Trimble Connector

Tekla Structures
2018
Tekla Structures
Trimble Connector
Trimble Connect
Trimble Connect Web
Trimble Connect 桌面
任务

Trimble Connector

Trimble Connector enables the connection between Tekla Structures and Trimble Connect Desktop or Trimble Connect Web for sharing reference models.

With Trimble Connector , you can

  • attach a Tekla Structures model to a Trimble Connect project and project folders
  • download a reference model from a Trimble Connect project to a Tekla Structures model
  • upload a Tekla Structures reference model to a Trimble Connect project
  • export Tekla Structures model objects as an .ifc reference model to a Trimble Connect project
Note:

You need to have a Trimble Identity before you can start using Trimble Connector.

Note:

Trimble Connect related metadata and all reference models are located in the ..\TeklaStructuresModels\<model>\TConnect folder. Exported reference model settings are stored to the ..\TeklaStructuresModels\<model>\Links folder. Trimble Connector does not work correctly if you manually modify the files in these folders.

Download a reference model from and upload a reference model to Trimble Connect

  • To download a reference model from a Trimble Connect project to a Tekla Structures model, click File > Import > Trimble Connect.
  • To upload a Tekla Structures reference model to a Trimble Connect project, click File > Export > Trimble Connect.

The Trimble Connect dialog box opens. Log in using your Trimble Identity , and you can start working with Trimble Connector.

Launch Trimble Connect and Trimble Connector from ribbon or Quick Launch

Instead of opening Trimble Connector through the File menu, you can start it from the ribbon or Quick Launch. You can also start Trimble Connect Desktop and Trimble Connect Web from these two locations.

  • You can use Trimble Connect ribbon tab commands to launch Trimble Connect Desktop , Trimble Connect Web and Trimble Connector :

  • You can also launch these applications using Quick Launch :

  • You need to log in to Trimble Connector using your Trimble Identity.
  • When you launch Trimble Connect Web :

  • When you launch Trimble Connect Desktop :
    • Trimble Connect Desktop opens the desktop project attached to the current Tekla Structures model.
    • If you have not attached a project, Trimble Connect projects page is opened.
    • If you have not installed Trimble Connect Desktop , web page to download Trimble Connect Desktop https://app.connect.trimble.com/tc/app#/store will be opened.
  • When you launch Trimble Connector :

    • Trimble Connector opens, and you can attach a project if you have not done that earlier.

Link a Tekla Structures model to a Trimble Connect project

  1. In Trimble Connector , click.

    The Select project dialog box opens.

  2. Select the project geographical location in the Trimble Connect service.

    A list of available projects is shown.

  3. Select a project and click OK.

    The name of the selected project is shown on top of the dialog box.

    Now you can attach folders to the project.

  4. Click.

    The Select folders dialog box opens. The previously selected project is shown.

  5. Double-click the project to see the folders inside the project.

  6. Double-click the root folder to see the subfolders.

    A list of available folders is shown. You can select multiple folders, create new folders and delete existing folders from the list.

    If you create a new folder, enter the folder name in the box and click Create.

  7. Select a folder where you want to link the model and click OK.

    The selected folders are shown in the Trimble Connect dialog box.

  8. Double-click the folder to open it.
  9. Click Export new model to Trimble Connect and specify the export details:
    • Enter a name for the model.

      The model name is unique for a project.

    • Select what you want to link: Filter , All , or Selected.

    • If you selected Filter , select an appropriate filter.

    • If you selected Selected , select the objects in the Tekla Structures model.

    • Specify an IFC export settings file if necessary.

      Note that if you do not define a settings file that specifies which object types you want to export, such as reinforcement, surface geometry is only exported.

    • Click OK.

Download a reference model from a Trimble Connect project to a Tekla Structures model

  1. Double-click a selected folder.

    A list of reference models in that folder is shown.

  2. A reference model that has not yet been downloaded to a Tekla Structures model has the icon. Select a reference model and click.

    The reference model is downloaded to a Tekla Structures model subfolder and inserted to the Tekla Structures model.

If you want to see a list of reference model versions, click the arrow in front of the reference model name. You can select any of the previous versions of the model and insert it to the Tekla Structures model by clicking.

When a reference model version has been inserted to the Tekla Structures model, the version gets the icon.

If there is a reference model version that exists in the Tekla Structures model subfolder but has not been inserted to the Tekla Structures model, the version gets the icon.

When the reference model version is the same in Tekla Structures and in Trimble Connect , the model gets the icon.

Download a reference model update from a Trimble Connect project to a Tekla Structures model

If a Trimble Connect project folder contains an update to a reference model that already has been downloaded to Tekla Structures , the reference model gets the icon. Click the icon to download the latest version of the model.

