You can find the version number of Rapidform Software by following these steps

1. Start the software
2. Goto Help->About
3. The version number will be displayed on the pop up splash screen as shown below the title Version Information

The Latest Version Number of Rapidform XOR is XOR2 SP1 Hotfix8

The Latest Version Number of Rapidform XOS is XOS2 SP1 Hotfix8

The Latest Version Number of Rapidform XOV is XOV2 SP1 HF2

To download the latest version click here

Generally, when you model a sheet metal body with finite thickness, you create one side and using offset command you can create the other side.

This modeling method is used to create a sheet metal body with thickness even when you have only its upper side surface. Then you can check the interference between inner side of the surface body and another part. However, if you have a surface body with some complex shape, it is not easy to create it using above mentioned method.

XOR helps you to easily convert a surface data to mesh in order to complete the inner shape from the converted mesh using offset operation. You can quickly create a surface body on the mesh using Auto Surfacing command and complete the whole shape connecting the inner and the outer surface body on the boundary of model.

Through this document, you will understand how to create a complex inner side of body from the existing design data using the Convert Body, Auto Surfacing commands.

Method

First of all, you need to prepare a mesh from the existing design data in order to apply the offset operation.
1. Go to Mesh mode and select Tools > Mesh Tools > Convert body in the menu. Click the Ok button.

The design data is converted to a mesh and the copied mesh data will be registered in the Model Tree as shown in the image below.

Now extract a curve along the boundary of upper body using Convert Entities command. Then extract a curve along the boundary of the converted mesh using Boundary command as well.

1. Go to the Mesh mode, select Tools > Mesh Tools > Offset in the menu

2. Select the Surface Method as offset method and input a thickness value in the Distance box

3. Choose offset direction using Flip button so that it is offset to the inside of the part

Note
You can choose offset direction by just clicking the (Flip) button. If you want to turn over the current direction to the opposite direction, click the Flip button and the copied mesh will be offset along the selected direction. Also if you click this button again, the offset direction will be reversed again.

4. Go to the 3D Mesh Sketch mode, or select Tools > 3D Sketch Entities > Boundary in the menu

5. Select the option Interactively-Split Curve Segments From Single Boundary and select an edge as Boundary. Then pick nodes to create partial boundary curves as shown in the image below

6. Go to the 3D Sketch mode, or select Tools > 3D Sketch Tools > Convert Entities in the menu

7. Extract a curve along the boundary of upper body using Convert Entities command as shown in the image below

8. Try to merge between the split splines using Merge command

Finally, connect the curves that are extracted from the upper side of body and the inner side of mesh using the Surface Loft command. You can also easily and quickly create an inner side of body from the mesh using Auto Surfacing command.

1. Try to execute the Surface Loft command. Click the Surface Loft button in the main toolbar

2. Select two sketch chains as Profiles and click the OK button

3. You can also create other lofting surfaces by the same way as shown in the image below

4. Try to apply Auto Surfacing command to the offset mesh. Click the Auto Surfacing button in the main toolbar

5. Select the mesh and set the value for No. Of Surfaces as shown in the image below

A surface body will be created on the offset mesh as shown in the image below

6. Try to execute the Sew command. Click the Sew button in the main toolbar

7. Select all surface bodies and click the next button

8. Click the OK button. The split boundaries of the surface bodies are sewed. Then you will get a solid model which has thickness as shown in the image below.

Exporting a model as IGES (STEP) vs. liveTransfer

Generally models made from scan data that are intended to be edited in a CAD program are transferred into the receiving CAD program using IGES or STEP file format. Even after a successful import of these formats into the CAD modeler there may be some gaps or bad topology condition in surface body.

This technical tip will introduce “Live Transfer” an effective way to use XOR so that you can transfer a design data to the receiving CAD modeler without these problems.

How to transfer data to the other CAD modeler without any problems?

As you might have experienced, the data which is modeled in XOR and exported to the other CAD modeler could have some gaps from bad topology condition of the surface body if you transferred the data using neutral file format such as IGES, STEP as shown in the image below.

It might have happened because each application has its own specific tolerance and healing option. If that’s the case then what is effective way of transferring data to another CAD Modeler? XOR has a transferring system called as live transfer which would solve the problem.

Live transfer has several options. If you use “Start from first feature” option, the application makes a body in the other CAD modeler in the same order of the modeling process as you did in XOR. You will get a modeled body as well as modeling history which is exactly the same as you did in XOR.

If you use “Only Selected Entities” option, the application transfers only the selected body to the other CAD modeler. In this case they use “parasolid” file format which is of higher data compatibility. So you will get better results than what you get when you transfer a modeled data using IGES, STEP file format.

