Working with graphics

Navigating the pipeline model

To navigate the graphic pipeline model in the Hydrosystem, traditional commands are provided, similar to which can be found in almost any program that works with three-dimensional models of any objects. These commands are contained in the Navigation toolbar and in the "Navigate" menu, they include:

- this command activates the mode of selecting piping components in the graphic window by clicking on them with the left mouse button. This command is selected by default so there's no need to click it to be able to select piping components, but sometimes this command may be needed, for example, when the "Insert node" or "Point Values" commands has been activated, after which you need to return back to the selection mode;

- dynamic zoom. It can be done either by activating this command and moving the mouse cursor up/down while holding down the left mouse button in the graphics window, or by more familiar way - by rotating the mouse wheel. In this case, zooming in/out occurs relative to the point in the graphics window where the cursor is located. If necessary, you can invert the direction of rotation of the mouse wheel when scaling using the corresponding option in the program settings;

- pan the pipeline model in the plane. This can be done either by activating this command and moving the mouse cursor while holding down the left mouse button in the graphics window, or by the more familiar - by clicking and holding the mouse wheel and moving the cursor in the graphics window;

- dynamic rotation. The pipeline model can be rotated either around the X, Y or Z coordinate axes, or around an arbitrary axis. To rotate, select the desired axis, then press and hold the left mouse button and move the cursor in the graphics window. Rotation around an arbitrary axis can also be activated by pressing and holding the Shift key and the mouse wheel and moving the cursor in the graphics window;

- static zoom in. To zoom in on any part of the graphics, you can activate this command and "draw" in the graphics window a rectangle of the area (holding down the left mouse button) that you want to zoom in on;

- static zoom out. When you click this button, the scale of the diagram is reduced by half while maintaining the current center of the view;

- fit all. When you click this button, the pipeline model "fits" into the graphics window, i.e. it is centered and reduced to such a scale that all elements of the pipeline without exception fit into the graphics window. This operation can also be performed by double-clicking the mouse wheel in the graphics window;

- previous view. When you click this button, you return to the previous static representation of the pipeline in the graphics window;

- projections. Using this option, you can present the pipeline model as projections on various coordinate planes and as an isometric representation. The latter is especially convenient in cases where, after rotating the diagram, it is necessary to return it to its original form.

Setting up the display detail of the pipeline model

For a more convenient presentation of the pipeline model in the Hydrosystem, there is the ability to enable/disable the display of certain elements of the pipeline representation, take into account the sizes of the elements, etc. These commands are contained in the View Options Toolbar and in the menu "View - Graphic View Options", they include:

- Scaled graphic view. This option enables/disables accounting of pipe lengths when displaying them on the graphics. By default, all pipeline sections are displayed according to the lengths specified for them in input data. However, if you disable this option, the pipe sections will be displayed in graphic window as segments of the same length, regardless of the lengths specified for them in the input data. This can be convenient, for example, when working with very long pipelines, in which, with the scaled graphic view enabled, when zooming out (so that the entire pipeline fits in the window), it is difficult to see various "small" elements (valves, orifices, etc.). The conventional length with which pipes are displayed in graphic window when the scaled view is disabled can, if necessary, either be configured in "Component lengths" (see below), or individually changed for each pipe section in the graphic window (for more information on these and other options for graphic editing of the pipeline, available when the scaled view is disabled, see here);

- Node names. This option enables/disables display of pipeline node names in the graphic window. To change the font used to display node names, use the corresponding option in menu "View - Graphic View Options - Fonts";

- Show all components. This option enables/disables display of all elements except pipes (valves, bends, etc.) in the graphic window. Please note that when disabling this option, the directions of pipes, specified using projections of their lengths on the X, Y and Z axes, are not taken into account on the graphic view! This option, or rather its disabling, is convenient if you need to present the pipeline model as an oriented graph for a more visual display of the relationship between the pipeline branches;

- Branches direction. This option enables/disables display of arrows on piping model indicating the direction of the pipeline branches. Please note that the direction of flows in the branches does not always coincide with the direction of the branches themselves (more about this here);

- Pipe lengths. This option enables/disables displaying the lengths of pipe sections opposite each of them in the graphic window;

- 3D solid representation. This option allows you to switch between the "traditional" isometric representation of the pipeline model (in which pipes are displayed as thin lines, and all other elements as symbols) and the volumetric "solid" 3D display. For different types of pipeline systems, both the first and second options may be convenient;

- Simple scheme. This option allows you to switch between the "normal" graphical presentation of the pipeline (in which all pipeline elements are displayed and all sections are drawn according to their lengths) and the "simplified" mode, in which the sizes of piping sections are not taken into account at pipeline graphical representation and the piping components (valves, bends, etc.) are not shown. In fact, enabling/disabling this option is equivalent to simultaneously enabling/disabling the "scale graphic view" and "show all components" options;

- Redraw. When you click this button, the piping model is redrawn in the graphic window taking into account the latest changes in the input data. This command is obsolete and is not used in the latest versions of the program, since the graphic is updated automatically in the latest versions.

