Users Manual

Tecplot, Inc.

Bellevue, WA

2010

COPYRIGHTNOTICE Tecplot360TMUsersManualisforusewithTecplot360TMVersion2010. Copyright19882010Tecplot,Inc.Allrightsreservedworldwide.Exceptforpersonaluse,thismanualmaynotbereproduced,transmitted,transcribed,storedinaretrievalsystem,ortranslatedinanyform,inwholeorinpart,withouttheexpresswritten permissionofTecplot,Inc.,3535FactoriaBlvd,Ste.550;Bellevue,WA98006U.S.A. Thesoftwarediscussedinthisdocumentationandthedocumentationitselfarefurnishedunderlicenseforutilizationandduplicationonlyaccordingtothelicenseterms.ThecopyrightforthesoftwareisheldbyTecplot,Inc.Documentationisprovidedfor informationonly.Itissubjecttochangewithoutnotice.ItshouldnotbeinterpretedasacommitmentbyTecplot,Inc.Tecplot,Inc.assumesnoliabilityorresponsibilityfordocumentationerrorsorinaccuracies.

Tecplot,Inc. PostOfficeBox52708 Bellevue,WA980152708U.S.A. Tel:1.800.763.7005(withintheU.S.orCanada),001(425)6531200(internationally) email:sales@tecplot.com,support@tecplot.com Questions,commentsorconcernsregardingthisdocument:documentation@tecplot.com Formoreinformation,visithttp://www.tecplot.comTHIRDPARTYSOFTWARECOPYRIGHTNOTICES SciPy20012009Enthought.Inc.AllRightsReserved.NumPy2005NumPyDevelopers.AllRightsReserved.VisToolsandVdmTools19922009VisualKinematics,Inc.AllRightsReserved.NCSAHDF&HDF5(HierarchicalDataFormat)SoftwareLibraryand UtilitiesContributors:NationalCenterforSupercomputingApplications(NCSA)attheUniversityofIllinois,FortnerSoftware,UnidataProgramCenter(netCDF),TheIndependentJPEGGroup(JPEG),JeanloupGaillyandMarkAdler(gzip),andDigital EquipmentCorporation(DEC).ConditionsofRedistribution:1.Redistributionsofsourcecodemustretaintheabovecopyrightnotice,thislistofconditions,andthefollowingdisclaimer.2.Redistributionsinbinaryformmustreproducetheabovecopyright notice,thislistofconditions,andthefollowingdisclaimerinthedocumentationand/ormaterialsprovidedwiththedistribution.3.Inaddition,redistributionsofmodifiedformsofthesourceorbinarycodemustcarryprominentnoticesstatingthattheorigi nalcodewaschangedandthedateofthechange.4.Allpublicationsoradvertisingmaterialsmentioningfeaturesoruseofthissoftwareareasked,butnotrequired,toacknowledgethatitwasdevelopedbyTheHDFGroupandbytheNationalCenterfor SupercomputingApplicationsattheUniversityofIllinoisatUrbanaChampaignandcreditthecontributors.5.NeitherthenameofTheHDFGroup,thenameoftheUniversity,northenameofanyContributormaybeusedtoendorseorpromoteproducts derivedfromthissoftwarewithoutspecificpriorwrittenpermissionfromtheUniversity,THG,ortheContributor,respectively.DISCLAIMER:THISSOFTWAREISPROVIDEDBYTHEHDFGROUP(THG)ANDTHECONTRIBUTORSASISWITHNO WARRANTYOFANYKIND,EITHEREXPRESSEDORIMPLIED.InnoeventshallTHGortheContributorsbeliableforanydamagessufferedbytheusersarisingoutoftheuseofthissoftware,evenifadvisedofthepossibilityofsuchdamage.Copyright 19982006TheBoardofTrusteesoftheUniversityofIllinois,Copyright20062008TheHDFGroup(THG).AllRightsReserved.PNGReferenceLibraryCopyright1995,1996GuyEricSchalnat,Group42,Inc.,Copyright1996,1997AndreasDilger,Copy right1998,1999GlennRandersPehrson.AllRightsReserved.Tcl19891994TheRegentsoftheUniversityofCalifornia.Copyright1994TheAustralianNationalUniversity.Copyright19941998SunMicrosystems,Inc.Copyright19981999Scriptics Corporation.AllRightsReserved.bmptopnm1992DavidW.Sanderson.AllRightsReserved.Netpbm1988JefPoskanzer.AllRightsReserved.Mesa19992003BrianPaul.AllRightsReserved.W3CIPR19951998WorldWideWebConsortium,(Massachu settsInstituteofTechnology,InstitutNationaldeRechercheenInformatiqueetenAutomatique,KeioUniversity).AllRightsReserved.Ppmtopict1990KenYap.AllRightsReserved.JPEG19911998ThomasG.Lane.AllRightsReserved.DirentAPIforMicro softVisualStudio(dirent.h)20062006Copyright2006ToniRonkko.Permissionisherebygranted,freeofcharge,toanypersonobtainingacopyofthissoftwareandassociateddocumentationfiles(the``Software),todealintheSoftwarewithoutrestriction, includingwithoutlimitationtherightstouse,copy,modify,merge,publish,distribute,sublicense,and/orsellcopiesoftheSoftware,andtopermitpersonstowhomtheSoftwareisfurnishedtodoso.ToniRonkko.AllRightsReserved.ICU19952009Copy right19952009InternationalBusinessMachinesCorporationandothers.Allrightsreserved.Permissionisherebygranted,freeofcharge,toanypersonobtainingacopyofthissoftwareandassociateddocumentationfiles(theSoftware),todealintheSoft warewithoutrestriction,includingwithoutlimitationtherightstouse,copy,modify,merge,publish,distribute,and/orsellcopiesoftheSoftware,andtopermitpersonstowhomtheSoftwareisfurnishedtodoso,providedthattheabovecopyrightnotice(s) andthispermissionnoticeappearinallcopiesoftheSoftwareandthatboththeabovecopyrightnotice(s)andthispermissionnoticeappearinsupportingdocumentation.InternationalBusinessMachinesCorporationandothers.AllRightsReserved. TRADEMARKS Tecplot,Tecplot360TM,theTecplot360TMlogo,PreplotTM,EnjoytheViewTM,andFramerTMareregisteredtrademarksortrademarksofTecplot,Inc.intheUnitedStatesandothercountries. 3DSystemsisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkof3DSystemsCorporationintheU.S.and/orothercountries.MacintoshOSisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofApple,IncorporatedintheU.S.and/orothercountries.ReflectionXisaregisteredtrade markortrademarkofAttachmateCorporationintheU.S.and/orothercountries.EnSightisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofComputationEngineeringInternation(CEI),IncorporatedintheU.S.and/orothercountries.EDEMisaregisteredtrademark ortrademarkofDEMSolutionsLtdintheU.S.and/orothercountries.Exceed3D,Hummingbird,andExceedareregisteredtrademarksortrademarksofHummingbirdLimitedintheU.S.and/orothercountries.Konquerorisaregisteredtrademarkortrade markofKDEe.V.intheU.S.and/orothercountries.VIPandVDBareregisteredtrademarksortrademarksofHalliburtonintheU.S.and/orothercountries.ECLIPSEFrontSimisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofSchlumbergerInformationSolutions (SIS)intheU.S.and/orothercountries.DebianisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofSoftwareinthePublicInterest,IncorporatedintheU.S.and/orothercountries.X3DisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofWeb3DConsortiumintheU.S.and/orother countries.XWindowSystemisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofXConsortium,IncorporatedintheU.S.and/orothercountries.ANSYS,FluentandanyandallANSYS,Inc.brand,product,serviceandfeaturenames,logosandslogansareregistered trademarksortrademarksofANSYSIncorporatedoritssubsidiariesintheU.S.and/orothercountries.PAMCRASHisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofESIGroupintheU.S.and/orothercountries.LSDYNAisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkof LivermoreSoftwareTechnologyCoroporationintheU.S.and/orothercountries.MSC/NASTRANisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofMSC.SoftwareCorporationintheU.S.and/orothercountries.NASTRANisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkof NationalAeronauticsSpaceAdministrationintheU.S.and/orothercountries.3DSLisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofStreamSimTechnologies,IncorporatedintheU.S.and/orothercountries.SDRC/IDEASUniversalisaregisteredtrademarkortrade markofUGSPLMSolutionsIncorporatedoritssubsidiariesintheU.S.and/orothercountries.StarCCM+isaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofCDadapcointheU.S.and/orothercountries.RepriseLicenseManagerisaregisteredtrademarkortrade markofRepriseSoftware,Inc.intheU.S.and/orothercountries.PythonisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofPythonSoftwareFoundationintheU.S.and/orothercountries.Abaqus,the3DSlogo,SIMULIAandCATIAareregisteredtrademarksor trademarksofDassaultSystmesoritssubsidiariesintheU.S.and/orothercountries.TheAbaqusruntimelibrariesareaproductofDassaultSystmesSimuliaCorp.,Providence,RI,USA.DassaultSystmes,2007FLOW3Disaregisteredtrademarkor trademarkofFlowScience,IncorporatedintheU.S.and/orothercountries.Adobe,Flash,FlashPlayer,PremierandPostScriptareregisteredtrademarksortrademarksofAdobeSystems,IncorporatedintheU.S.and/orothercountries.AutoCADandDXFare registeredtrademarksortrademarksofAutodesk,IncorporatedintheU.S.and/orothercountries.UbuntuisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofCanonicalLimitedintheU.S.and/orothercountries.HP,LaserJetandPaintJetareregisteredtrademarksor trademarksofHewlettPackardDevelopmentCompany,LimitedPartnershipintheU.S.and/orothercountries.IBM,RS/6000andAIXareregisteredtrademarksortrademarksofInternationalBusinessMachinesCorporationintheU.S.and/orothercountries. HelveticaFontFamilyandTimesFontFamilyareregisteredtrademarksortrademarksofLinotypeGmbHintheU.S.and/orothercountries.LinuxisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofLinusTorvaldsintheU.S.and/orothercountries.ActiveX,Excel, Microsoft,VisualC++,VisualStudio,Windows,WindowsMetafile,WindowsXP,WindowsVista,Windows2000andPowerPointareregisteredtrademarksortrademarksofMicrosoftCorporationintheU.S.and/orothercountries.Firefoxisaregisteredtrade markortrademarkofTheMozillaFoundationintheU.S.and/orothercountries.NetscapeisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofNetscapeCommunicationsCorporationintheU.S.and/orothercountries.SUSEisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkof Novell,IncorporatedintheU.S.and/orothercountries.RedHatisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofRedHat,IncorporatedintheU.S.and/orothercountries.SPARCisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofSPARCInternational,Incorporatedinthe U.S.and/orothercountries.ProductsbearingSPARCtrademarksarebasedonanarchitecturedevelopedbySunMicrosystems,Inc.Solaris,SunandSunRasterareregisteredtrademarksortrademarksofSunMicroSystems,IncorporatedintheU.S.and/or othercountries.CourierisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofMonotypeImagingIncorporatedintheU.S.and/orothercountries.UNIXandMotifareregisteredtrademarksortrademarksofTheOpenGroupintheU.S.and/orothercountries.Qtisareg isteredtrademarkortrademarkofTrolltechintheU.S.and/orothercountries.ZlibisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofJeanloupGaillyandMarkAdlerintheU.S.and/orothercountries.OpenGLisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofSiliconGraph ics,IncorporatedintheU.S.and/orothercountries.JPEGisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofThomasG.LaneintheU.S.and/orothercountries.SENSORisaregisteredtrademarkortrademarkofCoatsEngineeringintheU.S.and/orothercountries. SENSORislicensedanddistributedonlybyCoatsEngineeringandbyJOAOilandGas,aworldwideauthorizedreseller.Allotherproductnamesmentionedhereinaretrademarksorregisteredtrademarksoftheirrespectiveowners. NOTICETOU.S.GOVERNMENTENDUSERS Use,duplication,ordisclosurebytheU.S.Governmentissubjecttorestrictionsassetforthinsubparagraphs(a)through(d)oftheCommercialComputerRestrictedRightsclauseatFAR52.22719whenapplicable,orinsubparagraph(c)(1)(ii)oftheRightsin TechnicalDataandComputerSoftwareclauseatDFARS252.2277013,and/orinsimilarorsuccessorclausesintheDODorNASAFARSupplement.Contractor/manufacturerisTecplot,Inc.,3535FactoriaBlvd,Ste.550;Bellevue,WA98006U.S.A. 10360011 Rev04/2010

