Tube and pipe styles disappeared

[Anonymous]

When I opened the model this morning to add new pipes, I saw that all my tube and pipe styles disappeared from the model. I can still see the pipes and routes created with the styles but there is absolutely no styles in the list of tube and pipe styles. If I open any other model in the project all is normal, for some reason it only appears to be a problem in one specific model. What can I do to get the styles back? I would prefer if i could get a remedy instead of recreating the model from scratch.

I have also exported all my styles from one assembly and imported it into the assembly giving problems, the software told me the styles are imported but the styles window shows blank, i.e. it shows that there is no styles.

Anybody have any suggestions.

Reagrds,

Brett

[cbenner]

I've been of the opinion for the last 4 years that Tube & Pipe is the forgotten step child of the Inventor world.  I've been talking to anyone who will listen about how this module needs a major overhaul and fast.  So far I haven't hit the right person I guess.

[jweiss1313]

I agee with you %100 Chris.  Tube and Pipe and Cable were all purchased technologies that were integrated into Inventor and they have not changed at all since.  I've implemented Tube and Pipe years ago and my users dislike it a lot.  We are actually in discussions currently about not using it anymore.  We are considering using Cable and Harness design and I'm getting some feedback that if it's like Tube and Pipe, don't bother.

The capability to do tube and pipe and wiring in Inventor is very valuable, but it needs to be easy to setup and implement, manage and to use.  The current functionality is neither.  Maybe instead of focusing on high end simulation and analasys tools ($$$$$), Autodesk should improve core functionality such as Tube & Pipe and Wiring & Cable.

This is just my opinion as a CAD Administrator.  I love Inventor, but I do not love tube & pipe and Wiring and Cable design.

[cbenner]

John,

Maybe we're hijacking a thread here but one more thought.  Having come from using Pro E (Wildfire) Piping... Inventor T&P is ten times better.  It needs somer serious tweaking, but sooooo much better at accepting design changes than Pro E.  JMHO

[ASI_Aaron]

Any particular issues you are having in the T&P module?  Many users on here can answer most questions about the environment.

I see Follett works in the food industry.  I take it that you mainly do sanitary piping?

I know it does take some time to learn it, but it can be very helpful.  I use this environment probably 75% of the time.  Even forcing my current company, which does process equipment, to upgrade to Professional to get it.  Sure, I had to go through the learning curve in the beginning, but with piping systems, I wouldn't ever think about doing it a different way.

[oldgrey1]

Good idea.

If anyone at Autodesk is listening, please upgrade the ISOGEN of tube and pipe to be compatible with Plant 3D ISO generation.

i.e. that Plant 3D can read the Inventor pcf file and use it. The last two words being the crux of the matter.

The current Inventor one is horrible.

[jweiss1313]

We use it primarily for flexible copper refrigeration tubing.  We do not like the deep file and folder structure we do not like that the use of the functionality is not very user friendly or intuitive.  We all have used it but we all do not use it frequently.  Many here find that creating an tubing with 3D sketches and adaptivity is much easier to uses and does not require multiple files for runs and routes and pisweeps and a tube and pipe assembly that constantly need to be checked out of Vault in order to make changes to a single piece of copper tube.

We all agree here that we like the idea of tube and pipe.  We just don't like using it the way it is currently.

I think we have beaten this horse enough and I do not want to further hijack this thread.

[pkainer]

A better (and more customizable) ISOGEN export would be great for importing in any other ALIAS/Isogen compatible software. Till now I´m not happy with Plant3D isometric export.

[lesmfunk]

This is a bad bug. I don't just want my styles back, I want my runs back too.

Fix this please.

Thankfully, wise veterans (cbenner et al) on the forum here instructed me to make all my styles in the template. Getting the styles back is a simple as exporting them from them template and importing them in the affected assembly.

Whew!!

[lesmfunk]

I was able to replace the corrupt top level T&P assy with an old version from vault and got all my styles back and didn't lose any work. Instructions are given here:

http://forums.autodesk.com/t5/inventor-general-discussion/import-t-amp-p-styles-fails-giving-confusi...

We probably should merge the two threads. I don't know how to do that.

(BTW the import styles solution only worked the first time. I could not import additional styles into the corrupt file)

[Job43]

Hi all,

This error still occurs in the 2015 Pro edition. We have not found a solution yet, but I found some helpfull tips on this forum which we will try.

