Model upload and publishing

In the model configuration view, project administrator can upload 3D model files and publish models to the project users. Multiple models can be published together by using coordinate transformations. All model importers have general configuration (including translation and attribute renaming). Some model importers, for example JT, have importer specific settings as well.

• Model upload and publishing
• Obtaining model files from design tools
• Using model importers
• Uploading and publishing a 3D model
• Republishing a 3D model

Obtaining model files from design tools

CADMATIC eShare can use 3D models created with various design tools. The supported formats are EBM, EBMX, 3DD, DGN, DWG, DXF, DWF, DWFx, IFC, IFCzip, JT, NWC, NWD, PDMS, PDS, and SmartPlant.

Other CADMATIC applications can publish/export .ebm files as follows:

• Plant Modeller: Model > eBrowser Model > Publish. (Models must be published without an expiry date.)

• Hull Viewer: File > Save As > eBrowser Model (.ebm)

You can merge several EBM files together by using a licensed version of CADMATIC eShare or CADMATIC eBrowser.

Using model importers

Model importers are needed for importing 3D models from different formats to eShare. When a new project is created, an EBM/EBMX model importer is included in the project by default. The default model importer is used for importing models published directly from Plant Modeller. The default model importer can be edited or disabled but not removed.

Note: Model importers for JT, PDMS, PDS, and SmartPlant need their own separate licenses.

Prerequisites

• Before importing PDMS/PDS models, an administrator must install a separate PDMS/PDS eXchanger in the same server where eShare server is running.

Creating a model importer

Do the following:

1. Navigate to the project to edit, and then click Project Admin in the main menu. The project administration view opens.

2. Click Model Configuration. The Model Configuration view opens.

3. To add a new model importer, click Add Model Importer.

4. Select the correct type of model importer.

5. Click Create Importer.

6. Enter the following information.

   • Name – Enter a name for the importer. The name can only contain the following characters: a-z A-Z 0-9 _ - () space

   • Description – Enter a description for the importer.

   • State – Select if the importer is enabled or disabled.

   • Abbreviation Renaming – If set to Manual, the attributes are retained as they are in the model. Identical attributes will be shared between models, but they can be renamed manually. Define Abbreviation Processing Rules to rename abbreviations or delete them. If set to Automatic, the model will not share attribute names with other models. You can define a unique suffix for the attributes of the model in the Custom Suffix field or leave it empty to use the file name as an identifier.

   • Transform / Move, Transform / Scale and Transform / Rotate – If needed, set the coordinate transformations.

     Note: Move, rotate, or scale cannot be used if the model defines local coordinate systems.

   • Import Configuration (only used when uploading) – If you are creating a DWG/DWF/DWFx/DXF/DGN model importer, select the following:

     Show/hide details

     • Transformation – Specify the following:

       • Transformation Type – If you select None, the model is not transformed during import. If you select Translation, the model is moved, and the coordinates change during import. Set the X, Y, and Z values. If you select Local origin, the origin for the model is set, allowing large coordinates to be handled. The model is shown with the same coordinates as in the original drawing, but the internal storing of the coordinates is changed during import.

         This setting should be used, if the model is in the desired location and the coordinates should be shown similarly as in the original drawing, but the model is more than 10 km from the origin.

     • Import Settings – Specify the following:

       • Include freeze layers – If you select Yes, layers with freeze status are included in the imported model.

       • Include off layers – If you select Yes, layers with off status are included in the imported model.

     • Optimization – Specify the following:

       • Split entities to retain materials – If you select Yes, entities will be split to retain correct visualization material during import, and object count might increase. If you select No, some entities might get incorrect color.

       • Geometry reduction – If you select Keep geometry as is, the geometry is kept as it is in the original drawing. If you select Remove duplicate vertices, duplicate vertices are removed. If you select Reduce triangles, target triangle count, the number of triangles is reduced to the set target in Reduction target triangle count.

   • Importer Configuration (only used when uploading) – If you are creating an EBM/EBMX model importer, select the following:

     Show/hide details

     • Import Settings – Specify the following:

       • Merge Attributes with Same Abbreviation – When the model has multiple attribute definitions with the same abbreviation but possibly different other properties, the two attributes are merged regardless, if set to Yes.

   • Importer Configuration (only used when uploading) – If you are creating an IFC model importer, select the following:

     Show/hide details

     • Transformation – Specify the following:

       • Transformation Type – If you select None, the model is not transformed during import. If you select Translation, the model is moved, and the coordinates change during import. Set the X, Y, and Z values. If you select Local origin, the origin for the model is set, allowing large coordinates to be handled. The model is shown with the same coordinates as in the original drawing, but the internal storing of the coordinates is changed during import.

         This setting should be used, if the model is in the desired location and the coordinates should be shown similarly as in the original drawing, but the model is more than 10 km from the origin.

