How To: Implementation Guide (KB12121022) (DriveWorks Documentation)

How To: Implementation Guide

DriveWorks has been developed with Ease of Use in mind. The intention and practise at most companies is that Engineers can implement DriveWorks for themselves.

DriveWorks Administrator is the module of DriveWorks Pro that is used to implement your products.

All other modules of DriveWorks Pro assist in the running of a DriveWorks implementation.

This document provides guidance on getting started with DriveWorks Pro Administrator and provides guidance on maintaining an implementation going forward.

Using DriveWorks

There are three elements to every DriveWorks Implementation:

Setting up

Setting up a DriveWorks implementation requires the DriveWorks Pro Administrator module and will always involve the following:

Creating the User Forms that will be used to capture the requirements of each product that will be automated. (See Form Design)
Applying rules for the display of data and behavior of the Controls on the User Forms.

Depending on the output requirement the set up could also involve:

Capturing and applying rules to 3D CAD models and 2D drawings that will be used as templates for the CAD output. (See SOLIDWORKS)
Capturing and applying rules to documents that will be used as templates for any documentation outputs. (See Documents)
Connecting to internal company systems and databases to extract or write data to. (See Info: Using External Data In DriveWorks)

Depending on the visual appearance of the user forms or how the implementation is to be run, the set up could also involve

Using Internet Explorer to configure a standard DriveWorks Theme for publishing to the web. (See Project Image, Name and Description and DriveWorks Live Skins)
Image creation/editing.

Running

Running a DriveWorks implementation is using the User Forms to capture the customer requirements of the product.

Once the user forms have been used in this way the data entered is referred to as a Specification

Running a DriveWorks implementation can be done by the following methods:

Method	DriveWorks Pro Module	+	-
From the DriveWorks Pro Administrator module	Administrator	Allows an implementation to be tested before fully distributing Identifies usability of the implementation	Slows further development of the implementation if the Administrator is producing all of the specifications. Potentially exposes non technical users to the rules and workings of the implementation, if users are given access to specify in this way.
From the DriveWorks Pro User module, on an internal company network.	User	Provides a secure means of processing as much data as possible, without an internet connection, to create the required outputs.
From a web browser using the DriveWorks Pro Live module.	Live	Provides a secure means of processing as much data as possible, with an internet connection. Potentially allows distributors and customers access to create their own specifications.

Generating the Outputs

Generating the outputs that are required from a specification can be done by the following methods:

Method	DriveWorks Pro Module	+	-
From the DriveWorks Pro Administrator module	Administrator	Allows an implementation to be tested before fully distributing.	Prevents other manual tasks from being done on the machine while the outputs are generated
From the DriveWorks Pro User module, on an internal company network.	User	Allows individual users to view the data being generated.	Prevents other manual tasks from being done on the machine while the outputs are generated Requires the appropriate software required to generate the outputs to be installed on each machine.
Remotely from an unattended machine using the DriveWorks Pro Autopilot module	Autopilot	Frees other (attended) machines from generating outputs. Multi-Autopilot installations can be employed to generate specific output types. Multi-Autopilot installations can be employed to load balance CAD data generation.

Additionally live 3D or 2D CAD data can be fed back to an internet browser, when a specification is made through DriveWorks Live, by using DriveWorks 3D Preview.

Who Implements DriveWorks?

The most successful DriveWorks cases are those where a DriveWorks Champion is appointed from within the company.

This should be someone with good product knowledge as they will be documenting the product and company rules that will be brought into DriveWorks and which will be used for automating the design process.

