From the Preferences dialog, you can access various MotionView options for your model.
Starting in version 2021.2, all client preferences are available in a single dialog which
can be invoked from File > Preferences.
Appearance
Set various display options for MotionView.
From the Preferences dialog, select Appearance. Figure 1. Preferences - MotionView - Appearance
The following options are available:
Colors
To change the color of one of the following
features, click on a color box, select a new color from the palette, and click
OK.
Mesh lines
Changes the mesh line color of the graphics.
Global X/Y/Z Axis
Changes the colors of the global X, Y, and Z axes.
Parametric field background
Changes the background color of all parametric fields.
Show
Global axes
The global axes can be displayed in the lower left corner of the MotionView window. Click the Global
axes check box to toggle the display of the axes on or off.
Model Title
The model title can be displayed at the top of the window. Click the
Model Title check box to toggle the display of the title
on or off.
Image and Video Capture
Select a color setting for the background/foreground
during image and video capture.
Auto
Maintain onscreen color
View Cube
Select from the various View Cube display
options:
Show view cube
Use this option to set the visibility of the view cube. The view cube can be
set to be visible
Always|Never|Mouseover. When
set to Mouseover, the view cube is visible when the mouse is over its
position.
Position
Set the location of the view cube. The view cube can be positioned in the
Lower Left | Lower Right | Upper
Left | Upper Right corner of the modeling window.
Show axis arrows
Set the arrow pointer visibility of the Global Axis triad.
Geometry
Sets the shape of the view cube. Chamfered Cube |
Simple Cube. The Chamfered Cube offers additional view
orientation choices than the Simple Cube.
Show view cube rotators
Use this option to set the visibility of the view cube rotators. The view
cube rotators can be set to be visible
Always|Never|Mouseover. The
rotators can be used to rotate the views both in plane or about the plane of
modeling window.
Show view cube reflectors
The reflectors can be used to set the view to the planes that are hidden. The
reflectors can be set to be visible Always |
Never | Mouseover.
View cube rotators increment angle
Angle in degrees that the view would rotate when using the rotators.
View Cube Front Face Orientation
Defines the Front face direction of the View cube. The available choices
indicate the plane of the global the front face of the cube would be parallel
to.
For example, -YZ would make the Front face parallel
to the YZ plane with the side along the direction perpendicular to the plane
indicated by the negative sign (clockwise rotation of Y towards Z) imagining the
triad at the center of the cube.
General
Select Check Model and Build Model options for MotionView.
From the Preferences dialog, select General. Figure 2. Preferences - MotionView - General
Check Model
The Check Model options allow you to select which information from the model file will be
displayed when the Check Model tool is run.
Select the check box next to one of the available options to include this information in
the Check Model dialog (which is displayed after the check of the model
is completed). The information for each activated option will be displayed in its own
tab.
Option
Description
Check model on opening
Checks the model immediately upon opening a model. When this check is off,
the model is not checked for errors upon opening.
General model information
This option provides general information about the model. The information
contains the count of each type of entity apart from the number of inactive system
or analyses. Figure 3.
Degrees of freedom
Provides degrees of freedom information. The total DOF is calculated by
including all DOFs contributed by bodies and subtracting DOFs removed by
constraints:
Model DOFs = DOFbodies -
DOFconstraints
Refer to the DOF Tables section
below for details on body and constraint DOF contribution. Figure 4.
Note: The DOF calculation does not consider
redundant constraints.
List files used
This option lists the reference files that the model uses for flex bodies,
graphics, and curves.
Suspect data
This option captures possible suspect data that could cause problems during
solution. The suspect data could include:
Ratio between largest and smallest mass
Zero stiffness for SpringDamper
Free bodies
Use entity labels in messages
With this option turned on, the messages posted in the message log will refer
to MotionView entities by their label. Otherwise, the
message will refer to the entities by the variable names.
Note: The Error Message and Warning
Messages options are automatically displayed in the Message Log and will always
be active, therefore these options have been disabled in this dialog.
Degree of Freedom Tables
Body Type
Adds DOF
Rigid body
6
Point mass body
3
Flex body - CMS
Number of active modes in the flex body
NLFE body
12 x number of points defining the NLFE body
Polybeam body
6 x number of points defining the Polybeam
Joints Type
Removes Translation DOF
Removes Rotation DOF
Total DOF Removed
Atpoint
3
0
3
Inline
2
0
2
Inplane
1
0
1
Orientation
0
3
3
Parallel Axis
0
2
2
Perpendicular
0
1
1
Ball
3
0
3
Constant Velocity
3
1
4
Cylindrical
2
2
4
Fixed
3
3
6
Planar
1
2
3
Point to Curve
2
0
2
Revolute
3
2
5
Translational
2
3
5
Universal
3
1
4
Advanced Joints Type
Removes Translation DOF
Removes Rotation DOF
Total DOF Removed
Point to Curve
2
0
2
Curve to Curve
1
2
3
Point to Surface
2
3
5
Curve to Surface
2
3
5
Surface to Surface
2
3
5
Point to Deformable Curve
1
3
4
Build Model
The Build Model options allow you to control how shared instances should be handled while
modifying them and enable saving commands in the Python window to a log file.
Option
Description
Use updated symmetry
Use true symmetric inertia properties for body pairs. When off, the product
of inertia values of the follower side has the same values as on the leading
side.
Break shared instance when modified
Use this option to control how shared instances should be handled while
modifying them:
This option is activated by default, indicating that any modification to a
shared instances will result in a separate definition.
Deactivate this option to retain the sharing and apply a change to one
instance to the other shared instances also.
See the Managing Shared Definitions topic for additional
information.
Determine the light sources to be used for illuminating graphics in
MotionView.
From the Preferences dialog, select Lighting Figure 5. Preferences - MotionView - Lighting
There are two lighting modes:
Multiple Lights
Use the standard placement of multiple lights. The following option is
available:
Shininess
Use the slider bar to set the shininess (0-128).
Single Light
Specify the shininess, direction, and specularity of the light. Any combination of
light properties may be used to light the graphic. Figure 6.
Shininess
Use the slider bar to set the shininess
(0-128).
Vertical
Use the slider bar to set the vertical
direction of the light.
Horizontal
Use the slider bar to set the horizontal
direction of the light.
Specular Color
The specular color defines the color reflected
back on shiny surfaces. To change the color of the graphic, click on the
color box, select a new color from the palette, and click
OK
Tip: To disable specular highlighting, set the
Specular Color to black.
Visualization
Set the zoom factor and rotation angle options for MotionView.
From the Preferences dialog, select Visualization Figure 7. Preferences - MotionView - Visualization
The options available include:
Zoom factor
Specifies the multiplication factor that is used to increase or decrease the
scale of the current view while zooming using the scroll wheel. The default is
1.20.
Rotation Angle
Specifies the increment (in degrees) that will be used when rotating a model
using the view controls toolbar. The default is 15.
is run.