All the above settings are saved when you exit the program. Please note that these settings relate exclusively to the graphical representation of the pipeline model and do not in any way affect the pipeline calculation.

Graphic editing of the pipeline model

In some cases, it may be necessary to change the sizes of pipeline elements on the graphics, move its nodes, etc. For this case, the Hydrosystem provides various graphic editing tools. These include:

• rotation of bends, elbows and tees - by right-clicking on any of these elements, the "Rotate" command will be available, with which you can change the orientation in space of this and all the following elements to the opposite (note that this command may not work in closed loops). However, this command is somewhat outdated and is rarely used in the latest versions of the program, since the orientation of elements in space is much easier and more convenient to control by setting the corresponding projection values for them on the coordinate axes;

• changing the sizes of "point" elements - such elements as valves, tees, orifices, etc. are considered "point" from a hydraulic point of view, i.e. they have no dimensions. On graphics, such elements are displayed with certain conventional dimensions, which can be changed if necessary. If you need to change the sizes of any individual piping component, you need to right-click on it in the graphics window, select the "Stretch" command in the context menu and rotate the mouse wheel (or hold down the left mouse button and move the cursor up/down) to decrease/increase its conventional length of this component. If you need to change the sizes of all components of a given type at once, click the "Component Lengths" button  in the View Options Toolbar (or use the corresponding menu command "View - Graphic View Options") and specify the desired element sizes in the window that appears:

When you click the "Apply" button in this window, these dimensions will be applied to all pipeline elements except those for which these dimensions were changed manually (using the "Stretch" command), when you click the "Apply for All" button - to all elements of this type without exception (including those for which the dimensions were changed individually). If you simply click the "OK" button without clicking the "Apply" or "Apply for All" buttons beforehand, these changes will not affect existing pipeline elements, but all newly added elements will have the specified lengths by default.

Note: When importing piping models (from PCF, XML, etc. files), the lengths of the elements are considered as previously modified, so their dimensions on graphics will not change when you click the "Apply" button.

Please note that when the scale representation is enabled, the graphical subsystem by default works in such a way that changing the sizes of point elements does not affect the overall length of the pipeline. Their sizes are sort of "superimposed" on the adjacent pipe sections, so when the sizes of such elements are changed, the positions of all other elements in the pipeline do not change. This approach exactly corresponds to the physical interpretation of "point" elements in hydraulic calculations (as mentioned above, in hydraulic calculations they are considered as dimensionless elements that have no lengths), so it is used in the program by default. However, if necessary, this "ideology" can be changed by disabling the "Precise graphic representation of scaled view" option in the program settings (menu "Tools - Options..."). In this case, the sizes of "point" elements will affect the overall length of the pipeline - when changing the sizes of such elements, they will sort of "move away/move closer" to the adjacent elements of the piping model. However, this version of the piping representation may be inaccurate when modeling pipelines with closed loops. If the scale representation is disabled, the dimensions of the "point" elements affect the overall length of the pipeline regardless of whether the "Precise graphic representation of scaled view" option is enabled;

• changing the conventional lengths of pipes and reducers - when the "Scaled graphic view" option is enabled, this function does not work, since in this mode the pipes and reducers are displayed with the dimensions that are specified for them in the input data. But when "Scaled graphic view" is disabled, the conventional lengths of pipes and reducers, with which they are displayed on graphics, can be changed. To do this, right-click on the corresponding element in the graphics window, select the "Stretch" command in the context menu and rotate the mouse wheel (or hold down the left mouse button and move the cursor up/down) to decrease/increase the size of this element. You can change the sizes of all pipes/reducers in pipeline using the "Component Lengths" command  of the View Options Toolbar, similar to how it is shown above for other piping components;

• moving nodes in graphics in the direction of one of the branches - when the "Scaled graphic view" option is enabled, this function does not work, since in this mode, pipes and reducers are displayed with the dimensions that are specified for them in the input data, and accordingly, the positions of all nodes on the graphic view of piping model are fixed. But when "Scaled graphic view" is disabled, the positions of pipeline nodes can be changed. To do this, right-click on the corresponding node in the graphics window, select the "Shift" command in the context menu and rotate the mouse wheel (or hold down the left mouse button and move the cursor up/down) to move this node. The sizes of all elements of the branch along the direction of which it is moving will proportionally increase/decrease in the graphic window.

