CURRENT

Purpose:

This function allows the user to predefine the current subpicture to which subsequent user-added geometric information will belong to.

When adding geometric information to the drawing, the structural positioning, that means, which subpicture the added information will belong to, depends on what kind of information that are to be added and the circumstances under which the adding is taking place. Some information, like dimensioning components, will always belong to the same structure as the (first) item involved in the calculations. In other situations, like restoring of subpictures, the user is explicitly prompted to indicate the owner of the subpicture.

There are still other situations, where the structural positioning depends on the current subpicture, that means, the owner structure is supposed to have been defined in advance. This function allows the user to predefine the current subpicture in such situations and thereby add information to any part of the drawing. A subpicture can be made current either by indicating an existing subpicture or by creating a new one. The current drawing scale will always equal the scale of this subpicture. It is possible to redefine the drawing scale to use when new views (level-1 subpictures) are created. In this case a new view with this scale will be created and made current, independently of what subpicture that was current before this operation. The current subpicture is modal, that means, it is valid until it is redefined by the user.

If no information about the current subpicture has been given by the user, the system will create a default structure and make this structure the current one. It is always possible to change the drawing structure at a later stage by using the functions Split Subpicture and Regroup Subpicture.

The current subpicture structure may also be set to Automatic. This means that there is no predefined current subpicture; it must be derived each time the information is added. The automatic structural positioning may roughly be derived in two ways, depending on the circumstances. In most cases where the user has the possibility to indicate the geometric position of the information, by using the cursor, this position is used to derive the structural position by somehow finding the "closest" subpicture. In the rest of the cases, in which there always exists some kind of "original", this original will define the structural position. If the current subpicture is set to automatic, the current scale can of course not be predefined but will equal the scale of the subpicture, derived as above.

Below, all Geometric-Information-Adding functions that rely on the current subpicture information, will be listed. Furthermore, the way to find the structural positioning when the current structure is set to automatic is given.

Instructions:

1. In the Tools menu, click Subpicture, then Current.

   Information about the current subpicture will be reported and a multiple choice dialog containing the following alternatives will show:

   • Existing component

   • New subpicture (auto)

   • New subpicture (manual)

   • New view

   • Automatic

2. Existing component

   The subpicture to become the current one is indicated by the user.

3. New subpicture (auto)

   A new subpicture, with level decided by the system, will be created and made the current one. The owner of the new subpicture is indicated by the user. If the owner contains model information, a new component will be created, otherwise a subview.

4. New subpicture (manual)

   A new subpicture, with level decided by the user, will be created and made the current one. The owner of the new subpicture is indicated by the user. To create a new view, click Options here. Depending on the level of the owner, a new view, subview or component will be created. If a new view is created, the scale will be fetched from the Default Keyword PICT_DEF_SCALE.

5. New view

   A new view will be created and made the current one. The scale of the view is supplied by the user (the current scale is proposed).

6. Automatic

   The current subpicture will be derived automatically each time it is needed.

Options:

None.

Result:

The current subpicture will be redefined, according to user’s action.