Click here to see who the Project Team should involve

The Project Team can be made up of a

Project Champion or Team Leader - ideally someone with a good technical understanding of the products being automated, SOLIDWORKS proficient (for 3D/2D output), understanding of Microsoft Office applications (for document outputs).
Co-worker(s) that can contribute with specific skills – eg SOLIDWORKS Engineer(s).
Sales Engineers (if the implementation is to produce any outputs specific to sales)
IT department (if the implementation is to connect to other business systems and be delivered on an internal network or externally via the internet)
Sales/Marketing professional (if the implementation is to be delivered to customers via the internet and corporate identity is to be maintained)

Training

DriveWorks training is essential to establish a good understanding of DriveWorks Pro Administrator. Only the personnel responsible for implementing your products in DriveWorks Administrator need trainng.

Click here to see the topics covered in DriveWorks Pro Administrator training

The DriveWorks Training Program introduces the basic principles of Design Automation using DriveWorks.

Topics covered include:

Creating a Group and Capturing Models
Building a User Interface
Building Rules
Running your Project
File Name and Relative Path Rules
Static Replacement Files
Data Tables
User Form Navigation
Dynamic Replacement Files
Creating Documents
Drawings
Enhancing User Forms
Specification Control
Linking to Database Data
Data & File Management

Once your products are implemented only an understanding of how to use the User Forms and maybe an understanding of how a specification is processed is required. This can be conducted internally by the team who have implemented DriveWorks.

Implementation Methods

Products, designs and data constantly evolve. So unlike a custom written solution DriveWorks needs to (and does!) allow for change.

When implementing DriveWorks it is important to remember that nothing has to be set in stone on the first day. The use of DriveWorks and scope of work will change as the users become more familiar with the features of DriveWorks. This is normal, and should be factored in.

Click here to see the methods of implementing DriveWorks

There are 2 main ways to implement DriveWorks:

		+	-
1	Take one product and follow it all the way through. Automating not just CAD data, but integrating with other systems, automating documents and data export, as well as rolling it out onto the web. Then do exactly the same thing for any other products in the company.	All integrations will be tried and tested before rolling the implementation out to other products	Longer to start getting a return on the initial investment
2	Automate the areas where the bigger return is to be made. This could be producing CAD data for all products, or documentation for sales. Don't worry about integration to external systems or general document generation or data export. Once all the key areas are automated, then start looking at other areas that can be automated and distribution throughout the company or even to the web.	Brings forward the return on investment by automating key areas first	Some manual work may still be required to finalize the outputs

Take one product and follow it all the way through. Automating not just CAD data, but integrating with other systems, automating documents and data export, as well as rolling it out onto the web.

Then do exactly the same thing for any other products in the company.

All integrations will be tried and tested before rolling the implementation out to other products

Longer to start getting a return on the initial investment

Automate the areas where the bigger return is to be made. This could be producing CAD data for all products, or documentation for sales. Don't worry about integration to external systems or general document generation or data export.

Once all the key areas are automated, then start looking at other areas that can be automated and distribution throughout the company or even to the web.

Brings forward the return on investment by automating key areas first

Some manual work may still be required to finalize the outputs

Choosing method 1 or 2 is up to each company and must take into account of short, medium and long term objectives of the project.

Implementation Plan

Regardless of the Implementation Method selected the steps involved in setting up a DriveWorks implementation generally follow:

1. Decide on the product to be automated.

Selection of the first product to automate is critical.

Don’t select the simplest product, or the most complex, but do take into account the most time consuming at the current time (without automation) while factoring in how many of these products are produced. In short, which product do you spend most time producing.

When automating CAD models, next ask yourself if it is worth automating a subset of models first. This is particularly relevant for large and often very complex assemblies and may not be necessary for smaller, easier to manage assemblies.

If one particular area, of the selected product, currently takes a larger portion of time to design then that may be a good starting point.

Now is the time to create a New Group. The name or location for the group is not critical, it can always be changed. We recommend creating an Individual Group to start with. The article Info: Individual And Shared Groups lists the differences between the two types of Groups.

Once a group has been created a New Project can be created to start building the user forms. When starting from scratch we recommend creating a DriveWorks Project, the article Info: Excel Projects and DriveWorks Projects lists the differences between the two types of Project. The New Project Wizard also allows data created with DriveWorksXpress or DriveWorks Solo to be imported into DriveWorks Pro.

