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2010
Getting Started Manual
COPYRIGHTNOTICE
TecplotFocus
TM
GettingStartedManualisforusewithTecplotFocus
TM
Version2010.
Copyright19882010 Tecplot,Inc.Allrightsreservedworldwide.Exceptforpersonaluse,thismanualmaynotbereproduced,transmitted,transcribed,storedinaretrievalsystem,ortranslatedinanyform,inwholeorinpart,withouttheexpresswritten
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Thesoftwarediscussedin thisdocumentation andthedocumentation itselfarefurnishedunderlicenseforutilizationandduplicationonlyaccording tothelicenseterms.ThecopyrightforthesoftwareisheldbyTecplot,Inc.Documentationisprovidedfor
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19982006 TheBoardofTrusteesofthe University ofIllinois,Copyright20062008TheHDFGroup (THG).AllRightsReserved.PNGReferenceLibrary Copyright1995,1996 GuyEric Schalnat,Group 42,Inc.,Copyright1996,1997 AndreasDilger,Copy
right 1998,1999GlennRandersPehrson.AllRightsReserved.Tcl19891994 The Regentsofthe UniversityofCalifornia.Copyright 1994TheAustralianNationalUniversity.Copyright 19941998 SunMicrosystems,Inc.Copyright 19981999 Scriptics
Corporation.AllRightsReserved.bmptopnm1992 DavidW.Sanderson.AllRightsReserved.Netpbm1988 JefPoskanzer.AllRightsReserved.Mesa 19992003BrianPaul.AllRightsReserved.W3CIPR19951998 WorldWideWebConsortium,(Massachu
settsInstituteof Technology,Institut NationaldeRechercheen Informatique etenAutomatique,Keio University).AllRightsReserved.Ppmtopict1990 KenYap.All RightsReserved.JPEG19911998 ThomasG.Lane.AllRightsReserved.DirentAPIforMicro
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10F021
Rev 04/2010
3
Table of Contents
1 Introduction ............................................................................ 7
2 Overview .................................................................................... 9
Interface........................................................................................ 10
Menubar....................................................................................... 10
Sidebar ............................................................................................... 11
StatusLine......................................................................................... 22
TecplotFocusWorkspace ................................................................... 22
DataHierarchy............................................................................ 22
Frames ............................................................................................... 22
Datasets ............................................................................................. 23
Zones ................................................................................................. 23
DataStructure ............................................................................. 23
OrderedData..................................................................................... 23
FiniteElementData .......................................................................... 23
CreatingPlots .............................................................................. 25
OutputFormats........................................................................... 26
3 Engine RPM Data Tutorial ........................................... 27
Introduction................................................................................. 27
LoadanExcelDataFile(Windows
Only)...................................... 27
LoadanExcelDataFile(Unix,WindowsOptional)....................... 30
PasteStylefromStylesheet................................................................ 32
TriangulatetheData ......................................................................... 33
ModifytheZoneDisplay................................................................... 34
WritetheDatasettoaFile................................................................. 35
Conclusion................................................................................... 36
Table of Contents
4
4 Gas Burner Tutorial ......................................................... 37
Introduction................................................................................. 37
WritingaMacroFiletoAutomatePlotSetup ........................ 37
SetUpaMacro.................................................................................. 37
RecordtheMacro............................................................................... 38
SavetheMacroFile ........................................................................... 40
EdittheMacroFile............................................................................ 41
Add$!LooptotheFile ....................................................................... 41
Addan$!IFStatement ...................................................................... 42
LayingOuttheFrames .............................................................. 43
LoadyourMacroFile ........................................................................ 43
TiletheFrames .................................................................................. 44
AdjustingtheAxisSettingsSimultaneouslyinAllFrames . 45
AdjusttheXAxisSettings ............................................................... 46
AdjusttheYAxisSettings ............................................................... 47
AdjusttheZAxisSettings ............................................................... 47
RotatetheAxisView......................................................................... 48
MagnifytheFrames .......................................................................... 49
PreparingaStylesheet................................................................ 50
SelectOneFrame............................................................................... 50
ChangeActiveLayersandaddaContourLegend............................ 50
AddaContourLegend ...................................................................... 50
SavetheStylesheettoaFile............................................................... 52
LoadtheStylesheet ............................................................................ 52
AdjustContourRanges ............................................................. 53
ResettheContourRange................................................................... 53
ChangeContourRangeUsingaMaximum,Minimum,andSteps. 54
ChangeContourRangeUsingaMinimum,Maximum,andDelta. 55
FinalResult .................................................................................. 57