Table of Contents

Introduction to Tecplot 3601 Introduction ....................................................................................................13Interface ...............................................................................................................................14 GettingHelp.......................................................................................................................35

2

Using the Workspace ...............................................................................37DataHierarchy ..................................................................................................................37 InterfaceCoordinateSystems ......................................................................................39 Frames ..................................................................................................................................40 WorkspaceManagementOptionsMenu ..................................................................49 ViewModification ...........................................................................................................51 EditMenu ...........................................................................................................................54

3

Data Structure ..............................................................................................57ConnectivityList ..............................................................................................................57 OrderedData .....................................................................................................................58 FiniteElementData .........................................................................................................60 VariableLocation(CellcenteredorNodal) .............................................................62 FaceNeighbors..................................................................................................................63 WorkingwithUnorganizedDatasets ........................................................................63

3

Loading Your Data4 Data Loaders .................................................................................................. 69CGNSLoader ....................................................................................................................70 DEMLoader .......................................................................................................................74 DXFLoader ........................................................................................................................74 EnSightLoader..................................................................................................................75 ExcelLoader .......................................................................................................................76 FEALoader ........................................................................................................................79 FLOW3DLoader .............................................................................................................86 FLUENTLoader ...............................................................................................................90 GeneralTextLoader ........................................................................................................95 HDFLoader .....................................................................................................................104 HDF5Loader ..................................................................................................................105 KivaLoader ......................................................................................................................107 PLOT3DLoader ..............................................................................................................108 PLYLoader .......................................................................................................................114 TecplotFormatLoader .................................................................................................114 TextSpreadsheetLoader..............................................................................................121 OverwritingDataFiles .................................................................................................122

Creating Plots5 Creating Plots .............................................................................................. 127CreatingPlots ..................................................................................................................127 DataJournaling ...............................................................................................................128 DataSharing ....................................................................................................................128 DatasetInformation.......................................................................................................129 SelectColor .......................................................................................................................135

6

XY and Polar Line Plots ......................................................................... 141MappingStyleandCreation ......................................................................................142 LineMapLayer ...............................................................................................................146 SymbolsMapLayer .......................................................................................................160 XYLineErrorBars .........................................................................................................162 XYLineBarCharts ........................................................................................................164 I,J,andKindices ...........................................................................................................164 LineLegend......................................................................................................................165 PolarDrawingOptions ................................................................................................167

7

Field Plots ....................................................................................................... 169FieldPlotModificationZoneStyleDialog ..........................................................170

4

TimeAware ......................................................................................................................175 DataPointandCellLabels ..........................................................................................177 ThreedimensionalPlotControl ................................................................................178

8

Mesh Layer and Edge Layer .............................................................185MeshLayer .......................................................................................................................185 EdgeLayer ........................................................................................................................187

9

Contour Layer ..............................................................................................189ContourLayerModification .......................................................................................190 ContourDetailsDialog.................................................................................................191 ExtractContourLines ...................................................................................................200

10

Vector Layer ..................................................................................................203VectorVariables ..............................................................................................................204 VectorPlotModification ..............................................................................................204 VectorArrowheads ........................................................................................................206 VectorLength...................................................................................................................207 ReferenceVectors ...........................................................................................................208

11

Scatter Layer ................................................................................................211ScatterPlotModification .............................................................................................211 ScatterSize/Font .............................................................................................................213 ReferenceScatterSymbols...........................................................................................214 ScatterLegends ...............................................................................................................215

12

Shade Layer ..................................................................................................217ShadeLayerModification ...........................................................................................217

13

Translucency and Lighting .................................................................219Translucency ....................................................................................................................219 LightingEffects ...............................................................................................................220 ThreedimensionalLightSource ...............................................................................221

14

Slices ..................................................................................................................223InteractivelyCreatedSlices .........................................................................................224 SlicesExtractedDirectlytoZones ............................................................................228

15

Streamtraces ................................................................................................231StreamtraceDetailsdialog ..........................................................................................232 StreamtraceAnimation ................................................................................................242 SurfaceStreamtracesonNoslipBoundaries ........................................................2425

StreamtraceExtractionasZones ...............................................................................242 StreamtraceErrors .........................................................................................................242

16

Iso-surfaces .................................................................................................. 243IsoSurfaceGroups ........................................................................................................243 IsoSurfaceDefinition ...................................................................................................244 IsoSurfaceStyle .............................................................................................................245 IsoSurfaceAnimation ..................................................................................................245 IsoSurfaceExtraction ...................................................................................................246

17

Axes .................................................................................................................... 247AxisDisplay .....................................................................................................................247 AxisVariableAssignment ...........................................................................................247 AxisRangeOptionsforXYLine,2D,and3DCartesianCoordinates ..........248 AxisRangeOptionsforPolarCoordinates ...........................................................250 AxisGridOptions ..........................................................................................................252 TickMarkOptions .........................................................................................................253 TickMarkLabelOptions .............................................................................................255 AxisTitleOptions ..........................................................................................................258 AxisLineOptions ..........................................................................................................259 GridAreaOptions .........................................................................................................261 Time/DateFormatOptions .........................................................................................262

18

Text, Geometries, and Images ...................................................... 267Text ......................................................................................................................................267 Geometries ........................................................................................................................278 Images ................................................................................................................................281 TextandGeometryAlignment ..................................................................................283 TextandGeometryLinkstoMacros ........................................................................283

Data Manipulation19 Blanking ........................................................................................................... 287BlankingSettingsforDerivedObjects ....................................................................288 ValueBlanking ................................................................................................................288 IJKBlanking .....................................................................................................................292 DepthBlanking ...............................................................................................................294

20

Surface Clipping ......................................................................................... 295CreatingaClippingSlice .............................................................................................296 IncludingPlotObjectsinClipping ...........................................................................296

6

21

Data Operations .........................................................................................299DataAlterationthroughEquations ..........................................................................299 DataSmoothing ..............................................................................................................310 CoordinateTransformation ........................................................................................312 TwodimensionalDataRotation ...............................................................................313 ShiftPseudoCellcenteredData ................................................................................314 ZoneCreation ..................................................................................................................314 DataExtractionfromanExistingZone...................................................................319 ZoneDeletion ..................................................................................................................322 VariableDeletion ............................................................................................................323 DataInterpolation ..........................................................................................................323 IrregularDataPointTriangulation ...........................................................................329 DataSpreadsheet ............................................................................................................330

22

CFD Data Analysis ....................................................................................333SpecifyingFluidProperties.........................................................................................333 SpecifyingReferenceValues .......................................................................................337 IdentifyingFieldVariables ..........................................................................................338 SettingGeometryandBoundaryOptions .............................................................339 UnsteadyFlow ................................................................................................................343 CalculatingVariables ....................................................................................................345 PerformingIntegrations ...............................................................................................350 CalculatingTurbulenceFunctions ............................................................................362 CalculatingParticlePathsandStreaklines .............................................................363 AnalyzingSolutionError ............................................................................................373 ExtractingFluidFlowFeatures..................................................................................375

23

Probing ..............................................................................................................379FieldPlotProbingwiththeMouse ...........................................................................379 FieldPlotProbingbySpecifyingCoordinatesandIndices..............................381 FieldPlotProbedDataViewing ................................................................................383 LinePlotProbingwiththeMouse ............................................................................387 DataEditing .....................................................................................................................389

Final Output24 Output ...............................................................................................................397LayoutFiles,LayoutPackageFiles,Stylesheets ...................................................397 PlotPublishingfortheWeb ........................................................................................402 DataFileWriting ............................................................................................................403

25

Printing .............................................................................................................407PlotPrinting .....................................................................................................................4077

Setup ...................................................................................................................................408 PrintRenderOptions ....................................................................................................411 PrintPreview ...................................................................................................................412

26

Exporting ......................................................................................................... 413TheTecplotViewer ........................................................................................................414 VectorGraphicsFormat ...............................................................................................415 ImageFormat ..................................................................................................................418 X3DExport .......................................................................................................................424 MovieFormat ..................................................................................................................424 ClipboardExportingtoOtherApplications .........................................................428 AntialiasingImages .......................................................................................................428