2. Decide what information and input fields are required on the user forms.

Target Audience

Who will be using the forms to specify the product?

Identifying an initial target type will determine how much information is required on the user forms. For example specifying your product to produce sales outputs may require less information than when generating detailed manufacturing outputs. This can adapt as more target types are introduced.

Creating the User Forms

Before automating the design of this first product, we recommend taking time to create the user interface, even before the models are captured in DriveWorks.

Creating a user interface can help define the assembly structure of your models for scalability and flexibility going forward. It will also help with defining the information required on any documentation and structuring any data that is to be used.

Don’t spend too long at this stage on making the user forms look nice, or setting up thorough form warnings as these can be addressed later. Also controls can be cut and pasted onto additional forms at any point, so form navigation is not very important at this stage (unless there are an exceptional large amount of form controls from the outset).

In creating the user forms, it may be necessary to link to data from other systems (such as bringing in Customer Information from a back-end database). Don’t get too carried away with this at this stage as again, these links can be made at a later stage. For now just create a simple table that will replicate any database data.

Project Structure

Creating the user forms will also help define the project structure within DriveWorks.

The project structure will develop with the implementation, so do not be overly concerned with this for now but the project structure will dictate:

If all products will be specified through a single project
If separate projects are required for each product
If products are required to be specified as part of a contract

3. Decide what outputs are required

Once the User forms have been created, the next step is to capture the master templates that will be used to automatically generate the required outputs.

The master templates could be SOLIDWORKS models that will ultimately create manufacturing or sales drawings. They could also be Microsoft Word and Excel files that become Quotes or other documents that are required.

DriveWorks will always create the native file the captured template, from here additional file types, that are required as deliverables, can also be automatically generated.

At this stage just be aware of the deliverable outputs that will be required. Concentrate on creating the native templates first.

The chart below lists the most common additional file that can be produced from the native template file.

*Other additional file formats can be produced automatically.

Native Template File Type	Common additional file formats that can be produced from the template
SOLIDWORKS Assembly	eDrawing, JPEG, PDF, DXF
SOLIDWORKS Part	eDrawing, JPEG, PDF, DXF
SOLIDWORKS Drawing	eDrawing, DXF, DWG, PDF
Microsoft Word	HTML, PDF, TXT
Microsoft Excel	HTML, PDF, TXT
XML	HTML, TXT (Created through an XSL transform)

Create the native templates

SOLIDWORKS

You may already have SOLIDWORKS models and drawings that can be used as templates to be automated. If so the chances are you have taken advantage of some SOLIDWORKS functionality designed to make manual manipulation of the models quicker. Be aware that these types of features do not necessarily mean things will be easier with full blown design automation. Our guide How To: SOLIDWORKS Best Practices highlights the areas to look out for.
Additionally adding complexity to the models in the form of In-context (top down) design or equations only serves to slow down model generation and makes maintaining the implementation more difficult. We always recommend capturing the design intent firmly in DriveWorks.
Assemblies
If the structure of how the product is assembled is already in place capture the top level assembly.
If the structure of how the product is assembled is not yet defined or could change then capture a sub set of components that will ultimately form part of the top level assembly. DriveWorks allows for changing top level assembly structures. More information can be found in the article How To: Maintain Rules For An Existing Model When It Becomes A Child Of A Parent Assembly
Drawings
Drawings are an essential part of design automation as they are invariably required to manufacture or even sell your product.
As drawings are a by product of 3D models being produced for now just create a drawing with the required part or assembly detailed on it. Capture this to the corresponding model.
At this point do not worry about drawing scale or if the views or dimensions overlap. Do not even worry about populating the drawing borders or including notes. This can be done later once you are confident the model on the drawing is doing what is required.