Upload a Tekla Structures reference model to a Trimble Connect project

If a Tekla Structures model has a reference model inserted that has not been uploaded to a Trimble Connect project, the model gets the icon.

The models are listed at the bottom of the Trimble Connect dialog box. You can upload the reference model to a Trimble Connect project by clicking.

Upload a Tekla Structures reference model update to a Trimble Connect project

If a Tekla Structures model has an update to an inserted reference model, and the model has been published to a Trimble Connect project, the reference model gets the New version label.

You can upload the reference model update to a Trimble Connect project by clicking.

Export Tekla Structures model objects as an .ifc reference model to a Trimble Connect project

You can create an .ifc coordination view 2.0 file from Tekla Structures model objects and export it to a Trimble Connect project. You can create the file from selected model objects, or from all model objects.

  1. Clickto start the export.

    The Configure IFC export dialog box opens.

  2. Enter a name for the exported model.

    The model name is unique for a project.

  3. Select to export All or Selected , or select Filter.

    • If you selected Selected , select the objects.

    • If you selected Filter , select the filter from the list below.

  4. Select the IFC export settings file.

    You can create and save IFC export settings in the Export to IFC dialog box.

    The settings file needs to be located in the model \attributes folder. If you do not select a settings file, the IFC model is created of parts only, not assemblies.

    Note that if you do not define a settings file that specifies which object types you want to export, such as reinforcement, surface geometry is only exported.

  5. Click OK.

You can download the reference model to the Tekla Structures model. Select the reference model in Trimble Connector , and click.

After a successful export, the model is marked with.

If the Tekla Structures model has an updated version of the exported reference model, click to export the updated version of the reference model.

If you do not specify a settings file, the .ifc file only includes parts and grids. The .ifc file does not include assembly information, which means that you can export only main parts. You can add additional property sets by saving a property set through File > Export > IFC , use the file name ifc.xml.

Use base point instead of alignment offset

If the Trimble Connect project folder name is equal than an existing base point name, or if the project folder name ends with (existing base point name) , then the base point is used instead of the alignment offset. If a base point is used, offsets are ignored. An example of a project folder name ending with (existing base point name) would be the folder name Architectural (EK840) where base point with the name EK840 representing the coordinate system name exists.

ToDos

The ToDo list in Trimble Connector displays the ToDo notes added to the project. You can add ToDo notes and reply to notes of other project members. The ToDo notes are shared to all project members by default, but you can select a user or a user group who to assign the ToDo with a due date when it needs to be resolved.

Open and view the ToDo list

  1. In Trimble Connector , open a project.

    You cannot view or create ToDo notes if you do not have a project open.

  2. Click the ToDo button.
  3. You can:
    • Sort the list according to Author , Assignee , Due date , Status , and Priority.
    • You can use Search to search for specific ToDos.
    • You can group by Author , Status , Priority , Type , Tag , Creation date , and Last modified date.
  4. To close the ToDo list, click the Close button.

Create ToDo notes

  1. In Trimble Connector , click the ToDo button.
  2. To create a ToDo with a view and a snapshot, select the native Tekla Structures objects.

    Select only one view. When you create a view, an IFC file of the selected native objects is created and uploaded to the project root\TeklaStructures-ToDos folder.

    The coordinate system follows what has been set in workplane handler.

    Do not create views of a lot of objects at a time, because then creating a ToDo may take a long time.

    To create a ToDo without a view and a snapshot, do not select any objects.

  3. Click the Create ToDo button, and a new pane opens where you can fill in the ToDo details.

    • Fill in the Title and the Description.

      The Description information is obligatory. You cannot save a ToDo without a description.

    • To define an assignee, click Select next to Assignee and select a project member or user group from the list, or start typing the name of the user or user group to filter the user list.

      ToDos can be assigned to other users once the project has been shared.

    • Select the due date from the calendar, and set the priority, type, status and completion percentage, if needed.

    • To add an attachment, click Add attachment , and do one or both of the following:

      • Clickandto browse for a file on your computer and add the file to the selected Trimble Connect folder, and click OK.

      • Clickto browse for a file on your computer, click Add from my computer and attach the file to the current ToDo note and click OK.

      • Double-clicking the attachment opens the file if Windows has association to the file name extension. Model files are not opened.

  4. Click the Save button to save the ToDo.

    The saved ToDo is immediately synchronized to Trimble Connect. After the ToDo has been pushed to Trimble Connect , it receives a unique name consisting of the abbreviated project name plus a running number.

    The created ToDo can be seen in Trimble Connect on the ToDo and Activity tabs.

View ToDo notes

  1. In Trimble Connector , click the ToDo button.

    The ToDo list opens.

  2. Double-click the ToDo you want to view.

    The ToDo property pane opens.

