Linear Movement Handle

The Linear Movement handle allows you to move the Graphical Selection constrained in the direction of the linear handle axis. The size of each step of the movement is defined by the current movement increment.

Dragging a linear handle with the left mouse button moves the Locator Handle and Graphical Selection in the direction of the linear handle.

To initiate a linear drag, press the left mouse button down over one of the linear movement handles. With the left button still pressed, moving the mouse drags the Graphical Selection constrained in the selected direction, in steps defined by the movement increment.

Moving one Movement Increment at a Time

If the movement increment is small relative to the magnification of the 3D view, it can be difficult to move the mouse freehand to a precise displacement from the Locator Handle’s original position. Fine control over positioning can be achieved by dragging with a linear handle so that it is close to the required position then, while continuing to hold down the mouse button, press the plus (+) or minus (-) key on the numeric keypad. This moves the Graphical Selection by one movement increment in the direction of the linear handle if + is pressed, or in the opposite direction if - is pressed.

Using the arrow keys in this way moves the Graphical Selection by 0.1 of the current movement increment for each press of the key.

Feedback

When moving a selection in a constrained direction, the Locator Handle changes to a cut-down version of the full handle to show the direction of movement, as shown below. The current World position of the Locator Handle is displayed on the status bar, and an offset from the original position of the handle is displayed on the 3D View.

As the mouse moves over a linear handle, the pointer symbol changes to the linear drag pointer.

A Linear Handle has the following movement operations on its shortcut menu:

Enter Valueº

This command shows the following form:

The field corresponding to the selected axis is activated for input. In this case, entering 2500 in the X field tells the Graphical Selection to move by 2500mm in the X direction of the Locator Handle.

Align with Featureº

Repositioning a Graphical Selection to align with a Nozzle using the linear handle and feature alignment.

This method allows you to position the Graphical Selection in relation to another object on the screen, but forces the Graphical Selection to move only along the selected axis. The sequence of operations is as follows:

1. Make a Graphical Selection.

2. (Optional) Position the Locator Handle at the required datum position.

3. Select Align with Feature on the linear handle .

4. Move the mouse to the target feature. This highlights the target feature, and the mouse pointer changes shape to indicate that the Graphical Selection will be aligned with the target position if the mouse button is clicked.

5. Click the left mouse button to move the Graphical Selection to the target position.

Linear drag can align with a point feature or a line feature.

Point feature Alignment

When positioning the Graphical Selection to a point feature, the origin of the Locator Handle is aligned with the target point such that the target point is projected onto the line of movement.

This situation is illustrated below (in two dimensions):

Alignment with a Line or P-line Feature

There are two cases to consider:

• Selected line feature is orthogonal to the line of movement

If the line selected line feature is orthogonal to the line of movement, then the feature line is treated as a feature point. Any position along the feature line projects onto the same point on the movement line.

• Selected line feature not orthogonal to the line of movement

If the line selected line feature is not orthogonal to the line of movement, then the intersection of the extended feature line with the line of movement becomes the new Locator Handle origin position. If the extended feature line and the movement line do not intersect in 3D, then the point chosen is the nearest point on the line of movement to the extended feature line.

This situation is illustrated below (in two dimensions):

Alignment with a P-point Feature

There are two cases to consider:

• P-point as point feature

A P-point feature may be treated as a point feature, and works as described above for points.

• P-point as a Line feature

A P-point has a direction, which is indicated by the arrow on a P-point feature symbol. If the mouse pointer is moved over the P-point arrow, then the intersection of the P-point direction with the line of movement becomes the new Locator Handle origin position. If the P-point direction and the movement line do not intersect in 3D, then the point chosen is the nearest point on the line of movement to a line projected from the P-point position in the P-point direction.

The following pictures illustrate the difference between P-point as a point and P-point as a line:

Mouse over P-point position

Mouse over P-point arrow

Snap To Point

Snap To Point allows the Graphical Selection to be moved to a Point feature. The Graphical Selection is not constrained to move along the direction of the Linear Handle. This is described in Positioning and Orientation Using the Edit Menu.

Move Handle

The Move Handle submenu provides the same movement commands as the main Linear Handle menu, but these commands move the Locator Handle only. They do not move the Graphical Selection.

The Locator Handle may be moved independently of the Graphical Selection in order to change the datum position for the next operation on the Graphical Selection.