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HELiOS 2021 SP1

| Aktuelles | Software Updates

Service Pack 1 for HELiOS 2021 is now available. The focus of the development was on functional extensions of the Mask Editor, further adjustments and improvements of the multi-CAD interfaces - especially the SOLIDWORKS integration module.

Examples of the enhancements of the Mask Editor include the new Element Explorer, which allows a hierarchical overview of all objects in the active mask to be displayed, and the improved integration of graphics in HELiOS masks. Further highlights are the new HELiOS Ribbon menu of the Office interface with functions for editing document and article master data as well as their workflow status, the support of virtual components and the improved display of suppressed components from SOLIDWORKS, the use of caption texts of the HELiOS Mask Editor in the HELiOS Internet Server and much more.

Also, the time and date format can now be selected. For example, the default display can be changed to the American format.

Furthermore, HELiOS 2021 SP1 supports the versions AutoCAD 2022, Autodesk Inventor 2022, Navisworks 2022 and SOLIDWORKS 2021.

Highlights

HELiOS general / HELiOS Desktop

Enhanced Mask Editor

  • Among the new features in the Mask Editor is an improved option to define the order of tabs in mask elements. The new approach is even more convenient and simpler in its operation.
  • The functionality for integrating graphics into HELiOS masks using the mask editor has been extended and improved.Within the selection dialogue you can adjust display type of the images and search for file names with a Filter input field. In addition to the default selection list of the HELiOS installation directory, it is also possible to import image files from other storage paths. All common image file formats can be used.
  • In addition to being able to draw a frame around elements to visually group them together, you can also insert actual group boxes into masks whose elements behave in a grouped manner. This also allows, for example, that moving and positioning group boxes affects all associated elements. Elements in a group frame must have been marked for this in each case.
  • In the new Element Explorer of the Mask Editor you can see a listing of all objects of the active mask. The overview is hierarchically arranged and also includes elements that may be "hidden" by other objects in the mask itself.

Time and Date format
The time and date format can now be selected. For example, the default display can be changed to the American format.

Allow assignments of objects to read-only projects
In the database configuration of the HELiOS options you will find the new setting Allow assignments of objects to read-only projects. In principle, further objects can also be added to read-only projects (e.g. by Drag&Drop) if this option is set to Yes (default setting). To prevent this, you can set No via the pull-down menu.

Deleting non-CAD-relevant articles
When deleting articles, their use in HELiOS product structures is checked. If there are articles in product structures whose header is not to be deleted, a CAD relevance check is also carried out for them. If articles were entered exclusively non-CAD-relevant in product structures (whereby they can be deleted and simultaneously removed from all shoring), you will receive a warning message with the option to confirm a respective deletion for the corresponding articles (and thus also the deletion of all existing shoring in product structures).

Workflow: Old index
If you are working with an outdated index in the Workflow window for a HELiOS object, you will see a corresponding note in the title line of the dialogue, like in other HELiOS windows.

HELiOS and Office / Outlook

Enhanced Office interface
With the update to HELiOS 2021 Service Pack 1, you will find a revised and extended HELiOS Ribbon menu in the applications Word, Excel, and PowerPoint when Office interface is activated. New additions include HELiOS functions for editing document and article master data and their workflow status. In addition, the functionality in the project context and folder context has been enhanced.

Enhanced Outlook interface
The Ribbon menu bar of the Outlook linkage is also available in a revised and extended form as of Service Pack 1. One of the new features is that you can also call the HELiOS workspace from the Outlook context in order to edit or delete E-mails stored in the database at that location.

HELiOS Multi-CAD general

Progress display
For actions such as the transfer of model drawings with New in HELiOS or Derivations, HELiOS in SOLIDWORKS and Inventor from Service Pack 1 shows you a new progress display for the process. The window gives you further information on the stages the process goes through:

  • object creation in HELiOS,
  • insertion into the HELiOS workspace,
  • replacement of local data and references in the CAD system with the corresponding HELiOS information and
  • a final saving process.

Calling up the Project and Folder Explorer
With the update to HELiOS 2021 Service Pack 1 you will find separate calls for Project Explorer and Folder Explorer in the respective HELiOS Ribbon menu of SOLIDWORKS and Inventor in their Project and Folder areas. This makes it easier for you to browse through projects and folders without changing any objects that may have been set to active.

HELiOS and AutoCAD / Inventor / Navisworks

AutoCAD

AutoCAD 2022
The update to HELiOS 2021 Service Pack 1 (Version 2601) supports the latest version of AutoCAD and AutoCAD Mechanical.

 

Inventor

Inventor 2022
HELiOS 2021 SP1 supports the latest Inventor Version 2022.

