Model Coping Settings dialog

Used to automatically cope linear structural members imported from an ISM repository. Coping is performed on pairs of members using the same OpenBuildings Designer standard Structural coping features used when defining Structural parts, placing Structural members, and applying copes, updating/editing copes, and removing copes.

Benefits of using the Model Coping Settings dialog to automate coping of imported members include:

The ability to define an arbitrary number of coping pairs based on their Structural Data attribute Material (Concrete, Steel) and Type (Beam, Column, Cantilever, Horizontal Brace, Vertical Brace)
Enabling/disabling coping pairs
Independent coping settings for each coped member pair
Easy to use interface. Add/remove rows, drag and drop rows for reordering of copes

Accessed from:

ISM Import dialog menu bar: Settings > Automatic Coping

The Model Coping Algorithm

When an imported Structural model is defined to be automatically coped, each coping pair is processed in order. The internal steps are:

Scan the model and create a collection of all linear members that match the Material selected.
Scan the model and create a collection of all linear members that match the Member (type) selected.
Compare each member to each support in the respective collections. If a member endpoint is not contained on the member line (PQ line) of the support member then it is skipped.
If an existing cope is present on the endpoint the member is skipped.
The cope is created using the cope settings (Flange, Web, Corner and Radius) associated with the cope pair.

Handling of Existing Copes

If a member has an existing cope it is skipped, allowing you to modify any cope that was created automatically and have it preserved. This is important when the model is coped again, during subsequent imports as any manually applied copes are always preserved.

Precedence

Since existing copes are never overwritten, the order that the cope pairs are defined in the Model Coping Settings dialog is very important. If a member shares an endpoint with more than one other support then only the first eligible cope pair will be performed. Any additional possible copes of the member against other supports will be skipped because the member has an existing cope.

Consider the case where the coping pairs are defined in this order (upper cope pair rows precede the lower rows); Vertical Brace to Beam followed by Vertical Brace to Column.

The following illustrates that after import, the Vertical Brace to Column cope (2) was skipped because the Vertical Brace to Beam cope (1) was applied first.

Tip: You can work on Model Coping Settings at any time by issuing the key-in.

Setting	Description
On (check box)	When on, the cope pair is enabled and processed. When off, the cope pair is skipped completely and no coping is performed.
Material	Used to select the member Material for the cope pairs. The available materials are Steel and Concrete. The material must be the same for both members (member and support) of the cope pair. Note: Material is one of the Structural Data properties assigned to Structural members. Default materials are typically assigned to Structural parts prior to placement, but it can be assigned at any time on any member.
Members to Cope	Used to select the Member and Support member Type for the cope pairs. The available types are provided in the Member and Support drop lists. Member — Member represents the Structural member in the cope pair that is coped upon import. Support — Support represents the Structural member in the cope pair which supports the member which is being coped.
Cope Settings	Used to define the coping settings for cope pairs. Value fields are provided for the Flange, Web and Radius options, and a drop list for the cope Corner treatment. Flange — Defines the flange clearance of the cope. The flange clearance maintains a space between the placed member web and the connected member or member flanges (for I beams). Web — Defines the web clearance of the cope. The web clearance maintains a space between the placed member web and the connected member web. Corner — Defines the inside corner type of the cope. The corner type selected creates a relief on the inside corners of the cope. The available types are provided on the drop list. They are: None – Creates a sharp 90° corner. Rounded – Creates a smooth filleted corner sized according to the value entered for the cope Radius. Rathole – Creates a relief hole with its center located at the inside corner, sized according to the value entered for the cope Radius. Radius — Defines the corner radius of the cope, and is applied to Rounded and Rathole corners.
Cope Pairs – working with the rows	Active row — Selecting a cope pair row makes the row active. The active row is indicated with a small arrow icon to the left of the ON column’s check boxes. When active, the cope pair can be edited. You can select multiple cope pair rows, but only one cope pair row can be active. Adding rows — A placeholder row is available at the end of the cope pairs list, and is used to add new cope pairs. It is indicated with and asterisk character to the left of the ON column’s check boxes. Clicking on the asterisk creates a new cope pair by populating the row settings with defaults. When a new row is added, the placeholder row is shifted down below the added row. Reordering rows — Dragging and dropping a row moves a row. When a row is dropped it is inserted in the list at the position it was dropped. Deleting rows — To delete a coping pair row, you must press the Delete key on your keyboard. There is no button or control on the Model Coping Settings dialog for deleting rows.
OK	Completes the Model Coping Settings for application on imported structural members. Clicking OK writes the changes to the ModelCopeSettings.xml settings file, and dismisses the Model Coping Settings dialog. Note: `ModelCopeSettings.xml` contains a variable length list of CopePair elements that describe the cope pair settings. There is a separate settings file for imperial and metric worksets. The imperial units are inches and the metric units are millimeters. The settings file is defined through a the configuration variable STRFILE_MODELCOPESETTINGS.
Cancel	Discards all changes, restores the settings to the previous saved state, and dismisses the Model Coping Settings dialog.

Key-in: STFDIALOG MODELCOPINGSETTINGS