ExportYourResults.......................................................................... 57
Conclusion................................................................................... 58
5 Performance Envelope Tutorial .............................. 59
Introduction................................................................................. 59
LoadingtheDataset ................................................................... 59
LoadaTecplotFocusDataFile ........................................................ 59
SetthePlotType ............................................................................... 60
ModifyingAxisDetails.............................................................. 61
AdjusttheXAxisRange .................................................................. 61
AdjusttheYAxisRange .................................................................. 62
TurnonPreciseDotGrid ................................................................. 62
ActivatingValueBlanking......................................................... 63
TurnonValueBlanking.................................................................... 64
ValueBlankingConstraint1 .......................................................... 64
ValueBlankingConstraint2 .......................................................... 65
ValueBlankingConstraint3 .......................................................... 65
ValueBlankingConstraint4 .......................................................... 65
ValueBlankingConstraint5 .......................................................... 66
5
ValueBlankingConstraint6 .......................................................... 66
AddingaFloodedContourPlot ............................................... 67
ChangetheActivePlotLayers .......................................................... 68
SpecifytheContourVariable............................................................. 68
AdjusttheFirstContourLevelforaContourVariable .................... 68
ActivatingContourLinePlots .................................................. 70
AssignContourVariables ................................................................. 70
ChangetheContourPlotType.......................................................... 71
AssignContourVariablestoZones .................................................. 71
ChangeZonesLinePatterns ............................................................ 72
CopyPlottoClipboard ...................................................................... 73
Conclusion................................................................................... 74
6 Transient Tutorial ............................................................. 75
Introduction................................................................................. 75
DatasetBackground .......................................................................... 75
TutorialSummary ............................................................................. 76
GettingStarted............................................................................ 76
LoadtheDataset ................................................................................ 76
InitialPlotSettings ........................................................................... 77
ViewDataSetInformation................................................................ 78
HurricaneSwath......................................................................... 78
AddaVectorLayer............................................................................ 78
LimittheNumberofVectorsPlotted................................................. 79
AnimatetheHurricaneMotion......................................................... 80
HurricanePath............................................................................ 81
CreateaNewFrame .......................................................................... 81
AdjusttheFrameSize ....................................................................... 81
ChangetheXandYAxes.................................................................. 82
AdjusttheAxisRanges..................................................................... 82
InserttheMapImage ........................................................................ 84
ModifytheImageDimensions .......................................................... 84
CreateaNewVariable ....................................................................... 86
AddaContourLayer......................................................................... 87
AddaContourColorCutoff .............................................................. 88
AddDynamicText ............................................................................ 89
AnimatetheHurricaneoverTime .................................................... 91
References&Resources ............................................................. 92
Conclusion................................................................................... 92
Table of Contents
6
7
1
Introduction
TecplotFocusisanadvancedengineeringplottingsoftwarewithextensiveXY,Polar,2D,and3D
capabilities.Itenablesyoutoanalyzeandexplorecomplexdatasets,arrangemultipleXY,Polar,2D,and
3Dplots,andthencommunicateyourresultstocolleaguesandmanagementwithbrilliant,highquality
output.
TheuserdocumentationforTecplotFocusisdividedintotheseninebooks:
GettingStartedManual(thisdocument)NewTecplotFocususersareencouragedtowork
throughthetutorialsprovidedintheGettingStartedManual.Thetutorialshighlighthowto
workwithkeyfeaturesinTecplotFocus.
UsersManualThismanualprovidesacompletedescriptionofworkingwithTecplotFocus
features.
ScriptingGuideThisguideprovidesMacroandPythoncommandsyntaxandinformationon
workingwithMacroandPythonfilesandcommands.
QuickReferenceGuideThisguideprovidessyntaxforzoneheaderfiles,macrovariables,
keyboardshortcuts,andmore.
DataFormatGuideThisguideprovidesinformationonoutputtingsimulatordatatoTecplot
Focusfileformat.
AddonDevelopersKitUsersManualThismanualprovidesinstructionsandexamplesfor
creatingaddonsforTecplotFocus.
AddonDevelopersKitReferenceManualThismanualprovidesthesyntaxforthe
functionsincludedintheaddonkit.
InstallationInstructionsTheseinstructionsgiveadetaileddescriptionofhowtoinstall
TecplotFocusonyourmachine.
ReleaseNotesThesenotesprovideinformationaboutnewand/orupdatedTecplotFocus
features.
TecplotTalkAusersupportedforumdiscussingTecplotFocus,Tecplot360,Pythonscripting,
Addondevelopment,TecIOandmore.Visitwww.tecplottalk.comfordetails.
