Pipe rack

Menu access: Piping | Pipe rack

Description:

Allows to define insulating for your piping components (pipes, elbows and accessories).

General philosophy:

1. Select the standard, the family and the variants "pipe + elbow" to take into account and then the diameters to use the gap between axis :

2. Select the start point of the pipe rack.

3. Choose the first plane support of the pipe rack. It can be :

• A plane of the current coordinate system

• A face of a shape

• A plane defined by a  THROUGH POINT

4. You can set an offset between the plane you have chosen before and the pipe rack.

5. Select a direction (coordinate system axis or defined by a through point).

6. An arrow appears: by successive click on it you have the possibility to modify the pipe rack positioning according the previous direction (centered, above and under with/without offset).

7. Create the second pipe rack support. It can be :

• A plane of the coordinate system.

• Defined by a  THROUGH POINT

• Use the  SAME PLANE

• Use an existing support by the  AS SUPPORT  button.

• A face of a shape

8. Once the second support validated, you have two buttons :

•  USE LAST SUPPORT  : using this button, TopSolid creates the support perpendicular to the first one.

•  REDEFINE DIRECTION  : with this button you have the possibility to use a join value available from the construction tree .

9. This is the way to create the plane supports. When all the planes have been defined, use the  STOP  button. Select a point to precise the end of the pipe rack (this point can be a relative point or a key-point of a shape).

10.  Position the pipe line according to the supports (centered,above or under). The  HIDE SUPPORTS = NO  button allows hide or not the supports after the pipe rack creation.

11. The pipe line position according to the supports is symbolised by arrows. By successive click on them, you can modify local positions. The  MAKE PIPE LINES = YES  button allows to create the pipe line or just the axis.

12. Validate this last stage to create the pipe rack.

Specific point(s):

When a pipe rack exists in the document and then you use again this function, you have the possibility to make a  NEW DESCRIPTION , in this case the "Rack description" box opens, or use an existing description selecting a support of this one.

As a classic pipe line, you can insert a component in it using the icon on a part of the pipe line (seer Piping | Create pipe line).

Available modification(s):

Using the icon on :

• A pipe line: the "Dressing of a pipe line" box opens. Modify the pipe line parameter (type, diameter, attributes, ...).

• An axe of the pipe rack :

-  DESCRIPTION  : allows to modify the pipe rack description. It is possible to :

1. Extract a pipe line of the pipe rack selecting it and using the delete key of the keyboard .

2. Insert a pipe line in the pipe rack selecting an existing pipe line and using the insert key of the keyboard . This will create a new contour 3D in the pipe rack. To dress it, use the Piping | Create pipe line function, it will contain the pipe rack default parameters.

-  POSITION  :allows to modify the pipe rack position according to the supports.

-  EXTEND  : allows to extend an existing pipe rack selecting one of its supports.