1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates generally to computer-aided engineering design and more specifically to techniques for “round tripping” model data between a structural modeling application and an analytical application.
2. Background Information
To better manage the complexities of modern designs, engineers often turn to computer-aided engineering design. In computer-aided engineering design, an engineer creates a model that embodies an engineering project. The model is typically refined and analyzed, in part, using analytical tools. A completed model may be used to generate presentation documents (such as plans, elevations and perspectives) and quantification reports (such as quantity reports, schedules, and cost estimates), useful in executing the engineering project.
One particular use of computer-aided engineering design is in the deployment of structural systems for buildings, industrial plants, civil projects, and the like. An engineer tasked with the design of a structural system may first prepare an initial draft of a design using a structural modeling application. For example, the engineer may turn to an application such as the Bentley Structural™ building information modeling (BIM) application, available from Bentley Systems Inc., the Revit® Structure application, available from Autodesk Inc., or another similar software package. A structural modeling application typically provides the engineer with a number of predefined intelligent structural forms, such as steel girders, concrete beams, timber studs, etc. Using a computer aided design (CAD)-like interface, the engineer may place, arrange, and configure these structural forms, to design the structural system. Often, the engineer will work initially with physical representations of the structural forms. That is, he or she may manipulate physical representations to create a physical model that approximates the appearance of a realworld structural system.
As a physical model is often not best suited for structural analysis, optimization, code checking, or other types of in-depth analytical processing, the engineer may next turn to an analytical model. An analytical model typically represents a structural system in terms of a series of equations that may be solved for reactions, rotations, and the like. Some structural modeling applications generate an analytical model in a background process as a physical model is being constructed by the engineer. That is, as the engineer places and arranges physical representations to create a physical model, corresponding analytical representations may be automatically placed in a parallel analytical model.
While a structural modeling application may offer some native analytical processing functionality, some types of advanced analytical processing are more typically offered by separate analytical applications. For example, STAAD® structural engineering software available from Research Engineers International offers finite element, linear static, response spectra, time history, cable, pushover, and non-linear analysis, as well as other advanced functionality. Similarly, RAM® structural software, available from RAM International, offers a variety of types of advanced analysis functionality. A number of other commercially available analytical applications provide useful functionality.
To utilize the functionality of a separate analytical application, an engineer typically exports the analytical data from the structural modeling application to the analytical application. Typically, exporting entails translation from a file format used internal to the structural modeling application to a differing file format used by the analytical application. Once the analytical data is exported, it is commonly subject to repeated rounds of analysis, code checking and/or optimization within the analytical application. Each of these rounds may result in changes to the data, as the structural system is refined and fine tuned. When a “final” set of analytical data is reached (at least for this stage of the design process) it typically is imported back into the structural modeling application. Such importing generally involves another translation of file formats, this time from the file format used internal to the analytical application to the file format used in the structural modeling application.
The imported analytical data typically overwrites some, or all, of the version of the analytical model in the structural modeling application. The physical model is then updated to reflect the changes in the analytical model. The overall process of export and subsequent import of analytical data is commonly referred to as “round tripping.” Such round tripping may occur repeatedly during the design of a complex structural system, where a design may evolve considerably over time.
However, there are a number of shortcomings with current round tripping techniques that hinder efficient import and export of data. As discussed above, when modified analytical data is imported back into a structural modeling application, at least some of the analytical model in the structural modeling application is typically overwritten. Such overwriting typically occurs without regard to existing objects in the model, writing over both portions that have been changed by the analytical application and that have not is been changed by the analytical application. This has a number of undesirable implications.
For example, there is typically a danger of introducing errors in the structural system. Such danger is particularly acute if work continues in the structural modeling application, while analytical data is being subject to analysis and refinement in the analytical application. If an engineer makes changes within the structural modeling application, some of these changes may be lost when overwriting of the analytical model occurs. Similarly, overwriting may sometimes inadvertently create duplicates within the models of the structural modeling application. Inadvertent loss or duplication is sometimes quite difficult to detect, absent lengthy manual review and verification.
Such difficulty is typically often compounded by incomplete reporting of changes upon import of an analytical model in existing systems. While some existing structural modeling applications may detect and report some types of changes during import, other types of changes are commonly not detected or reported. For example, deletion of structural forms in the analytical application (hereinafter referred to as “external deletes”) are typically not detected or reported. Accordingly, if an engineer desires to know exactly what has been externally deleted, he or she may have to spend extended time manually reviewing and comparing models.
Accordingly, there is a need for improved techniques for round tripping model data between a structural modeling application and an analytical application.