Access parameters without Inventor running in the background

[bhattarai_suyesh]

I currently have code that opens an Inventor session in the background and takes inputs from the user in a customized .net interface. The code that allows access into the Inventor parameters is as follows:

System.Type oType = System.Type.GetTypeFromProgID("Inventor.Application"); // Start new Inventor session.
inventorApp = (Inventor.Application)System.Activator.CreateInstance(oType);
inventorApp.Visible = false; // Make Inventor invisible.

inventorModel = inventorApp.Documents.Open("C:\\filename.ipt", false) as Inventor.Document;

PartDocument partDocument = inventorModel as PartDocument;

Parameters parameters = partDocument.ComponentDefinition.Parameters; //define parameters variable
parameters["x"].Value =  10; //change parameter value

This code opens the Inventor application and the active document in the background. 

Is there any option where we can change the parameter value without running Inventor at all?

[Ralf_Krieg]

Hello

No, there's no other way afaik.

[bradeneuropeArthur]

Depends on what you try to do with it.

Otherwise you can use apprentice server for it!

Regards,

[bhattarai_suyesh]

I want to be able to read and write parameter values and iproperty fields of the Inventor files (asm, ipt and idw).

I am developing a custom UI for that takes in dimension parameter values as user input and provides weight calculations of the complete assembly. The sales team do not use Inventor but could get proper estimates on weight without bothering the design team for each sales inquiry if this was possible. 

[bradeneuropeArthur]

Write parameters and edit them with apprentice is not possible.

Read parameters is possible

Read and write properties is possible

[bhattarai_suyesh]

This is good to know. Thank you.

But it still does not solve the issue i am trying to address (edit parameters without Inventor running).

So, i will leave this thread active. 

[Ralf_Krieg · Accepted solution]

Hello

There is no way to write parameters without Inventor. As parameters can affect geometry, you need Inventor to recompute your model, change depending parameters, volume, weight and so on. If your parameter is not used in your model, delete it and create instead a user defined property. This can be changed by Apprentice which is smaller and much faster to start.

[WCrihfield]

Just a couple of thoughts:

Maybe you can have your Inventor document's parameters 'linked' to an external Excel type spreadsheet document (.xls or .xlsx), that way you can interact with the externally referenced parameters document without needing Inventor.

Or have the routine set-up within your Inventor document, where it automatically exports its Parameters to an XML document when you save/close it, then import that XML when it opens.  That way you can mess with the parameters within the XML document without Inventor, then have the result show the next time you open the Inventor document.

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[CattabianiI]

Another idea to do Inventor things without Inventor is Forge Inventor Design Automation: create a simple UI where the sales office enters the parameters, post model and data to Inventor Server, download computed weight, configured model, or any data available in Inventor.

Useful links:
https://forge.autodesk.com/en/docs/design-automation/v3/tutorials/inventor/
https://inventor-config-demo.autodesk.io/
https://forge-showroom.autodesk.io/

https://github.com/Autodesk-Forge

https://github.com/Developer-Autodesk

[bhattarai_suyesh]

This is what i have been doing for the design team to speed up the workflow, as they work in inventor.
But the sales team are mobile and want light-weight solution. Hence, my question.

[bhattarai_suyesh]

Yes, this makes a lot of sense.
We can not expect to get the recomputed values without running the core engine, can we?
So the option for me would be run inventor in invisible mode to make things a tad bit quicker and less messy.

[bhattarai_suyesh]

Forge looks really exciting.
But I have long list of input parameters and have multiple optimization routines running based on those inputs. Then, more inputs based on optimization outputs.
I am not sure if Forge would be able to handle all of that?

[CattabianiI]

I haven't done anything in production with Forge yet, but as far as I know and tested what can be done in a non-visible Inventor without user interaction can be accomplished in the Inventor server on Forge. So it really shouldn't matter how big your input list is.