Thefirsttutorialtakesapproximately1015minutestocomplete.Eachoftheremainingtutorialstakes
approximately2530minutestocomplete.
Introduction
8
EngineRPMDataTutorialThistutorialincludesimportingaMicrosoft
Excel
spreadsheet
andperformingtriangulation.
PerformanceEnvelopeTutorialThistutorialincludesvalueblankingandworkingwith
multiplecontourplots.
GasBurnerTutorialThistutorialincludesworkingwithmacros,framelinking,and
stylesheets.Thistutorialisalsoavailableinvideoformonourwebsiteat:http://
www.tecplot.com/support/focus/getting_started.aspx.
TransientTutorialThistutorialincludesanimation,importinggraphics,anddataalteration
throughequations.
Filesassociatedwitheachtutorialarelocatedin$TEC_FOCUS_2010\tutorials
1
.
ForindepthinformationonthetopicscoveredintheGettingStartedManual,pleaserefertotheUsers
ManualincludedinyourTecplotFocusinstallationdirectory.TheUsersManualandadditional
documentationisalsoavailableonourwebsiteat:http://www.tecplot.com/support/focus/docs.aspx.
1. $TEC_FOCUS_2010 is the installation directory. For Windows
PowerPoint
,MicrosoftWord
,andotherMicrosoftOffice
applications
AnimatingtoafileforuseinaPowerPointpresentation,awebpage,oraFramer(AVI,Flash
,
orRasterMetafile)
UsingthePublishcommandtoshareresultsdirectlyontheWeb
Exportingpresentationqualityvectorandrasterformats(JPEG,PNG,TIFF,BMP,WMF,
Adobe
PostScript
,orEPS)
Youmayalsosavetimeandeffortbyautomatingroutineanalysesandplottingoperationsthroughthese
methods:
Customizingtheinterfacetoyourworkflow
Creatingmacrosbyrecordingorwritingscripts
UsingtheQuickMacroPaneldialogforoneclickmacroaccess
Batchprocessplottingandprinting
ExtendingTecplotFocusfunctionalitywiththeAddonDevelopersKit
Overview
10
2 - 1 Interface
FourmajorsectionsmakeuptheTecplotFocusinterface:
2 - 2 Menubar
TheMenubaroffersrapidaccesstomostTecplotFocusfeatures.
TecplotFocusfeaturesareorganizedintothefollowingmenus:
FileUsetheFilemenutoreadorwritedatafilesandplotlayouts,printandexportplots,and
setconfigurationpreferences.
EditUsetheEditmenutoselect,undo,cut,copy,paste,andclearobjects,opentheQuick
Editdialog,andchangethedraworderforselecteditems(pushorpop).
ViewUsetheViewmenutomanipulatethepointofviewofyourdata,includingscale,view
range,and3Drotation.YoucanalsousetheViewmenutocopyandpasteviewsbetween
frames.
TheViewmenuincludesthefollowingconvenientsizingoptions:
FitEverything(3DOnly)Thisoptionsresizesplotssothatalldatapoints,text,and
geometriesareincludedintheframe.
Cut, Copy, and Paste work only within Tecplot Focus. To place a graphic image of your
layout into another program, use Copy Plot to Clipboard. This option is available on
Windows
and Macintosh
platforms.
Sidebar
Menubar
TecplotFocus
StatusLine
11
Menubar
FitSurfaces(3DOnly)Thisoptionresizesplotssothatallsurfacesareincludedinthe
frame,excludinganyvolumezones.
FittoFullSizeThisoptionfitstheentireplotintotheframe.Thisoptiondoesnot
affecttheaxisranges.
NiceFittoFullSizeThisoptionsetstheaxisrangetobeginandendonmajoraxis
increments(ifaxesaredependent,theverticalaxislengthisadjustedtoaccommodatea
majortickmark).
DataFitThisoptionfitsthedatapointstotheframe.
MakeCurrentViewNiceThisoptionmodifiestherangeonaspecifiedaxistofitthe
minimumandmaximumofthevariableassignedtothataxis,andthensnapsthemajor
tickmarkstotheendsoftheaxis.(Ifaxisdependencyisnotsetasindependent,thismay
affecttherangeonanotheraxis.)
CenterThisoptionmovestheplotimagesothatthedatapointsarecenteredwithin
theframe.(Onlythedataiscentered;text,geometries,andthe3Daxesarenot
considered.)
PlotUsethePlotmenutocontrolthestyleofyourplots.Themenuitemsavailableare
dependentupontheactiveplottype(chosenintheSidebar).
