How do I query for just the inside surfaces?

fastwayjim

For example, I have a pipe network. I want to query for all of the inside surfaces of the pipe, and I don't want the outside surfaces or the end faces of the pipes.

Another example: I have a cavity (like a mold tool), and I want to query for just the inner surfaces.

Thanks!

kevin_o_toole_1

qTangentConnectedFaces and a few query functions below it may be useful. The question is how to you want to define the "outside". 

If you have a query for the face(s) or edge(s) on the border (all ends of pipe, surface bounding the cavity), you can use qFaceOrEdgeBoundedFaces, or qLoopBoundedFaces.

If the inner surfaces on the pip network are all tangent (e.g. filletted) and the edges are all squared, you could use qTangentConnectedFaces.

If the cavity is specifically hole-like (a hole with countersink-like or counterbore-like additions), you could use qHoleFaces.


Probably what you'd really like is something which figures out "inside" and "outside" in your context without additional work...something smart like qHoleFaces, but which works for any pipe/tunnel network. That doesn't exist yet but seems like a reasonable thing to eventually add to std.

kevin_o_toole_1

qTangentConnectedFaces and a few query functions below it may be useful. The question is how to you want to define the "outside". 

If you have a query for the face(s) or edge(s) on the border (all ends of pipe, surface bounding the cavity), you can use qFaceOrEdgeBoundedFaces, or qLoopBoundedFaces.

If the inner surfaces on the pip network are all tangent (e.g. filletted) and the edges are all squared, you could use qTangentConnectedFaces.

If the cavity is specifically hole-like (a hole with countersink-like or counterbore-like additions), you could use qHoleFaces.


Probably what you'd really like is something which figures out "inside" and "outside" in your context without additional work...something smart like qHoleFaces, but which works for any pipe/tunnel network. That doesn't exist yet but seems like a reasonable thing to eventually add to std.

fastwayjim

Great, thanks!

Ya, I imagine using it in multiple contexts right now, so defining "inside" and "outside" intelligently through logic would be ideal, but I'm not sure how to do that. Perhaps, is there a way to create a surface normal vector, and check to see if it intersects with any other faces? Yes = Inside, No = Outside.

However, for the specific use cases I can think of, I think qTangentConnectedFaces will work, and I will just have the user select "one of the interior faces". For both mold and fluid flow geometry, the prudent designer would have no sharp edges...