Manufacturing DevBlog

AU 2014 classes

By Adam Nagy

I'd like to point out some of the AU classes submitted by my colleagues that you might have missed. If you are attending AU 2014 and find these topics interesting then please register for them:

• SD6310 – Bring on the Cloud and Mobilize Your Media & Entertainment Workflows Through Programming – Kevin Vandecar
• SD6432 – Are You Having a Pythonic 3ds Max Experience? No? Come Join the Revolution. – Kevin Vandecar
• SD5752 – OAuth 1.0 Versus OAuth 2.0 and Use Case – Cyrille Fauvel
• SD6230 – Add 3D Photogrammetry to Your Desktop and Mobile Apps using ReCap Photo API – Philippe Leefsma
• SD5931 – Creating Commercial Applications for Mobile Devices Using AutoCAD OEM – David Grieve

I as well will have a class on iOS programming: https://events.au.autodesk.com/connect/sessionDetail.ww?SESSION_ID=6000 

 

Republish Markup Sheets

By Adam Nagy

The DWF markup related functionalities in the drawing are provided by the DWF Markup Manager tranlator addin, and it does not provide an API. However, you can still take advantage of its ControlDefinitions if needed:

If you use the PrintCommandNames function from this blog post then you'll find these registered by this addin:

MarkupManager:Command: Activate Parent                &Activate
MarkupManager:Command: Done                           Done
MarkupManager:Command: DWF File Close                 &Close Markup DWF ...
MarkupManager:Command: DWF File Open                  Open DWF Markup set
MarkupManager:Command: DWF Republish All Sheets       Republish &All Sheets
MarkupManager:Command: DWF Republish Markup Sheets    Republish &Markup Sheets
MarkupManager:Command: Hide Non Markup Sheets         Show &non-markup sheets
MarkupManager:Command: Markup Information             &Properties...
MarkupManager:Command: Open DWFViewer                 &Open in Design Review
MarkupManager:Command: Question                       Question
MarkupManager:Command: Resolve Link                   &Resolve Link...
MarkupManager:Command: Review                         For Review
MarkupManager:Command: Save Markup History Changes    &Save Markup History Changes
MarkupManager:Command: Sheet Information              &Properties...
MarkupManager:Command: Switch Markup Visibility       Hide markups
MarkupManager:Command: Zoom To Markup Graphics        &Zoom To Markup

The Republish Markup Sheets command requires a file name. The way to provide that is through the PostPrivateEvent function. Here is a VBA sample:

Sub RepublishMarkupSheets()
  Dim oCommandMgr As CommandManager
  Set oCommandMgr = ThisApplication.CommandManager
    
  ' Get the collection of control definitions
  Dim oControlDefs As ControlDefinitions
  Set oControlDefs = oCommandMgr.ControlDefinitions
    
  Call oCommandMgr.PostPrivateEvent( _
    kFileNameEvent, "C:\temp\test.dwf")
  Call oControlDefs( _
    "MarkupManager:Command: DWF Republish Markup Sheets").Execute
End Sub

iLogic / .NET version:

Dim oCommandMgr As CommandManager
oCommandMgr = ThisApplication.CommandManager

' Get the collection of control definitions
Dim oControlDefs As ControlDefinitions
oControlDefs = oCommandMgr.ControlDefinitions

Call oCommandMgr.PostPrivateEvent(
  PrivateEventTypeEnum.kFileNameEvent, "C:\temp\test.dwf")
Call oControlDefs(
  "MarkupManager:Command: DWF Republish Markup Sheets").Execute

Autodesk Exchange Apps Hackathon – Update

By Virupaksha Aithal

The Autodesk Exchange Apps Hackathon event is over. We have received more than 180 Apps as part of this event.

On behalf of the Autodesk Developer Network (ADN) team I’d like to say a big “thank you” to all the publishers who has registered and submitted Apps to Autodesk exchange store.

Reorder parts list columns

By Adam Nagy

If you want to change the order of the columns of the PartsList object then you can use the PartsListColumn.Reposition function for that. Here is a VBA sample that reverses the order of the parts list columns:

Sub ReorderPartsList()
  ' The parts list whose columns you want to reorder 
  ' needs to be selected in the User Interface
  Dim doc As DrawingDocument
  Set doc = ThisApplication.ActiveDocument
  
  Dim pl As PartsList
  Set pl = doc.SelectSet(1)
  
  Dim plcs As PartsListColumns
  Set plcs = pl.PartsListColumns
  
  ' We'll simply reverse the order of the columns
  Dim i As Integer
  For i = 1 To plcs.count - 1
    Dim plc As PartsListColumn
    Set plc = plcs(1)
    
    Call plc.Reposition(plcs.count - i + 1, False)
  Next
End Sub

 

Matrix for complex transformation in model space

by Vladimir Ananyev

Q: I'm trying to create a matrix to do a polar move of block A from point 1 to point 3. In both case the ' axis' of block 'A' stays in line with a vector from the point on the cylinder to the axis through its center. How can I do this?