     • Cut Box – Specify the following:

       • Exclude geometry outside cut box – If you select Yes, a cut box can be defined with minimum and maximum points for the model area. By using a cut box you can cut out geometry that is incorrectly modeled and could cause issues, or is outside the project area. Cut box only removes geometry that is completely outside of the defined cut box, and object data will remain in the model. Cut box should be defined in the same coordinates as the model is originally before import.

     • Import Settings – Specify the following:

       • Include Wireframes – If you select Yes, plain wireframe objects are included in the imported model. If wireframes are not included, it can affect rendering performance, and will result in a smaller imported model.

       • Include Parent Attributes – If you select Yes, parent group attributes of objects are included in the imported model. If parent attributes are not included, the imported model will include only the attributes of objects.

       • Include Empty Valued Attributes – If you select Yes, attributes with empty values are included in the imported model.

       • Include all representation contexts – If you select Yes, all IFC representation contexts will be included in the imported model, and not only the representation contexts defined in the IfcProject.

     • Optimization – Specify the following:

       • Split IFCProducts to retain materials – If you select Yes, the IFCProducts are split as several objects to preserve correct visualization materials for all parts. If enabled, object count in the imported model might increase.

       • Geometry reduction – If you select Keep geometry as is, the geometry is kept as it is in the original drawing. If you select Remove duplicate vertices, duplicate vertices are removed. If you select Reduce triangles, target triangle count, the number of triangles is reduced to the set target in Reduction target triangle count.

       • Importer Threading – If you select Multithread, the importer will run on multiple threads (faster import). If you select Single Thread, the importer will run on a single thread (safer import). The default is Multithread.

   • Importer Configuration (only used when uploading) – If you are creating a JT model importer, select the following:

     Show/hide details

     • Conversion Type – LOD 0-9 specifies the level of detail. XT specifies conversion to use XT B-Rep elements.

   • Importer Configuration (only used when uploading) – If you are creating a Navisworks model importer, select the following:

     Show/hide details

     • Transformation – Specify the following:

       • Transformation Type – If you select None, the model is not transformed during import. If you select Translation, the model is moved, and the coordinates change during import. Set the X, Y, and Z values. If you select Local origin, the origin for the model is set, allowing large coordinates to be handled. The model is shown with the same coordinates as in Navisworks, but the internal storing of the coordinates is changed during import.

         This setting should be used, if the model is in the desired location and the coordinates should be shown similarly as in Navisworks, but the model is more than 10 km from the origin.

     • Cut Box – Specify the following:

       • Exclude geometry outside cut box – If you select Yes, a cut box can be defined with minimum and maximum points for the model area. By using a cut box you can cut out geometry that is incorrectly modeled and could cause issues, or is outside the project area. Cut box only removes geometry that is completely outside of the defined cut box, and object data will remain in the model. Cut box should be defined in the same coordinates as the model is originally before import.

     • Import Settings – Specify the following:

       • Group attributes – Select one of the following:

         • Ignore – Group attributes are ignored.

         • Collapse to objects (default) – Group attributes are collapsed to objects.

         • Include groups in import – Group attributes are included in the imported model.

       • Include Hidden Objects – If you select Yes, objects with hidden state are included in the imported model.

       • Include Wireframes – If you select Yes, plain wireframe objects are included in the imported model. If wireframes are not included, it can affect rendering performance, and will result in a smaller imported model.

       • Include Empty Valued Attributes – If you select Yes, attributes with no value are included if necessary. By default they are skipped.

       • Default Font (optional) – Defines the fallback font used, if the Navisworks model font is not found in system.

     • Optimization – Specify the following:

       • Split objects to primitives sharing geometry – If you select Yes, objects are split to primitives to reduce memory consumption of the imported model and to improve rendering performance.

       • Geometry reduction – If you select Keep geometry as is, the geometry is kept as it is in the original drawing. If you select Remove duplicate vertices, duplicate vertices are removed. If you select Reduce triangles, target triangle count, the number of triangles is reduced to the set target in Reduction target triangle count.

     • Import Settings – Specify the following:

       • Merge Attributes with Same Abbreviation – When the model has multiple attribute definitions with the same abbreviation but possibly different other properties, the two attributes are merged regardless, if set to Yes

   • Importer Configuration (only used when uploading) – If you are creating a PDMS or PDS model importer, specify the following:

     Show/hide details

     • Project File – Enter the name of the project file. The file must be in the uploaded .zip archive. If the file in the archive is located in a subfolder, add the name of the subfolder in the field. For example data\Project.prj.

   • Importer Configuration (only used when uploading) – If you are creating a SmartPlant model importer, select the following:

     Show/hide details

     • Geometry File – Enter the name of the geometry file. The file must be in the uploaded .zip archive. If the file in the archive is located in a subfolder, add the name of the subfolder in the field. For example data\Geometry.vue.

     • Attribute File – Enter the name of the attribute file. The file must be in the uploaded .zip archive. If the file in the archive is located in a subfolder, add the name of the subfolder in the field. For example data\MyAttributeFile.mdb2.

