Graphical Selection

Select and deselect entities to modify with other HyperWorks CFD tools. Selected entities are outlined to indicate their selection state.

Hover over an entity to highlight it.

In idle mode, entities can be selected from either the modeling window or the browser area. Selecting an entity in the modeling window automatically selects the corresponding entity in the browser and vice versa.

When working in a tool, entities should be selected from the modeling window.

Entity Selectors

Use entity selectors to specify which type of entity you are able to select.

Entity selectors act as a filter by limiting your selection to a single entity type in the modeling window. For example, if an entity selector is set to Surfaces, only surface are available for selection. If it is set to Points, you can draw a window around the entire model and only the points will be selected. After performing a selection, the number of selected entities appears in parenthesis.

If two or more selections are required to complete a workflow, left-click on a selector to make it active or press Tab to cycle between selectors. The active selector is highlighted blue.


Figure 1.

If a selector supports multiple entity types, click the arrow to view a drop-down menu of available options.

In idle mode, the entity selector is located in the top, left corner of the modeling window. It shows all of the entity types available in your model that can be selected from the modeling window.


Figure 2.

Entity selectors do not affect your selection in a browser. The entity selector in the modeling window will automatically update to match the selected entity type. You're also able to select multiple entities of different types in a browser.

Tip:
  • Use keyboard shortcuts to change the active entity type in an entity selector.
  • In idle mode, convert your selection to a new entity type by changing the entity selector. For example, if you select elements, and then set the entity selector to nodes, all of the nodes associated with the selected elements will be selected.

Select Single Entities

Select a single entity by left-clicking.


Figure 3.

Append and Remove Entities From a Selection

  • In a browser or a dialog:
    • Append and remove individual entities to/from your selection by holding Ctrl while left-clicking.
    • To extend your selection from a selected entity to a target entity, hold Shift while left-clicking.
  • In the modeling window:
    • Append entities to your selection by holding Ctrl while left-clicking.
    • Remove entities from your selection by holding Shift while left-clicking.
    Figure 4.
  • Clear your selection in the following ways:
    • Left-click in empty space.
      Note: Only available in idle mode.
    • Click on an active entity selector.
    • Press Esc.

Select Multiple Entities Simultaneously

Select multiple entities simultaneously using window selection.
  • For box, circle, or freehand selection, click-and-drag to draw a selection window.
  • For polyline selection, click-and-drag to draw a line, then release the mouse to create an end point. Continue drawing lines, then left-click the start point, middle-mouse-click, or press Enter to close the selection window.
Figure 5.
Tip: You can also click and drag to select multiple entities in a browser.

Window Selection Settings

Change window selection settings from the modeling window right-click context menu.



Figure 6.
  1. Window Select Disabled. Disable window selection. Allows for fast clicking without the risk of dragging a mini window.
  2. Window Shape. Change the shape of the selection window when you drag your mouse.
  3. Intersection. Select entities that intersect the window. Available for elements, lines, and surfaces.
  4. Ignore Hidden Entities. Only select visible entities.

Perform Extended Entity Selection

Use extended entity selection to find, filter, and select subsets of entities. You can also save and retrieve previous selections.

To access extended entity selection:
  • Right-click in the modeling window and choose an option from the Select menu.
    This menu shows all available selection functions and methods for the currently active entity selector types.
  • Use the Advanced Selection dialog.
    1. Click next to an entity selector.
    2. Choose a selection method from the drop-down menu in the top-left of the dialog.
    3. Select a subset of entities.
      The process for selecting entities varies depending on the method.
    Tip: Right-clicking in the modeling window and selecting Select > Advanced Select brings up the same options as the Advanced Selection dialog.

Extended Entity Selection Options

The following options are available for extended entity selection.

Note: The following selection options do not apply to all entity types. Only valid selections for the current entity type are displayed in the menu.

Context Menu Options

Displayed
Select all entities of the specified type currently displayed in the modeling window.
Reverse
Allows for a Boolean "not" to be performed on the currently displayed entities; all selected entities are removed from the mark; all entities which are not on the mark and are currently active are selected.
All
Select all entities of the specified type. The set to be added to the user mark includes entities displayed and those not displayed.
Adjacent
Select entities adjacent to the entities already selected.
Attached
Select entities by specifying an entity among a large group of continuously connected elements. HyperWorks CFD includes the entities currently displayed that are attached to the entities already selected. Entities that are not displayed will not be selected although they may be attached to the entity selected.
Face
Select entities by surface face. HyperWorks CFD finds entities that are attached to each other without crossing a feature line. The Geometry feature angle option in Preferences > Geometry determines the feature lines. Attached, adjacent surfaces or elements are progressively selected when the angle between them is less than or equal to the specified feature angle.
Similar
Select entities that are similar to the your current selection based on config.
Save
Save the currently selected entities to a holding area known as the user mark.
Retrieve
Retrieve previously saved entities from the user mark.