Scripting27 28 Introduction to Scripting ..................................................................... 433 Macros ............................................................................................................... 437MacroCreation ...............................................................................................................437 MacroPlayBack .............................................................................................................439 MacroDebugging ..........................................................................................................441 MacrosMovedtoDifferentComputersorDirectories ....................................443

29

Batch Processing ....................................................................................... 445BatchProcessingSetup.................................................................................................445 BatchProcessingUsingaLayoutFile .....................................................................446 MultipleDataFileProcessing ....................................................................................446 BatchProcessingDiagnostics .....................................................................................447

30

Working With Python Scripts ........................................................... 449CombiningPythonscriptswithmacrocommands ............................................449 UsingthePythonQuickScriptsPanel ....................................................................450 RunninganentirePythonModule ...........................................................................451 ModifyingthePythonPath .........................................................................................452 PythonInstallationNotes ............................................................................................452

Advanced Topics31 Animation ........................................................................................................ 457AnimationTools .............................................................................................................457 MovieFileCreationManually ...................................................................................4688

MovieFileCreationwithMacros .............................................................................469 AdvancedAnimationTechniques ............................................................................470 MovieFileViewing.......................................................................................................471

32

Customization ..............................................................................................475ConfigurationFiles ........................................................................................................475 InteractiveCustomization ...........................................................................................480 PerformanceDialog .......................................................................................................482 InterfaceConfiguration(UNIX) ................................................................................486 Tecplot.phy .......................................................................................................................486 CustomCharacterandSymbolDefinition.............................................................487

33

Add-ons ............................................................................................................491AddonLoading .............................................................................................................491 AddonsincludedintheTecplot360distribution ..............................................493 WorkingwithTecplot360Addons .........................................................................495

AppendicesA Command Line Options ........................................................................529Tecplot360CommandLine ........................................................................................529 UsingCommandLineOptionsinWindowsShortcuts .....................................531 AdditionalCommandLineOptionsinUNIX ......................................................532

B

Tecplot 360 Utilities ................................................................................533ExcelMacro ......................................................................................................................533 Framer ................................................................................................................................535 LPKView ..........................................................................................................................536 Preplot ................................................................................................................................538 RasterMetafiletoAVI(rmtoavi) ...............................................................................538 Pltview ...............................................................................................................................539

C

Shortcuts .........................................................................................................541KeyboardShortcuts .......................................................................................................541 ExtendedMouseOperations ......................................................................................545

D E

Glossary ...........................................................................................................547 PLOT3D Function Reference .............................................................557Symbols .............................................................................................................................557 ScalarGridQualityFunctions....................................................................................558 VectorGridQualityFunctions ...................................................................................5619

ScalarFlowVariables ....................................................................................................561 VectorFlowVariables ...................................................................................................566 TheVelocityGradientTensor .....................................................................................567

F

Limits of Tecplot 360 ............................................................................. 569HardLimits ......................................................................................................................569 SoftLimits .........................................................................................................................571 LimitsWhenWorkingRemotely ..............................................................................571

10

Part 1 Introduction to Tecplot 360

12

1IntroductionTecplot360isapowerfultoolforvisualizingawiderangeoftechnicaldata.Itofferslineplotting,2Dand 3Dsurfaceplotsinavarietyofformats,and3Dvolumetricvisualization.Theuserdocumentationfor Tecplot360includestheseninebooks: UsersManual(thisdocument)Thismanualprovidesacompletedescriptionofworkingwith Tecplot360features. GettingStartedManualNewTecplot360usersareencouragedtoworkthroughthetutorials providedintheGettingStartedManual.Thesetutorialshighlighthowtoworkwithkey featuresinTecplot360. ScriptingGuideThisguideprovidesMacroandPythoncommandsyntaxandinformationon workingwithMacroandPythonfilesandcommands. QuickReferenceGuideThisguideprovidessyntaxforzoneheaderfiles,macrovariables, keyboardshortcuts,andmore. DataFormatGuideThisguideprovidesinformationonoutputtingsimulatordatatoTecplot 360fileformat. AddonDevelopersKitUsersManualThismanualprovidesinstructionsandexamplesfor creatingaddonsforTecplot360. AddonDevelopersKitReferenceManualThismanualprovidesthesyntaxforthe functionsincludedintheaddonkit. InstallationInstructionsTheseinstructionsgiveadetaileddescriptionofhowtoinstall Tecplot360onyourmachine. ReleaseNotesThesenotesprovideinformationaboutnewand/orupdatedTecplot360 features. TecplotTalkAusersupportedforumdiscussingTecplot360,TecplotFocus,Pythonscripting, Addondevelopment,TecIOandmore.Visitwww.tecplottalk.comfordetails.

13

Introduction

1-1

Interface

FivemajorsectionsmakeuptheTecplot360interface:

Menubar

Toolbar

Sideba Tecplot360Workspace

Status

1 - 1.1

Menubar

ThemenubaroffersrapidaccesstomostofTecplot360sfeatures.

Tecplot360sfeaturesareorganizedintothefollowingmenus: FileUsetheFilemenutoreadorwritedatafilesandplotlayouts,printandexportplots,and setconfigurationpreferences. EditUsetheEditmenutoselect,undo,cut,copy,paste,andclearobjects,opentheQuick Editdialog,andchangethedraworderforselecteditems(pushorpop).Cut, Copy, and Paste work only within Tecplot 360. To place a graphic image of your layout into another program, use Copy Plot to Clipboard. This option is available on Windows and Macintosh platforms.

ViewUsetheViewmenutomanipulatethepointofviewofyourdata,includingscale,view range,and3Drotation.YoucanalsousetheViewmenutocopyandpasteviewsbetween frames. TheViewmenuincludesthefollowingconvenientsizingoptions: FitEverything(3DOnly)Thisoptionsresizesplotssothatalldatapoints,text,and geometriesareincludedintheframe.14

Interface

FitSurfaces(3DOnly)Thisoptionresizesplotssothatallsurfacesareincludedinthe frame,excludinganyvolumezones. FittoFullSizeThisoptionfitstheentireplotintotheframe.Thisoptiondoesnot affecttheaxisranges. NiceFittoFullSizeThisoptionsetstheaxisrangetobeginandendonmajoraxis increments(ifaxesaredependent,theverticalaxislengthisadjustedtoaccommodatea majortickmark). DataFitThisoptionfitsthedatapointstotheframe. MakeCurrentViewNiceThisoptionmodifiestherangeonaspecifiedaxistofitthe minimumandmaximumofthevariableassignedtothataxis,andthensnapsthemajor tickmarkstotheendsoftheaxis.(Ifaxisdependencyisnotsetasindependent,thismay affecttherangeonanotheraxis.) CenterThisoptionmovestheplotimagesothatthedatapointsarecenteredwithin theframe.(Onlythedataiscentered;text,geometries,andthe3Daxesarenot considered.) PlotUsethePlotmenutocontrolthestyleofyourplots.Themenuitemsavailableare dependentupontheactiveplottype(chosenintheSidebar). InsertUsetheInsertmenutoaddtext,geometries(polylines,squares,rectangles,circles,and ellipses),orimagefiles.Ifyouhavea3Dzone,youmayalsousetheInsertmenutoinserta slice.Iftheplottypeissetto2Dor3DCartesian,youmayinsertastreamtrace. AnimateUsetheAnimatemenutoanimateIJKPlanes,IJKBlanking,isosurfaces,mappings, slices,streamtraces,time,andzones. DataUsetheDatamenutocreate,manipulate,andexaminedata.Typesofdata manipulationavailableinTecplot360includezonecreation,interpolation,triangulation,and creationoralterationofvariables. FrameUsetheFramemenutocreate,edit,andcontrolframes. OptionsUsetheOptionsmenutocontroltheattributesofyourworkspace,includingthe colormap,papergrid,displayoptions,andrulers. ScriptingUsetheScriptingmenutoplayorrecordmacros,andtoaccesstheQuickMacros Paneldialog. ToolsUsetheToolsmenutolaunchtheQuickEditdialogoranaddon. AnalyzeUsetheAnalyzemenutoexaminegridquality,performintegrations,generate particlepaths,extractflowfeatures,andestimatenumericalerrors. HelpChooseTecplot360HelpfromtheHelpmenutogetspecific,completehelpon featuresoroperationswithinTecplot360.BychoosingAboutTecplot360fromthismenu, youcanobtainspecificinformationaboutyourlicense.

1 - 1.2

Sidebar

TheSidebarprovideseasyaccessforfrequentlyusedplotcontrols.ThefunctionsavailableintheSidebar dependontheplottypeoftheactiveframe.For2Dor3DCartesianplottypes,youcanaddorsubtract zonelayers,zoneeffects,andderivedobjectsfromyourplotusingtheSidebar.Forlineplots(XYand polar)youcanaddorsubtractmappinglayersusingtheSidebar. Tocustomizeyourplot,simply: SelectaplottypefromthePlotTypesdropdownmenuintheSidebar. UsethetoggleswitchestoaddorsubtractZoneSurfaces,ZoneEffects,orDerivedObjects.Use theZoneStyle/MappingStyledialogstofurthercustomizeyourplotbyaddingorsubtracting zonesfromspecificplotlayers/mappings,changingthewayazoneorgroupofzonesis displayed,orchangingvariousplotsettings.15

Introduction

PlotTypesMenu

ZoneSurfaces

Figure 11. ZoneEffects (3DOnly) TheTecplot360 Sidebarforafield plot(left)andaline plot(right).The featuresavailablein theSidebarare dependentuponthe plottype.For3D Cartesianplots,you mayaddandsubtract zonelayers,derived objects,andeffects foryourplot.You mayalsousethe PlacementPlanefor positioningsome3D objects(3Dplots only).For2D Cartesianplots(not shown),youmayadd andsubtractzone layersandsome derivedobjectsfor yourplot.Forfield plots(3Dor2D),you mayanimate transientdata

Derived Objects(Iso surfacesare 3DOnly) Transient Controls

PlacementPlane (3DOnly)

Plot TypesThePlotType,combinedwithaframesdataset,activelayers,andtheirassociatedattributes,defineaplot. Eachplottyperepresentsoneviewofthedata.Therearefiveplottypesavailable: 3DCartesian3Dplotsofsurfacesandvolumes. 2DCartesian2Dplotsofsurfaces,wheretheverticalandhorizontalaxisarebothdependent variables(i.e.x=f(A)andy=f(A),whereAisanothervariable). XYLineLineplotsofindependentanddependentvariablesonaCartesiangrid.Typicallythe horizontalaxis(x)istheindependentvariableandtheyaxisadependentvariable,y=f(x). PolarLineLineplotsofindependentanddependentvariablesonapolargrid. SketchCreateplotswithoutdatasuchasdrawings,flowcharts,andviewgraphs.

