Custom occurrence properties in assembly


You can add metadata to each part, component, and subassembly placed in an assembly model using the Add Custom Occurrence Properties button in the Occurrence Properties dialog box. Custom occurrence properties enable you to assign unique information to a part or subassembly every time that part or subassembly is used in the assembly.

Example:

You can use the Reference ID and Maintenance custom occurrence properties together to identify door numbers or column numbers in a building or on a ship, and to define lubrication requirements for bearings used in the same equipment at different locations. You can reference these custom occurrence properties in assembly reports, as well as in an assembly drawing and parts list.

To learn this complete, assembly-to-draft workflow, see Example: Show custom occurrence properties in a parts list.

You can create a query to find all parts that need maintenance and at what intervals. Use the Query dialog box (Assembly) and select Custom Occurrence from the Properties list. For more information, see Find a part in an assembly.

You also can add the custom occurrence properties to a template file, and then make this available automatically for all new documents.

For information about assigning values in the Occurrence Properties dialog box and what the cell colors indicate, see the Occurrence Properties command.

Sample custom occurrence properties

The following custom occurrence properties are defined as examples in the CustomOccurrenceProperty.xml file delivered in the QY CAD Preferences folder. These columns are added to the Occurrence Properties dialog box when you select the Add Custom Occurrence Properties button. You can edit this file to provide a list of selectable values for these custom occurrence properties or to add your own properties.

You can specify a different location for the file using the File Locations page in the QY CAD Options dialog box.

Custom occurrence property name

Edit behavior

Use

BOM ID

Local

Unlike item numbers, which are the same for the same part wherever it occurs, a BOM ID can be different each time the same part or component is placed.

Reference ID

Global

Reference ID or location designator for a component, such as a room number or column number.

Maintenance

Global+Overrides

Maintenance schedule with predefined options: Daily, Weekly, Bi-Weekly, Monthly, Quarterly, or Yearly.

Notes

Global+Overrides

Component placement or assembly instructions.
Note:

For information about the property types in the Edit behavior column, see Custom occurrence property edit behavior, below.

Editing the custom occurrence property definition file

You can change the sample definitions of the custom properties provided in the CustomOccurrenceProperties.xml file. Even though the file is in XML format, use a text editor such as Notepad to edit it.

You also can create new custom occurrence properties by copying one of the existing custom occurrence property definitions and editing it to suit your needs. Instructions are provided within the body of the CustomOccurrenceProperties.xml file. Choose the property to copy and modify based on its property behavior type (Local, Global, or Global+Overrides).

When editing the file, the information that you enter directly affects what you see and can do in the Occurrence Properties dialog box. You can:

  • Provide a default value for each custom occurrence property. This appears in the cell for each occurrence of the property. This is a fast way to provide default information that can be changed.

  • Create a list of specific values, which can then be selected from a list in each cell. (Even when a list of values is provided, you can select the blank value and type information in the field.)

  • Leave the values blank, in which case you can type any free-form text or numeric value in each cell.

  • Define property names that you want to appear as column names.

  • Define property descriptions that you want to appear as tooltips when you hover over a column header.

Removing custom occurrence properties from an assembly

You can delete one or more custom occurrence properties from an assembly using the Delete Custom Occurrence Properties button located at the top of the Occurrence Properties dialog box. This button is available only from the top-level assembly. It opens the Delete Custom Occurrence Properties dialog box for you to select the check boxes corresponding to the custom occurrence property columns that you want to remove from the table.

This removes the selected properties and data from all assemblies from the top level down.

Custom occurrence property edit behavior

The custom occurrence property type controls its behavior in the Occurrence Properties dialog box. The property types are an integral part of the property definition:

Local

Summary—Much like item numbers, a Local property is edited and available only in the active assembly. When this assembly is placed in another assembly, it is as if this property value does not exist.

  • Values can be assigned to occurrences from the active assembly down.

  • All values are saved and apply to the active assembly only.

  • The values are not shown in the upper-level assembly.

Global

Summary—A Global property bubbles up and can be viewed in the upper-level assemblies. Edits to the value change the value in the owning assembly. This is how a system occurrence property works. The value is the same in all upper-level assemblies that use this assembly.

  • The values are assigned and stored in the parent assembly. The parent assembly is the assembly where the occurrence is placed.

  • Edits are applied in the parent assembly.

  • The value can be read and seen from the upper-level assembly, but it cannot be overridden from the upper-level assembly.

Global+Overrides

Summary—A Global+Overrides property bubbles up and can be accessed from an upper-level assembly. The value is contextual. This means it can be overridden in the upper-level assembly, such that accessing the property in the context of the upper-level assembly returns the upper-level value instead of the value in the lower level. 

  • These are similar to Global properties, except the values can be overridden in the context of an upper-level assembly using the Add Overrides shortcut command.

  • This does not edit the parent assembly, which can be read-only.

  • The applied value is determined by the context in which the assembly is shown. If shown as a top-level assembly, the overrides take precedence.

System occurrence properties in assemblies Set part properties in an assembly

© 2021 UDS