Spatial Entity Properties

General

The property sets for the spatial breakdown entities are handled by the Property Set Library functionality in Trimble Connect. These property set definitions and instances are stored in the Trimble Connect property set repository outside the Quadri database. 

You need to define at least one property set library in the connected project to handle the spatial breakdown entity properties. The property set libraries must be created with the Trimble Connect Property Set Library functionality in Trimble connect. This functionality is also available from within the Spatial Entity Properties panel or from the IFC Import Settings dialog.

The Spatial Entity Properties panel that opens when you click on the Spatial Entity Property button, is the exact same property panel that you find in Trimble Connect web.

You need to be an administrator for the connected project to create property set libraries or new spatial entity property sets. You also need to be an administrator when you import IFC-files that leads to creation of new spatial entity property sets.

Spatial Entity Properties panel

Click on the Spatial Entity Properties button to open the Spatial Entity Properties panel. 

When you click on a spatial structure entity task in the explorer, the associated property sets with their property values are shown in the panel.

If no properties are yet associated with the selected spatial structure entity task, then you can click on the Add custom properties button to get up a selectable overview of available property sets. Select the property sets you want to associate to the selected spatial structure entity task and click Done. 

Click on the Pencil symbol to edit property values and click on the Save button in the panel when finished.

If you click on the “three vertical dots” button up to the right in the panel, you get the menu choice Manage property set libraries for accessing the Property Set Library functionality in Trimble Connect. 

Trimble Connect Property Set Library

Here you can create new property set libraries or define new property sets in existing libraries. In addition you can edit existing property set definitions by adding properties, deleting properties or editing existing properties.

When you have opened a property set library definition in Trimble Connect, you will see the Manage access control symbol up to the right (person with key). Click on this symbol to open the access control window. In this window you can specify three access levels for the whole library and/or individual property sets. The access levels are given to user groups that you first must define with the Team functionality.

The access levels are: 

• Edit access: The users can create new property set instances and edit the property values.

• Read only: The user can only view the property values, but not create nor edit property set instances

• No access: The user can not see the property set instances.

Note: The access levels are only valid for property set instances. To create new property set definitions and edit existing property set definitions, you need to be a connected project administrator.

Importing Spatial Breakdown Entity Properties

When importing IFC-files, the spatial entity property sets contained in the files are imported too. If the property sets are not defined from before, then new property set definitions are created. If the property set instances exist from before, then the existing instances are updated.

When importing IFC-files containing spatial entity property sets, you need to specify which property set library to be used for creating new property set definitions. This you do from the Select Property Set Library page in the IFC Reader Settings dialog in the Import Files tool.

When importing IFC-files, the spatial entities are by default created as imported spatial entity tasks if you don’t choose to import the spatial entities directly as the main spatial entities tasks in the workset. This you control by the Create Spatial Breakdown Structure when importing option on the Configure Associations page in the IFC Reader Settings dialog in the Import Files tool. The spatial entity property sets are imported for both these two options. The spatial entity property sets are 

If you insert the imported spatial entities into the main spatial structure by right-clicking on the imported spatial entities and choose Insert this Imported Structure into the Spatial Structure, then the spatial entity property sets are copied along with the spatial entities. But if you reference the imported spatial entities into the main spatial structure by selecting the imported spatial entity tasks in the dynamic queries for Contained in Spatial Structure or Referenced in Spatial Structure in the main spatial entities, then the spatial entity property sets from the imported spatial entities are not copied across.

Exporting Spatial Breakdown Entity Properties

The spatial entity property sets are automatically included in exported IFC-files. In addition, you have the possibility to propagate specified property sets down the spatial hierarchy in the export process. You can even propagate the property sets all the way down to the contained physical objects. You control the propagation of property sets on the Spatial Breakdown Property Sets page in the IFC Export Settings dialog in the Export to File tool.