Using the Knowledge Inspector 

The Knowledge Inspector allows you to query a design to determine and preview the results of changing any parameters without committing themselves to changing the design. This "what if" analysis provides immediate feedback that helps you experiment and refine designs.

If it is important to determine what happens when one or more parameters are changed, it is equally significant for you to see how a design can be changed to achieve a desired result. The Knowledge Inspector supports this by allowing you to query "how to" make a particular change.

In short, the Knowledge Inspector is a tool designed to study impacts and dependencies.

What if
(impacts)		 Helps you understand to what extent changing any parameter of your design (such as material, pressure, or a dimensional parameter) changes the operation or design of the product on which you are working. Can be used to examine interactions of parameters with each other and with the rules that make up the product's specifications.
A "Geometric Update" option enables you to visualize the result of your modification in the geometry area.
How To
(dependencies)		 Helps you determine how your design can be changed to achieve a desired result.

 

Do not use the capabilities with the Knowledge Inspector.

  The 'What If' Mode  

This task explains how to use the 'What If' mode.

  1. Open the KwrFormula1.CATPart document and access the Knowledge Advisor workbench.

  2. Click the Knowledge Inspector icon or select the Knowledge Inspector from the standard toolbar. The "Knowledge Inspector" dialog box is displayed. Check the 'What If' option.

  3. Select the KwrStartDocument\PartBody\Pad.1\FirstLimit\Length parameter (at this stage, don't modify its value in the Equals field).

  4. Click Apply. The following list of parameters and parameter values is displayed in the Then area.

    The first line describes the parameter which has just been selected. The other lines describe the impacted parameters.

  5. Use the Equals field to replace the KwrStartDocument\PartBody\Pad.1\FirstLimit\Length parameter value with 60mm. Click Apply. In the Then area,  the parameter values are updated as follows:

    The InitialValue column shows the initial parameter values (when you open the Knowledge Inspector). The OldValue column shows the parameter values resulting from the previous 'What if' operation. The Var (variations) columns show comparison operators between values located in adjacent columns.

  6. Check the Geometric Update option to display in the geometry area the modifications resulting from the 'What If' operation. Click Apply to update the document in the geometry area.

  7. Click OK to apply the values resulting from the current 'What If' operation to your document. Otherwise, click Cancel>.

Note that:
  • Using reloads in the 'Then' area the previous or next values in the history of the 'What if" operations.
  • Checking the Show All Parameters option displays all the document parameters. An f  letter in the Dvn column indicates that the parameter is constrained by a formula.
  • Selecting a parameter in the Then area when the Show All Parameters is checked,  highlights the selected parameter in the parameter list above.
 Modifying  a parameter value does not imply that the values of the impacted parameters are automatically  updated by a 'What If' operation. For example, if a parameter is constrained by a formula such as:
if Parameter1 > A then Parameter2 =  B
replacing the Parameter1 value with a value greater than A won't modify Parameter2  if Parameter2 was previously set to B.

 

The 'How To' Mode  

This task explains how to use the 'How To' mode.

  1. Open the KwrFormula1.CATPartdocument.

  2. Click the Knowledge Inspector icon in the standard toolbar. The Knowledge Inspector dialog box is displayed. Check the 'How To' option.  By default, only the parameters which are constrained by a formula are displayed.

  3. If need be, check the Show All Parameters to display all the document parameters.

  4. Select the KwrStartDocument\PartBody\Hole.1\Diameter parameter (assuming that you would like to have this parameter modified). 

  5. Click Apply or Enter. The list of parameters to be modified to change the Hole.1\Diameter parameter is displayed in the 'Use' area.

  6. Select the Pad.1\FirstLimit\Length parameter. 

  7. Check the What If option.

  8. Modify the FirstLimit\Length parameter in 'What If' mode.

  9. Click OK to apply the parameter modification to your document.

Note that:
  • Checking the Show All Parameters option displays all the document parameters. An f  letter in the Dvn column indicates that the parameter is constrained by a formula.
  • Selecting a parameter in the 'Use' area when the Show All Parameters is checked,  highlights the selected parameter in the parameter list above.