Export a PTC Creo Robot Assembly Model

In this example, you export a Creo™ (Pro/ENGINEER^®) CAD assembly that represents a robot arm. The export procedure generates one XML file and a set of geometry files that you can import into Simscape™ Multibody™ to generate a new model.

The example begins with a procedure to export the CAD assembly. Information on the robot CAD files and CAD Export follows the export procedure. To import the robot assembly into a Simscape Multibody model, see Import a Robotic Arm CAD Model.

The following figure shows the robot CAD assembly that you export in this example.

Example Requirements

To successfully complete this example, you must meet the following requirements:

• Have the latest version of Simscape Multibody Link installed on your machine.

• Have completed the linking procedure for your Creo installation. The linking procedure adds a Simscape Multibody Link add-on tool to the installation.

• Have access to the robot example files that accompany the Simscape Multibody Link installation.

Open the Assembly Model

Before you can export the robot assembly, you must load the assembly into Creo.

1. Open Creo on your machine.

2. Select File > Open

3. Navigate to the file directory that contains the robot CAD files.

   Note

   The directory that contains the robot CAD files for the Pro/ENGINEER platform is

   <MATLAB Root>\toolbox\physmod\smlink\smlinkdemos\proe\robot

4. Select file robot.ASM.

5. Click Open.

The CAD platform opens the robot assembly.

Export the Model

Once you successfully open the robot CAD assembly in your Creo installation, you can export the assembly in format:

1. In the Creo toolbar, click Tools.

2. Select Simscape Multibody Link > Export and click Simscape Multibody to export in a format compatible with the latest Simscape Multibody technology.

3. In the File name field of the Select Folder dialog box, enter select a directory to export the files into.

   Note

   Do not enter a name in the File name field. The field should contain only a dot .

4. Click Open.

5. In the new dialog box, enter file name sm_robot and click the green arrow.

   Note

   Simscape Multibody Link generates a new XML multibody description file and a set of geometry files that you can import into a model.

Check the Exported Files

Confirm the following files exist in the export directory you specified:

 XML Multibody Description File

Name	Type	Description
sm_robot.xml	XML multibody description file	The XML file defines the structure of the CAD assembly. The file also contains the parameters required to model each part in the CAD assembly.

 Geometry Files

Note

In the Name column, <identifier> is a set of numeric and alphabetic characters that identifies each file.

Name	Type	Description
base_prt	Geometry files	Provide the 3-D surface shapes of the CAD parts
fingertips_prt
firstfingerlink_prt
firstfingerlinkl_prt
forearm_prt
metacarples_prt
secondfingerlink_prt
upperarm_prt
wrist_prt

About the Example CAD Files

The CAD assembly files are present in your Simscape Multibody Link installation. You can access the files in the following directory:

<MATLAB Root>\matlab\toolbox\physmod\smlink\smlinkdemos\...
...proe\robot

Substitute <MATLAB Root> with the root directory of your MATLAB^® installation.

Note

If you are not sure what your MATLAB root directory is, at the MATLAB command line enter matlabroot. MATLAB returns the root directory for your installation.

The \proe\robot directory contains a set of CAD files that define each CAD part and CAD assembly. Part file names contain the file extension .PRT. Assembly file names contain the extension .ASM.

The robot assembly contains nine parts and two assemblies: robot.ASM and grip.ASM. File robot.ASM models the robot root assembly. File grip.ASM models the robot grip subassembly.

The following table lists all files the example requires.

File Name	Type
robot	Assembly
grip
wrist	Part
upperarm
secondfingerlink
metacarples
firstfingerlinkL
forearm
firstfingerlink
fingertips
base

About CAD Export

The CAD export procedure generates one XML multibody description file and a set of geometry files. The XML file contains the structure of the assembly and the parameters that define each part. The geometry files define the 3-D surface shapes of the CAD parts. Once the export procedure is complete, you can import the XML multibody description file into Simscape Multibody. Simscape Multibody uses the file to automatically generate a new Simscape Multibody model.