parts.
As representations are created and saved to the repository they are displayed in the Available Representations pane.

Load Representations from the Part Library

After importing a BOM that has representations saved in the Part library, you can load the saved representations.

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on a part/part assembly and select Representations > Load > from Library from the context menu.
  2. In the Change Representation dialog, Library tab, select representations and click OK.
The selected representations are loaded to the Representation folder on the file system. Similarly, every time a BOM is imported, files are loaded to the Representations folder, if you retrieve them from the Part Library.


Figure 43.

Create Mesh Representations

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click and select Representation > Create from the context menu.
  2. In the Change Representation dialog, Create tab, select the NVH_Standard_8 representation.
    Each representation is uniquely identified by its alias and file type. For example, “NVH_Standard_8/HyperMesh” and “NVH_Standard_8/Nastran” representations.

    The appropriate representation will automatically be selected, based on the available PLMXML metadata: discipline, mesh representation, and mesh density. If the appropriate metadata is unavailable, then you can select the desired representation type to create. In the Change Representation dialog, Create tab, only HyperMesh representations can be created.

    Per the current Teamcenter-HyperMesh integration rules, only one representation per file type is allowed per part. This means that you can only have a single HyperMesh file type representation, Nastran file type representation, CAD representation, and so on for each part. For example, if you create a NVH_Standard_8/HyperMesh representation and then subsequently create a NVH_Coarse_15/HyperMesh representation, the NVH_Coarse_15/HyperMesh representation will become the only HyperMesh representation for the given part.


    Figure 44.
  3. To save the newly created representations to the Part Library select the Save to Library checkbox.
  4. Click OK.

BatchMesher is invoked, and meshes are created using the appropriate batch meshing parameter and criteria files.

The parameter and criteria file mappings are configurable based on the batchmesher_config.cfg file available in the installation.

As part of the post-batchmeshing process, each part’s components are created, using the Teamcenter-HyperMesh naming convention. In addition, the loaded representation (NVH_Standard_8 in this case) is displayed, and the component ID (CID), property ID (PID), Material, and Thickness are created, per the values available in the PLMXML BOM.


Figure 45.

Update Metadata from PDM

  1. In the Part Browser, right-click on the part(s) to update and select Representations > Update from the context menu.
  2. Update metadata accordingly.
    • Rename the selected parts or part's component, or create if it does not already exist.
    • Create a material based on PDM Material and PDM MID.

      If a material of the given ID already exists, then it will not be overwritten or recreated in order to avoid overwriting any existing material properties.

      Only linear attributes are updated. Default steel attributes are used with the following unit system: millimeter, second, tonne, and Newton.

    • Create a property based on PDM PID and PDM Thickness*.

      If a property of the given PID already exists, its thickness will be updated based on PDM Thickness; however, the existing property will not be recreated. Only relevant metadata will be updated in order to avoid overwriting any existing property card values.

    Note:

    *If the PDM MeshFlag attribute is set to SMT (Solid Mesh Tetra) or SMH (Solid Mesh Hexa), than a solid card image will be assigned to the property.

Sync Metadata to PDM

Sync PDM metadata (PDM PID, PDM Thickness, PDM Material, and PDM MID) based on a selected part or part's metadata (PID, Thickness, Material, MID).

In the Part Browser, right-click on the part(s) to sync and select Representations > Sync Metadata from the context menu.

*When a part has multiple properties, only the first property will display in the PID PDM field when you select Sync Metadata.

Save and Open HyperMesh Models

You can save the HyperMesh file at any time. The HyperMesh session stores all of the BOM-related information, including hierarchy, metadata, and representations. The original PLMXML BOM file is no longer required to load, view, or modify any of this information.

Save the Current HyperMesh Models

  1. From the menu bar, click File > Save > Model.
  2. In the Save Model As dialog, save the model to your working directory.

Open HyperMesh Models

  1. From the menu bar, click File > Open > Model.
  2. In the Open Model dialog, open the recently saved HyperMesh model.
All of the BOM-related information is retained with the most recently loaded representations loaded in the session.


Figure 46.