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Design Table/Family Table App Interest?
mbattistello
Member, Developers Posts: 51 ✭✭
I see many posts about the need for design table/family table capabilities. The use case is to create a master model and then be able to generate variants of the model based on parameters. A simple example could be a o-ring that varies in diameter and thickness with each variant having a unique part number.
Ive prototyped an App for this that uses the API interfaces to build out the variants. Im wondering if there is interest in this? Id also love feedback on my approach.
Here is what I was thinking.
1. Google Sheets connect app approach. Would work similar to the OnShape BOM Google Sheets app.
2. You would first model your part in a Part Studio and parameterize it as needed.
3. Google Sheet would connect to OnShape and extract that parameters into the spreadsheet. It would give you a table that you could complete. You would input the values you want for the parameters and also a field to put in a part number.
4. The app would then clone the master model into a new tab/element. It would then push the updated parameter values to the tab. This process would continue thru the variants you had identified in the spreadsheet.
5. This would give you a single document, ex O-Rings, and then a separate Part Studio for each variant.
Im interested in feedback on the approach and usefulness of this.
A couple risks/concerns I have so far,
1. Is there a limit on number of tabs/elements in document? A part with tons of variants, 100s-1000s, might have issues.
2. Is replicating the master model into separate tabs/elements the right approach? Is it possible/better to generate new docs for each variant and then build them as parent/child so that if you need to update the master model all the children get the update?
3. I dont know how this would scale up to the use case where there is a single, central repository, and then everyone uses it but is given the capability to put in their own PNs (this was a common thread in the prev discussions).
Ive prototyped an App for this that uses the API interfaces to build out the variants. Im wondering if there is interest in this? Id also love feedback on my approach.
Here is what I was thinking.
1. Google Sheets connect app approach. Would work similar to the OnShape BOM Google Sheets app.
2. You would first model your part in a Part Studio and parameterize it as needed.
3. Google Sheet would connect to OnShape and extract that parameters into the spreadsheet. It would give you a table that you could complete. You would input the values you want for the parameters and also a field to put in a part number.
4. The app would then clone the master model into a new tab/element. It would then push the updated parameter values to the tab. This process would continue thru the variants you had identified in the spreadsheet.
5. This would give you a single document, ex O-Rings, and then a separate Part Studio for each variant.
Im interested in feedback on the approach and usefulness of this.
A couple risks/concerns I have so far,
1. Is there a limit on number of tabs/elements in document? A part with tons of variants, 100s-1000s, might have issues.
2. Is replicating the master model into separate tabs/elements the right approach? Is it possible/better to generate new docs for each variant and then build them as parent/child so that if you need to update the master model all the children get the update?
3. I dont know how this would scale up to the use case where there is a single, central repository, and then everyone uses it but is given the capability to put in their own PNs (this was a common thread in the prev discussions).
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Best Answer
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mbattistello
Member, Developers Posts: 51 ✭✭
_Dave_, Yes. Im using parameters and variables to mean the same thing.
Ive had to modify my approach a little. Looks like you cant easily Duplicate a element/tab with the API so I am taking the approach where for each variant a Parasolid is created and imported as you change the variables. This gives you a document with Master part, that is driven by variables, and then separate tabs for each of the variants. This seems to work pretty well since you can now go to add the part in an assembly and first search by its name and then get all the variants with in it.
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Answers
I'm also interested in the ability to auto-generate drawings from these different configurations, would this even be possible?
Ive had to modify my approach a little. Looks like you cant easily Duplicate a element/tab with the API so I am taking the approach where for each variant a Parasolid is created and imported as you change the variables. This gives you a document with Master part, that is driven by variables, and then separate tabs for each of the variants. This seems to work pretty well since you can now go to add the part in an assembly and first search by its name and then get all the variants with in it.
I was generating different tabs so that you could manage the entire family of parts in a single file and so that you be able to assign different PNs and attributes to each so your BOM will show them.
In the screenshot below all the blocks are from the same document. Im just varying the dimensions on each (and the color just so its more visible). Each variant is a separate tab based on the "master" part.
Will using versions given you a similar affect?
The on issue with this is that if you need to update the master model and then update the variants then any place you are using that individual variant breaks. You can see what with the PN-10x10x35 in red.I deleted it and then generated it again but its a new element so the old links break. I think with your approach of versions this can be avoided as you can just update the link to the new version.
When they are all in once workspace and then you snap a version to be able to use them, new configs would require regeneration and a new version.. Linking them becomes a big messy since V1 might have 5 configs but V2 has those 5 plus the new ones you built.. so it becomes hard to discern which Version to pick when you might just want the first Config, which is identical in both V1 and V2...
Is there an API for generating versions? I looked but didnt see anything.