InsertUsetheInsertmenutoaddtext,geometries(polylines,squares,rectangles,circles,and
ellipses),orimagefiles.Ifyouhavea3Dzone,youmayalsousetheInsertmenutoinserta
slice.Iftheplottypeissetto2Dor3DCartesian,youmayinsertastreamtrace.
AnimateUsetheAnimatemenutoanimateIJKPlanes,IJKBlanking,isosurfaces,mappings,
slices,streamtraces,time,andzones.
DataUsetheDatamenutocreate,manipulate,andexaminedata.Typesofdata
manipulationavailableinTecplotFocusincludezonecreation,interpolation,triangulation,
andcreationoralterationofvariables.
FrameUsetheFramemenutocreate,edit,andcontrolframes.
OptionsUsetheOptionsmenutocontroltheattributesofyourworkspace,includingthe
colormap,papergrid,displayoptions,andrulers.
ScriptingUsetheScriptingmenutoplayorrecordmacros,andtoaccesstheQuickMacros
Paneldialog.
ToolsUsetheToolsmenutolaunchtheQuickEditdialogoranaddon.
HelpChooseTecplotFocusHelpfromtheHelpmenutogetspecific,completehelpon
featuresoroperationswithinTecplotFocus.BychoosingAboutTecplotFocusfromthis
menu,youcanobtainspecificinformationaboutyourlicense.
2 - 2.1 Sidebar
TheSidebarprovideseasyaccessforfrequentlyusedplotcontrols.ThefunctionsavailableintheSidebar
dependontheplottypeoftheactiveframe.For2Dor3DCartesianplottypes,youcanaddorsubtract
zonelayersandderivedobjectsfromyourplot.For3DCartesianplots,youmayalsoaddorsubtractzone
effectsfromyourplot.Forlineplots(XYandPolar)youcanaddorsubtractmappinglayers.
Tocustomizeyourplot,simply:
ChoosethedesiredplottypefromthePlotTypesmenuintheSidebar.
UsethetoggleswitchestoaddandsubtractZoneLayers/MapLayersor
ZoneEffects.UsetheZoneStyle/MappingStyledialogstofurthercustomizeyourplotby
addingorsubtractingzonesfromspecificplotlayers/mappings,changingthewayazoneor
groupofzonesisdisplayed,orchangingvariousplotsettings.
Overview
12
Plot Types
Theplottype,combinedwithaframesdataset,activelayers,andeachlayersassociatedattributes,define
aplot.Eachplottyperepresentsoneviewofthedata.Therearefiveplottypesavailable:
3DCartesian3Dplotsofsurfacesandvolumes
2DCartesian2Dplotsofsurfaces,wheretheverticalandhorizontalaxesarebothdependent
variables(i.e.x=f(A)andy=f(A),whereAisanothervariable)
XYLineLineplotsofindependentanddependentvariablesonaCartesiangrid;typically
withthehorizontalaxis(x)astheindependentvariableandtheverticalaxis(y=f(x))asa
dependentvariable
PolarLineLineplotsofindependentanddependentvariablesonapolargrid
PlotTypesMenu
ZoneLayers/MapLayers
ZoneEffects
(3DOnly)
Figure21. TheTecplotFocus
Sidebarforafieldplot
(left)andalineplot
(right).Thefeatures
availableinthe
Sidebararedependent
upontheplottype.
For3DCartesian
plots,youmayadd
andsubtractzone
layersandeffectsfor
yourplot.For2D
Cartesianplots(not
shown),youmayadd
andsubtractzone
layersforyourplot.
Forlineplotsyoumay
addandsubtractmap
layers.XYlineplots
havemoreavailable
13
Menubar
SketchPlotswithoutdata,suchasdrawings,flowcharts,andviewgraphs
Zone Layers/Map Layers
Alayerisawayofrepresentingaframesdataset.Thecompleteplotisthesumofalltheactivelayers,
axes,text,geometries,andotherelementsaddedtothedataandplottedinthelayers.Therearesixzone
layersfor2Dand3DCartesian,fourmaplayersforXYLine,twomaplayersforPolarLine,andnolayers
forSketch.
Thefollowingsixzonelayersareoptionsfor2Dand3DCartesianplottypes:
MeshLinesconnectingthedatapointswithineachzone
ContourLineshavingaconstantvalue,theregionbetweentheselines(contourflooding),or
both
VectorArrowsindicatingthedirectionandmagnitudeofphysicalquantities
ScatterSymbolsatthelocationofeachdatapoint
ShadeTheeffectusedtotinteachzonewithaspecifiedsolidcolor,ortoaddlightsource
shadingtoa3Dsurfaceplot.WhenusingthiseffectinconjunctionwiththeLightingzone
effect,youmaysetPaneledorGouraudshading.Whenusingtheshadeeffectinconjunction
withtheTranslucencyzoneeffect,youmaycreateatranslucentsurfaceforyourplot.