A: It’s much easier to define separate matrices for rotation and translation and then use the matrix functionality to combine them. Multiplying two matrices together creates a new matrix that contains the transforms of both of them combined. Matrix.TransformBy method can do this for us.

The following code sample takes the current matrix for the box and multiplies “rotation” matrix with it. Then the result is transformed by “translation” matrix in the similar way. The order that you multiply matrices makes a difference because the changes are applied in order.

 

Sub Matrix2()

Dim oAsmDoc As AssemblyDocument

Set oAsmDoc = ThisApplication.ActiveDocument

Dim oAsmDef As AssemblyComponentDefinition

Set oAsmDef = oAsmDoc.ComponentDefinition

Dim oTG As TransientGeometry

Set oTG = ThisApplication.TransientGeometry

Dim oOccs As ComponentOccurrences

Set oOccs = oAsmDef.Occurrences

' the 1st component

Dim oCylinder As ComponentOccurrence

Set oCylinder = oOccs.ItemByName("Cylinder:1")

' the 2nd component

Dim oBox As ComponentOccurrence

Set oBox = oOccs.ItemByName("Box:1")

'Step 1: get the current matrix

'""""""""""""""""""""""

'get the current matrix from the box component

Dim oMat As Matrix

Set oMat = oBox.Transformation

'Step 2: add rotation

'""""""""""""""""""""""

Dim oMat2 As Matrix

Set oMat2 = ThisApplication.TransientGeometry.CreateMatrix

'origin point

Dim oCenter As Point

Set oCenter = oAsmDef.WorkPoints.Item(1).Point

'axis of rotation

Dim oVector As Vector

Set oVector = oAsmDef.WorkAxes.Item(3).Line.Direction.AsVector

'angle of rotation

Dim Angle As Double

Angle = oAsmDef.Parameters.Item("Angle").value

Call oMat2.SetToRotation(-Angle, oVector, oCenter)

'a pre-multiplication of oMat by the matrix oMat2

Call oMat.TransformBy(oMat2)

'Step 3: add translation

'""""""""""""""""""""""

Dim Distance As Double

Distance = oAsmDef.Parameters.Item("Shift").value 'translation value

Call oVector.ScaleBy(-Distance)

'apply translation

Call oMat2.SetToIdentity

Call oMat2.SetTranslation(oVector)

Call oMat.TransformBy(oMat2)

'Step 4: Create the new instance of the box in the new position defined by oMat

'""""""""""""""""""""""

Dim oBox2 As ComponentOccurrence

Set oBox2 = oOccs.AddByComponentDefinition(oBox.Definition, oMat)

End Sub

Hide component in DrawingView using ControlDefinition

By Adam Nagy

Sometimes if the API is not working, one workaround could be selecting the component in the BrowserPane and executing the relevant ControlDefinition on it: http://adndevblog.typepad.com/manufacturing/2012/09/parse-browsernodes-for-a-specified-node-and-perform-userinterface-commands.html

Some components are not hooked up to the browser so you cannot get to the associated node using GetBrowserNodeFromObject, or it selects the wrong object: http://adndevblog.typepad.com/manufacturing/2013/04/get-browsernode-of-an-occurrence.html

Here is a VBA solution that shows how you might get to the object you need and then execute a command on it:

Function GetOccurrenceNode( _
name As String, nodes As BrowserNodesEnumerator) _
As BrowserNode
  Dim node As BrowserNode
  For Each node In nodes
    If node.BrowserNodeDefinition.Label = name Then
      Set GetOccurrenceNode = node
      Exit Function
    End If
        
    Set GetOccurrenceNode = _
      GetOccurrenceNode(name, node.BrowserNodes)
    If Not GetOccurrenceNode Is Nothing Then
      Exit Function
    End If
  Next
End Function

Function GetNode( _
obj As Object, nodes As BrowserNodesEnumerator) As BrowserNode
  Dim node As BrowserNode
  For Each node In nodes
    If node.NativeObject Is obj Then
      Set GetNode = node
      Exit Function
    End If
        