If you have been using XOR and already installed other CAD modeler in your machine, use live transfer to transfer model to the other CAD modeler. You will get better a result as shown in the image below.

If you have been using XOR for reverse engineering and XOV for inspection, sometimes you may be confused why the results of deviation by the Accuracy Analyzer of XOR and Whole Deviation of XOV are different. As you know, XOR is the software for reverse engineering and XOV is the software for inspection. Even though you try to calculate deviation using the same Design data and Scan data, the results would be different because of the difference in calculation method as shown in the image below.

Through this technical tip, you will understand how these two applications calculate deviation and why the results of deviation are different.

Difference in calculation method

Whole Deviation of XOV is focused for checking how much the scanned points are close to the nominal data. So the application measures the gap that the scanned points have among the nominal data. In other words, the application tries to project the scanned points onto the nominal data and calculates its gap as shown in the image below.

But the Accuracy analyzer of XOR is focused on checking how much the modeled data, which is designed by several reverse engineering tools, is close to the real scanned object. So the application measures gap that the modeled data have among the real scanned object. In other words, the application tries to tessellate modeled data so that it can project it onto the scanned data and then it calculates the gap as shown in the image below.

Since our interest of deviation calculation is different in both applications, the results of deviation are calculated in a different manner based on the respective interest.

Note

You can see the difference in the results of deviation in XOR by setting the modeled data as reference in Mesh Deviation (Measure > Mesh Deviation).

Rapidform XOR/XOS can create a body on a mesh using “Auto Surfacing” command. This method can quickly and automatically wrap the mesh and create a surface/solid body with just one click of a button, but it might be possible for gaps to be created between patches on complicated and sharp areas of a mesh. So in such cases if you want to export the created model from XOR/XOS to other CAD system such as CATIA, UGS NX or PRO/E Wildfire, you need to perform additional processes to heal the gaps after transferring to other CAD system.

This technical tip is useful when you export a surface / solid body as neutral format (IGES or STEP) into CATIA to create a complete watertight solid model.

As you see the model tree as shown in the image above, the patches are broken after importing a body into CATIA. If you want to create a complete body, you need to use healing Process in CATIA such as heal and join in Healing Assistant.

Method

This method is used in the Healing Assistant Workbench or Part Design Workbench. If created model has many patches and curves, this model has highly possibility of error occurrence. Therefore it needs to be healed for broken patches.

In Assistant Workbench
1. Click Start > Mechanical Design > Healing Assistant in the menu and click the (Heal) button in the Tool bar. Select all imported surfaces and click OK button as shown in the image below. If CATIA cannot heal some edges, these edges are displayed in green. In that case, increase the tolerance value little by little (max. 0.1) and try to heal again.

Note
The Heal command improves surface connection condition. If adjacent surfaces are completely connected and closed within the given allowable tolerance, then you can skip this stage.

Note
If you skip the above healing process, you can create a combined body by clicking the (Join) button in the tool bar as shown in the image below. Click the OK button.

In Part Design Workbench
1. Click the Start > Mechanical Design > Part Design in the menu and click the (Close Surface) button in the Tool bar and select the joined body in the Model Tree as shown in the image below. Click the OK button.

2. This command transfers the surface body to a solid body and registers it in the model tree. Finally, you will obtain a Closed Solid body.

In the Application, you can obtain several inspection results such as deviation map, section profiles, result image etc during the inspection process. However the results will be recorded as captured images. In case if you want to print sections out in its original scale, you can export sections as *.dxf file format.

Method
First of all, you can create a section profile from the CAD data and the Scan data using a Ref. Plane as shown in the image below. (Design > Section)

Click the File > Export in the menu and select the CAD’s section and the Scan’s section as shown in the image below.

Click the OK button, and then select AutoCAD DXF (dxf file format) as saving file type and check the 2D section in the Export Section As option as the image below.

Import the file in AutoCAD and you can make a draft or print it out with scale option.

When you create a mesh, Mesh Buildup Wizard is typically used. If scan data consists of line type point clouds, then it is not easy to maintain the original shape of its boundaries while generating the mesh.

If you use the manual way of using 3D triangulation command in the Addins menu, you will get better result than the automatic way of using Mesh Buildup Wizard as shown in the image below.

Results from Mesh Buildup Wizard (image above)

Results from 3D triangulation in Add-ins (image above)

Method
1. When you apply triangulation with line type scan data which is already aligned by a scan device, accurately align scan sets again in the software. Select the Align button in the bottom pallet menu, or Click Tools > Scan Tools > Align in the menu.

Use the Global And Fine method with Apply Only Small Transform option as shown in the below image. This option considers that initial alignment is already done and accurately aligns scan shots removing gaps among scan shots by small transformation. And also if overlapped regions have planar shape, its alignment may slide along the planar area. This option prevents featureless scan shots from sliding during alignment.

