The boundary patch feature generates a planar or 3D surface from a closed 2D sketch, a closed boundary, or a mixture of both. The patches default to contact (G0), but can have edge conditions of tangent (G1) or smooth (G2) applied to each nonsketch edge in the Condition list.
You can enable feature preview to view the results before creating the patch.
You can define the boundary by selecting edges that define a closed loop. Because continuous edges must have the same edge condition, all selected surface edges that are tangent or continuous with the previous item merge. Chaining stops at the first non-tangent selection, even if they are stitched into a single surface.
The OK command is enabled once a closed loop is defined so that you can select additional loops. By selecting additional loops, you can define inner and outer loops to create islands in the surface. If you select a planar region, you cannot select additional loops.
You can apply edge conditions to each nonsketch edge in the selection set for a loop. By default, all boundary segments are G0. You can apply G1 or G2 conditions to any nonsketch edges only if they have a single adjacent face. Boundary edges can include a mixture of G0, G1, and G2 conditions.
The selected edge in the following image is an example of geometry that does not support alternate boundary conditions.
Settings for OMP_NUM_THREADS environment variable
Although the Inventor default is expected to be the best choice, in some cases the performance of the Boundary Patch command can be improved by reducing the value of the OMP_NUM_THREADS environment variable. To disable multi-threading in Boundary Patch entirely, set OMP_NUM_THREADS to 1. You can set the OMP_NUM_THREADS environment variable from a command prompt or the Control Panel.
Multi-Threading
The Boundary Patch feature takes advantage of multi-threading on machines with more than one processor or with a multi-core processor. It uses multi-threading based upon the OMP_NUM_THREADS environment variable. The Inventor installer sets this variable if it is not already defined.
You can edit the value of this variable to influence the number of threads used by Boundary Patch. By default, the Inventor installer sets the value to match the number of logical processors on the machine.
Tips for working with boundary patches
- For best results, stitch boundary patches to adjacent surfaces before creating features, such as sculpt, shell, and thicken/offset.
- In the construction environment, the Boundary Patch command is not parametric. Some of the tangent conditions supported in the part environment are not supported in the construction environment.
- If you create a boundary patch with tangent constraints, avoid using supporting faces that are all perpendicular to one single imaginary plane. An angle other than 90 degrees is expected.
- Avoid creating a boundary patch on construction geometry that consists of a single segment closed curve (circle, ellipse, or closed spline).