Regards,

Job

[ericbaikie]

This bug remains an issue in Inventor 2016.

[rross]

And the bug is still there with Inventor 2017...this is ridiculous

Windows 7, SP1

Inventor 2017 with the latest patches

I'm ready to lose it, this happened to me years ago, but this time I can't seem to get anything to work

(edit to add: I do not use Vault, so the posted solution up thread does not apply for me)

[cbenner]

I've still never experienced this, so I had to go back and re-read thru this thread to see remind myself of the history.  I found this post from several years ago, and I'm going to post an image of it here to try to rattle the bushes a bit.

@ChrisMitchell01  I'm not sure who would be the best person from the IV team to tag here, so I'm tagging you... maybe you would know who better to direct it to?  I'm referring to the image below, is this an admission that there is a bug, and if so... has it been addressed?  Sounds like some folks are still having an issue.  I still have never had this happen to me.

[Yijiang.Cai]

It is very possible that the data is corrupted, so the T&P style is lost here.

Possible there is a workaround, which is using API to get it resolved. Please see the steps below –

1. Copy & paste the API code lines in VBA editor dialog
2. Edit-in-place for the top tube & pipe runs

You could have a try, and see whether it works fine for you.

[cbenner]

@Yijiang.Cai

Thank you for responding,.... but.....   The question was whether or not the post from 2010 was an admission that there was a known bug, and was anything ever done about it.  

Posting that the user having the problem needs to use a workaround that involves API and VBA and coding knowledge is not really very helpful.  Most of us down here in the trenches do not have these skills,... some, but not most.

@johnsonshiue, do you have any thoughts on this?

[johnsonshiue]

Hi Chris,

Actually, River knows T&P workflows much better than I do, which was why I invited him to the thread. This is a corruption case unfortunately. When corruption happens, if we don't know the workflow leading to the corruption, the best we can do is to clean up the corruption using non-traditional workflows. In this case, VBA or API has to be involved.

It is true that there isn't much major improvement in T&P over the years. But, it is not true there isn't any work done. We have been actively fixing defects in every corner of the product. I cannot rewrite the history. Nor can I dictate the future. What I can do and should do is making sure each release of Inventor (major or incremental) is better than last one. And, the improvement is perceivable to most of our users.

Many thanks!

[andy-axium]

Hi Yijiang,

Can you expand on how to use this code?

I have a 2017 Inventor Assembly that has lost its Styles.

Can you paste your code directly into the iLogic editor?

[cbenner]

@johnsonshiue

Johnson,

I never intended to suggest that you guys were not doing anything, I know how much you have been doing for the product and I do appreciate the efforts... believe me.  If I push, it's only because I am passionate about the customer experience from the customer perspective.

In the case of this thread, I was merely trying to find a way to get the original poster's question answered, and I guess I just didn't know if that was happening.  Your explanation that this is related to a known corruption issue clarifies the situation greatly and, I think, puts to rest the original question.  Having jumped in and out of this thread, I may have missed some of the important points.  Thank you for clearing it up, and I am sorry if I sounded like I was not appreciative of your efforts.  The fact that all of you take the time to talk to me face to face at AU is one of the main reasons I go, and I am very grateful for that.

[johnsonshiue]

Hi Chris,

You are more than welcome! We try our best. In the era of real-time over-communication, when there is confusion, it has to be clarified immediately. Otherwise, it can spread like a wild fire and become out of control, particularly on a public forum like this. Although technically I cannot represent the entire Inventor team, when I reply to any thread, I keep reminding myself that I am not just one person. Any word I write and any information I provide has to be clear and hold true in any measure. I should not embarrass the team and the user by embarrassing myself.

After almost 20 years, Inventor as a product can still stand up to the challenge and provide value to the broad user base around the world. It is not just a testament of decent execution by the product team, but also a triumph of users like you. Without enthusiastic expert users giving us guidance, Inventor would remain a half-baked product never generating value to the users.

It was very nice to meet with you and other experts at AU last year. I hope we will see each other there again this year.

Please feel free to reach me (johnson.shiue@autodesk.com) and other Inventor team members if you have any concern.

Many thanks!

[chris.bowden]

Hi,

The issue is still present in 2018....  Not a happy customer.