This article describes how the Component Distance rule works and how you can configure the rule.
This article covers the following topics:
Component dimensions and distances are critical for coordinating building components and ensuring that each component fits correctly in its place in a construction. Well-coordinated products allow designers to select items which fit together with the structure and other components to accepted tolerances.
By using this rule, you can detect different types of operability requirements as well as maintenance and safety requirements in your design. You can ensure the ability to keep a piece of equipment, a system or a whole industrial installation in a safe and reliable functioning condition, according to pre-defined requirements. This is the basis for reliability, supportability and maintainability.
Typical use cases for this rule are various types of fire and electrical safety checking. You can also check if there are required number of target components within the required distance.
The Component Distance rule can, for example, be used to check that the distance between water taps and electrical outlet is more than 0.5m, or that there are at least two spaces using water (bathroom, kitchen) next to a water pipe shaft, or that you have enough maintenance space in front of a ventilation machine.
This rule calculates distances between component geometry or its offset footprint area. The distance calculations can be done in multiple methods depending on the requirement and purpose of the check.
In the Parameters view, you can set the calculation method, tolerances for required distances and define the source component and target component.
Distance Calculation: The Checked Distance to Target Component drop-down menu has eight distance calculation methods to select from:
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Horizontal Distance Between Footprints: This option calculates the 2D distance between two component, projecting their geometry to create a outline in 2D from which to measure the distance.
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Shortest Distance Between Shapes: This option calculates the shortestdistance between two components in 3D, e.g. two components (such as the distance between a stove and a smoke detector) facing each other and their distance in 3D.
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Facing Within Distance: This is used to find out situations where unwanted components are in the area that is calculated by protruding footprint segments of source component with the given distance. A typical use case is to avoid specific components next to one onether, for example electric sockets next to a shaft whose walls shouldn't have holes.
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Directly Above: This option calculates the vertical distance between two components, where the distance is calculated upwards from the source component to the target component, e.g. two components existing such as a ventilator must be located above the stove as shown in the picture.
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Directly Below: This option calculates the vertical distance between two components, where the distance is calculated downwards from the source component to the target component, e.g. two components such as a window requires a heater below it as shown in the picture
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Horizontally Alongside: This option calculates the distance between two components, when the components exist alongside each other, e.g. the distance between a window and wall component or the distance between a toilet seat and wash basin component.
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Above within Offset Footprint: This option calculates the distance above the source component that is extended horizontally by the Footprint Offset value. It checks that the distance to the component above is large enough, even if the source component moves.
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Below within Offset Footprint: This option calculates the distance below the source component but can be extended using the footprint offset value, essentially building in a tolerance area around the source object. It checks that target components are either within or outside of this defined volume allowing for either a tolerance value or the source component moves.
Two key calculation options exist for this rule and run in conjunction with the distance calculation:
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Allowed Maximum Distance: The number of target components (defined in the Maximum Number value) must exist within the specified distance in conjunction with the Distance Calculation method to the source object
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Required Minimum Distance: No target components are to exist within the specified distance in conjunction with the Distance Calculation method.
Space or Space Group Containment:
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With these parameter settings, you can either ignore the space or space group or limit the checking to a space or space group. A space group is a large space which consists of many smaller spaces, for example apartments.
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You can select from the following options:
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Ignore Space or Space Group: The rule takes the model as a the whole model (spaces or space groups are ignored).
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Space: This measures the distance between components within the same space as the source component. Space groups like apartments are ignored.
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Space Group: This measures the distance between the components with the same space group of the source component.
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Space Group Type: If you select the Space Group method, you can list the names for the Space Group Types you want to use for limiting.
Important
This requires that the Space Group classification is configured correctly for the project. The list of values will then display the space groups in your classification.
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Source and Target Components to Be Checked:
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Here you can define the components you wish to check.
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The source component is the component(s) that the minimum or maximum distances along with the calculation method determines passes or failures for the target component(s).
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Minimum Number: You can define the minimum number of target components required.
Important
This is only activated for maximum distance between source and target components. With the minimum value, this acts as an exclusion zone and as such the value is irrelevant. Note that the default value for this maximum number is set to 2. Please adjust this to the number of target elements that are required within this defined distance calculation.
This rule creates an issue, if:
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there are no required type of components
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there are undefined space groups and spaces
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a required type of components is found, but the required distance is incorrect, then both components (source and target ones) are attached to the issue.
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more than one component is required, and there are not enough target components, found components are attached as info component to it.
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there are no required design discipline models
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required classification is not loaded
Severity Parameters: You can set certain components to always critical or moderate issues in the Severity Parameters view. This allows you to see the if those specific components cause an issue and need special attention.
In this example we have water tap as a source component, and we want to check the safety requirement for electrical outlet distance 0.5m. To avoid the unnecessary issues, you can use spaces to limit the checking area, so the electrical outlet on the other side of wall will not give unnecessary issues.
Note
This rule does not have any report or tools.
This type of ruleset has multiple levels, where the first level works as a parent. The components of the following sub-rule are checked based on the results of those self-configuring parent rule.
Tip
For more information on gatekeeper rules, see here.
When the parent rule has two filters, the rule checks those components that are defined in the source and target component filters. In rule #222, components of source component filter can be any non-container type of components. These components are deliver as output to sub rule. If the sub level rule is also #222 it will accept only non-container type of components as input to source filter. In this type of ruleset, it is important to understand the output delivered to sub level rule. Depending on the rules, the required input for child rule component filter has to match with the parent output.
Essentially, where a rule templates contain two filters the outcome of the rule if passed to another rule template that has two filters will only deliver the results (passed or failed) to the source component of the sub-rule. The target or Component 2 will need to be configured manually.
As an example, a parent rule may define both the source and target, or Component 1 and Component 2. For the sub-rule checking a value of any for the source or Component 1 will check the elements in line with the sub-rule options. But the target or Component 2 if set to any will ignore the conditions of the sub-rule settings and check the whole model.
Components of the sub level are set according to sub rule options:
Note
The self-configurable rule is not returning issues of the first level. The only way to control and test the operability is to use the Checked Components view to see checked, passed and failed components. When parametrizing the rule it is important to understand which one of the components are more critical check. If the rule is incorrectly parametrized, the sub rule will disappear from the Checking view.
Typical use cases for this rule are:
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M & E:
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Identification of services above or below components or elements such as suspended ceilings.
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Identification of large ceiling voids, i.e. voids over 800mm, that will then require the provision of fire detection components.
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Ensuring that electrical conduit or switches are within required distances of doors etc.
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Checking that electrical sockets are positioned at the right height above the finish floor levels.
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Using the minimum values, you can check required tolerances between components.
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Checking for maintenance space around key components like valves and other M & E equipment.
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Architectural:
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Checking for specified components within required distances (in the example below, in the same space):
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Identification of required clear space for the provision of services above ceilings.
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Checking clear head height between floor finishes and soffits/ceilings.
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Structural:
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Minimum tolerance gaps between elements.
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Detection of specific structural components within proximity of other elements.
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