Documents

Again there may already exist document templates that can be used as templates in DriveWorks. If so all that will be needed is to add the tags that define what is to be driven into the document.
If no document templates exist they are easily created in the desired Microsoft Office application or even notepad (for XML). See Documents for more information.
As with models just concentrate on getting the driven information into the document. Formatting and adding logos can be done later.
Where driven text is combined with non driven text, highlight the background of the driven area so you can clearly see what is being passed into the document from DriveWorks.

4. Decide what data is required or can be re-used.

What we mean here is data that already exists in databases and spreadsheets. Data that can be of use to DriveWorks, this can be anything from tolerance tables to pricing information, from product matrices to stock lists.

Spreadsheets

Spreadsheet information can be copied and pasted into DriveWorks or (with Microsoft Excel workbooks) be imported directly. Formatting of the data table is essential to make good use of the data in DriveWorks. The data can be re-copied or re-imported at any time if it has been modified or it can be edited directly in DriveWorks.

The topic Define Tables has more information on the types of tables that can be created in DriveWorks.

Databases

DriveWorks can read many types of databases, but at this stage just create a snapshot of any required database data as a simple table in DriveWorks. Particularly where the database holds large amounts of data.

Database data can usually be exported to a format that can be copied and pasted into DriveWorks.

5. Determine the rules required to automate the product.

Creating the Rules

Now is the time to create rules that will link through from the user forms to drive the models.

Rules are used throughout DriveWorks. This is not just limited to the parameters captured from the templates to be driven, but can be used on form controls to dynamically change appearance, layout and behavioral properties (see Form Design). Rules can decide which forms are shown (see Form Navigation) and even instigate a process the specification will take.

When building rules the DriveWorks Rules Builder is used. The rules builder provides rules insight to help with rule construction, links to make use of data, constants and variables created in the project and useful help and diagnostic feedback to ensure the rule is valid and equates to the result you expect.

DriveWorks will automatically assign a special variable to name the critical files to be produced. This is an auto-number that will be appended to the template file name.

At this stage do not be concerned with how your automatically generated outputs are named or stored. It is better to leave this until the content of the outputs are to your satisfaction.

At this point we should just be concerned with applying rules that will drive any data on the user forms and the parameters captured from the required template outputs.

Rules can be applied directly to any Captured parameter or Dynamic form control property, but if the same rule is used elsewhere it is better to create it as a variable.

Make as much use of Constants (see Define Constants) and Variables (see Define Variables) as you can, as this will give the most flexibility going forward. Do remember however to categorize your variables to make them easier to work with.

The following links provide useful information on creating rules for the more common outputs that DriveWorks can automatically generate:

To apply rules to your Microsoft Word document templates see Document Rules: Word Document
To apply rules to your Microsoft Excel document templates Document Rules: Excel Workbook
To apply rules to your XML document templates Document Rules: XML Document
To apply rules to your SOLIDWORKS model templates Model Rules Overview

The topic Common Functions lists the functions DriveWorks provides for rule building.

6. Test.

DriveWorks has extensive in-built testing and diagnostics to help verify the work you have implemented. The ultimate test will come by running sample specifications through and generating the outputs automatically, but the majority of inaccuracies can be identified during the setting up of the implementation.

The areas that can be tested effectively without generating outputs are as follows:

User Interface - The general functioning of each individual user form and the controls on it can be tested using the Test button in the form designer.
Data and Rules - Variables calculate in real time, as long as any form control used in any rule has a valid value.
Output Rules - All output rules calculate in real time, as long as any form control used in any rule has a valid value.
Specification - A specification can be thoroughly tested by using the Test Mode feature in DriveWorks Administrator. Using this feature in DriveWorks, it is now worth spending some time just checking that you have the correct rules for all outcomes.

Additionally DriveWorks produces reports post specification and post model generation. The reports appear in the Specification Explorer window along with the specification that has been made. See How To: Locate And Export DriveWorks Reports for more information on DriveWorks reports.