16

Interface

Zone Surfaces Zone LayersAlayerisawayofrepresentingaframesdataset.Thecompleteplotisthe sumofalltheactivelayers,axes,text,geometries,andotherelementsadded tothedataplottedinthelayers.Thesixzonelayersfor2Dand3DCartesian plottypesare: MeshAgridoflinesconnectingthedatapointswithineachzone. ContourIsovaluedlines,theregionbetweentheselinescanbeset tocontourflooding. VectorThedirectionandmagnitudeofvectorquantities. ScatterSymbolsatthelocationofeachdatapoint. ShadeUsedtotinteachzonewithasolidcolor,ortoaddlight sourceshadingtoa3Dsurfaceplot.Usedinconjunctionwiththe LightingzoneeffectyoumaysetPaneledorGouraudshading. UsedinconjunctionwiththeTranslucencyzoneeffect,youmay createatranslucentsurfaceforyourplot. EdgeZoneedgesandcreasesforordereddataandcreasesfor finiteelementdata.

Zone EffectsFor3DCartesianplottypes,usetheSidebartoturnlightingandtranslucencyonoroff.Onlyshadedand floodedcontoursurfaceplottypesareaffected.RefertoChapter12:ShadeLayerandChapter13: TranslucencyandLightingforadditionalinformation.

Zone StyleSelectthe[ZoneStyle]buttontolaunchtheZoneStyledialog.TheZoneStyledialogisusedtocustomize thezonelayersthatyouhaveaddedtoyourplot.Refertothechapterforeachzonelayerfordetailson workingwiththeZoneStyledialog.

Map LayersAlayerisawayofrepresentingaframesdataset.Thecompleteplotisthe sumofalltheactivelayers,axes,text,geometries,andotherelementsadded tothedataplottedinthelayers. ThefourXYLinemaplayersare: LinesPlotsapairofvariables,XandY,asasetoflinesegmentsor afittedcurve. SymbolsApairofvariables,XandY,asindividualdatapoints representedbyasymbolyouspecify. BarsApairofvariables,XandY,asahorizontalorverticalbar chart. ErrorBarsAllowsyoutoadderrorbarstoyourplot.

17

Introduction

ThetwomaplayersforPolarLineare: LinesApairofvariables,XandY,asasetoflinesegmentsora fittedcurve. SymbolsApairofvariables,e.g.XandY,asindividualdata pointsrepresentedbyasymbolyouspecify. Selectthe[MappingStyle]buttontolaunchtheMappingStyledialog.The MappingStyledialogallowsyoutocustomizethestylesettingsforeachof theplotlayersandspecifythepointstoplot.Thepagesofthedialogare discussedindetailinChapter6:XYandPolarLinePlots.

Derived ObjectsForCartesianplottypes(2Dand3D):ToggleonIsosurfaces,Slices,or StreamtracesfromtheSidebartoaddanyoralloftheseelementstoyourplot. TheircorrespondingDetailsdialogscanbeaccessedviatheDetails[...] button.RefertoChapter16:Isosurfaces,Chapter14:Slices,orChapter 15:Streamtracesfordetailsonworkingwiththeseobjects.

Transient ControlsWhenworkingwithtransientdata,simplypressthePlay buttoninthe Sidebartoanimateovertime.Theactiveframewillbeanimatedfromthe CurrentSolutionTime(circledinred)tothelasttimestep.Youmayalsodrag theslidertochangetheCurrentSolutionTimeofyourplot. TheAnimationControlshavethefollowingfunctions: JumpstotheStartingValue. JumpstowardtheStartingValuebyonestep.

RunstheanimationasspecifiedbytheOperationfieldoftheTimeDetailsdialog. ThePlaybuttonbecomesaStopbuttonwhiletheanimationisplaying. JumpstowardtheEndingValuebyonestep. JumpstotheEndingValue.

UsetheDetails[...]buttontolaunchtheTimeDetailsdialog.

Placement PlaneWhenyouareusingcertaintoolstoaddobjectstoyourplot,toggleonUsePlacementPlaneinthe

Sidebartoplacethemalongagivenplane(3DPlotsonly).Usethe[X],[Y],and[Z]buttonstoselectthe planetouse,andusetheslidertorepositionthePlacementPlane.ThePlacementPlanewillappearasa graysliceinyourplot.ThePlacementPlaneisavailablefor: Placingstreamtraces(usingtheAddStreamtraceTool )

Placingslices(usingtheSliceTool18

)

Interface

AddingContourLevels(usingtheAddContourLevelTool

)

DeletingContourLevels(usingtheRemoveContourLevelTool

)

Probing(usingtheProbingtool

)

Snap ModesSnapModesallowyoutoplaceobjectspreciselybylockingthemtothenearestreferencepoint,eitheron theaxisgridorontheworkspacepaper. SnaptoGridConstrainobjectmovementtowholestepsontheaxisgrid.Thiscanbeuseful foraligningtextandgeometrieswithspecificplotfeatures. SnaptoPaperConstrainobjectmovementtowholestepsonthepapersrulergrid.Thiscan beusefulforpositioningframespreciselyforprinting,orforabsolutepositioningoftext, geometries,andotherplotelements.

Details ButtonThe[Details]buttonislocatedimmediatelybelowthesnapmodes.Itiscontextsensitive.Usethisbutton tocallupthedialogmostdirectlyapplicabletoyourcurrentaction.Whenthecurrentlyselectedtoolis eithertheSelector ortheAdjustor ,butnoobjectsareselectedintheworkspace,the[Details] buttonislabeled[QuickEdit].Otherwise,thebuttonislabeledObjectDetailswhenanobjectisselected andToolDetailswhenyourmousecursorisnotinselectormodeandanobjectisnotselected.

Object DetailsThe[ObjectDetails]buttonintheSidebarcallsupthedialogthatmostcloselyreflectsthecurrentstateof thecursor.Forexample,ifyouselectalegendandthen[ObjectDetails],theLegenddialogwillopen.

Tool Details[ToolDetails]callsupthedialogrelatedtothecurrentstateofthecursor.Forexample,ifarotatetoolis selected,[ToolDetails]callsupthe3DRotatedialog.

Redraw ButtonsTheredrawbuttonsallowyoutokeepyourplotuptodate:[RedrawAll]CTRLDredrawsallframes (SHIFT[RedrawAll]completelyregeneratestheworkspace);[Redraw]CTRLRredrawsonlytheactive frame.

Auto RedrawUseAutoRedrawWhenselected,theplotwillbeautomaticallyredrawn,wheneverstyleordata changes.Someusersprefertoturnthisoptionoffwhilesettingmultiplestylesettingsandthenmanually pressthe[Redraw]or[RedrawAll]buttonontheSidebartoseeafullplot.You can interrupt an auto-redraw at any time with a mouse click or key press.

19

Introduction

Cache GraphicsTecplot360usesOpenGLtorenderplots.OpenGLprovidesfortheabilitytocachegraphicinstructions forrenderingandcanrerenderthecachedgraphicsmuchfasterthanifTecplot360sendstheinstructions again.Thisisparticularlytrueforinteractivemanipulationofaplot.However,thisperformancepotential comesatthecostofusingmorememory.Ifthememoryneedistoohigh,theoverallperformancecouldbe less.Therearethreegraphicscachemodes:cacheallgraphics,cacheonlylightweightgraphicsobjects,and donotcachegraphics. WhenCacheGraphicsisselectedintheSidebar,Tecplot360assumesthereisenoughmemoryto generatethegraphicscache.Assumingthisistrue,Tecplot360srenderingperformancewillbeoptimal forinteractivemanipulationofplots. Whenmemoryconstraintsareverylimited,considertogglingoffCacheGraphics.Ifyouintendto interactwiththeplot,alsoconsidersettingthePlotApproximationmodesettoAllFramesAlways Approximated. SeeSectionGraphicsCacheonpage 483formoreinformation.

Plot ApproximationsWhenPlotApproximationisselectedandifthenumberofdatapointsisabovethepointthreshold,an approximateplotforstyle,data,andinteractiveviewchangesisrendered.Theapproximateplotis followedimmediatelybythefullplot.Thisoptionprovidesforgoodinteractiveperformancewiththe finalplotalwaysdisplayedinthefullrepresentation. SeeSectionPlotApproximationonpage 482formoreinformation.

1 - 1.3

Toolbar

EachofthetoolsrepresentedintheToolbarchangesthemousemodeandallowsyoutointeractivelyedit yourplot.

Double-click on a tool to launch the Details dialog associated with the tool.

Selector ToolUsetheSelectortooltoselectobjectsinyourworkspace.Theselectedobjectscanbemodifiedusing theQuickEditdialogand(insomecases)theSelectortoolitself. Thefollowingobjectscanbemoved(translated)usingtheSelectortool: frames axisgridarea text geometries contourlabels streamtraces streamtraceterminationline legends 3Dframeaxis20

Interface

Toselectanobjectandopenthatobjectsattributesdialog,eitherdoubleclickonanyobjectordragthe cursortoselectgroupsofobjects(callsupGroupSelectdialog).Selectthe[OK]button,thenselect[Object Details].

Adjustor ToolUsetheAdjustortooltoperformanyofthefollowingmodificationstoyourplotanddata: Locationofindividualorgroupsofdatapointsinthegrid. Valuesofthedatasetvariablesataparticularpoint. Lengthorplacementofindividualaxes(2DCartesianandXYLineplottypesonly). Spacingbetweenanaxislabelanditsassociatedaxis(2DCartesianandXYLineplottypes only). Shapeofapolyline. Forallotherscenarios,thebehavioroftheAdjustormodeisidenticaltothatoftheSelectortool.The Adjustor tool can alter your data. Be sure you want to use the Adjustor tool before dragging points in the data region.