    Set GetNode = GetNode(obj, node.BrowserNodes)
    If Not GetNode Is Nothing Then
      Exit Function
    End If
  Next
End Function

Sub HideSubComponent()
  Dim dwg As DrawingDocument
  Set dwg = ThisApplication.ActiveDocument
    
  Dim dv As DrawingView
  ' Get "B:MainAsm.iam" Detail View
  Set dv = dwg.ActiveSheet.DrawingViews(2)
    
  Dim bp As BrowserPane
  Set bp = dwg.BrowserPanes("DlHierarchy")
        
  Dim asm As AssemblyDocument
  Set asm = dv.ReferencedDocumentDescriptor.ReferencedDocument
    
  Dim occ As ComponentOccurrence
  Set occ = asm.ComponentDefinition.Occurrences(1)
    
  ' This throws an error in Inventor 2012,
  ' that's the reason for the below workaround
  'Call dv.SetVisibility(occ, False)
    
  ' If it's hidden already then we're done
  If Not dv.GetVisibility(occ) Then Exit Sub
    
  ' We have to find the BrowserNode of the
  ' occurrence under the DrawingView
  Dim node As BrowserNode
  ' This does not work well for dv.ParentView,
  ' and does not work at all for dv:
  'Set node = bp.GetBrowserNodeFromObject(dv.parent)
  ' So we use this instead
  Set node = GetNode(dv, bp.TopNode.BrowserNodes)
    
  ' Then select the occurrence under the view node
  Set node = GetOccurrenceNode(occ.name, node.BrowserNodes)
  Call node.DoSelect
    
  ' Then run the command on it
  Dim cm As CommandManager
  Set cm = ThisApplication.CommandManager
    
  Dim cd As ControlDefinition
  Set cd = cm.ControlDefinitions("DrawingEntityVisibilityCtxCmd")
    
  Call cd.Execute
End Sub

 

AddDesignVisualizationAttachmentBadAttachmentOrder error

By Wayne Brill

When using AddDesignVisualizationFileAttachment() to attach a DWF to an IDW this error may occur.

The error means the call is trying to create “out of order” DWFs

For example let’s say a file has 4 versions, where version 1, 2, & 4 have a DWF, and you want add a DWF to version 3.

 

Starting out, the data could look something like:
F(1) -> DWF(1)
F(2) -> DWF(2)
F(3)
F(4) -> DWF(3)

 

Vault does not allow DWF(4) to be an attachment to F(3) since that would be confusing so a AddDesignVisualizationAttachmentBadAttachmentOrder exception is thrown.

 

What Vault Explorer does in that situation is to download DWF(1), DWF(2) and DWF(3), delete the DWF entirely, and then re-create the versions so that the end result will look like:
F(1) -> DWF(1)
F(2) -> DWF(2)
F(3) -> DWF(3)
F(4) -> DWF(4)

Inertia in custom units

By Adam Nagy

As mentioned in this blog post internal units are fixed so that mass is always kg, length is always cm, etc: http://adndevblog.typepad.com/manufacturing/2012/07/unitsofmeasure-object-and-example.html

The same is true for compound units like the one for inertia, which is mass * length ^ 2, and so internally it's kg cm^2

Based on the document settings it might be displayed as lbmass in^2. You can easily convert the internal unit to that using the above mentioned UnitsOfMeasure object:

Sub UnitTest()
  Dim uom As UnitsOfMeasure
  Set uom = ThisApplication.UnitsOfMeasure
  
  Dim conversion As Double
  conversion = uom.ConvertUnits(1, "kg cm^2", "lbmass in^2")
  
  Dim doc As PartDocument
  Set doc = ThisApplication.ActiveDocument
   
  Dim mp As MassProperties
  Set mp = doc.ComponentDefinition.MassProperties
   
  Dim m As Double
  m = mp.Mass
  
  ' Internal units are cm, kg
  Dim Ixx As Double, Iyy As Double, Izz As Double
  Dim Ixy As Double, Iyz As Double, Ixz As Double
  Call mp.XYZMomentsOfInertia(Ixx, Iyy, Izz, Ixy, Iyz, Ixz)
  
  Dim Ixx2 As Double, Iyy2 As Double, Izz2 As Double
  Dim Ixy2 As Double, Iyz2 As Double, Ixz2 As Double
  Ixx2 = Ixx * conversion
  Iyy2 = Iyy * conversion
  Izz2 = Izz * conversion
  Ixy2 = Ixy * conversion
  Iyz2 = Iyz * conversion
  Ixz2 = Ixz * conversion
End Sub