Paste from clipboard
In the Data function group of the HELiOS Ribbon menu you will find the new Paste from clipboard function in the pull-down menu of the Place document function. With this you can (for example, via CTRL+C or Right-click > Copy) place parts transferred to the Inventor clipboard (several times) into the active assembly (in progress). You can also use the function to paste parts from one open document into another. This results in a significant performance gain when copying and pasting many parts at once compared to other approaches, as certain HELiOS information only needs to be loaded once instead of for each paste operation of each part.

Optimised performance for repeating functions
In addition to the ability to copy components via the clipboard (see above), performance has also been significantly improved when working with Inventor's Pattern repeat functions, which allow parts stored in HELiOS to be inserted into assemblies multiple times.

Navisworks

Navisworks 2022 and extended HELiOS interface
The update to HELiOS 2021 Service Pack 1 (Version 2601) supports the latest version of Navisworks. The functionality of the HELiOS interface has also been extended. In the current version you will find a revised and extended Ribbon menu. Newly added is also an HELiOS Options dialogue with setting options for the local working directory and attribute map-pings.

HELiOS and SOLIDWORKS

SOLIDWORKS 2021
HELiOS 2021 SP1 supports the current SOLIDWORKS Version 2021.

Support of reduced parts
Reduced ("lightweight" parts in SOLIDWORKS are now always recognized by HELiOS. When you call New in HELiOS, you will be asked whether you want to change the representation of these parts from "reduced" to "complete" so that they can be transferred to the HELiOS database, or whether you want to keep the reduction (in which case the corresponding parts will not be transferred).

Support of virtual components
Virtual components, which are not stored in separate part or sub-assembly files in SOLIDWORKS, but internally in the assembly file, are supported by HELiOS. When taking over assemblies with the function New in HELIOS, virtual components are assigned an article master each. In the model structure of document master data, virtual components are then displayed as articles. They are also taken into account in the product structure transfer.

Support of derived components
Parts derived in SOLIDWORKS (via the SOLIDWORKS func-tions Insert Part, Mirror Part or Derive Component Part) are also recognised as such by HELiOS and saved taking into account their part dependencies. Corresponding dependencies are entered in the model struc-ture of the HELiOS document. Multiple features are also recognised and suppressed fea-tures, like suppressed parts, are marked as such. When taking over the dependent part name, the feature description is also adapted to the HELiOS attribute mapping for part labels.

Improved representation of suppressed components
The representation of suppressed components has been further improved and standardised in HELiOS (e.g. during the transfer with the function New in HELiOS or in derivations). In the model structure of the document detail mask of HELiOS, you can recognise suppressed parts/assemblies by their display in dark grey colour.

Support of derived components
Parts derived in SOLIDWORKS (via the SOLIDWORKS func-tions Insert Part, Mirror Part or Derive Component Part) are also recognised as such by HELiOS and saved taking into account their part dependencies. Corresponding dependencies are entered in the model struc-ture of the HELiOS document. Multiple features are also recognised and suppressed fea-tures, like suppressed parts, are marked as such. When taking over the dependent part name, the feature description is also adapted to the HELiOS attribute mapping for part labels.

Batch update of ambiguous document configurations
In the past, if sub-parts of assemblies were available that had been taken over with the function New in HELiOS in different configurations with default article master, a query appeared during the batch update of corresponding assemblies to select the configuration with which the document should be loaded. The behaviour has been adapted so that documents in corresponding situations are successively opened in all configurations known in HELiOS (of the matching article/document context). As a result, the document is updated several times.

HELiOS and EPLAN / Zuken E3

EPLAN

HELiOS Options and Attribute assignments
As with the HELiOS Desktop or other interface with other applications, you can also call up the HELiOS Options in the context of EPLAN. In the dialogue window, you will find settings for the interface between EPLAN and HELiOS, such as the database link, which takes effect when certain file types are transferred. You can also call up the new mapping dialogue window (Attribute assignments) for the transfer from EPLAN to HELiOS (Attribute import) and the output from HELiOS to EPLAN (Attribute export). The new attribute mapping replaces the previous mechanism for transferring the EPLAN BOM to HELiOS via item attributes.

Zuken E3

Control BOM-relevance via resource attribute
A new configuration setting in the HELiOS Options dialogue window has made it possible to control the BOM relevance of parts via a (user-defined) resource attribute.
To do this, you only need to specify the name of the attribute in HELiOS via which the BOM-relevance (or BOM-non-relevance) is to be controlled during the transfer from Zuken E3.

Mask Editor with Element Explorer

Mask Editor with improved graphics integration


HELiOS Options - Settings for date and time format

Multi-CAD - Progress display


Multi-CAD - Separate calls for Project and Folder Explorer

Inventor - Paste from clipboard


SOLIDWORKS - Support of reduced parts

SOLIDWORKS - Support of virtual components /
Improved representation of suppressed components

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