ToselectmultiplepointsYoucaneitherSHIFTclickafterselectingyourinitialpointtoselectadditional points,oryoucandrawagroupselectbandtoselectthepointswithintheband.(Inlineplots,youcan selectpointsfromonlyonemappingatatime.) Onceyouhaveselectedalldesiredpoints,movetheAdjustorovertheselectionhandlesofoneofthe points,thenclickanddragtothedesiredlocationofthefirstdatapoint.Theotherselectedpointswill moveasaunitwithrespecttothechosendatapoint,maintainingtheirrelativepositions. ForXYLineplots,ifseveralmappingsareusingthesamedataforoneofthevariables, adjustingoneofthemappingswillresultinsimultaneousadjustmentstotheothers.You canavoidthisbypressingtheHorVkeyonyourkeyboardwhileadjustingtheselected point.TheHandVkeysrestricttheadjustmenttothehorizontalandverticaldirections, respectively.

Group SelectTheGroupSelectdialogisopenedwhenyouselectagroupofobjectswiththeSelectororAdjustortool. TheGroupSelectdialogallowsyoutospecifythefollowingobjecttypes(iftheselectionrectangledoes notincludeaspecificobject,itsassociatedcheckboxisinactive): Text Geometries Frames ZonesorMappings AxisGridArea ContourLabels Streamtraces TheGroupSelectdialogoffersthefollowingattributefilters: GeomsofTypeChoosegeometriesofaparticulartypefromthedropdownmenu.

21

Introduction

GeomswithLinePatternChooseallgeometrieshavingaparticularlinepattern. TextwithFontChoosealltextdisplayedinaparticularfont. ObjectswithColorChooseallobjectsofaparticularcolor.Youchoosetheappropriatecolor fromtheSelectColordialog.

Zoom ToolZoomintoorawayfromtheplot. Whenamouseclickoccurs(withoutdragging),thezoomingiscenteredatthelocationofyourclick. Therearetwozoommodes:plotzoomingandpaperzooming. Forplotzoomingdragthemagnifyingglasscursortodrawaboxaroundtheregionthatyouwanttofit intotheframe.Theboxmaybelargerthantheframe.Makingtheboxlargerthantheframezoomsaway fromtheplot.Theregionwithintheviewboxwillberesizedtofitintotheframe.If Snap to Grid (located in the Sidebar) is selected, you cannot make the zoom box larger than the grid area.

Toreturntothepreviousview,chooseLastfromtheViewmenu(CTRLL).Torestoretheoriginal2D view,chooseFittoFullSize(CTRLF). Theresultsofplotzoomingforthe2DplottypearedependentupontheaxismodeselectedintheAxis Detailsdialog(accessedviathePlotmenu): 2DIndependentAxisModeAllowstheselectedregiontoexpandtoexactlyfitintheframe. Theaxesarerescaledindependentlytofitthezoombox. 2DDependentAxisModeIndependentmode,theaxesarenotfitperfectlytothezoombox. Thelongestdimensionfromthezoomboxisappliedtoanassociatedaxis,andtheotheraxisis resizedaccordingtothedependencyrelation. ForpaperzoomingSHIFTdragthemagnifyingglasscursortodrawaboxabouttheregionthatyou wanttomagnify.Theplotisresizedsothatthelongestdimensionofthezoomboxfitsintotheworkspace. YoucanfitoneorallframestotheworkspacebyusingtheFitSelectedFramestoWorkspaceorFitAll FramestoWorkspaceoptionsfromtheView>Workspacemenu.Toreturntothedefaultpaperview, chooseFitPapertoWorkspacefromtheView>Workspacemenu. Clickinganywhereinyourplotwhilethezoomtoolisactivewillcenterthezoomaround yourclick.Alternatively,CTRLclickcenterstheplotonthepointthatwasclickedand zoomsout. Usethecentermousebuttonanddrag(orholddowntherollerballanddrag)to interactivelyzoomintooroutoftheplot. ThisendsthesectionbeforethesectionImhopingtorename.

Translate ToolUsetheTranslate/Magnifytooltotranslateormagnifydatawithinaframeorthepaperwithinthe workspace.

22

Interface

WhileinTranslate/Magnifymode,dragthecursortomovethedatawithrespecttotheframe,orSHIFT dragtomovethepaperwithrespecttotheworkspace.Use the right mouse button to interactively translate objects. You can rescale your image by pressing + to magnify, - to shrink. If you are SHIFT-dragging to move the paper, the rescale buttons + and - will magnify or shrink the paper, as long as you have the mouse button depressed.

Three-dimensional RotationTherearesix3Drotationmousemodes: Spherical DragthemousehorizontallytorotateabouttheZaxis;dragthemouseverticallyto

controlthetiltoftheZaxis.

Rollerball

Dragthemouseinadirectiontomovewithrespecttothecurrentorientationonthe

screen.Inthismode,yourmouseactsmuchlikearollerball.

Twist

Drag the mouse clockwise around the image to rotate the image clockwise. Drag the

mousecounterclockwisearoundtheimagetorotatetheimagecounterclockwise.

Xaxis

DragthemousetorotatetheimageabouttheXaxis.

Yaxis

DragthemousetorotatetheimageabouttheYaxis.

Zaxis

DragthemousetorotatetheimageabouttheZaxis.

Onceyouhaveselectedarotationmousemode,youcanquicklyswitchtoanyoftheothersusingthe followingkeyboardshortcuts:Drag ALTdrag Middleclickanddrag/ALT rightclickanddrag Rightclickanddrag RotateaboutthedefinedrotationoriginwithyourcurrentRotatetool. RotateabouttheviewerpositionusingyourcurrentRotatetool. Smoothzoominandoutofthedata. Translatethedata. Thisoptioncanbeusedwithoutfirstselectingarotationmousemode.Simply hoveroveryourintendedpointoforigin,andthenCTRLrightclickanddrag totranslatetheimage. Moverotationorigintoprobedpoint,ignoringzones.

CTRLrightclickanddragC

23

Introduction

O

Moverotationorigintoprobedpointofdata. Thisshortcutcanbeusedwithoutfirstselectingarotationmousemode. Simplyhoveroveryourintendedpointoforigin,typeO,andthenCTRL rightclickanddragtorotatetheimage. SwitchtoRollerballrotation. SwitchtoSphericalrotation. SwitchtoTwistrotation. SwitchtoXaxisrotation. SwitchtoYaxisrotation. SwitchtoZaxisrotation.

R S T X Y Z

Slice ToolUsetheSlicingtooltoaddasliceinteractivelybyclickinganywhereinyourplot.Youcanalsouse thistooltocontrolyourslice(s)interactively. Thefollowingkeyboard/mouseoptionsareavailablewhentheSlicetoolisactive:PrimarySlices,StartEndSlicesActiveTurnonintermediateslices(ifnot alreadyactive)andaddsaslice. PrimarySlicesactive[ONLY]TurnsonStart/EndSlicesandaddsaslice. Start/EndSlicesactive[ONLY]TurnsonStart/EndSlicesandaddsaslice. PrimarySlices,StartEndSlicesActiveRemovesstartandendslices. PrimarySlicesactive[ONLY]Removestheprimaryslice. Start/EndSlicesactive[ONLY]RemovestheStartandEndSlices. Updatesthepositionoftheprimaryslice(ifactive).Ifonlystartandendslices arevisible,clickupdatesthepositionofthestartingslice. DeterminetheXYZlocationbyignoringzonesandlookingonlyatderived volumeobjects(streamtraces,slices,isosurfaces). SwitchesfromonePrimaryslicetoStart/EndSlicesbyaddingaslice. Movethestartorendslice(whicheverisclosesttotheinitialclicklocation). ShowStart/EndSlicesisactivated,ifnecessary. SwitchtoslicingconstantI,J,orKplanesrespectively. SwitchtoslicingconstantX,Y,orZplanesrespectively. Numbersonethrougheightswitchtothecorrespondingslicegroup.

+

Click/Drag ALTclick/ALTdrag

SHIFTclick SHIFTdragI,J,K(orderedzonesonly) X,Y,Z 18

24

Interface

Add StreamtraceSelecttheAddStreamtracetooltoaddastreamtraceinteractivelybyclickinganywhereinyourplot. Selectthenumberofstreamtracestoincludewitheachclick(rake)using19onthekeyboard.Keyboard Shortcuts DSwitch to streamrods RSwitch to streamribbons SSwitch to surface lines VSwitch to volume lines 1-9Change the number of streamtraces to be added when placing a rake of streamtraces SHIFT - Draws a rake on concave 3D volume surfaces. These rakes are normally not drawn, as they occur outside of the data Refer to Chapter 15: Streamtraces for more information.

Streamtrace Termination LineSelecttheAddStreamtraceTerminationLinetooltoaddastreamtraceterminationline interactively. TodrawaStreamtraceTerminationLine: Movethecursorintothedataregion. Clickonceatthedesiredstartingpointfortheline. Clickagainateachdesiredbreakpoint. Whenthepolylineiscomplete,doubleclickonthelastpointofthepolyline,orpressESCon yourkeyboard. Thedrawnpolylineendsanystreamtracesthatpassthroughit.

Add Contour LevelSelecttheAddContourLeveltooltoaddacontourlevelbyclickinganywhereintheactivedata region.Anewcontourlevel,passingthroughthespecifiedlocation,iscalculatedanddrawn. ThefollowingkeyboardandmouseshortcutsarerelatedtotheAddContourLeveltool.ALTclick Click Placeacontourlinebyprobingonastreamtrace,slice,orisosurface. Placeacontourline. Replacethenearestcontourlinewithanewline. Movethenewcontourline. SwitchtotheDeleteContourLeveltool.

CTRLClickDrag

25

Introduction

Delete Contour LevelSelecttheDeleteContourLeveltooltodeleteacontourlevelbyclickinganywhereintheactivedata region.Thecontourlinenearestthespecifiedlocationisdeleted.Use the + key to switch to the Add Contour Level tool and the - key to switch back to the Delete Contour Level tool.

Add Contour LabelsSelecttheAddContourLabeltooltoswitchtotheContourLabelmode,enablingyoutoadda contourlabelbyclickinganywhereintheactivedataregion. Acontourlabelisaddedtotheplotatthespecifiedlocation;itslevelorvalueinformationistakenfrom thenearestcontourline.Thisallowsyoutoplacelabelsataslightoffsetfromthelinestheylabel.The Contour type must be lines or lines and flood in order for this tool to be active. You can set the contour type on the Contour page of the Zone Style dialog.