Advanced Selection Dialog Options

The following options are available throughout CFD and from the right-click context menu:
By Boundaries
Select entities associated with a boundary condition.
By Feature
Select entities by defining a feature's minimum and maximum width/radius.
By Group
Select entities by group.
By Material
Select entities associated with a material.
By Mesh Control
Select entities associated with a mesh control.
By Metadata
Select an entity type then input a metadata key and value.
By Parts
Select entities associated with a part.
By Porous
Select entities associated with porous domains.
By Reference Frame
Select entities associated with a reference frame.
By Solid Bodies
Select solid body entities.
By Thin Solids
Select entities associated with thin solids.
By Topology
Select entities by topology.
These options are found only in certain tools on the Geometry ribbon and the Interactive tool on the Mesh ribbon:
By Collector
Select elements, lines, surfaces, and points by collector.
If you select component collectors in regard to elements or lines, the elements or lines contained in the selected components are selected. With all other entities, the entities selected by this operation are those attached to the selected component.
By Component
Select entities by component.
By Config
Select elements by configuration and type. The element type is dependent on the template file.
Use the visibility filter drop-down menu to apply your settings to all entities in the model, regardless if they are displayed on the screen or not, or only the entities that are displayed.
By Edge
Select entities (nodes, elements) by surface edge. HyperWorks CFD finds entities that are attached to each other without crossing a feature line. The feature line can be adjusted using the Angle slider. Attached, adjacent surfaces or elements are progressively selected when the angle between them is less than or equal to the specified feature angle.
Click to view more options.
Tip: You can also select elements by edge by holding Alt while left-clicking. Hold Alt and scroll to adjust the feature angle.
By Face
Select entities (nodes, elements) by surface face. HyperWorks CFD finds entities that are attached to each other without crossing a feature line. The feature line can be adjusted using the Angle slider. Attached, adjacent surfaces or elements are progressively selected when the angle between them is less than or equal to the specified feature angle.
Click to view more options.
Tip: You can also select elements by face by holding Alt while left-clicking. Hold Alt and scroll to adjust the feature angle.
By ID
Select entities by typing in their ID numbers.
Use a comma to separate multiple entities.
By Line
Pick lines in the modeling window. Entities associates with the lines are selected.
By Part
Select entities associated with a part.
By Path
Pick multiple nodes, lines, or elements and select all the nodes/lines/elements that fall in the closest connecting path. If you select two nodes on a free edge of some elements, the function tries to find the closest path along that free edge. This function uses the connectivity of the elements between the nodes, and thus requires the selected nodes to be part of a continuous shell mesh. Similarly, By Path for lines uses the connectivity of surfaces/solids and thus requires the selected lines to be surface/solid edges.
Activate the Show path preview option to the visualize the path before you create it.
Tip: You can also select node/line paths by holding Alt while left-clicking. Note that the path preview is not displayed when using the keyboard shortcut.
By Points
Pick points in the modeling window. Entities associates with the points are selected.
By Solid
Pick solids in the modeling window. Entities associates with the solids are selected.
By Surface
Pick surfaces in the modeling window. Entities associates with the surfaces are selected.
By Width
Select surfaces by width, either by picking a sample surface or by specifying a range of values for the width.

Quick Advanced Selection

Use quick advanced selection to associate a preferred advanced selection method to different entity types. The advanced method becomes instantly accessible while holding the Alt key during any selection action.

Appending and deselecting while using quick advanced selection is also possible via Alt + Ctrl and Alt + Shift, respectively.

Configure quick advanced selection controls and associated methods via Preferences > Mouse Controls.


Figure 7.

Keyboard Shortcuts & Mouse Controls

Selection

To do this Press
Window select Left Mouse Drag
Append selection Ctrl + Left Mouse Click
Deselect Shift + Left Mouse Click
Select displayed Ctrl + A
Select all Ctrl + Shift + A
Select adjacent Ctrl + J
Select attached Ctrl + T
Select similar (based on type and config if applicable) Ctrl + M
Reverse selection Ctrl + R
Quick advanced selection

Configurable via Mouse Control Preferences

 Alt + Left Mouse Click
Adjust feature angle when selecting elements By Face or By Edge Alt + Scroll
Suspend snaps Alt
Clear selection Esc

Entity Selector

To do this Press
Set to lines L
Set to points/parts P
Set to solids/surfaces/systems S
Tip: For entity types that have the same first letter (solids, surfaces), continually press the keyboard shortcut to alternate between entity types.