Catalog Table: Input Row

The Catalog Table Input Row is displayed at the bottom of the Catalog Table within the Cimatron Explorer and consists of cells representing each of the displayed Catalog Table parameter columns. The Input Row enables you to:

1. Quickly find a catalog part (if you are familiar with the part and know the required primary dimensions) by entering the appropriate dimension values.

2. Create a non-standard catalog part by entering a combination of primary and secondary dimension values that do not appear in the catalog table.

The Input Row initially contains the values of the Active Row selected in the Catalog Table, as shown below:

Active Row Input Row

The Input Row is only displayed during Add, Get and Edit operations, where interaction with the catalog table is required. Examples of these operations are:

• Get from Catalog
• Add From Catalog
• Various Add operations invoked from the Guide Bars (such as Add Mold Component, Add Cooling Item, and so on.)
• Edit parameters - using the Catalog Table

The input row is not displayed when invoking the Cimatron Explorer for general operations, such as opening a file, searching, and so on.

Using the Input Row

Initially, the Input Row contains the values of the Active Row selected in the Catalog Table. All cells in the Input Row can be modified (except for the Record Label) including secondary, free and cut dimensions.

• Active Row
• Data Input
• Automatic Row Selection
• Non-Standard Records
• Interaction Example

Note: The appearance of the input row also depends on the condition of the Predefine as non-standard checkbox.

Active Row

The active row is the row selected in the catalog table. The dimension values in the active row are then displayed in the input row.

Active Row Input Row

There is always an active row, which may be user-selected or system-selected, depending on the following:

1. When the catalog table is invokedinvoked (for more, click Access at the top of this Help topic), the active row is the one that was active when the catalog table was last closed, or the first (upper) row if the part is added for the first time, or if the functions Add From Catalog or Get From Catalog are used.

2. If there is only a single row in the catalog table, then it is selected automatically.

3. You can select a row in the catalog table, which then becomes the active row.

4. The active row in the catalog table may change according to the data entered in one of the primary dimension cells of the input row. See Automatic Row Selection, below.

Data Input

All cells in the input row, with the exception of the Record Label, can be modified; this includes the primary, secondary, cut and free dimensions.

When data is entered in the input row, the system looks for a record in the catalog table that matches the values in the input row. If a suitable record cannot be found, the contents of the input row are marked as Non-Standard. If non-standard values are specified, the standard number changes according to the non-standard record attribute (defined in the Advanced tab of the Properties pane of the Cimatron Explorer). If no such attribute exists, then the last valid record label is used.

If invalid data is entered into the input row, such as non-numeric, wrong syntax, etc., an appropriate message is displayed and the last valid input is kept.

If a new active row is selected from the catalog table, the contents of the active row overwrites all existing values in the input row (regardless if they were modified or not).

When using List Values, the behavior is as follows:

1. The first entry in the list (the value at the top of the list) is the default value.

2. If you pick a different value from the drop-down list in the catalog table, the input row changes accordingly.

3. In the input row, you can write text in the list value cells, instead of choosing a value from the drop-down list. You can use this method for entering non-standard values. If you type in a valid value and then open the drop-down list, the list is displayed with your valid value on top (not the default first value).

Automatic Row Selection

The active row in the catalog table may change according to the data entered in one of the primary dimension cells of the input row. Data entered in non-primary cells, list value or range cells, do not affect the catalog table row selection.

When you enter a value in one of the primary dimension cells, the system looks for the appropriate row in the catalog table using the following criteria:

1. If an appropriate row is found, it becomes the active row.

2. If an appropriate row is not found, the most suitable row becomes the active row and all parameters (in the input row) that differ from those in the active row, are marked as non-standard.
   The "most suitable row" is selected first by the leftmost column and advancing to the right, until there is a match. For example, if there are 2 primary columns, and the input for left column is non-standard but the input for the right column is standard, the catalog table row is selected according to the right column.

3. If there is no match at all, the last valid record is used.

Non-Standard Records

Non-standard behavior is applicable only to primary and secondary cells (including list values and range values).

The system constantly checks the catalog table for record validity (by checking the columns in left to right order) and if the contents of the input row cannot be found in the catalog table, the input record is marked as non-standard by the following means:

1. The non-standard values in the input row are displayed in a red font and so is the record label.

2. The title of the input row changes from Input (Standard) to Input (Non-Standard).

3. If you enter a value into one of the primary or secondary cells and this value does not exist in the drop-down list:

   1. The value you entered is displayed in red.

   2. The standard number changes according to the non-standard record attribute (defined in the Advanced tab of the Properties pane of the Cimatron Explorer). If no such attribute exists, then the last valid record label is used. In the example above, the last valid record label is used.

Interaction Example

1. An active row is selected in the catalog table.

The dimension values in the active row are then displayed in the input row.

2. Click the left-most cell of the input row and change the value from 4 to 5.

The most suitable row in the catalog table is selected first by the left-most column and advancing to the right, until there is a match. All the values in the input row are updated to reflect the new active row in the catalog table.

Note: In this case, the active row changed because one of the primary dimension cells was changed in the input row.

3. Change the next value in the input row (also a primary dimension cell) from 14 to 80.

In this case, the following occurs:

1. The most suitable row in the catalog table is selected, which is the last row with the same first primary dimension, even though the catalog table contains a row with the same second primary dimensionsame second primary dimension (80). This is because the most suitable row is selected by matching cells from left to right, in that order of priority.

   

2. All the values in the input row are changed to reflect the new active row, except for the requested value entered in the input row. This value is marked as non-standard by being displayed in red.
3. The title of the input row changes from Input (Standard) to Input (Non-Standard).
4. The non-standard catalog number in the record label of the input row is displayed in red. If non-standard values are specified, the standard number changes according to the non-standard record attribute (defined in the Advanced tab of the Properties pane of the Cimatron Explorer). If no such attribute exists, then the last valid record label is used.
5. In the example above, the last valid record label is used.

4. In the catalog table, use the drop-down list to select a value for the first primary dimension.

This results in both the catalog table row and the input row modifications as follows:

1. A new active row is selected in the catalog table.

2. The dimension values in the active row are then displayed in the input row.

3. The part becomes standard again (the title of the input row changes to Input (Standard)).

Note: See Catalog Table Filters for the additional information on filter behavior.

5. Change the secondary dimension value 5 to 9.

The record becomes non-standard, but the row selection and record label does not change (secondary dimensions do not effect it).

Some functionality may be dependent on the product package. Contact your Reseller if you require a license.