Probe ToolSelecttheProbeAtTooltoprobeforvaluesofthedatasetsvariablesataparticularpoint. Toobtaininterpolatedvaluesofthedatasetvariablesatthespecifiedlocation,clickatanypointinthedata region. Toobtainexactvaluesforthedatapointnearestthespecifiedlocation,CTRLclickatthedesiredlocation.For XY plots, when you move into the axis grid area, the cursor cross hair is augmented by a vertical or horizontal line, depending on whether you are probing along the X-axis or the Y-axis. You can change the axis to probe simply by pressing X to probe the X-axis or Y to probe the Y-axis.

Insert TextSelecttheAddTexttooltoaddtexttoanyframe.

Insert GeometriesUsethecorrespondinggeometrybuttonsintheToolbartoinsertgeometriesintoyourplot. Polylines

Squares

Rectangles

26

Interface

Circle

Ellipse

Create New FrameSelecttheCreateFrametooltocreateanewframe. Toaddaframe: Clickonceintheworkspacetoanchoronecorneroftheframe. Dragthediagonalcorneruntiltheframeisthedesiredsizeandshape.If you have data loaded before you create a new frame, you can attach the existing dataset to the new frame by changing the plot type.

Extract Discrete PointsSelecttheExtractDiscretePointstooltoextractselectedpointstoadatafileoranewzone. Toselectpoints: Clickyourlefthandmousebuttonateachlocationwhereyouwouldliketoextractapoint. Toendextraction,eitherdoubleclickonthelastpoint,orrightclick,orpresstheESCkey. TheExtractDataPointsdialogappears;useittospecifyhowmanypointstoextractandhow tosavethedata.

Extract Points along PolylineSelecttheExtractLinetooltoextractpointsalongaspecifiedpolylinetoadatafileoranewzone. Toselectpoints: Clickyourlefthandmousebuttonateachlocationwhereyouwouldliketoextractapoint. Toendextraction,eitherdoubleclickonthelastpoint,orrightclick,orpresstheESCkey. TheExtractDataPointsdialogappears;useittospecifyhowmanypointstoextractandhow tosavethedata.

Create Rectangular ZoneSelecttheCreateRectangularZonetooltoadd2Drectangularzonestotheactivedataset. Tocreatearectangularzone: Clickonceintheactivedataregiontoanchoronecornerofthezone. Dragthediagonalcorneruntilthezoneisthedesiredsizeandshape.Thenewzonecreatedis IJordered.

27

Introduction

TospecifythemaximumIindexandJindex,usetheCreateRectangularZonedialog(accessedvia Data>CreateZone).The active frame must have a dataset attached to it in order for this tool to be active. This tool is available in 2D plots only.

Create Circular ZoneSelecttheCreateCircularZonetooltoaddnew2Dcircularzonestotheactivedataset. Tocreateacircularzone: Clickonceintheactivedataregiontospecifythecenterofthezone. Draguntilthezonehasthedesiredradius.ThenewzonecreatedisIJordered. TospecifythemaximumIindexandJindex,usetheCreateCircularZonedialog(accessedvia Data>CreateZone).The active frame must have a dataset attached to it in order for the Create Circular Zone tool to be active. This tool is available in 2D plots only.

1 - 1.4

Status Line

ThestatuslineappearsalongthebottomoftheTecplot360windowtogivehoverhelp,aswellasa progressbarandinformationwhenTecplot360computescalculations.Thehoverhelpappearswhenyou movethepointeroveratoolintheToolbar,abuttonoriteminthesidebar,oramenuitem,andgivesa descriptionofthecontrol. AprogressbarandinformationaboutthecalculationTecplot360iscompletingappearsinthestatusline duringlengthycalculationsorotherlongeroperations.

1 - 1.5

Tecplot 360 Workspace

IntheTecplot360workspace,youcancreatesketchesandplots.Youcancreateeachsketchorplotwithin awindowcalledaframe.Eachvisiblemeasureoftheworkspaceiscalledapage.Thecurrentstateofthe workspace,includingthesizingandpositioningofframes,thenumberandcontentsofpages,thelocation ofthedatafilesusedbyeachframe,andallcurrentattributesforallframes,makesupalayout.Bydefault, theworkspacedisplaysarepresentationofwherethepaperplotsaredrawn,aswellasareferencegrid andrulers.Theframemostrecentlyselectediscalledtheactiveframe. Youcanincludemultiplepagesinyourlayout.Tocreateanewpage,modifypagesormovebetween them,usetheQuickMacroPanel.SeeSection282.1QuickMacroPanelformoreinformationabout thepanel.

28

Interface

1 - 1.6

Quick Edit

Themapandzonelayercontrolsaffectinghowtheindividuallayersaredrawncanbealteredusing controlsontheSidebar.YoucanalsocontrolmanyoftheseattributesusingtheQuickEditdialog.

TheQuickEditdialogisaccessedviathe[QuickEdit]buttonlocatedatthebottomoftheSidebarwhen themousemodeisastandardarrow(i.e.youareusingeithertheSelectorToolorAdjustorTool).Ifyou areinadifferentmousemode,oryouhaveselectedaTextorGeometryobject,theObjectDetailsorTool DetailswillbelaunchedinlieuoftheQuickEditdialog. TousetheQuickEditdialog,selectoneormoreobjectsintheworkspace,thenselecttheappropriate buttoninthedialogtochangetheattributesoftheselectedobject(s).Thefunctionalityofeachbuttonis describedinthefollowingsections.

Mesh

ThisareaoftheQuickEditdialogcontrolswhetherthemeshisdisplayedforselectedzones,andifso, usingwhichtypesofmesh.Thefollowingoptionsareavailable: YShowthemeshfortheselectedzones.ThefirsttimeyouturnontheMeshlayerbyeither theQuickEditdialogortheZoneStyledialog,adialogappearsaskingifyouwishit activated.Select[Yes]toconfirmturningonthelayer. NTurnoffthemeshfortheselectedzones.

29

Introduction

WireFrameMeshlinesaredrawnunderlyingallotherfieldlayers(i.e.,Contour, Vector,Scatter,Shade);hiddenlinesarenotremoved.

OverlayMeshlinesaredrawnaboveallotherfieldplotlayersexceptvectorsandscatter symbols.

HiddenSimilartoOverlay,exceptthatinthe3DCartesian,plottypehiddenlinesare removedfrombehindthemesh.Inessence,thecellsofthemeshareopaque.Surfacesand linesthatarehiddenbehindanothersurfaceareremovedfromtheplot.

Contour

ThisareaoftheQuickEditdialogcontrolswhethercontoursaredisplayedforselectedzones,andifso, usingwhichplottype.Thefollowingoptionsareavailable: YShowthecontoursfortheselectedzones.ThefirsttimeyouturnontheContourlayerby eithertheQuickEditdialogortheZoneStyledialog,adialogappearsaskingifyouwishit activated.Select[Yes]toconfirmturningonthelayer. NTurnoffthecontourfortheselectedzones. LinesPlotscontourlines.Ifyouchoosethisplottype,youcanusetheContColor attributetospecifyMultiColortomakethelinecolorvarywiththecontourvariablevalue. FloodFloodtheareabetweenadjacentcontourlineswithacoloraccordingtothevalue ofthecontourvariable,numberofcontourlevels,andtheColorMap. BothLinesandFloodContourlinesaredrawnwithcolorfloodingbetweenthem. AverageCellEachcellorelementisfloodedwithonesolidcolorbaseduponthe averagevalueofthecontourvariableatthedatapointsofthecellorelement. PrimaryValueEachcellorelementisfloodedwithonesolidcolorbaseduponthe primarycellvalue.

VectorThisareaoftheQuickEditdialogcontrolswhethervectorsaredisplayedforselectedzones,andifso, usingwhichplottype.Thefollowingoptionsareavailable: YShowthevectorsfortheselectedzones.ThefirsttimeyouturnontheVectorlayerbyeither theQuickEditdialogortheZoneStyledialog,adialogappearsaskingifyouwishit activated.Select[Yes]toconfirmturningonthelayer. NTurnoffthevectorsfortheselectedzones. TailatPointDisplayregularvectorsasimplestickvectorwithlengthproportionalto thelocalmagnitude.Thetailofthevectorispositionedatthedatapoint.

30

Interface

HeadatPointDisplayregularvectorsasimplestickvectorwithlengthproportionalto thelocalvelocitymagnitude(thesquarerootofthesumofthesquaresofthevector components).Theheadofthevectorispositionedatthedatapoint.

AnchoratMidpointDisplayregularvectorsasimplestickvectorwithlength proportionaltothelocalvelocitymagnitude.Themidpointofthevectorispositionedatthe datapoint. HeadOnlyDisplayvectorsasheadsonly,withoutthevectorshaft.

Scatter

ThisareaoftheQuickEditdialogcontrolswhetherscattersymbolsaredisplayedforselectedzones,and ifso,whethertouseplainorfilledsymbols.Thefollowingoptionsareavailable: YShowthescattersymbolsfortheselectedzones.ThefirsttimeyouturnontheScatterlayer byeithertheQuickEditdialogortheZoneStyledialog,adialogappearsaskingifyouwishit activated.Select[Yes]toconfirmturningonthelayer. NTurnoffthescattersymbolsfortheselectedzones. PlainUseunfilledsymbolsforthescatterplot. FilledUsefilledsymbolsforthescatterplot.

Shade

ThisareaoftheQuickEditdialogcontrolswhethershadingisusedforselectedzones.Thisoptionallows youtoturnoffjusttheShadelayerforspecificzones,withoutcompletelydeactivatingthezones.The followingoptionsareavailable: YShowlightsourceshadingfortheselectedzones.ThefirsttimeyouturnontheShadelayer byeithertheQuickEditdialogortheZoneStyledialog,adialogappearsaskingifyouwishit activated.Select[Yes]toconfirmturningonthelayer. NTurnofflightsourceshadingfortheselectedzones.

Edge Border

ThisareaoftheQuickEditdialogcontrolswhetherthezoneedgeborderisdisplayedforselectedordered zones,andifso,whatedgetype.Thefollowingoptionsareavailable: YShowedgesbordersfortheselectedzones.ThefirsttimeyouturnontheEdgelayerby eithertheQuickEditdialogortheZoneStyledialog,adialogappearsaskingifyouwishit activated.Select[Yes]toconfirmturningonthelayer. NTurnoffedgesfortheselectedzones. ShowEntireBorderShowsborderlinesonallboundariesoftheselectedzone(s).

31

Introduction

ShowBorderLineShowstheedgeborderlineclosesttotheselectedpoint. HideBorderLineHidestheedgeborderlinethatisclosesttotheselectedpoint. ShowOnlyNearestBorderLineShowsonlytheedgeborderlinethatisclosesttothe selectedpointandhidesallothers.

