Extended Entity Data File Format
EED definition files are in ASCII format (plain text) with the file extension .EED. They are user defined and contain the description and format of the fields and predefined values.
Two separate EED definition files should be used/created, one for parts and another for groups.
The user-defined fields can contain four different data types:
Setting | Description |
---|---|
character sting (char) | The user can freely input in any text data. |
list | The input is restricted to a drop-down list from which the user selects one predefined value. |
integer (int) | Integer values (e.g., 123). |
double | Floating point decimal values (e.g., 123.456). |
Additionally, there are flags included for each field which will determine if the EED field is recognized during Equal Parts Detection and if the EED is available for external Partlist output.
Unique Identifier
The first line of each EED is the name declaration. The name should be unique and no duplicate names are allowed. EEDs inside the CAD platform are identified by these names. When a duplicate definition with different formats is encountered, the EEDs will be destroyed.
IDENTSTRING=
unique_name
;
Parameter | Description |
---|---|
unique_name | Any alpha-numeric string up to 30 characeters in length (may not contain any special characters or blanks). |
Data Field Description Block
Each data field in the properties dialog is defined through a block of strings in the following format:
FIELDDESCRIPTIONSTART;
FIELDNAME=
field_label
;
FIELDTYPE=
{
char
| int
| list
| double
}
;
FIELDLENGTH=
field_length
;
PARTLIST=
{
yes
| no
}
;
PARTCHECK=
{
yes
| no
}
;
FIELDDESCRIPTIONEND;
Parameter | Description |
---|---|
field_label | An alpha-numeric string to display as the lable for the field in the user interface. |
field_length | An integer to specify the length of the field for char and list types (i.e., ignored for int and double types) . |
For FIELDTYPE=list;, you must provide list item values with the following for each item to populate the list:
RESTRICTVALUE=
list_value
;
The default list item for FIELDTYPE=list; is specified by:
DEFAULTVALUE=
default_value
;
Parameter | Description |
---|---|
list_value | An alpha-numeric string to use as a list entry. |
default_value | An alpha-numeric string to display as the default value in the list. |
For FIELDTYPE=double;, you can specify a number of decimal places to use:
PRECISION=
precision_value
;
Part EED Example
The following text can be saved in a plain text editor (e.g., Notepad.exe) with the file extension .eed in order to use.
IDENTSTRING=Sample UserEED; FIELDDESCRIPTIONSTART; FIELDNAME=PartReference; FIELDLENGTH=15; FIELDTYPE=Char; PARTLIST=Yes; PARTCHECK=Yes; FIELDDESCRIPTIONEND; FIELDDESCRIPTIONSTART; FIELDNAME=Field2; FIELDTYPE=List; FIELDLENGTH=4; DEFAULTVALUE=RAL; RESTRICTVALUE= ; RESTRICTVALUE=RAL; RESTRICTVALUE=E6; RESTRICTVALUE=FEVZ; PARTLIST=Yes; PARTCHECK=No; FIELDDESCRIPTIONEND; FIELDDESCRIPTIONSTART; FIELDNAME=Field3; FIELDTYPE=Int; PARTLIST=Yes; PARTCHECK=No; FIELDDESCRIPTIONEND; FIELDDESCRIPTIONSTART; FIELDNAME=Field4; FIELDTYPE=Double; PRECISION=2; FIELDTYPE=Int; PARTLIST=Yes; PARTCHECK=No; FIELDDESCRIPTIONEND;