[bigbang]

Organizing in Geometrical Sets (V5) - Very often when you make a new geometrical set you move the desired elements into them afterwards. This method however may save you some work.
First select all the elements you want to move into the new Geometrical Set. Then click Insert > Geometrical Set. All your previously selected elements are listed in the 'Features' field. In the 'Father' field, select the set you want the new set to be included into. If you have defined a geometrical set as your 'In work object' this will be set as 'Father' by default.
Type a name of the new set in the name field. If you leave this field blank your new set will be named Geometrical Set.n, where n is the next available number in line.
When you click OK the new geometrical set will be moved into the one selected as Father with all pre-selected geometrical elements moved into the new set.

Avoid zoom on tree (V5) - If you try to click the + sign in your spec tree but miss and click a branch instead your model will get a darker shade and all your space mouse movements will affect the spec tree instead of the model. (Unless of course this had been disabled already.)
Click Tools > Options. Select General > Display > Tree Manipulation (Disable this box)
If you should have the need to resize your tree afterwards, hold Ctrl while scrolling the mouse wheel instead.

Increase number of undo levels (V5) - Default number of undo levels are 10. In some cases it can be very useful to have a few more, but do remember that this will hog system memory so show restraint when altering this setting.
R16: Tools > Options: Select General > Performances.
R18: Tools > Options: General > PCS

Power Input and searching (V5)
General Power Input commands are accessed like this: c:name of command (I.e. c:line)
Other prefixes (with short versions in brackets) are: name(n), visibility(vis), favorite (f), name in graph and type (t).
Examples on usage:
n:healing.3 (This will select and highlight in your tree and on the model the feature named healing.3)
name in graph:lower_wheelarch_clip (This will select the body or geometrical set that is named 'lower_wheelarch_clip' in your tree. Notice the difference from the previous command.)
tlane (This will select ALL planes in your model.)
tlane & vis:visible (This however will select all visible (meaning not hidden) planes in your model.)
tlane & vis:visible,scr (An alternate to the above where this will select only all visble planes currently shown on screen.)

Make a macro out of a Power Input command (V5) - Not all commands are available as buttons, but they are available as Power Input commands. Like for instance the 'scale planes' tool that can be helpful to have as a button on your own toolbar. Use the built in Visual Basic editor to make a catvba project where you add this code in a new module:
Language "VBSCRIPT"
Sub CATMain()
CATIA.StartCommand "scale planes"
End Sub
Any command can be used. Access this through Customize window (right click any toolbar, look at the end of the context sensitive menu) > Commands > Macros to add it to your own toolbars.


You have here a collection of tricks and tips in CATIA from www.d-digest.com . Some of them are very useful, especially for beginners. I've mentioned also the original senders for Tips and Tricks section at www.d-digest.com.

Tips & Tricks Converting Part Files to CATIA V4 Without STEP License - This is an alternative method to convert part files (*.prt) of UG to CATIA V4 (*.model) for those who do not have STEP licenses. Export the *.prt as parasolid in UG.

Import the parasolid in IDEAS and export to CATIA. Rename the output as .model to see a volume in CATIA V4.

(The advantage of this method is that you get a volume directly instead of faces, etc. as they are obtained by IGES of CATIA V4.) Convert this volume directly to solid.

The success rate is very high with this method. Its only disadvantage is that it is lengthy.

-- Submitted by Ravi Chandra Phani T., design engineer, Infotech Enterprises Ltd., Hyderabad, India