ThefirsttimeyouturnontheLinelayerbyeithertheQuickEditdialogortheMappingStyle dialog,adialogappearsaskingifyouwishitactivated.Select[Yes]toconfirmturningonthe layer.

Symbols Mapping Layer

ThisareaoftheQuickEditdialogcontrolswhethersymbolsareplottedateachdatapoint,andwhether thosesymbolsarefilledorplain.Thefollowingoptionsareavailable: YShowthesymbolplotsfortheselectedmaps.ThefirsttimeyouturnontheSymbolslayer byeithertheQuickEditdialogortheMappingStyledialog,adialogappearsaskingifyou wishitactivated.Select[Yes]toconfirmturningonthelayer. NTurnoffthesymbolplotsfortheselectedmaps. PlainUseunfilledsymbolsforthescatterplot. FilledUsefilledsymbolsforthescatterplot.

XY Error Bars Mapping Layer

ThisareaoftheQuickEditdialogcontrolswhethererrorbarsaredisplayedfortheselectedmappings, andinwhichdirectiontheerrorbarsaredrawn.Theoptionsare: YShowtheerrorbarsfortheselectedmaps.ThefirsttimeyouturnontheErrorBarslayerby eithertheQuickEditdialogortheMappingStyledialog,adialogappearsaskingifyouwish itactivated.Select[Yes]toconfirmturningonthelayer. NTurnofftheerrorbarsfortheselectedmaps. TopErrorbarextendsupwardforpositivevalues(anddownwardfornegativevalues) oftheerrorbarvariable. BottomErrorbarextendsdownwardforpositivevalues(andupwardfornegative values)oftheerrorbarvariable. LeftErrorbarextendstotheleftforpositivevalues(andtotherightfornegativevalues) oftheerrorbarvariable. RightErrorbarextendstotherightforpositivevalues(andtotheleftfornegative values)oftheerrorbarvariable. HorizontalErrorbarextendsbothleftandright.

32

Interface

VerticalErrorbarextendsbothupanddown. CrossErrorbarextendsup,down,left,andright.

Bars Mapping LayerThisareaoftheQuickEditdialogcontrolswhetherbarsareplottedtorepresenteachdatapoint,and whetherthosebarsarefilledorplain. YShowtheselectedmapsasbarcharts.ThefirsttimeyouturnontheBarslayerbyeitherthe QuickEditdialogortheZoneStyledialog,adialogappearsaskingifyouwishitactivated. Select[Yes]toconfirmturningonthelayer. NTurnoffbarchartingfortheselectedmaps. PlainUseunfilledbarsforthebarchart. FilledUsefilledbarsforthebarchart.

Color

ThisareaoftheQuickEditdialogcontrolscoloroptionsforfilledobjects,lines,andtext. ObjecttypeUsetheFill,Line,andTextradiobuttonstoidentifytheobjecttypetomodify. ColorSelectthe[Color]buttontoactivatetheSelectColordialog.Multicolorisnotavailable forlineplots. XbuttonThebehaviorofthe[X]buttondependsontheobjecttypeselected. Fill[X]turnsoffthefillcolor. Line[X]causesthelinecolortomatchthefillcolor.Ifnofillcolorisspecified,the[X] buttonhasnoeffect. Text[X]hasnoeffect.

Symbols

UsethisregionoftheQuickEditdialogtochangethesymbolfortheScatterZonelayerorSymbolsMap layer. Usethe[Size]buttontospecifythesizeofthescattersymbolsasapercentageoftheframewidth(inthe2D Cartesianplottype)orofthemedianaxislength(inthe3DCartesianplottype).

33

Introduction

Line PatternThisareaoftheQuickEditdialogcontrolsthelinepattern,patternlength,andline thicknessforallselectedobjects. LinePttrnChoosethelinepatternfortheselectedzones. PttrnLngthSpecifythepatternlengthfortheselectedlinepattern,asa percentageoftheframewidth. LineThcknssSpecifythelinethicknessforthevectorsasapercentageofthe framewidth.

Arrows

ThisareaoftheQuickEditdialogcontrolsarrowheadplacementonpolylines.

ArrowheadsThisareaoftheQuickEditdialogcontrolsthetype,size,andangleofarrowheadforboth selectedvectorsandselectedpolylinesandvectors.Thefollowingoptionsareavailable: HeadStyleChoosethevectorheadstylefortheselectedzones.Thefollowing optionsareavailable: PlainDisplayarrowheadsaslinesdrawnfromtheheadofthevector. FilledDisplayarrowheadsasfilledtrianglesattheendofeachvector. HollowDisplayarrowheadsashollowtrianglesattheendofeachvector. SizeSpecifythesizeofthearrowheadasapercentageofframeheight. Angle(deg)Specifytheanglebetweenthevectorandthearrowhead. EnterValueForboththe[Size]and[Angle]buttons,youcanchooseEnterandtypeinan exactpercentageintheEnterValuedialog.

Font

ThisareaoftheQuickEditdialogcontrolsthefontfamilyandsizeusedforselectedtext.(SeeSection18 1.2FontFoldersandFallbackonpage 269formoreinformationonhowfontsworkwithTecplot360.) Thefollowingoptionsareavailable: FontmenuSelectthefontfamily. B,I,RSelecttheboldface,italic,bold/italic,orregularversionofthefont. Size(%)Specifytheheightforthetextinframeunits(i.e.asapercentageofframeheight). Size(pt)Specifytheheightforthetextinpoints.

34

Getting Help

Order and Alignment

UsetheOrderandAlignmentbuttonsoftheQuickEditdialogtoaligntextwithintextboxesorthe alignmentbetweenselectedgeometries/textboxes. text. Topor BottomUsetheToporBottomalignmentbuttonstoalignselected geometriesandtextwithrespecttooneanother. Left, Center,or RightUsetheLeft,Center,orRightalignmentbuttonstoalign

PushUsethePushbuttontopushtheselectedgeometries,frames,ortexttothebottomofthe draworder.Ifyouselectframesincludingtheactiveframeandusethe[Push]button,Tecplot 360willactivatethenewtopmostframe.Otherwise,the[Push]buttonwillnotaffecttheactive frame. PopUsethePopbuttontopoptheselectedgeometriesortexttothetopofthedraworder.If youselectinactiveframesandusethe[Pop]button,Tecplot360willactivatethenewest topmostframe.Otherwise,the[Pop]buttonwillnotaffecttheactiveframe.For more information about active frames, see Section 2 - 3.1 The Active Frame Receives All Actions.

1-2

Getting Help

Tecplot360featuresafullyintegratedHelpsystem.QuickhelponmenuitemsandSidebarcontrolsis availablefromthestatuslineortooltips. Detailedhelpisaccessibleby: PressingtheF1keyanywhereintheTecplot360window.IfthepointerisovertheSidebar, QuickEditdialog,oramenu,theF1keyprovidescontextsensitivehelponthatcontrolor menu.Otherwise,F1callsuptheContentspageofHelpviayourWebbrowser. SelectingContentsfromtheHelpmenu. SelectingHelponanydialog. TheHelpdialogsupportstextsearch,hashypertextlinks,andprovidesdetailedinformationonallmenus anddialogs. YouranswermaybeinTechnicalSupportNotesatwww.tecplot.com/support. IfyouarecoveredbyTecplotsSoftwareMaintenanceService,helpisalsoavailablefrom6:30A.M.to5 P.M.PacificStandardTimefromTecplotTechnicalSupportat425.653.9393. Youmayalsosendanemailtosupport@tecplot.comwithyourquestions.

35

Introduction

36

2Using the WorkspaceThischapterdiscussesthestructuresandfeaturesofTecplot360thatactthesameregardlessofthedata typeorplotlayersyouareusing.Theseinclude: DataHierarchyHowTecplot360managesdata InterfaceCoordinateSystemsTecplot360suseofdifferentcoordinatesystems,andwhen andwheretheyoccur FramesAreasintheworkspaceinwhichyoucancreateplotsandcontrolformatting WorkspaceManagementOptionsMenuFactorsthatdeterminethecolorandorientationof yourpaper,aswellastherulerandgrid,inordertopreciselysizeandpositionobjects.Forin depthinformationonDisplayPerformance,refertoSection323PerformanceDialog ViewModificationThecommandstozoom,translate,andfitplotswithinframes EditMenuThecommandstocutorcopyplotelementsfromaworkspace,andthecommand topasteplotelements

2-1

Data Hierarchy

Tecplot360structuresdataintwolevels:datasets,whichdisplayinframes,andzones,whichmakeupa dataset.Eachdatasetiscomposedofoneormorezones,andeachzonecontainsoneormorevariables.All zoneswithinadatasetcontainthesamesetofvariables.

37

Using the Workspace

Thischart,Figure21,displaysavisualrepresentationofTecplot360smethodofdatahierarchy.

Figure21.

DataHierarchyinTecplot360.Frames1&2displayDataset1,and Dataset1containsthreezonesfromonedatafile.Frame3contains Dataset2,whichiscomposedoffivezones(twofromdatafile2and

2 - 1.1

Data Displays in Frames

Tecplot360alwaysdisplaysdatainawindowcalledaframe.Bydefault,Tecplot360opensoneframe whenyoulaunchTecplot360oropenanewlayout,butyoucandisplaymultipleplotsconcurrentlyin Tecplot360byaddingadditionalframes.YoucanaddframestotheworkspaceusingtheFramemenu. Youcandisplayonedatasetinoneframe,oryoucanshareonedatasetbetweenmultipleframes.Usingthe samedatasetinmultipleframesallowsyoutogeneratedifferentplotsofthesamedata.Tolearnmore aboutworkingwithframes,gotoSection23Frames.

2 - 1.2

A Dataset Includes All Data in a Frame

Adatasetisdefinedasallofthedatainaframe.Tocreateadataset,loadoneormoredatafilesintoan emptyframeinTecplot360,orcreateazoneinaframe.