Please note that all the above operations relate exclusively to the graphical representation of the pipeline model and in no way affect the calculation of the pipeline.

In addition, when working with the pipeline model in the graphics window, you can select various fragments of the pipeline model (consisting of several elements or several branches or pipeline segments from one node to another) for their subsequent copying/pasting and deletion. These operations are described in more detail here.

2D graphics mode and working with background image

The Hydrosystem provides the ability to view and edit the pipeline model in 2D representation mode of two-dimensional graphics. Switching between the traditional three-dimensional isometric view and the 2D mode is done using the button  of the View Options Toolbar (or the corresponding menu option "View - Graphic View Options"). Visually, the 2D mode is similar to the pipeline presentation as a projection onto the XY plane (i.e., a top view), but unlike the usual projection display, in the 2D mode, there is an option to add a background image in the graphics window upon which the piping model is drawn and the ability to edit the sizes of pipeline elements directly on the graphics. To display the background image, you need to:

1. Enable 2D mode;

2. Enable display of the background in the menu "View - Graphic View Options";

3. Select the root element (project) in the project tree and load the background image file into the program in the corresponding field of the Object Properties Window;

4. Set the background scale by specifying the width and height of the entire background map:

Currently, Hydrosystem only supports .bmp and .dib format backgrounds, however, as a rule, backgrounds of any other formats can be easily converted to .bmp files using special converter programs, as well as various online file conversion services, which are available in large quantities on the Internet.

Building a pipeline model on a background is in many ways similar to "regular" pipeline modeling (it is necessary to add branches, pipe sections, valves, fittings, etc. to the pipeline in the same way), except that in this mode you can move pipeline nodes in the graphic window (by selecting a node on the diagram and moving the cursor while holding down the left mouse button), thereby "pulling" the pipe sections between them. The program will calculate the lengths of the pipe section projections (as well as the parameters of the adjacent branches) automatically, based on the specified scale of the background. Therefore, when working with the background, be sure that the "Scaled graphic view" of the pipeline is enabled in the graphics parameters and that the width and height of the background are set correctly (otherwise it will be impossible to correctly calculate the lengths of the pipe sections, as a result of which the use of the 2D mode loses its meaning).

An example of modeling a pipeline on a background can be seen in the training video at the link below:

https://youtu.be/sngRaeDQUHI?si=oCjSnCkZ2MACcT2p

In addition, the 2D mode can be used without a background - editing the pipeline model in this case works similarly (however, you will have to move nodes on the diagram "blindly").

Displaying names of nodes and elements on the pipeline model

By default, in the graphics window for pipeline only node numbers are displayed, but you can also display the names of individual nodes and piping components. To do this, you just need to assign a name to a node (for more information on how to do this, see here), and for a piping component (pipe, equipment, valve, etc.), you need to enter the desired name and enable its display on graphics (this is described in detail here). To set the font in which these names will be displayed, use the corresponding menu option "View - Graphic View Options - Fonts".

Printing graphics

To print the graphic view on a printer or to a file (PDF or similar), click the button of the Main toolbar or use the corresponding option in the File menu. The piping diagram is printed in the form in which it is currently displayed in the graphics window (i.e. if a particular fragment of the diagram is zoomed in on the graph, only it will be printed, and not the entire pipeline model). In addition to the pipeline diagram itself, a title is also displayed, including the pipeline name and the print date. Please note that this method of outputting a graphic model is only suitable for more or less simple pipelines or fragments of complex pipelines. Complex and extended pipelines may not look detailed enough and too small when printed, due to the limited size of the print format. Therefore, to output complex and extended piping models with greater detail and better resolution, it is recommended to use the export to DXF format or generate a drawing in AutoCAD. 

To preview the print, click the  button of the Main toolbar or use the corresponding command from the File menu. If necessary, you can set the default printer using the "Print Setup..." command from the File menu.

Piping components icons used on graphics

The table below provides a list of available pipeline components in the Hydrosystem and the graphic icons used for them: