Subsystems
You only use subsystems in the Standard Interface. You can either create new subsystems or read in existing ones. When you create a new subsystem, you must reference an existing template. When you use an existing subsystem, the template associated with it is automatically read in.
Subsystems are based on templates and allow standard users to change the parametric data of the template as well as the definition of some of the components. For example, you can change the location of hardpoints and modify parameter variables. See
Generating a Subsystem.
The template-based products organize the basic components that make up a full assembly or subassembly into subsystems. For example, subsystems can include suspensions, wheels, drivelines, chassis, and so on.
Subsystems contain descriptions of the component that they model. These descriptions consist of:
■Design data, such as wheel radii, toe angles, and locations of various points in the subsystems, named hardpoints, mass properties of parts, and so on.
■References to property files that contain design data for bushings, bumpstops, dampers, engines, springs, and tires. A bushing property file, for example, contains a description of the bushing's stiffness and damping characteristics.
■References to CAD files. These will be imported and attached to individual parts in the subsystem, so the use of CAD files containing assemblies must be considered carefully.
■Reference to a template that defines the subsystem's construction, including the kinds of parts and how the parts interact and attach to one another. For example, a template that defines a rack and pinion steering system defines a rack part, a pinion part, and a housing part. It also defines that the rack slides in the housing, that the pinion rotates in the housing, and that the rack and pinion are geared together. Since the construction of all rack and pinion steering systems is similar, all subsystems describing a rack and pinion steering system can reference the same template.
Learn more about subsystems:
Opening Subsystems
When you open a subsystem that specifies a flexible representation of a rigid part, your template-based product replaces the equivalent rigid body from the template with the flexible body.
Learn about flexible bodies.
To open an existing subsystem:
1. In Standard Interface, from the File menu, point to Open and then select Subsystem.
2. Press F1 and then follow the instructions in the dialog box help for
Open Subsystem.
3. Select OK.
Notice that once the subsystem is open, the Edit and Adjust menus become active. We recommend that you familiarize yourself with each menu item.
Getting Subsystem Information
You can get detailed information about subsystems in the current session.
To get information about a subsystem:
1. In the Standard Interface, from the File menu, point to Info, and then select Subsystem.
2. Press F1 and then follow the instructions in the dialog box help for
Subsystem Info.
3. Select OK.
Creating Subsystems
You create subsystems by selecting a template that defines the topology and default data for your subsystem. Using the Standard Interface, you can modify the default data to match your design. We supply several templates with each product. For example, for Adams Car users, we supply templates that represent MacPherson strut and double-wishbone suspension subsystems. Using the Template Builder you can create templates for your company-specific topologies.
When creating a new subsystem, you can reference the property files that the template references, or reference other property files held either in a different database or with a different file name, as indicated by the dashed lines in the
Example Model Architecture. A collection of subsystems merged together forms an assembly.
To create a subsystem:
1. In the Standard Interface, from the File menu, point to New, and then select Subsystem.
2. Press F1 and then follow the instructions in the dialog box help for
New Subsystem.
3. Select OK.
Updating Subsystems
Resets the values of a subsystem to those stored in a subsystem file. You can update a subsystem using any subsystem file that is based on the same template as the subsystem in session.
When you update a subsystem, your template-based product does not reload the template.
Note: | If the subsystem file used to perform the update has a different name than the subsystem in session, the subsystem is not renamed during the update. If the subsystem file used to perform the update is in Binary format, and the subsystem is part of an assembly, then the subsystem is replaced instead of updated. |
To update a subsystem:
1. In the Standard Interface, from the File menu, point to Manage Subsystems, and then select Update.
2. Press F1 and then follow the instructions in the dialog box help for
Update Subsystem.
3. Select OK.
Synchronizing Subsystems
When you synchronize a
subsystem, you apply the values of the selected primary subsystem to one or more subsystem instances using the automated
subsystem update feature. You can synchronize the subsystems in session that are based on the same subsystem file. The
subsystem mode flags (kinematic or compliant) of the target subsystems will be retained.
For example, you may have several instances of one subsystem open in your session under several assemblies. If you modify one subsystem and want to propagate those changes to every instance of the subsystem, you can use the synchronize subsystems functionality.
To synchronize subsystems:
1. In the Standard Interface, from the File menu, point to Manage Subsystems, and then select Synchronize.
3. Select OK.
Adding Subsystems
When you add a
subsystem into an
assembly, your template-based product disassembles the assembled model, opens the subsystem, and then reassembles the model to include the new subsystem.
