topic Template inheritance and User Libraries in FlexSim Forum

Template inheritance and User Libraries

mike_e — Fri, 02 Jul 2021 17:29:15 GMT

I have a few questions about template inheritance in FlexSim 2021 Update 2:

If you create a template object, can it be put into the user library?

If so, if you edit the properties of the library object are they automatically inherited by the instances in the model?

Can the parent object itself be a child of another object such that some of the inheritance cascades from the grandparent... all whilst in the library?

If not, what do you envisage will be the methodology (e.g. having a set of templates in the model which are not attached and represent an internal “template library” within the model).

Re: Template inheritance and User Libraries

jason_lightfoot_adsk — Fri, 02 Jul 2021 18:08:52 GMT

Hi Mike!

I think the answer will be 'yes' but with possibly with some caveats if the developers haven't yet embraced the idea that the templates could be stored outside the traditional model areas.

Yes the object template can be in a user library, but since you want that template relationship to persist with the model, you may want to move the user library into the model when you save it (use the modellibraries triggers).

Yes, then editing the user library objects properties will propogate to the inherited instances, if they're edited in an Ortho view or GUIs or directly via the setProperty method.

Yes cascading inheritance will work.

The other question is what if someone gives you a newer library of templates that updates the old ones - that might involve some scripting to transfer the template references over - but should all be possible, even if it's not automatic. As far as I'm aware there's no versioning for such a template/library system yet. @anthony.johnson may know otherwise on that or any of the points you mention here.

Re: Template inheritance and User Libraries

Jeanette_Fullmer — Fri, 09 Jul 2021 23:26:18 GMT

Hi @mike E, was Jason Lightfoot's answer helpful? If so, please click the red "Accept" button at the bottom of their answer. Or if you still have questions, add a comment and we'll continue the conversation.

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Re: Template inheritance and User Libraries

lars_jacobsen_ScandiSim — Mon, 16 Aug 2021 12:05:25 GMT

Any news on the second question? I.e. how to update a model with a newer library of templates?

Re: Template inheritance and User Libraries

anthony_johnsonT83CM — Mon, 16 Aug 2021 18:45:54 GMT

The user library mechanism for templates works through global templates. Template inheritance happens only between objects in your model. It does not happen between an object in your user library and an object in your model. That said, if you make an object in your model into a "Global Template" you can then add the "Global Template" to a user library, through the toolbox. Adding it through the toolbox is different than adding a standard object to your user library. It works more like other tools in the toolbox. When you drop a global template from a user library into an existing model, then if that existing model already has a global template with the same name, it will update the global template object based on the object you are dropping, and, consequently, it will update all of the template instances of that global template. So it's kind of like installing the new object into the model, with all of its new features.

That's the initial design for using templates with user libraries. I do want to get feedback to see how people are using it, and if they are running into any hiccups, so we can improve it over time.