Tutorial Last updated: 9/13/2004
Contents Contents ................................................................................................................................. 2 Introduction ............................................................................................................................ 4 Basic Principles of Configura ...................................................................................................... 5 Customized Conveyor ...................................................................
EM Modules ........................................................................................................................... 18 Pallet Conveyor...................................................................................................................... 19 Divert ................................................................................................................................... 20 Merge..........................................................................................
Introduction Configura is the leading graphical product configurator on the market. Configura will help you design and visualize your products and perform cost estimates. The program contains all the required product information and will generate quotations and other sales documents automatically. In addition, the program knows the capabilities and limitations for each individual product. Configura can also make your presentations more impressive.
Basic Principles of Configura Together with your product knowledge, learning the basics of Configura will enable you to quickly start using the program as a daily sales tool. This tutorial will help you get started! However, for more thorough information, go to Configura Help (reached from the Help menu or by pressing F1). User Interface The Configura work environment has a clear and simple design.
Control Panel Selecting the language in which you would like to run the program is one of the first settings that you have to do after installing the program for the first time. In order to do so, go to the File menu and select Control Panel to display a dialog with four tabs – General, User Interface, Auto 3D and JPG. All settings made in this dialog will be saved and you do not need to select them again when installing new versions.
moving the mouse pointer to (Note: You do not need to keep the mouse button pressed down!) to the drawing area and clicking the component in the position where you want it. In Configura, this process is called “pick and place”. After you have positioned a component in the drawing area, you can click an almost unlimited number of times to add new occurrences of the same component in the drawing area. One click for each component is all that is needed.
point, keep the mouse button down and drag to desired length/width. Some components can be stretched immediately when they are been placed on the drawing area. Components can also be rotated by clicking on a snap point, keeping the mouse button pressed down and dragging the mouse pointer in the direction in which you want to rotate the component (following one of the curved arrows).
Customized Conveyor On the Customized Conveyor tab you customize a conveyor system from the start. In this documentation, this tab is therefore used to illustrate the design process in Configura. The layout and the settings are similar on all component tabs in the program. Apart from the main system settings made at the top, the Customized Conveyor tab is divided into five different sections: Drive Unit, Beam Idler and Bends, Vertical Section, Support and Guide Rail.
Conveyor System Type Having selected a conveyor system at the top of the Customized Conveyor tab (XL, XM, XB, XH or XK), you will only be able to make settings that are applicable to that specific system. This means that Configura will prevent you from producing unfeasible combinations. For example, select the XB system type. You will now notice that the Wheel Bend component is grayed out completely (see previous page, image 1), since it is not available for XB systems.
A. Stretch the beam while positioning: Move the beam close to the drive unit until the two components snap. Continue to press and hold the left mouse button, drag to desired length and release the mouse button. B. First position and then stretch: Move the beam close to the drive unit until the two components snap. Click, release the mouse button and move the mouse pointer in a horizontal/vertical direction until the beam has the length you want. Alternatively, you can type in an exact value.
2. Move the mouse pointer to determine the direction and the angle of the bend. Click to confirm. Vertical Section The Vertical Section component will create a section that can be connected to an existing part on the drawing area (drive unit, beam, idler etc.) and is used to provide a vertical change of direction in the conveyor. The vertical section includes two vertical bends and the conveyor beam in between. The vertical section starts and ends horizontally.
Support Module The Support Module drop-down list will only display the available options for the selected conveyor system. CC Foot When using the Auto Support feature (see below), this is where you enter the distance between the supports. CC Beam When using the T-Support module, this is where you enter the distance between two beams. Support With the Support component you place supports manually, one at a time. According to the valid rules, you can only place the supports in given positions (i.e.
The Guide Rail Properties dialog box. System/Type This information field displays the selected conveyor system. Bracket/Type, Guide Rail and Guide Rail Cover Select bracket type, material and dimension for the guide rail and whether the guide rail should have a polyethylene cover or not, by checking the desired options. Model/Clamp (W min/max). The two values in brackets are the minimum and the maximum distance between the guide rails (W), i.e.
No. of distance (W min/max) The number of supplementary distance pieces required to widen the distance between the guide rails, i.e. to give place to wider products on the conveyor. The new, total, measurement (W) between the guide rails is also given here. CC distance The distance between the guide rail brackets when using automatic placement of guide rails (Auto Guide rail, see below). Clamp positions – Choose the clamp positions for your bracket type, by checking the corresponding boxes.