To add a subsystem:
1. From the File menu, point to Manage Assemblies, and then select Add Subsystem.
2. Press
F1 and then follow the instructions in the dialog box help for
Add Subsystem.
3. Select OK.
Your template-based product does the following:
■Disassembles the assembly, which includes 'unassigning' communicators.
■Opens the new subsystem under the existing assembly.
■Reassembles the assembly, which includes re-assigning the communicators.
Replacing Subsystems
When you replace a
subsystem in an
assembly with a new subsystem, your template-based product disassembles the assembled model, deletes the subsystem, opens the new subsystem, and then reassembles the model to include the new subsystem.
To replace a subsystem:
1. From the File menu, point to Manage Assemblies, and then select Replace Subsystem.
Select OK.
Your template-based product does the following:
■Disassembles the assembly, which includes 'unassigning' communicators.
■Deletes the subsystem from the existing assembly.
■Opens the new subsystem underneath the existing assembly.
■Reassembles the assembly, which includes re-assigning the communicators.
Removing Subsystems
When you remove a
subsystem from the
assembly to which it belongs, your template-based product disassembles the assembled model, deletes the subsystem, and then reassembles the model.
To remove a subsystem:
1. From the File menu, point to Manage Assemblies, and then select Remove Subsystem.
3. Select OK.
Your template-based product does the following:
■Disassembles the assembly, which includes 'unassigning' communicators.
■Deletes the subsystem from the assembly.
■Reassembles the assembly, which includes re-assigning the communicators.
Toggling Subsystem Activity
Toggles the activity status of an existing
subsystem. Your template-based product disassembles the assembled model, sets the subsystem activity accordingly, and then reassembles the model to take into account the subsystem’s activity status.
When you set the subsystem activity status to inactive, your template-based product ignores the subsystem during model assembly, and will not write it to the
Adams Solver files.
Note that compared to the
Remove Subsystem(s) functionality, which deletes the subsystem, the Toggle Subsystem Activity functionality only de-activates the subsystem and all objects in it.
To toggle subsystem activity:
1. From the File menu, point to Manage Assemblies, and then select Toggle Subsystem Activity.
3. Select OK.
If activating the subsystem, your template-based product does the following:
■Disassembles the assembly, which includes 'unassigning' communicators.
■Activates the subsystem, which means that it will now be considered a valid part of the assembly.
■Reassembles the assembly (with the activated subsystem now taking part), which includes re-assigning the communicators.
If deactivating the subsystem, your template-based product does the following:
■Disassembles the assembly, which includes 'unassigning' communicators.
■Deactivates the subsystem, which means that it is not actually removed from the assembly, but simply ignored.
■Reassembles the assembly (with the deactivated subsystem not considered), which includes re-assigning the communicators.
Notes: | Using inactive Subsystems in your assembly requires to follow certain rules for the underlying template: 1. Template object activity and visibility attributes must not be set “on” explicitly, but instead be set to either “no_opinion” or “off”. If set to “on”, objects remain visible or active (and therefor added to the .adm file upon analysis submission undesirably), despite the parent subsystem being inactive. 2. Group activity controlled by the “expr_active” command parameter must use the following addition to the activity expression: expr_active = (<original expression> && db_active(<template name>)) When instantiating the subsystem from the template, <template name> will be replaced by the subsystem name, and the activity of the group objects then automatically turned “off” when the subsystem is deactivated. |
Saving Subsystems
Subsystems can be saved to a specified directory, or more typically, to a specified database. You can publish subsystems to databases so other users can share them. Your template-based product supports three formats:
TeimOrbit File Format,
XML File Format and
Binary File FormatYou have the option to save newly created subsystem objects, such as measures and design objectives, to the subsystem file (TeimOrbit and XML). These subsystem-level objects cannot be combined with subsystem variants.
If your subsystem contains a flexible part, your template-based product saves information about the part, as well as the marker-node association, in the PART_ASSEMBLY block of the subsystem file. Your template-based product writes one block for a single flexible part or two for paired parts, of which one is flexible.
To save a subsystem:
■While viewing a subsystem, from the File menu, do one of the following:
■Select Save (or use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + m). Your template-based product saves the subsystem to the default writable database, retaining the original file format, and may prompt for backup if a file with the same name already exists in the target directory (depending on your preference setting).