7. Add the detail to the project

This can be a fun exercise and will make your implementation appealing for colleagues to use and provide a greater level of automation in the outputs. Plus if you have followed the advice above, you are already benefitting from a good level of automation.

User forms - Follow these tips for enhancing the forms your target audience will use

Ease of use - Think about how easy the forms are to use. Does the information presented flow? Can the user TAB between controls? Are there to many controls on a single user form?
Bad Data - Don't allow invalid data to be entered. Apply form warnings (or even labels with a bold red font!) to verify data that has been typed into the control by the user. Make good use of DriveWorks Validation functions (see Validation Functions in Common Functions) to verify if the user has inadvertently entered any characters that will make subsequent rules fail.
Captions - Do the captions on controls stand out? Controls with common properties can be multi-selected to apply fonts that stand out.
Labels - Use labels to apply section headings when specifying a particular part of the product. Or use them to provide the user with feedback.
Pictures - Make good use of the picture control to make the forms visually appealing. Picture controls are not only great for showing an image of what is being specified (Create JPEG images from your SOLIDWORKS models), but can be used to display company logos. Decorative borders and section lines to divide areas of interest can also be shown.
Hide Controls - Any controls that are no longer needed consider using the visible property (set to FALSE) to hide the controls rather than delete them. Consider placing controls that hold similar information, but are opposing in display state, on top of each other to retain the users focus to the same area.

Documents - Tidy the document templates up

Apply company logos
Ensure the content is formatted correctly
Remove any highlighting used to distinguish driven values

Data - Connect to other databases

Integrating with company database (if appropriate) can now be undertaken, as you will be very familiar with ways of getting data into and out of DriveWorks. The article Info: Using External Data In DriveWorks provides more information on this.

Drawings

Sort out overlapping views
Set the scale
Apply the notes
Fix the dimensions
Hide dangling dimensions
By now you should have a good feel for which annotations and dimensions need controlling through DriveWorks. Yu should be getting to the point where you are comfortable with the output and the only reason you are opening each drawing is to tidy it up. Automating annotations and dimensions should reduce if not eliminate this need.

Names - Adopt your preferred naming conventions.

Specification - Each specification must have a unique name. DriveWorks automatically assigns the special variable DWSpecificationID formatted to show 4 units. This name is displayed in the Name column of the specification explorer. Common alternatives are to use your companies Order or Quote Number (this information must be obtained by DriveWorks either by being entered on the user form or through a connection to a data source). See Specification Settings for more information.
Models - DriveWorks identifies models that have previously been generated by the file name of each assembly and part. For a model to be generated it must have a name that has not been used previously. DriveWorks automatically assigns the special variable DWSpecificationID to each captured model which guarantees a unique number will be applied to the generated model. The article Concept: File Naming discusses the methods that determine how this can be applied. Now is the time to decide which models will always require to be generated and which models will become standards. Standard models require a intelligent naming convention, this could simply be applying the results of the changing parameters to the name, applying a part number stored in a custom database, or adopting a coded part number using lookup tables formatted in the project.
Drawings - For a drawing to be created each time it's parent model must also be created. DriveWorks automatically assigns the special variable DWSpecification to each captured drawing, which means the name of the Specification will be applied to the generated drawing. The article Concept: File Naming discusses the methods that determine how this can be applied. If the file name parameter for a drawing has no rule it will take the name of it's parent model.
Documents - Documents do not require a unique name to be generated, but will require a unique folder for them to be stored (otherwise any existing documents will be overwritten by the new one). The same methods discussed in Concept: File Naming are used for documents.

File Paths - Get the outputs stored where you want them.

All outputs will be created from the location defined by the Default specification folder setting (see General Settings), unless the result of the rule for the Path parameter of any output is an absolute path (for example - G:\DriveWorks\Alternative Generated Outputs). Where the result of the rule for the Path parameter of any output is relative (for example ON123\Models) and the location does not exist DriveWorks will create it.