Auto Guide Rail The Auto Guide Rail component automatically places the number of guide rails required for the conveyor system, all in one step. Guide rails already positioned can be removed manually by clicking on the yellow triangles. To use the automatic guide rail feature, select the component and snap it to the conveyor system. Note: - If you change system at this stage, you will have to select new guide rails.
Std Conveyor Modules The Std Conveyor Modules tab contains Flexlink’s standard conveyor systems. The layout and the settings on the tab are similar to the Customized Conveyor tab. Apart from the main system and module settings made at the top, the tab is divided into five different sections: Drive Unit, Bends, Module, Support and Guide Rail.
EM Modules The EM Modules tab contains Flexlink’s EM conveyor systems. The layout and the settings on the tab are similar to the Customized Conveyor tab. Apart from the module settings made at the top, the tab is divided into six different sections: Drive Unit, Bends, Measures, Module, Support and Guide Rail. Instead of customizing the conveyor system from the start, here you pick a module from a library with the most common standard conveyor modules (S, L, U and Z) for the EM conveyor system.
Pallet Conveyor The Pallet Conveyor tab contains pallet-handling systems. The layout and the settings on the tab are very similar to the Customized Conveyor tab. Apart from the system settings made at the top, the component tab is divided into six different sections: Drive Unit, Conveyor Components, Pallets, Pallet Handling Components, Support and Guide Rail. In the usual way, you here customize the conveyor system from the start (see Customized Conveyor). To build a pallet conveyor, proceed as follows: 1.
Conveyor Components A Divert, Merge or a combined Divert/Merge component can be connected alongside or to the ends of an existing beam on the drawing area. You can set the direction and the angle of these components. Divert A divert is used for guiding the flow of products off the highway into a satellite. Merge A merge is used for guiding products from a satellite back to the highway.
Proceed as follows: 1. Move the reference point to the drawing area. Move it to the end of the main conveyor and click when it snaps. 2. Type in the desired distance from this end point and confirm by clicking. 3. The divert/merge components (or even a complete satellite that you have built on the side) will now snap to the reference point. - You can right-click on the actual pallet on the conveyor and select Settings. In the dialog box that opens, it is possible to change settings and add various items.
Enclosure System The Enclosure System tab contains a selection of Flexlink’s aluminum profiles and accessories for building partitions and hinged or sliding doors. The tab is divided into five different sections: Enclosure Inserts, Low Panels, High Panels, Doors and Feet. To build an enclosure system, proceed as follows: 1. 2. 3. 4. Select the desired enclosure type at the top. Place the panels. They automatically snap to each other. Add a door. Add the feet.
Doors Select the Hinged Door and move close to the panel that has already been placed on the drawing surface. Let the components snap, choose the door’s direction by moving the mouse pointer vertically and then click. Now, select door side by, once again, moving the mouse pointer vertically. Continue to move the mouse pointer horizontally to select left or right hinge side and finally click. To place a Sliding Door, follow the same instructions as for Hinged Door.
Company Menu The five most important menu items in the Company menu are the following: Preferences, Quotation Information, Estimate Sheet, Import from Excel and Update Databases. Below you will find further descriptions. Preferences In the User field, enter your full name. Company information is used as page footer on printouts. You can select default object for fastening of slide rail. Quotation Information This is where you fill in customer details.
In the Estimate Type field, you can select between the following options: - Optimization Determine whether you want to calculate order quantity by exact product quantity or per pack unit. - Cut beams Determine whether you want to calculate order quantity by exact beam length (cut beams) or per pack unit (3 meters). - Position Here you determine which components you want displayed in the estimate sheet. On the drawing area, it is possible to create “positions” (see Positioning Components).
Proceed as follows: 1. 2. 3. Browse for the Excel document. Check the Modification date. This field tells you when the Excel files were changed the last time, both the last imported file and the new current one. Select the file and click OK. Note: The new document to be imported will replace the old file. One person at each sales department will be responsible for Configura and for creating and updating these files.
Positioning Components Using the Positioning Components heading on the Tools tab, you can enclose components on the drawing area that are to be specified individually in the estimate and the final quotation. This means that you can divide an estimate into separate sections and thereby specifying the data of a certain module. Use the first feature, Rectangular Position. In order to create a position, proceed as follows: 1.
Exporting Options in the Print Dialog The Print dialog contains all the FlexLink export options. Save Draw Area as PDF This will save the drawing layout as a PDF file. Proceed as follows: 1. 2. Click on the button Save Draw Area as PDF. In the standard Save As… dialog, name the file and click on Save. Adobe Acrobat Reader will now automatically open the document and the drawing will appear in PDF format. Create WEB Order File This will create a text file that can be uploaded to ExtraFlex.
