Synchronous Technology In Solid Edge ST3 – Part 6
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When starting to model the tree I chose to start modeling in the synchronous mode and not the ordered model. There was a reason for that. Suppose I had created the stem of the tree in ordered mode and then switched to synchronous mode to create the branches, I would not be able to grow the branches out of the stem because the stem itself would be missing from the model. If you remember, when you switch to synchronous mode, the ordered features disappear. This is because the software first calculates the synchronous features all at once (synchronously) to come up with a closed solid. Thereafter it calculates the ordered features one by one in sequential order and appends them to the solid model to end up with the final solid.
One way to look at this is to consider the synchronous features in the feature tree as one big mammoth feature in an otherwise traditional history based feature tree. This mammoth feature can reside only at the start of the feature tree. And when you are editing that feature, all other features below it are unavailable, just like in any traditional history based parametric modeling system. If you are able to grasp this concept then I guess you have understood the gist of Synchronous Technology as it has been implemented in Solid Edge ST3.
If you have a history based parametric model and want to modify it using direct modeling in Solid Edge ST3, you need to decide up to which ordered feature you wish to convert to synchronous. Note that this is an irreversible process since once you move an ordered feature to the synchronous side, you cannot bring it back. Also you need to do this with some thought because you need to know which features you need to move to the synchronous side. For example, you cannot leave an ordered feature sitting on the ordered side of the tree and hope to use a reference to in on the synchronous side, because that ordered feature will not be available to you when you are working on the synchronous side of the feature tree.
Which begs the question. Is the opposite possible? I mean can I move an ordered feature to the synchronous side of the feature and still continue to reference it in the ordered side? I will answer that question in the next part of this series.
Part 7 >>