     • Attribute Filter File – Enter the name of the attribute filter file. If no attribute filter file is used, leave the field empty. The file must be in the uploaded .zip archive. If the file in the archive is located in a subfolder, add the name of the subfolder in the field. For example data\AttributeFilter.txt.

     • Model Unit – Select the measurement unit used in the model.

     • Translate Origin – If you select Yes, the model is moved, and the coordinates change during import. If you select No, the model is not transformed during import.

7. Click Save.

Exporting a model importer

A model importer can be exported to be imported to another project.

Do the following:

1. Navigate to the project to edit, and then click Project Admin in the main menu. The project administration view opens.

2. Click Model Configuration. The Model Configuration view opens.

3. Click the name of the model importer.

4. Click Export.

5. Copy the model importer strings from the field.

6. Click Close.

Exporting all model importers

Do the following:

1. Navigate to the project to edit, and then click Project Admin in the main menu. The project administration view opens.

2. Click Model Configuration. The Model Configuration view opens.

3. Click Export All.

4. Copy the model importer strings from the field.

5. Click Close.

Importing a Model Importer

An exported model importer can be imported to a project.

Do the following:

1. Navigate to the project to edit, and then click Project Admin in the main menu. The project administration view opens.

2. Click Model Configuration. The Model Configuration view opens.

3. Click Import.

4. Paste the exported model importer strings to the field.

5. Overwrite default importer – If set to No, the importer will not overwrite the default importer. If set to Yes, the model importer will overwrite the default importer if the imported configuration contains a default importer.

6. Click Import.

Editing or removing a model importer

Do the following:

1. Navigate to the project to edit, and then click Project Admin in the main menu. The project administration view opens.

2. Click Model Configuration. The Model Configuration view opens.

3. Select the correct model importer.

• To edit the importer, click on the edit button . Model importer edit view opens. Make changes and click Save. Click Cancel to undo changes.

• To remove the importer, click on the remove button . A confirmation dialog opens. Click Remove to confirm or Cancel to keep the importer.

  The default model importer cannot be removed.

Uploading and publishing a 3D model

Project administrator can import a 3D model from different file formats. If the project already contains a model, the imported model will replace the existing model when the uploaded model is published.

Note: Having submodels configured in the project can affect the publishing time as they are published as part of the publishing process.

Prerequisites

• Model does not have an expiry date. Models that Plant Modeller publishes with an expiry date cannot be uploaded to eShare.

Do the following:

1. Navigate to the project to edit, and then click Project Admin in the main menu. The project administration view opens.

2. Click Model Configuration. The Model Configuration view opens.

3. Select the correct model importer. Click Upload, browse to the file to upload, and click Open. The model is uploaded to the server. Or click Upload and Publish to upload and publish the model consecutively.

4. Before publishing the model to users, you can edit various settings related to the attributes in the model. See the following topics for details.

   • Attribute settings

   • Attribute categorization

   • Attribute visibility and order

5. In Model Publishing section, specify the following settings:

   • Keep Models Separate – If you have multiple models uploaded to the project, all of the models will be published by default. To keep the models separate in the model tree, select Yes.

   • Add bounding box min coordinates – Set to Yes, if you want to add the object bounding volume minimum coordinates to the published model.

   • Add bounding box max coordinates – Set to Yes, if you want to add the object bounding volume maximum coordinates to the published model.

   • Add bounding box center coordinates – Set to Yes, if you want to add the object bounding volume center coordinates to the published model.

     Note: Attributes related to these selections are not visible in Attribute settings, unless they are enabled in the model configuration.

   • Merge attributes with same abbreviation – When the model has multiple attribute definitions with the same abbreviation but possibly different other properties, the two attributes are merged regardless, if set to Yes.

   • Automatically Publish – If you want to publish the models automatically after all the model uploads are complete, select Yes.

   If you have multiple models but want to publish only one, disable the other models. Perform the following for all the models you do not want to publish:

   1. Click the name of the model importer.

   2. Click Edit.

   3. Set State to Disabled.

   4. Click Save.

6. Click Publish to publish the model to users.

   A progress bar displays the publishing progress and an estimate of how much time is left, based on how long the previous publishing took.

   If you click Cancel, the uploaded model is discarded and the last uploaded model remains in use.

Results

If you published the uploaded model, you can click Model in the main toolbar to open the model in the 3D viewer.

If you did not publish the model, it will remain pending and it will not be visible to users.

Republishing a 3D model

If you change the settings of a published model, depending on the type of settings the changes might not be applied until you republish the model. If also a pending (uploaded) model is present at this time, republishing will remove the pending model. When republishing is completed, users might be prompted to refresh the model in their viewer.

Note: Having submodels configured in the project can affect the publishing time as they are published as part of the publishing process.

Do the following:

1. Navigate to the project to edit, and then click Project Admin in the main menu. The project administration view opens.

2. Click Model Configuration. The Model Configuration view opens.

3. Change the model settings as appropriate, and then click Publish.

   A progress bar displays the publishing progress and an estimate of how much time is left, based on how long the previous publishing took.

Related Topics

Submodels