2. Apply Addins > Combine command to make a single scan data.

3. Click the Addins > 3D Triangulate in the menu and check Assume Vertices Are Densely Placed Along A Direction option. Especially, when you try to triangulate line type point cloud, this option is appropriate for keeping edges or boundaries as it is as shown in the below image.

4. If necessary, execute the Enhance, Global Remesh and Fix Normal command in Mesh mode to get a mesh which is well optimized and featured.

The application has no command to convert a mesh to poly-vertices.

So, you may easily think that you need to import the existing mesh data using the “Point Only” option in the Import dialog box or export the existing mesh data by point type file format and import it again.

Through this technical tip, you will understand how to copy poly-vertices from a mesh without any data transporting process.

Method1 – Copy Poly-Vertices from Whole Meshsuch
First of all, Copy a mesh (Ctrl+C) in the Default mode.

Enter the Point Cloud mode (Insert > Point Cloud) and paste it (Ctrl+V). The copied mesh will automatically convert its property to a point cloud as shown in the image below.

Method2 – Copy Poly-Vertices from Partial Mesh
Double click the mesh to enter the Mesh mode.

Select a partial region from the mesh or select a region of interest by dragging and copy it (Ctrl + C) and exit the Mesh mode.

Now enter the Point Cloud mode and paste it (Ctrl + V) which is registered on the clip-board. You can get poly-vertices as shown in the below image.

How to transfer XOR model, which is applied Boolean operation, to UGS NX

CAD system has own kernel and specific interface. So, sometimes, liveTransfer may not perfectly forward a redesigned data to CAD system because of the difference between Rapidform and CAD system.

Of cause, if liveTransfer cannot perfectly forward all information, you can model in CAD system manually and apply transfer again by interactive method. But, if you want to transfer all information without any interruption, you need to understand difference in modeling process between Rapidform and UGS NX to use liveTransfer in first. And you have to adjust the modeling process as you do modeling in CAD system to successfully forward all information to CAD system.

In this document, it is explained through an example how you can successfully forward a model data to UGS NX.

Boolean operation is one of functions that are mainly used in the modeling process. If user applies Boolean operation to several bodies by setting the selecting body as Tools and run liveTransfer to forward a modeling data to UGS NX, transferring might fail and the warning message will appear as shown in the image below.

You can set any multi bodies for Tool bodies or Target Bodies in Boolean operation in Rapidform. But, you cannot do in UGS NX. Target Body has to be set only as a single body in UGS NX as shown in the image below.

And if you select several tool bodies and apply the Boolean operation, it will be performed multiple times and registered to the model tree as the number of the selected tool bodies as shown in the image below.

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So, you need to adjust modeling process in Rapidform to successfully forward whole modeling history by liveTransfer without any interruption for the above said reasons.

Follow the steps to understand how to successfully transfer models into USG NX.

Method
Adjust the Boolean method in the application as follows.
1. Apply the Boolean operation in order to create bodies as shown in the below image.

Note
If you set multi bodies as Tool bodies in Boolean operation as shown in the image below, liveTransfer may not forward all modeling history to UGS NX. And transferring will be interrupted at this step.

Then, switch working window to Rapidform and roll-back the step in the Feature Tree. Separate the registered Boolean operation.

After separating Boolean operation, execute the liveTransfer command again. Select the Resume From Selected Feature option as method and select the Boolean operation that is registered first in the feature tree. Click the OK button.

Note
The Boolean command supports several methods such as Merge, Cut, and Intersect just as in CAD system. But, you need to consider a modeling process to use liveTransfer with other CAD system because CAD system has specific interface for feature modeling.

Note
?: support, but not exact same parameters
Unsupportable: downstream CAD software doesn’t support the related API

Transferring with UGS NX using liveTransfer does not completely support several methods of Boolean operation as shown in the above table.

If all selected tool bodies are not overlapped with a target body and when you run Boolean operation using intersection method and then when you try to transfer this modeling history to UGS NX, it does not allow the transferring process.

In case of Cut method, selected tool bodies must be connected to a target body.

2. The liveTransfer will be completed without any interruption and you can see transferred model as shown in the image below.

Click here to download the Rapidform Installation Guide PDF.

or

Follow the instructions below for the interactive video licensing guide:

Step 1: Click here to download the Video License User Guide (44.2 MB)

* Note that its an EXE file in zipped format

Step 2: After downloading the License User Guide to your local hard drive unzip the same and go to the folder Licensing_User_Guide and run Licensing_Guide.exe

Step 3:Choose the task you want to learn about and follow the on-screen instructions. Note that its just an interactive tutorial and you need to do the same on your computer to perform the actual task

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