Category Archives: 2015 Spring

Creo 2.0 Highlighting obscures geometry

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Question:

Is there a way to make pre-highlight semi-transparent?  When pre-highlight activates, it is a solid color, obscuring features below.

David Makinson, Itron

Answered by: Jack Sullivan (PTC)

  1. The pre-highlight is semi-transparent if transparency is turned on in the Model Display
  2. There are a few Tech Support calls concerning allowing for using Wildfire type pre-Highlighting and there is an open SPR for this
    • Reported to R&D as SPR 2098830
    • Previously closed as “No Plans to Implement“, because pre-highlighted model is transparent by default
    • Reopened as transparency often needs to be switched off to improve graphical performance

Workaround: Set All items except Surface, Feature, Part and Component as custom My Filter

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Categories: 2015 Spring, Assembly, Creo Parametric, Events, Q&A

Default zoom on Start Parts

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Question:

Will we ever be able to change the default zoom on a start part?

Lawrence Srutkowski, AFL

Answered by: Jack Sullivan (PTC)

Default zoom is based upon the model size.  To change this for a start part, you can Edit Definition of your Default Datum Planes and change their Display Size to something smaller.  Make sure that this new version is chosen as the start part either by changing the default start part or by selecting a different start part when creating a new part.

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Categories: 2015 Spring, Creo Parametric, Events, Q&A

Flexible Modeling for Sheetmetal?

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Question:

Will Flex Modeling be incorporated into sheet metal parts?

Trent Villian, RockTenn

Answered by: Jack Sullivan (PTC)

  1. There is a Product Idea concerning this on the PTC Community page.  If this is piece of functionality that you would like to see, please add your vote to this idea.
  2. There is also a Tech Support call that deals with this.  According to the call, the plan is to add this capability in Creo 4.0.

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Categories: 2015 Spring, Creo Parametric, Events, Q&A, Sheetmetal

Personal copy of Creo?

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Question:

How can I install Creo on my own laptop (Windows 7) for personal training?

Ray Jadin, Siemens

Answered by: Jack Sullivan (PTC)

  1. If your company allows “License Borrowing” you can borrow a license from the company license pool to use on another machine.
  2. If you are a student, you can purchase the “Student Version” of Creo Parametric.  This requires a valid student ID and models cannot be transferred from/to the production version of Creo Parametric.
  3. PTC offers a free 30-day evaluation of Creo Parametric.

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Categories: 2015 Spring, Creo Parametric, Events, Q&A

Auto-Rounds for Sheetmetal Mode?

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Question:

When will auto-round be incorporated into the sheet metal mode?

Dustin Strickland, RockTenn

Answered by: Jack Sullivan (PTC)

There aren’t any Product Ideas in the PTC Community for this functionality.  PTC Product Management uses the Product Idea list as one method to prioritize enhancements.  I would recommend creating a Product Idea for this enhancement so that other customers can vote on it.

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Categories: 2015 Spring, Creo Parametric, Events, Q&A, Sheetmetal

Replacing components in an assembly using Pro/PROGRAM

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Question

When replacing components in an assembly that was made by Pro/PROGRAM, how do you manage references and make sure you get rid of references to parts that no longer exist in the assembly?

by Steven Goulet, JTEKT/KOYO

Answered by Gavin B. Rumble, PE
Assuming you are not using Pro/Notebook (Layouts), then you will need to research, understand, and edit/modify as follows in the model (both assemblies and parts):
First, check the Program…Tools tab>Model Intent>Program…which has an INPUT section, RELATIONS section, EXECUTE section, and ADDS section.  Any references to your deleted and/or added model need to be addressed.  The INPUT section really is just a Parameter declaration and is not component specific so it usually won’t cause you problems. The RELATIONS are accessible from either the Program editor or the standard RELATIONS editor. Look for references to your deleted model such as D41 = D18:39.  The EXECUTE section is misnamed…it should be called “pass the parameter”, as it drives parameter values from the current assembly down into a sub-assembly or part.  Delete or re-write these commands to accommodate the model replacement.  Finally, search (Ctrl-F) the ADDS to see if the component has Program code wrapped around it (such as and IF and ENDIF).  These will need to be deleted and later recreated (if required) for the new component.
Now that the Program is “neutered” with respect to the component swap, make your assembly changes as you normally would.
As noted above in step one, re-create the desired Program code to then properly drive the new model(s).
It should be said that the above is not for the faint of heart…it gets very complicated sometimes.
Finally, it should also be said that the Program capabilities themselves can sometimes be used to achieve such a component swap.  Family Tables and Interchange assemblies required.

 

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Categories: 2015 Spring, Assembly, Creo Parametric, Events, Q&A

What are all the capabilities of macros in Creo?

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Question

…and, what are the newest macro capabilities?

by Jody Woods, JTEKT

Answered by Gavin B. Rumble, PE
It depends on what you are referring to as MACROS.  Creo can automate tasks using VBA, Toolkit, J-Link, and Web Link, but these are all beyond the scope of a Q&A. You can also automate many tasks using MAPKEYS as follows in your models (both assemblies and parts) by recording command keystrokes:

Select File, Options, then Environment, and Mapkey Settings. Record your commands and keystrokes to a new named Mapkey, then save the Mapkey(s) to a text file in your working directory named config.pro. Next time you start Creo it will read this file and enable this Mapkey. Alternately, you can copy and paste the Mapkey text into a Config.pro file in your Personal User directory or into the Creo loadpoint (typically C:\Program Files\PTC\Creo 3.0\F000\Common Files\text). It is best not to attempt to include graphics screen model picks as they may fail when the model is different or when you resize your screen.

Generally, any command that you can select from the menus and ribbon (and even some older commands that you can no longer find) can be recorded to reduce command steps and clicks.

Be creative, anything you do repeatedly should be considered for a Mapkey.

Record your own…for some reason they are always easier to remember. You can actually “write” a Mapkey in Notepad, but the syntax is very cryptic and prone to failure.

Name the Mapkey with mnemonics like VF for View Front, END for Erase Not Displayed, DF to convert a Dimension to a Fraction, etc. Remember, if you have an existing Mapkey called DF, do not create a new one called DFV (Display Front View?)…the shorter one will always execute first before you can even enter the “V”.

Ask you friends what they are doing…sometimes one Mapkey will make your day more productive. Share yours…Mapkeys should not be kept secret.

I don’t know of any enhancements to Mapkey functionality in Creo…shout out if you do.

 

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Categories: 2015 Spring, Creo Parametric, Events, Q&A