    You can close the ToDo property pane by clicking the Close button.

Add comments to ToDo notes

Any user in the project can comment any ToDo.

  1. In Trimble Connector , click the ToDo button.

    The ToDo list opens.

  2. Double-click the ToDo note you want to comment.
  3. In the opened property pane, add your comments to the Comments box.
  4. Save your comments by clicking Add comment.

Project administrators and ToDo creators can also delete comments by clicking the Delete button next to the comment box.

Create markups in ToDo notes

You can create ToDo markups in Trimble Connector and show the markups in Tekla Structures and in Trimble Connect.

  1. In Trimble Connector , select an existing project or create a new project.

  2. Use the markup tools to add markups in the current model:

    • removes all clip planes from all model views.

    • removes all markups from the model.

    • creates a measurement markup. In the model, pick two points and then a point to place the measurement. You can pick points, edges or faces.

    • creates a cloud markup. In the model, pick the cloud center and a position on the cloud edge. Tekla Structures creates the cloud perpendicular to the view plane defined by the center location you picked.

    • creates a line markup. In the model, pick the start point and the end point. The arrow is created at the start point.

    • creates a text markup consisting of text or UDA / Report attribute and a leader line. Type the text or a prefix in the markup text box, select a UDA or Report attribute from the list, pick the leader line start point, and then pick a location for the text.

      In the example below, Approved by has been entered as text and UDA: Approved by has been selected from the list of available attributes.

      To add more UDA or Report attributes in the list of available attributes, or add new attributes to the Text markup attribute options list so that they would be available for selection, click the Maintain text markup attribute options button in the bottom-right corner. The Text markup attribute options dialog box is displayed:

      Here you can:

      • select the UDA or Report attributes that you want to add in the list of available attributes
      • add new attributes using the options at the top. You need to select if the attribute is UDA or Report , select the attribute type ( Integer , Double or String , and enter the name of the attribute. To add an assembly attribute, remember to select the Assembly check box. The plus (+) button adds the defined attribute in the list.
    • creates a pencil or freehand markup. In the model, pick a start point, move the mouse pointer to create the shape that you want (do not hold down the left mouse button), and pick the end point. Tekla Structures creates the markup perpendicular to the view plane defined by the start point you picked.

  3. In Trimble Connector , click the ToDo button.

  4. Select the needed model objects from the Tekla Structures model.

  5. Click the Create ToDo button, and a new pane opens where you can fill in the ToDo information. Fill in at least the title and the description, see Create ToDo notes above.

  6. Ensure that the ToDo is synchronized with Trimble Connect.

Assign existing ToDo notes

Once a project has been shared, ToDos can be assigned to other users. You can assign the ToDo only if you are the administrator of the project, or if you have created the ToDo. You can only assign ToDos created in Trimble Connector.

  1. In Trimble Connector , click the ToDo button.

    The ToDo list opens.

  2. Double-click the ToDo note you want to assign.
  3. Click the Edit button.
  4. In the Assignee box, click Select and select a project member or user group from the list, or start typing the name of the user or user group to filter the user list.
  5. Select the due date from the calendar.
  6. Set the priority, type and the status of the ToDo, if needed.
  7. Click the Save button to save changes.

Synchronize ToDo notes

If another project member has created or commented ToDo notes in Trimble Connector , the ToDos are automatically synchronized immediately.

Alternatively, you can click the synchronize buttonto synchronize the ToDos to Trimble Connect.

Adjust ToDo settings

  1. In Trimble Connector , click the Settings button.

  2. Select the Double-click the ToDo view settings to use:

    • These settings affect the snapshot view in ToDo notes.

    • Adjusts camera and view projection : This option is needed if you do not want the snapshot view to change because of coordinate system difference, for example, to keep the current view untouched. If you select this option, the view projection will also change if the Tekla Structures view projection differs from the ToDo note snapshot view projection.

    • Removes and adds clip planes : Clip planes in the Tekla Structures view are removed, and clip planes in the ToDo view are added to the Tekla Structures view. This option can only be used available if the Adjusts camera and view projection option is selected.

    • Selects objects : This option selects the Tekla Structures native object if the corresponding object has been selected in the ToDo view. If the coordinate systems differ, it is possible to select objects and zoom to the selected objects.

  3. To close the settings pane, click the Close button.

Collaborate with Trimble Connect Desktop

The Tekla Structures - Trimble Connect Desktop interoperability tool allows the collaboration between Trimble Connect Desktop and Tekla Structures in Trimble Connector. The tool allows collaboration with Trimble Connect Desktop by sharing object selection and camera location. Prerequisite is to have Trimble Connect Desktop installed, a valid license and Trimble Identity. For more information, see Tekla Structures - Trimble Connect Desktop interoperability.

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