Difference between revisions of "System Panel"

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Revision as of 13:39, 28 August 2013

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The System Panel

The System panel provides a real-world framework on which to load Flowcode components that compliments the Dashboard Panel. It is designed to show the physical representation of real world components during simulation.

Overview

The System Panel is opened by selecting it in the View menu.

When it opens, you see a central coloured square, called the Table top, set against a coloured background. The colours or images of both are set in the General Options. Gen Panel General Options 01.png

The System panel has a Shapes toolbar running vertically down the left-hand side, and a Controls toolbar running horizontally across the top.

Components can be added to the System panel from the Components Toolbar. Then, input devices like switches can be operated to control the progress of the simulation, while output devices, like LEDs show the result.


Table top

The Table top provides a 'surface' on which components are placed. It is a flat plane that objects can be placed on. When locked to the Table top, all objects sit on top of it and interact as solid objects.

It is also useful as a surface for shadows, giving a sense of depth and orientation. The rotate mode of the camera treats the table top as the 'ground' and keeps the camera orientated with this in mind.

Camera control

The camera (viewpoint) can be panned or rotated around different axes using the three icons shown.

These work in conjunction with the Ctrl, Shift and Alt keys and with the three coloured arrow heads that show the camera orientation.

To move and control the camera:

  • Hold down the Ctrl key and click-drag the mouse to move the camera eye (the position of the camera).
  • Hold down both the Ctrl and Shift keys and click-drag the mouse to move the camera target (the view of the camera).
  • Hold down Alt and click anywhere on the panel to move the camera over that point or object (move the camera to the object).


Zoom

Gen Panel Camera Zoom.png There is also a zoom facility, operated by pressing the Ctrl key and moving the cursor over the viewpoint icon. Clicking the mouse button in this and dragging downwards causes the view to zoom out. Dragging upwards causes the view to zoom in. The same functionality can be achieved by holding Ctrl and using the mouse wheel.

Axis alignment

The coloured arrows in the top left corner of the panel show the orientation of the camera. You can click any of these arrows to reset the view to look in that axis.

For example, clicking on the blue arrow gives a top-down view – looking down the ‘Z’ axis. Clicking on one of the other coloured arrows rotates the object about that axis.


Hint:

The coordinates of the cursor are shown in the status bar at the bottom of the screen. Using this information can help you to position objects.
First of all, move the cursor to the desired position, to find its coordinates. Then enter these into the 'Position' properties of the object in the Properties Panel.

Selecting items

Multiple items can be selected:

  • By holding down the Shift key and then clicking on a number of items, one after the other;
  • By left-clicking the mouse button and dragging over the items.

They can then be grouped:

  • By clicking on the 'Group' icon. Gen Panel Object Group.png
  • By selecting the 'Group' option from the ‘Selection’ menu which appears when you click the right-hand mouse button.

In this way, complex nested structures can be assembled from a number of parts. To ungroup, select the object and then click on the same icon.


Shapes toolbar

Gen Panel Shapes Toolbar 01.png

At the top is a colour selector, which sets the colour of any shape added to the work area. By clicking on the down-arrow, one of a wide range of colours can be selected.

Below that there is a button to swap between 2D and 3D shapes on the toolbar, this allows you to quickly and easily access different shapes and differentiate the 2D and 3D shapes with ease as they are separated into different sections. All objects can be dragged between the Dashboard and System panel and dropped in the required position, although the 3D shapes cannot be found on the Dashboard Panel shapes toolbar.


Under the 2D section there is a 'Text' icon, used to 'drag and drop' a single row of alphanumeric characters onto the work area. Afterwards, you can select it, by clicking on it, and configure it using the Properties Panel. In particular, when added, you can edit the default text displayed using the bottom ‘Text’ control on the Properties panel. As well as text, there are also a few two-dimensional shapes available, including; Ellipse (circle), Rectangle, Rounded Rectangle and Line.


The remaining icons under the 3D section allow you to add a variety of three-dimensional shapes to the work area. Each takes the colour chosen in the colour selector at the top. Each shape can be configured using the Properties Panel, to determine the position, scale, rotation and even the colour of the shape.


Controls toolbar

Moving objects

The first four controls operate on the size, position and rotation of the component.

Component controls

Gen Panel Object Move.png Move allows you to move the selected object around the work area.

Gen Panel Object Stretch.png Stretch allows you to re-position a single point on an item. When you select an object and click on this control, pink anchors appear on the object. Selecting one of these allows it to be moved to a new position on the work area. The effect is to change the appearance, size or rotation of the object.

Gen Panel Object Scale.png Scale allows you to change the size of the object. After selecting an object and clicking on this control, a number of blue anchors appear on the object. Any of these can be dragged to re-size that particular dimension of the object. (Handles at the corners affect size in two dimensions.)

Gen Panel Object Rotate.png Rotate allows you to rotate an object. After selecting it and clicking on this control, a number of yellow anchors appear on the object. These allow the object to be rotated around different axes. Corner anchors will spin the object.

Controlling the camera

The next three controls determine the camera (viewpoint) behavior.

Camera controls

Gen Panel Camera Pan.png Pan allows the camera to pan left / right / up / down.

Gen Panel Camera Rotate.png Rotate allows the camera to rotate assuming the table top is the ground.

Gen Panel Camera Orbit.png Orbit third allows the camera to rotate without considering the table top.

General Options

The next control determines what happens when two objects ‘collide‘, with respect to the camera view. There are 3 options available:

Gen Panel Object Collision Move Through.png Move Through ignores collision by moving through the colliding object and ignoring it completely.

Gen Panel Object Collision Move Around.png Move Around avoids collision by moving the object around the colliding object. Note: this is the default option set by Flowcode.

Gen Panel Object Collision Move Over.png Move Over avoids collision by moving the object over the colliding object.


Gen Panel Camera Align.png The Align Axis control is used to mirror the axis of the selected object, this follows the alignment of the component axis, even when being manipulated and rotated


The next two controls are used to set properties for the whole panel.

Gen Panel Tools 01.png The first control, 'Tools' allows you to lock movement of objects:

  • To the grid,
  • To other objects,
  • To the table-top

The grid can be re-sized and made visible in a range of colors via this control.


Gen Panel General Options 01.png The second control, 'General Options' is used to:

  • Set the colour or image of the display;
  • Set the number of views, allowing, for example, plan and elevation views of a component;
  • Set the level of detail of all the displays.


Multiple views

By selecting multiple views in the 'General Options' several camera angles can be displayed on the same image, enabling orthographic design of the system. Up to four views can be shown.


Video instructions

Introduction to the System Panel video

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