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Using beams in assembly, can you pull out total lengths

Stefan_DMSStefan_DMS Member Posts: 48 PRO
Hi,

I have been working on some designs that use beams features to create a frame. We need to get total lengths of each of the profiles used in the design to order stock material.
I have had to do this by manually inputting into the description property for each part, with the profile and length, and export out the full BOM to calculate and sum up the total amount of each profile in excel.

Is there a way that the is an assembly feature that can pull information from the part studio - ideally the specific beams function to calculate the total length of profiles. (this seems like the tough way around)?

The other way is to follow the same way I did it, is that the beams feature actually writes to the part property with the profile and length of the beam. Ideally to a specific custom property or to the description. 

For instance: When you have a Beams feature it would write in the property:
Part is a 1 1/2 tube 083 wall thickness with a 200-inch length, it would input: 1.5" - 0.083" - 200"
Part is a 50mm square box section 2mm wall section 150mm length, it would input: 50mm - 2mm - 150mm

Or possibly the profile would match the profile (whether it was iso or ANSI) and the length dimension would follow the document. ie the first example would input: 1.5" - 0.083" - 5080mm

Then you can just export the BOM with all the notation and sum in excel for total lengths, or again have a custom assembly feature that reads all the properties and does all the summing. 

This is all a dream idea, but maybe someone with a little feature scripting skills could come up with a better way of doing it. 

Thoughts?

Comments

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    konstantin_shiriazdanovkonstantin_shiriazdanov Member Posts: 1,221 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited March 2019
    Since custom properties are not public the functionality of setting it by the feature can't be built in into public features, each pro user would need to copy and modify it by himself according to his own custom property ID.
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