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Building Bridges A commentary on V4 to V5 functionality - Barbara Gaillard Layering existed in prior CATIA releases to handle a variety of needs. Very early on (CATIA V2), it was necessary to place multiple assembly components into a single CATIA model and Layers and Filters were used to manage the display of these components. Solid modeling was not used extensively in earlier versions of CATIA; therefore, Layers and Filters were needed to manage the display of pieces such as wireframe, surfaces, faces and volume describing a single part. Because multi-model links did not exist, it was necessary to store downstream applications such as NC data in the same model, and Layers and Filters made this manageable. Rather than further elaborate on Layer usage in V4, let us stop here and think about Version 5. Hide/Show is an easy concept for the V4 user to grasp. Yes, in V4 there is No Show/Show function along with Layers, but let us consider this more closely. When solid primitives are selected for modification in V4, their profile geometries automatically become visible, even when stored in No Show. When the change is complete, the geometry returns to its hidden state. It is interesting to note how many companies do not allow any geometry to be stored in No Show. This is generally because automated checking programs cannot distinguish elements that are linked to solids from unnecessary points or lines. Some companies continue to place construction geometry on a separate layer (a V3 practice), when it clearly is not as efficient for the designer. This practice illustrates the reluctance of users to change established practices, but imagine the designer's dilemma if we had not changed from 2D to 3D. In V4, it is not possible to work in the No Show area or to alter geometry that is hidden. The V5 user may use Swap Visible Space to select and alter components. The "hidden" working area has a light green background that easily distinguishes it from the main working area. The result of this added V5 capability is two main working areas-all that is necessary when working in a single component (the solid model), using a single application (part design, assembly design, drafting, NC, etc.). The Specification Tree and Contextual Menu make it simple to bring elements (i.e., sketches and reference planes) in and out of Hide. When it comes to assemblies, it is not only unnecessary, but also inadvisable, to put multiple components together within a single file. Do we want to re-release an assembly each time a single part is changed? Do we want to leave the assembly released with obsolete components? The creation of assemblies that copy geometry, rather than reference it, is a data-management nightmare.
CATProduct, which is similar to a V4 session, references part data and also contains instructions for how these pieces relate to one another. (Assembly
design is another good candidate for a separate article relating V4 and V5 differences.) Staying on our topic of Layers, within CATProduct it is possible
to hide entire parts or to hide (or make visible) individual sketches or references contained in the part. When various configurations of the same assembly are required for a drawing, technical illustration or other type of documents, the Scenes tool provides the flexibility that is similar to multiple Filters, and goes even further. In addition to storing visibility and color of components in multiple configurations, Scenes also can store a variety of positions, such as exploded or assembled. Scenes are stored in CATProduct, but are accessible for use in other documents, such as CATDrawings.
Finally, it is difficult to believe that anyone who has taught the use of Layers and Filters or has participated in the development of a standard layering convention will regret that this paradigm has been omitted from V5. The new tools are easier to learn, easier to use and more efficient. Regarding SolidE Boolean operations: they still exist in V5, but only are used in specific cases. V5 uses a feature-based modeling approach and it is not necessary to subtract a hole, because the nature of such a feature is the removal of material. The tools in V5 inherently determine whether material is to be added or removed. It is possible to create separate Bodies and to Add, Remove and Intersect them with one another, but it is best to begin V5 with the feature-based idea, and leave V4 methods behind. These examples may help to explain why it would be a disservice to provide command-to-command translations. V5 is a natural transition because it utilizes the designer's feature-based thought process and is a truer reflection of real-world geometric relationships. However, it also is natural to resist change and to be apprehensive of the unknown. V5 is a new product and new practices must be learned.

Barbara Gaillard has specialized in CAD technology for 20 years, with CATIA being a main focus since 1986. Her experience spans the automotive and aerospace industries, with some exposure to consumer products and shipbuilding. She also has been a member of the advisory board for CATIA Solutions Magazine since 1999. She can be reached at bgaillard@worldnet.att.net

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To Export Specification Tree - When you want to export your specification tree, go to Save As and select text file. You will get a text file that contains only your specification tree.

Edit a drawing from 3D Element - When you generate a drawing form a 3D element and want to edit it, right-click on the current view, and then on object->isolate. For example, you can isolate the top view on the top view. You will lose any 3D data on this view and you can edit everything; e.g., fillets, trims, etc.

-- Submitted by Lajos Szarvas, Yugoslavia

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Dimensioning Between Circles - Here's a tip for dimensioning between the centers of two circles that lie on different planes: sketch the first circle on one plane. Select the second plane, sketch the circle, then place a point and constrain it concentric with the first circle lying on the first plane.
(Without this point, dimension occurs from the center of the second circle to a tangent of first circle.) Place the dimension between this point and the center of the second circle. Change the point as a reference element.

-- Submitted by Suresh Balasundaram, training officer, Amrita CAD/CAM Center, Amrita Institutions, Tamil Nadu, India.