■For save options (file name prefix, target folder/cdb, file format, variant handling, etc.), select Save As.
■Point to
Save As, and then select
Subsystem - Press
F1 and then follow the instructions in the dialog box help for
Save Subsystem. Select
OK.
To save a subsystem that is part of an assembly:
1. View the subsystem you want to save:
■From the View menu, select Subsystem.
■Set Subsystem to the subsystem you want to save.
■Select OK.
2. Do one of the following:
■Select Save (or use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + m). Your template-based product saves the subsystem to the default writable database, retaining the original file format, and may prompt for backup if a file with the same name already exists in the target directory (depending on your preference setting).
■For save options (file name prefix, target folder/cdb, file format, variant handling, etc.), select Save As.
■Point to
Save As, and then select
Subsystem - Press
F1 and then follow the instructions in the dialog box help for
Save Subsystem. Select
OK.
Note that subsystems that are part of an assembly cannot be saved in Binary format.
Closing Subsystems
You can close a subsystem without first saving it to a
Database.
To close a subsystem:
1. In the Standard Interface, from the File menu, point to Close, and then select Subsystem.
2. Press
F1 and then follow the instructions in the dialog box help for
Close Subsystem.
3. Select OK.
Subsystem Modes
A subsystem exists in one of two modes - kinematic or compliant. When you toggle a subsystem between these two modes, certain elements such as joints and bushings may be enabled or disabled. When you create a joint, you define it to be active always or only in kinematic mode. Conversely, when you create a bushing, you define it to never be inactive or be inactive only in the kinematic mode. This allows you to use the same subsystem for both
Dynamic Analysis and
Kinematic Analysis.
Minor Roles
You assign a minor role, or function, to every
subsystem. The minor role of a subsystem is stored in a variable as a string. This string will also be written to the subsystem file. You select a minor role to identify how your product should use the subsystem when creating an assembly of subsystems for
Analysis.
A minor role defines the subsystem's location.
■Adams Car - A minor role can be front or rear. The following are the minor roles for Adams Car: any, front, rear, and trailer.
If you create a new subsystem with the minor role front based on a steering template, during assembly Adams Car connects your front steering subsystem to a front suspension subsystem, but not a rear suspension subsystem.
If you create a new subsystem with the minor role
any, during assembly Adams Car connects your new subsystem to any other active subsystem having matching
communicators.
Publishing Subsystems
When you publish a subsystem, you copy the
subsystem file and all its associated
property files to the target database, which is the database where your template-based product saves all files. You can also select to publish the subsystem's template file. As you publish the subsystem, you can choose to write over existing files or create backups of the files.
You can also select to update the in-session subsystem data to point to the target database or to have the subsystem retain the existing references.
The subsystem you are publishing must be currently opened in the standard interface, and the target database must be writable.
Learn about setting the writable database.
You can also publish an entire assembly.
Learn about publishing an assembly.
To publish a subsystem:
1. From the Tools menu, point to Database Management, and then select Publish Subsystem.
3. Select OK.
Importing CAD files
CAD files can be imported and attached to parts in the subsystem. When the subsystem is saved, a reference to the file(s) will be saved to the part definition. For more information see the example
Importing CAD geometry at the subsystem level.
Supported geometry formats:
■Parasolid (*.xmt_txt, *.x_t, *.xmt_bin, *.x_b)
■CATIAV4 (*.model, *.exp, *.session)
■CATIAV5 (*.CATPart, *.CATProduct)
■IGES (*.igs, *.iges)
■Inventor (*.ipt, *.iam)
■ACIS (*.sat, *.asat)
■ProE (*.prt, *.prt.*, *.asm, *.asm.*)
■SolidWorks (*.sldprt, *.sldasm)
■STEP (*.stp, *.step)
■Unigraphics (*.prt)
■JT (*.jt)
■Shell (*.shl)
To attach CAD geometry to a subsystem part:
1. In the Standard Interface, from the File menu, select Import.
2. Set the File To Read option to a supported geometry format.
3. Press
F1 and follow the instructions in the dialog box help for
File Import.
4. Select OK.
When the subsystem is saved to disk, a new entry will be written for each geometry file attached to a subsystem part.
Notes: | If you import CAD geometry and save it to the default subsystem variant, that geometry will be visible in all other variants. If this is undesired, you have two options: 1. Save the subsystem as a new variant instead of the default. 2. Control the visibility of the default geometry with a group whose activity is controlled by a parameter variable. |