Curve Editor

The Curve Editor tab enables you to create and edit patterns and boundaries. The assumption is that you extract curves from the model, such as at surface boundaries, and then modify the curve to create the exact boundary/pattern you need.

To display the Curve Editor tab click:

• Boundary tab > Edit panel > Curve Editor
• Pattern tab > Edit panel > Curve Editor

This tab contains the following:

Create panel

• Collect — Click to copy the selected curves into the active entity (pattern or boundary).
• Points — Click to create new points. The location of the points are defined either interactively or by entering coordinates using or and in the Status bar. The coordinates of the first point is an absolute value.
• Lines — Select an option from the Lines menu to create new lines. You can define the lines either interactively or by entering coordinates.
• Circles — Select an option from the Circles & Arcs menu to create new arcs or complete circles. You can define the arcs and circles either interactively or by entering coordinates.
• Curves — Select an option from the Curves menu to create Bézier curves, composite curves, ellipses, spirals, helices or planar sections.
• Text — Select an option from the Text menu to create wireframe text in the graphics window.

Edit panel

• Delete Selected — Click to delete the selected items, curve segments, workplanes, or points.
• Reverse Selected — Click to reverse the direction of the selected items.
• Reorder Segments — Click to list all the curve segments which enables you to change the order of the segments in a boundary or pattern.
• Limits — Select an option from the Limits menu to control how to limit or extend curves.
• Joins — Select an option from the Joins menu to either close open segments or join the end of one segment to the end of another.
• Segment — Select an option from the Segment menu to cut or merge curves.
• Curve Fitting — Select an option from the Curve Fitting menu to convert selected curve segments to a specific type of curve.
• Transformations — Select an option from the Transformations menu to move, rotate, scale, mirror, or offset curves.
• Projections — Select an option from the Projections list to determine how to project a curve.

Selection panel

• Type — Select an option from the Type list to control how to select the curves to edit. The selected curves are yellow. The available curves are orange.

History panel

• Undo — Select to revert to what it was before the last change. You can undo all the operations done since the Curve Editor tab was displayed for this entity.
• Redo — Select to reinstate the edit you have just undone. You can redo all the operations done since the Curve Editor tab was displayed for this entity.

Utilities panel

• Options — Click to display the Options dialog with the Curve Fitting Tolerances page displayed.

Draw panel

• Instrumentation — All curves have a direction. If you instrument a curve, it places an arrow on each segment (pointing towards the end of the segment) and an X at the end of each segment.

  

• Colour — Click to change the colour of the selected segments. This displays a standard Windows colour dialog, selecting a colour here changes the colour of the selected curves. If no segments are selected, this option sets the default colour for all new segments.

  This works only for patterns and not for boundaries.

Finish panel

• Accept — Click to accept all the created curves and close the Curve Editor tab.
• Cancel — Click to delete all the created curves and close the Curve Editor tab.