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Product and Manufacturing Information (PMI)
Cimatron includes a set of functions that enable you to create Product and Manufacturing Information (PMI). These PMI functions are used to define manufacturing information in a 3D environment that conform to the ASMEASME Y14.41-2003 standard.
ASME Y14.41-2003 provides rules for using established 2D annotation standards in the context of a 3D CAD model and covers 3D annotation and other elements of information. These have not traditionally been part of a 3D model, having been normally communicated by 2D drawing, but this standard provides a means whereby the 3D model can provide product manufacturing information (PMI). This term covers the range of manufacturing information from standard text and dimensions to materials specifications and from surface finishes to geometric tolerance details.
Below is an example of a model together with its associated PMI. This includes the ability to hide or show the all the PMI, to display PMI by type, or to display selected PMI.
What is PMI?
As mentioned above, Product and Manufacturing Information (PMI) is the sum of all information needed to define and manufacture a product. This covers all the 3D annotation needed to document a design in 3D (mostly the same information found on a drawing), but it also includes model geometry, reference geometry, GD&TGD&T(Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing - see the Glossary) symbols, tolerances, and finishes. In 3D, all attached and associated geometric entities can be included in the PMI definition.
Adding PMI to the 3D model can shorten the overall documentation process. Placing information on the model also makes it available to downstream applications such as Drafting, Numerical Control (NC), analysis, etc.
For example, in Drafting drawings may get some or all of their PMI directly from the model, thereby, greatly reducing the time needed to create a drawing. ASME Y14.41-2003 allows both model-only and model-and-drawing methods of documenting a product. So either or both methods are acceptable ways to document a design.
In Cimatron, the PMI is a type of attribute so no feature exists in the Feature Tree when creating PMI, and the Undo function is disabled for such an operation. However, the PMI is fully associated with the model - changing the model shape is reflected automatically in the PMI.
The PMI is always created in the active part (or assembly). When the assembly is active, you can pick a reference entity (edges, points, and/or faces) for creating a PMI (by default) only within the active assembly (or within a part, if a part is activated). Creating a reference entity from another sub-assembly or non-active part is possible (but not recommended).
See:
PMI Visibility in Cimatron
You can control the visibility of PMI by selecting/unselecting the Symbols (PMI) option from the following menus:
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Display popup submenu (press the middle and right mouse buttons simultaneously)
PMI Associativity
A PMI is fully associated with the model - changing the model shape is reflected automatically in the PMI. A PMI that loses associativity remains in its last position and changes color.
PMI Highlight Leaf
In the Assembly environment to detect to which part the PMI symbol was created, select the PMI, right-click to display the popup menu, and then select Highlight Leaf (from the popup menu). The appropriate leaf in the Assembly Tree is highlighted.
In the following cases, the Highlight Leaf row is disabled (grayed out):
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If you open a standalone part in the assembly.
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If you pick 2 or more PMI's belonging to different parts.
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