Boolean Operations

Probably the most powerful operation to create complex shapes is the combination of simple shapes by boolean operations. These operations allow you to add two or more shapes together, to subtract one or more shapes from another, to insert shapes into others, and to intersect two or more shapes.

While modifying or creating a new shape, the shape may intersect with another shape of the modeled structure. Depending on the material types of the intersecting shapes, it may be necessary to apply a boolean operation to some of the intersecting shapes to subsequently run any solver. If one of the settings in the Modeling: ToolsBooleanIntersection Check Settings dialog box is checked, an intersection check will be performed automatically if a new shape is being created or modified . In this case, the Shape Intersection Dialog box is launched. You may initiate the Intersection check manually by Modeling: ToolsBoolean Perform Intersection Check

In the following we will consider two shapes—a brick (first shape) and a sphere (second shape) —on which we will perform boolean operations:

image\booleantwoshapes.gif

 

Add brick to sphere:

Add both shapes together to obtain one single shape. The resulting shape will get the name and the material of the first shape.

image\booleanadd.gif

Subtract sphere from brick:

Subtract the second shape from the first to obtain one single shape. The resulting shape will get the name and the material of the shape from which the other shape is subtracted.

image\booleansubtract.gif

Intersect brick and sphere:

Intersect two shapes to form a single shape. The resulting shape will get the name and the material from the first shape of this operation.

image\booleanintersect.gif

Insert sphere into brick (Trim brick):

The second shape will be inserted into the first one. Again, both shapes will be kept. The resulting shapes will have no intersecting volume.

image\booleaninsert.gif

Imprint sphere into brick:

The second shape will be imprinted into the first one. Again, both shapes will be kept and the first shape remains unchanged. The faces of the second shape will be split at the intersection curves with the first shape. Subsequent face-pick operations can now independently select each part of the split faces.

image\booleanimprint.gif

 

See also

Add Mode, Subtract Mode, Intersect Mode, Insert Mode, Imprint Mode, Auto Intersect, Intersection Check Settings