Open. Microsoft Word will now automatically open the new Word document that was created and necessary changes can later be done. © Copyright Configura Sverige AB 2004. All rights reserved. Reproduction, copying or distribution to a third party is prohibited unless consent in writing has been given by the owner.
Exercise 1: Building a Two-Way Conveyor System In this exercise we will build a simple supports and guide rails, render Before creating a professional printout of rendered image of your system, you will particular needs. two-way system, change system length, add a 3D image and print a quotation. your quotation, including a drawing and a 3Dlearn how to customize the layout to suit your ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Proceed as follows: 1.
automatically add the required guide rails to your system. Render an image to view the result. Result in 3D 12. In order to change the type of guide rail, right-click on the beam and choose Remove all guide rail holders. Go back to the component tab, change the settings and add the new guide rails to the system. 13. Having done this, you have the possibility to visualize your choice of guide rails. Rightclick on a component in your system, e.g. a beam.
Exercise 2: Building a One-Way Conveyor System Using Help Lines Using help lines to build a one-way conveyor system is a useful technique when you have the system layout ready. This is then done before you start planning your conveyor system. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Proceed as follows: 1. Begin by drawing the conveyor path using help lines. In our example we will use a rectangle, 5x4 m.
8. Now add Beams to the left, bottom and right side. 9. Add a beam in the upper left corner. Select a Catenary drive unit, 20 (m/min) under Drive Unit - Type/Speed and place it to the right of the beam you just added. Finally add a beam that covers the space to the right of the drive unit. Your system turns gray, and is now completed. Add support and guide rails using the automatic features as in Exercise 1 and render an image. Layout in 2D Result in 3D © Copyright Configura Sverige AB 2004.
Exercise 3: Adding a Subordinated Conveyor to a Main Pallet Conveyor This exercise will guide you through the steps adding a subordinated conveyor to a main XK pallet conveyor. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Proceed as follows: 1. Go to the Pallet Conveyor tab and select XK as system type. 2. Do your pre-sets. 3.
10. Select the Merge component. Move the mouse pointer close to the second reference point and point with the arrow exactly to the blue point and click. Determine a 45degree angle by moving the mouse pointer in a horizontal direction towards the idler. 11. To close the system, you need to adjust the length of the beam placed between the two upper wheel bends. Configura will help you find the right length. Select the system, so that the yellow snap points are shown.
Exercise 4: Adding a Satellite to a Main Pallet Conveyor This exercise will teach you how to add a satellite to a main XK pallet conveyor. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Proceed as follows: 1. Go to the Pallet Coneyor tab and select XK as system type. 2. Do your pre-sets. 3. To create the main conveyor, proceed in the usual way by placing a drive unit, continuing with a beam and finally completing the system with an idler. 4.
15. Finally, add the pallets. © Copyright Configura Sverige AB 2004. All rights reserved. Reproduction, copying or distribution to a third party is prohibited unless consent in writing has been given by the owner.
Exercise 4: Pasting a Rendered Image Into the Drawing After you have rendered a 3D image you can paste it onto the drawing. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Proceed as follows: 1. Render an image. 2. Click on Image in the top left-hand corner and then on Paste. 3. Name the file and where the image is to be saved. 4. Click on Save. 5. Close down the image. A 3D color image automatically appears next to the drawing.
Exercise 5: Printing the Drawing Using a Print Frame The Print Frame makes it easier to position the drawing layout on the paper. You place the frame, your "paper", around the area to be printed and thereafter specify the desired paper size, orientation and drawing scale. This way, you can work with the drawing layout and view the result right away on screen. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------To use a print frame, proceed as follows: 1.
several print frames, and want to print them all, check the radio button All print frames. 12. Check the Frame box to add a black frame around the drawing on the printout. 13. In the Copies field, enter the number of copies you want to print. 14. If you want to see in advance what the printout will look like, click on Preview button. 15. If you are happy with the result, close the preview and click on Print. The space between the two lines is for the company’s logo and other details. 16.
21. When you print several print frames, you can print each one at a different scale and on a separate printer. Note: If you accidentally close the Print Frame Settings dialog, double-click between the dashed blue line and the black line. © Copyright Configura Sverige AB 2004. All rights reserved. Reproduction, copying or distribution to a third party is prohibited unless consent in writing has been given by the owner.