Specification - As well as having a unique name each specification must be located in a unique folder. DriveWorks automatically assigns the special variable DWSpecification to the Specification Path parameter and will place the specification files in a subfolder of this called DriveWorks Files. This will result in the Specification Name parameter being applied to the Default specification folder setting. Common alternatives are to use your companies Order or Quote Number (this information must be obtained by DriveWorks either by being entered on the user form or through a connection to a data source).
Models - Models do not require a unique folder to be created. DriveWorks automatically assigns the special variable DWSpecification to the Relative Path parameter. This will result in the Specification Name parameter being applied to the Default specification folder setting. When using a Standard naming convention for models it is good practice to place these models into a "Standards" folder (or a sub folder of this location)
Drawings - Drawings do not require a unique folder to be created. DriveWorks automatically assigns the special variable DWSpecification to the Relative Path parameter. This will result in the Specification Name parameter being applied to the Default specification folder setting. If this parameter has no rule the drawing will be stored with the parent model.
Documents - Documents do not require a unique folder, but will require a unique name for them to be created (otherwise any existing documents will be overwritten by the new one). By default the Document Path rule is left blank, this will create the document in the Specification Path folder.

Specification Properties

Decide what information about each specification is shown in the Specification Explorer, this will allow each user to easily identify each specification they have created. See Specification Properties for more information.

Security Settings

Decide which users will have access to the implementation and add their details in the Security Settings stage.
Your implementation can use the information from the logged on user with the Current User special variables (see Info: Special Variables)
Decide if the users are to belong to any Teams and set project permissions for each.

Specification Flow - Customize the default specification flow to suit your needs.

The default specification flow may have suited your needs up to now. But it can be used to effectively reproduce any work flow process ou currently use. The article How To: Modify Specification Flow discusses how this is done.

Plugins - DriveWorks Plugins and PowerPacks add extra functionality to your implementation.

DriveWorks Labs details the latest available Plugins and PowerPacks, with information on:

Plugins installed by default:

SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional - add functionality to integrate with SOLIDWORKS PDM.

PowerPacks downloaded and installed manually:

Specification PowerPack - extend your implementation by adding advanced Specification functions and tasks.
Autopilot PowerPack - provides tasks that can be run on specifications on a scheduled day or time.
Image PowerPack - extend your implementation with advanced image processing and manipulation tasks.
Salesforce PowerPack - add functionality to integrate with Salesforce.
SOLIDWORKS PowerPack - extend your implementation with advanced Generation Tasks.
SOLIDWORKS CAM PowerPack - extend your implementation with advanced CAM related Generation Tasks.
BOM To Database - export the components in a SOLIDWORKS Assembly directly to a database.
BOM To Excel - export the components in a SOLIDWORKS Assembly directly to Microsoft Excel.

8. Deployment

You should now be ready to deploy your DriveWorks implementation.

If you have purchased other DriveWorks Pro Modules, now is the time to install these and set them up. See How To: Deploy DriveWorks Pro.

If you are working with an Individual Group, now is also the time to upscale to a Shared Group. See Group Upscale.

You can now get others to test your forms and verify the 3D output, selecting a number of users to see if they can break your data entry validation will be a good idea.

Theme Configuration

If you have purchased DriveWorks Live, then configuring your theme to change the look and feel can now be done. See Live for more information.

Knowledge Base Article Ref:	KB12121022

The forms used to enter or select data for the specification.

A text box, check box, or some other control added to the form designer.

The forms used to enter or select data for the specification.

Each time you run your project to automate a new set of models, you are creating a specification. The specification keeps a history of the outputs that are created throughout the lifetime of the specification.

Capturing is the process of telling DriveWorks what documents, models and drawings you want to automate, and what features in those models and drawings are going to change.

Value can be controlled by a rule.

DriveWorks Pro 22 How To: Implementation Guide (KB12121022)