ipolog 4 Workspace: Layout Editor

Stations and material areas can be created directly in ipolog 4 Workspace. For this, first select the module "Layout Editor":

Controls

• Left mouse button: Select an element by clicking on it once. Hold down Ctrl and click on several elements to select them. If you multi-selected elements, hold down the Ctrl key and click on an element to deselect it. Double-click on an area or object to zoom in on it.
• Right mouse button: Right-click and hold to move the image section.
• Scroll-Wheel: Scrolling with the scroll wheel zooms in and out. You can deselect a selection of elements or cancel the selection of multiple elements in an area via singular click with the scroll wheel. Hold down Alt and draw a rectangle by holding down the scroll wheel to zoom in on it. Hold down Shift and draw a rectangle by holding down the scroll wheel to multiselect the elements in the rectangle.

Functions

1. Grid	Turns the grid on/off.
2. Enter measure mode	Activates the measure mode. You can measure distances and the spacing of elements with it.
3. Show facilites	Shows/hides facilities.
4. Show workingpoint names	Shows/hides Working Points.
5. View everything in the scene	Zooms out and shows a bird's eye view of your project.
6. View selection	Zooms in on the selected element.
7. Add a new area	Adds a new area.
8. Add a new station	Adds a new station.
9. Add a new workingpoint	Adds a new workingpoint.
10. Add a new information label	Adds a new information label.
11. Lock areas in place	Prohibits moving areas.

 

Creating areas

Enter the names and dimensions of the area in the respective fields. In addition, it is possible to assign the areas to specific stations that have been created in ipolog.

The Type "field" is used to define the type of area in ipolog 4 Workspace. There are four different types:

Designation	Explanation
Material Area	This designates surfaces that are used for material positioning. In ipolog there is only the possibility to place materials on these areas.
Working Area	Working areas are used for the visualization of workers. This is the area where the workers go to the materials for the vehicle's assembly. The entire work processes take place on these areas, in a sense.
Conveyor Area	The Conveyor Area represents the assembly line area. This area will later show the product in the software.
Blocking Area	Blocking areas describe restricted areas that are not accessible to workers. They can also be used to visualize other obstacles.

The default setting for the area is "Define Rectagle". With the setting "Draw Polygon" polygons can be drawn. The following settings are available for this purpose:

Polygons are added in ipolog with the mouse by setting vertices. Likewise there is the possibility to fix a vertex in ipolog via "Add Vertex". Drop Vertex" undoes the last vertex set. Close Polygon" closes the polygon. Furthermore, there are further settings for drawing the polygon in ipolog via the icons.

The button "Create" confirms the process. Afterwards the created area "hangs" on the mouse and can be placed in the layout. This is done by a left click in the view of the layout editor.

 

Creating stations

The creation of stations in the software is analogous to the procedure for areas. Via "Add a new station" (1) new stations can be added via "new" (2). If an existing station is to be added again, it can be selected from the listed stations. Via (3) all available stations are selected.

 

Creating new stations is done as described:

Subsequently, an individual name for the new station can be assigned (2). The number of stations is entered in the "Count" selection field, the counting steps in the software name in "Increment". The confirmation of the designation is done via Create (3).

A station in ipolog 4 consists of five areas as shown in the figure below:

• Two material areas for material positioning.
• Two work areas to perform the work processes of the workers.
• A conveyor that represents the assembly line area. This area enables the visualization of the product later on

The dimensions for the respective surfaces are to be entered first (4) and then click on create Station(s) (5). After that, the user again has the possibility to place the stations directly in the layout editor.

 

Creating Working Points

Working Points can only be created optionally in the software. You specify where a worker works.

In the assembly Excel, a worker's working points must be defined for each operation. However, a differentiation must be made here between product-related and stationary working points.

Product-related working points are specified directly when defining and importing products into the software and can also be adjusted via the catalog.

Stationary working points can be created and used as desired in the layout editor.

 

To place the working point freely in the layout, click on it and then move it. To do this, hold down the left mouse button.

 

Rotate areas

Areas created in ipolog 4 Workspace can be rotated via the Layout Editor.
To do this, "Layout movable" (see 1) must first be activated. Then the desired area can be selected by clicking on it. For the selected area a window opens, which shows among other things the position and the name of the area. The area can be rotated in different directions and at different angles (see 2):

 

Delete areas

To remove single or multiple areas via the layout editor, "Layout movable" must also be activated. Selected areas can then be deleted using the buttons shown in the screenshot below:

 

Renaming surface areas

The renaming of material areas takes place in the Layout Editor. This must be opened in the first step. Now the option "Layout Areas Movable" has to be selected first. This allows you to move and edit areas in the layout.

The next step is to select an area. This is done by clicking on any area. A small window opens, which shows different parameters of the selected area, including the name of the selected area.

In the next step, change the name and confirm the entry with Enter. The newly defined name for the material surface will then be used in the 2D view and in the 3D view.

 

Moving areas / facilities and editing dimensions

To change the dimensions of an area, it is possible to enter the areas manually (1). Here, the length and depth as well as the position on the x-, y- and z-axis can be entered. For the z-axis, a limit can also be defined in order to be able to plan large warehouses more easily. The z-coordinate can also be entered for non-fixed facilities in the layout editor per selected facility element. The entry is made in the context menu of the element.

z-limit defines the maximum limit that is allowed for resources. Resources larger than z-limit may no longer be placed on this area, they will be moved to the OC area. The z-limit is exported when the layout is exported, e.g. in the 4MF package. In addition, the z-boundary can be imported if a layout contains the z-boundary.

In addition, there is the possibility to change areas by dragging with the left mouse button at given points (1). The new dimensions are automatically taken over. Moving an area is done by holding and simultaneously moving (2). When moving an area, auxiliary lines are automatically displayed, which bring the area into the position of the displayed lines when the area is released. If this is not desired, the function can be switched off with (3).

 

 

Measure mode

By selecting "Enter measure mode" in the function bar, you can use the measure function of the Layout Editor.

Select "Add Measurement" to start measuring a distance.

 

You can set a measuring point by clicking the left mouse button. If you set several measuring points, the distance between the points is displayed. Cancel the measurement with a right-click. This allows you to carry out several independent measurements with several measuring points.

Click on the “-” symbol in the top right-hand corner of the information window to delete the last measurement point set. During the measurement, you can use the scroll wheel to move the camera closer and further away.

 

Add information label

With the introduction of version 4.5.0, it is now possible to create information labels in the Layout Editor. To do this, select “Add a new information label”:

Here you can define the text and a color for the information label. “Create” creates the label so that you can place it in the Layout Editor. “Cancel” cancels the creation of the label.

 

Click on “Expand name field” to open a separate window in which you can adjust the text:

 

“Set color” opens the color selection window:

Select a color and click on “OK” to color the information label.

 

When you are satisfied with your selection and have selected “Create”, your cursor will appear with an extra element that you can place in the layout editor with a left-click. You can cancel the placement with a click of the scroll wheel:

 

Please note: For the sake of clarity, information labels are 1m wide and automatically disappear when zoomed out.