Instantiating Power Copies

This task shows how to instantiate PowerCopies once they have been created as described in Creating  PowerCopies.
There are two ways to do this:
  1. using the PowerCopy Instantiation menu item
  2. using a catalog

Furthermore, the use of the Replace viewer, regardless of the instantiation type, is detailed.
aprereq.gif (1223 bytes)

Open the PowerCopyDestination1.CATPart document.

Using the menu item: 

  1. Click the PowerCopy Instantiation icon or select the Insert -> Instantiate From Document menu item.
    The File Selection dialog box is displayed allowing you to navigate to the document or catalog where the  power copy is stored.

  1. Select the document containing the Powercopy, and click Open.
    Here we selected the PowerCopyStartResults1.CATPart document.

The Insert Object dialog box is displayed.

Use the Reference list to choose the correct PowerCopy when several have been defined in the document.

  1. Complete the Inputs within the dialog box by selecting the adequate element in the geometric area.

  1. If needed, click on the Use identical name button to automatically select all the elements with the same name.
    This is especially useful when the input is the same one repeated several time.

  1. You can also click on the Parameters button to display the Parameters dialog box and modify values.
    Here we increased the Radius1 value to 25 mm.

  2. Use the Create formulas button to automatically create a formula on every parameters with the same name provided there are any.

  3. Click OK.

The Documents button lets you access the list of documents (such as design tables) pointed by one of the elements making up the Power copy. 
If there are documents, the Documents dialog box opens and you can click the Replace button to display the File Selection dialog box and navigate to a new design table to replace the initial one.
When no document is referenced, the Documents button is grayed within the Insert Object dialog box.

  1. Click OK to create the PowerCopy instance.

The PowerCopy is instantiated in context, meaning its limits are automatically re-defined taking into account the elements on which it is instantiated.

When instantiating from the same document, use the PowerCopy object -> Instantiate contextual menu to display the Insert Object dialog box directly.
The icon is always grayed when instantiating Power Copies. It is available with User Features and allows you to create and modify URLs.

Using the Replace Viewer
In some cases, when instantiating a powercopy, the replacing element does not present the same sub-elements as the replaced element. Therefore you need to clearly indicate in a specific dialog box, the Replace Viewer, how to rebuild the geometry from the replacing element. In the following example, the replacing sketch does not have the same number of vertices as the initial sketch, and you are prompted to indicate on what edge the filleted surfaces are to be created.
aprereq.gif (1223 bytes) Open the PowerCopyReplace1.CATPart document.

  1. Expand the PowerCopy entry in the specification tree, right-click the PowerCopy.1 feature,  and choose PowerCopy.1 object ->  Instantiate command.

  2. Select Sketch.2 to replace Sketch.1.
    The Replace Viewer is displayed, showing to the left the initial sketch and the edges selected to create the two fillets in the initial geometry, and to the right the replacing sketch on which you are prompted to specify edges.

  1. Select the edges on the replacing sketch.

  1. Click OK in the Replace Viewer.

  2. Select the XY plane, or click the Use Identical Name to select it as the needed plane.

  3. Click OK in the Insert Object dialog box.
    The PowerCopy is instantiated and the filleted surfaces are computed as per the selection in the Replace Viewer.

Make sure to select the edges as proposed in the Replace Viewer. For example, you cannot invert Edge.1 and Edge.2 if Edge.3 remains where specified in the example above. Otherwise, the system will not be able to re-build the geometry based on these specifications, and the Update Diagnosis dialog box will be displayed prompting you to edit the geometry.

 
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