design spaces

Indicate the body to optimize and the bodies to preserve or exclude from the optimization.

starting geometry

A body that represents the volume for the design that you intend to create. It defines the volume limits. The final design is contained inside the starting geometry.

preserved geometry

The bodies that remain unaffected during optimization. These bodies are included in the generated designs, but their geometry remains unchanged.

excluded geometry

The bodies that are represented as empty volumes, without any material, in the final generated designs. These bodies act as obstacles as the solution resolves around them, but not within their geometry. The resulting generated designs have a void based on the profile of the excluded geometry.

undesignated bodies

The bodies that are not designated as starting geometry, preserved geometry, or excluded geometry. These bodies can have contact with the starting geometry or other undesignated bodies. These bodies can have loads and constraints applied to their surfaces and can transfer loads and constraints to other bodies with which they have a bonded contact. The undesignated bodies affect the generated design, but they are not part of the final design.

design criteria

Includes design goals and objectives for the study, manufacturing and geometric constraints, and the materials to use for manufacturing the model.

Generative Design Feature (GDF)

A design that is created by the Generative Design application based on the results of optimization. When you construct the geometry from the results of the optimization study, only the one component that you optimized is constructed.

material spreading

Spreading of material to reduce thick solid regions and progressively encourage thin-walled structures and struts.

build direction

Direction of 3D printing.

linear extrude

A linear pull direction extrude, which is the direction of the tool used for milling.

parting line

A line on part that indicates the contact between the base plate and the top plate.

planar symmetry

Symmetry between the two sides of a plane.