2 - 1.3

Datasets Are Made of Zones

Azonerepresentsasubsetofadataset.Adatasetcanbecomposedofasinglezoneorseveralzones. ZonesareeitherdefinedinthedatafileorcreateddirectlyinTecplot360.Thenumberofzonesinadataset isthesumofthenumberofzonesineachofthedatafilesincludedinthedataset. Typically,adatafileisdividedintozonesbasedonitsphysicalcoordinates.Forexample,adatasetofan airplanemanyconsistofazoneforeachwing,eachwheel,thenose,etc.Alternatively,zonesmaybe

38

Interface Coordinate Systems

definedbasedonthematerial.Forexample,adatasetofafluidtankmayhaveazoneforthetankitself andadditionalzonesforeachfluidinsidethetank.All zones in a given dataset must have the same variables defined for each data point.

2-2

Interface Coordinate Systems

Tecplot360incorporatesanumberofcoordinatesystems,includingthepaper,frame,andthephysical coordinatesystemsfortheplot(2D,3D,XY,orPolar).Theoriginsofeachcoordinatesystemandtheir relationshiptooneanotherisshowninFigure22.

Figure22.

Tecplot360CoordinateSystem.Thephysicalcoordinatesystem(s) ofthedataset(forexample,3DCartesianor2DCartesian)are encompassedintheFrameCoordinateSystem.

Thephysicalcoordinatesystem(2Dor3D)dependsontheplottypeoftheactiveframe.Twodimensional physicalcoordinatesareoftenreferredtoasgridcoordinates.TheGridcoordinatesystemisalignedwith thecoordinatesystemusedbytheplotaxes;theFramecoordinatesystemisfixedtotheframeanddoes notchangewhentheplotiszoomed,translated,orrotated. In2DCartesianplots,objectssuchastextlabelsandgeometriesaredrawnineithertheFrameortheGrid coordinatesystem.In3DCartesianplots,theseobjectsaredrawnineithertheFramecoordinatesystem,or inwhatisknownastheEyecoordinatesystem.TheeyecoordinatesystemisalignedwiththeGrid coordinatesystem;soobjectsdrawnintheEyecoordinatesystemmovewiththedataasyouzoomand translate,butremainfixedwhenyourotatetheplot.

39

Using the Workspace

Figure23showsa3Dvolumeplotwithstreamribbonsandastreamtraceterminationline.Thisfigure illustrateshowtheterminationpointsvaryastheplotisrotated.Noticethattheterminationlineitself remainsinplaceonthescreenastheplotisrotated.

Figure23.

RotatingVolumestreamtraceswitha terminationlineintheeyecoordinate system.

2-3

Frames

Allplotsandsketchesdisplaywithinframes.Bydefault,theTecplot360workspacecontainsoneframe. Youmayaddadditionalframes,resizeandrepositionframes,modifybackgroundcolor,andspecify borderandheaderappearance.Tecplot360actsupononlyoneframe,theTheActiveFrameReceivesAll Actions,atanygiventime(exceptwhenframesarelinked).Theactiveframedisplayswithadarkerand thickerborderthantheinactiveframessothatifyoudisplaymultipleframes,youcaneasilyseewhich frameisactive.Tecplot 360 uses the height of the frame for objects scaled by frame units, such as font size. When you enter a frame unit value into a dialog or when you set frame size and position on the paper, you may specify a different unit system (inches, points, centimeters, or pixels). Tecplot 360 automatically converts the values into frame units.

2 - 3.1

The Active Frame Receives All Actions

Theactiveframe,indicatedbydefaultwithadarkerandthickerborder,istheframeinyourworkspace whichoperationsaffect.Tomakeaframetheactiveframe,selectanywhereinsidethatframewithyour Selectortool(oranyothertoolexcepttheCreateNewFrametool).Referencethefollowingsectionsfor additionalactionsyoucanperformonframes.

2 - 3.2

Frame Creation

Tocreateanewframe,whichyoucanusetodisplayanewdatasetoranotherviewofanalreadyloaded dataset,selecttheNewFrame buttoninthetoolbar.OrselectCreateNewFramefromtheFrame menu.SelectingeithertheNewFrametoolorCreateNewFrameintheFramemenuwillchangeyour selectortoolintoasmall+symbol.Clickwiththistoolinyourworkspacewhereyouwantonecornerof

40

Frames

yournewframe,anddragacrosstheworkspacetowhereyouwouldliketheoppositecornerofyournew frame.Tecplot 360 will automatically make the new frame the active frame.

Foroptimalprintingofyourplot(s),drawframesthatsitcompletelywithinthepaperdisplayedinthe workspace.Toviewthepapercoordinatesystem(toeasilyarrangeframesforprinting),goto Options>PaperSetupandtoggleonShowPaperonScreen. SeeSection333.5CreateMultipleFramesforinformationonsimultaneouslycreatingmultipleframes.Data Set Inheritance After creating a new frame, you can assign the frame to share the dataset of another frame by changing the frame order and the plot type of the new frame. When you switch a frame without data out of Sketch plot type, Tecplot 360 searches for another frame with which to share data. It performs this search in the order that the frames are drawn on-screen (which you can adjust by choosing Order Frames from the Frame menu and choosing Draw Order from the List By menu), starting from the top and moving down. The empty frame will inherit data from the first frame in the draw order that contains data.

2 - 3.3

Edit Active Frame

TheEditActiveFramedialog(accessedfromtheFramemenu)allowsyoutoadjustthedimensionsand styleofyouractiveframe.Whenyouareworkingwithmultipleframes,selectaframewithyourselector tooltomakethatframeactive.ThenselectEditActiveFramefromtheFramemenutoadjustthe positionandpropertiesofthatframe.

Frame DimensionsYoucansizeandpositionaframebyseveralmethods.Touseonlyyourmouse,selecttheframetoactivate theresizingtoggles(blackboxesontheedgesandcornersoftheframe).Clickanddragonaresizing toggletoresizeaframe,orclickanddragonanedgeinalocationwithoutaresizingtoggletochangethe framelocation.Tospecifysizeorpositionwithadialog,selectEditActiveFramefromtheFramemenu. TohaveTecplot360resizeframesforyou,chooseFitallFramestoPaperfromtheFramemenu.

41

Using the Workspace

IntheEditActiveFramedialog,youmayspecifytheexact locationfortheframesleftandtopsides,alongwithwidth andheight. LeftSideLeftedgeoftheframe,relativetothe workspace TopSideTopedgeoftheframe,relativetothe workspace WidthWidthoftheframe(coordinatesare:left sidetoleftside+width). HeightHeightoftheframe(coordinatesare:topsidetotopsideheight). TheunitsintheFrameDimensionsregionofthedialogarebasedontheunitssetfortheRulerSpacingin Options>Ruler/Grid.You may also use the mouse or the arrow keys to resize and position frames. Click anywhere on a frames header or border to activate resizing handles for the frame. To scale frames proportionally (maintaining the vertical to horizontal aspect ratio) select the frames, then press + on your keyboard to enlarge or - to reduce.

Afterselectingframes,youmaypositionthemusingthearrowkeysonyourkeyboard.Youcanmove framesup,down,left,orrightinonepixelincrementsforpreciselocation.To fit the active frame to the entire printable region of the paper (landscape orientation), set Left Side=0.127, Top Side=0.125, Width=10.75, and Height=8.25. Or, set Width=8.25 and Height=10.75 for portrait orientation. The pink border viewed when Show Paper on Screen is toggled on in Options>Paper Setup marks the printable region of the paper.

Frame Border and Header ControlsUsetheEditActiveFramedialog(accessedfromtheFramemenu)toadjusttheframeborderorheader. TogglingoffShowBordermakestheframeborder invisible.Toshowadashedlineforinvisibleborders,goto Options>ShowInvisibleFrameBorders.Usethe ThicknessboxintheEditActiveFramedialogtoadjustthe linethicknessoftheborder. RememberthatTecplot360usesathickerborderto indicatetheTheActiveFrameReceivesAllActions,soif youchangebordersettings,itmaybecomedifficulttodeterminewhichframeyouhaveactive. TheframeheaderdisplayswhenbothShowBorderandShowHeaderaretoggledon.Ifyouturnoff theborderbytogglingoffShowBorder,theheaderturnsoffaswell. Theframeheadercontainsuserconfigurableinformationwhichdefaultsto:"&(FrameName)|&(date)|&(DataSetTitle)"

whereFrameNameistheframesname,dateisthedatetheframewascreatedorrevised,andDataSetTitle isthetitleoftheactivedataset.Youcanchangethesedefaultsinyourconfigurationfile;seethe $!GLOBALFRAMEcommandintheScriptingGuide.

42

Frames

Frame Background Color ModificationSelecttheColorboxintheEditActiveFramedialog(accessedfromtheFramemenu)toadjusttheframe backgroundcolor.ToggleoffShowBackgroundtosettheframebackgroundtotransparent.

Whenyouselectabackgroundcolor,aQuestiondialogwillappeartoaskyouwhetheryouwouldliketo modifyallotherbasiccolorstylesthatmatchtheframebackgroundbydefault.Basiccolorstylesinclude, butarenotlimitedtoaxis,text,vectors,andedges(layer,edgesonslices,scatter).Wheninvertingthe backgroundcolorfromblacktowhite(orwhitetoblack),thedialogwillaskwhethertoinvertthecolors forotherobjectsaswell(forexample,textorgridlines) SelectingYesinthisdialogwillmodifythefollowingfeatures: Foralllinetypebasiccolorsthatmatchthenewbasicframecolor,thebasiclinecolorwillbe settothebestshowcolorofthebasicframecolor. Forallfilltypebasiccolorsthatmatchthenewbasicframecolor,thefillcolorwillbesettothe bestshowcolorofnewframecolor. Exceptions: ForgeometriesandtextboxesIfthelineandfillcolorsarethesameandfillingisactive,then bothlinesandfillfollowthefillrulesabove. Forzone,slice,isosurface,andstreamtraceobjecttypesThebasiccolorshading(fill)only followsthefillrulesaboveiflightingeffectsarenotbeingused.

Frame Name ModificationEntertextintheFrameNameregionoftheEditActiveFramedialog(accessedfromtheFramemenu)to changethenameoftheactiveframe.Thetextenteredherewilldisplayasthenameoftheframe.

2 - 3.4

Frame Linking

TheSetLinksforActiveFramedialogallowsyoutolinkspecificstyleattributeseitherbetweenframesor withinaframe.Linkingbetweenframes,ontheBetweenFramespageofthedialog,allowsyoutoquickly makechangesinoneframeandpropagatethemtoanumberofotherframes.Linkingwithinframes,on theWithinFramepage,linksattributesbetweensimilarobjectswithinaframe.

43

Using the Workspace

Attribute Linking Between FramesUset