EdgeZoneedgesandcreasesforordereddataandcreasesforfiniteelementdata
ThefourXYLinemaplayersare:
LinesLinesthatplotapairofvariables(XandY)asasetoflinesegmentsorafittedcurve
SymbolsApairofvariables(XandY)thatareindividualdatapointsandarerepresentedby
asymbolthatyouspecify
BarsApairofvariables(XandY)asahorizontalorverticalbarchart
ErrorBarsAnoptionthatallowsyoutoadderrorbarstoyourplot
ThetwoPolarLinemaplayersare:
LinesApairofvariables(RandTheta)thatareasetoflinesegmentsorafittedcurve
SymbolsApairofvariables(RandTheta)thatareindividualdatapointsrepresentedbya
symbolthatyouspecify
Zone Effects
For3DCartesianplottypes,usetheSidebartoturnLightingandTranslucencyonoroff.Onlyshadedand
floodedcontoursurfaceplottypesareaffected.
Snap Modes
SnaptoGrid Constrainsobjectmovementtowholestepsontheaxisgrid.This
canbeusefulforaligningtextandgeometrieswithspecificplotfeatures.
SnaptoPaper Constrainsobjectmovementtowholestepsonthepapersruler
grid.Thiscanbeusefulforpositioningframespreciselyforprinting,orfor
absolutepositioningoftext,geometries,andotherplotelements.
Overview
14
Redraw Buttons
Theredrawbuttonsallowyoutokeepyourplotuptodate:RedrawAllCTRLDredrawsallframes,
SHIFTRedrawAllcausesTecplotFocustocompletelyregeneratetheworkspace,andRedrawCTRLR
redrawsonlythecurrentframe.
Auto Redraw
UseAutoRedrawWhentoggledon,TecplotFocuswillautomaticallyredrawtheplotwheneverstyleor
datachanges.Someusersprefertoturnthisoptionoffwhilesettingmultiplestylesettingsandthen
manuallyclickingTecplotFocussRedraworRedrawAllbuttonontheSidebartoseeafullplot.
Cache Graphics
TecplotFocususesOpenGL
torenderplots.OpenGLprovidestheabilitytocachegraphicinstructionsfor
renderingandcanrerenderthecachedgraphicsmuchfasterthanhavingTecplotFocussendthe
instructionsagain.Thisisparticularlytruefortheinteractivemanipulationofaplot.However,this
performancepotentialcomesatthecostofusingmorememory.Ifthememoryneedistoohigh,theoverall
performancecouldbeless.TecplotFocushasthreegraphicscachemodes:cacheallgraphics,cacheonly
lightweightgraphicsobjects,anddonotcachegraphics.
WhenCacheGraphicsistoggledonintheSidebar,TecplotFocusassumesthereisenoughmemoryto
generatethegraphicscache.Assumingthisistrue,TecplotFocussrenderingperformancewillbeoptimal
fortheinteractivemanipulationofaplot.
Whenmemoryconstraintsareverylimited,considertogglingoffCacheGraphics.Ifyouintendto
interactwiththeplotunderlimitedmemoryconstraints,alsoconsidersettingthePlotApproximation
modetoAllFramesAlwaysApproximated.
SeeSectionGraphicsCacheintheUsersManualformoreinformation.
Plot Approximations
IfPlotApproximationistoggledonandthenumberofdatapointsisabovethepointthreshold,Tecplot
Focuswillrendertheapproximateplotforstyle,data,andinteractiveviewchangesfollowedimmediately
bythefullplot.Thisoptionprovidesforgoodinteractiveperformancewiththefinalplotalways
displayedinthefullrepresentation.
Tools
Eachofthetoolsrepresentedinthetoolbarchangesthemousemodeandallowsyoutoedityourplot
interactively.
An auto redraw can be interrupted at any time with a mouse click or key press.
Double-click on a tool to launch the Details dialog associated with that tool.
15
Menubar
Selector Tool
UsetheSelectortooltoselectobjectsinyourworkspace.TheobjectscanbemodifiedusingtheQuickEdit
dialogwhentheQuickEditbuttonischosenintheSidebarbeforeanobjectisselected.
Thefollowingobjectscanbemoved(translated)usingtheSelectortoolitself:
Frames
AxisGridArea
Text
Geometries
ContourLabels
Streamtraces
StreamtraceTerminationLine
Legends
3DFrameAxis
Toselectanobjectandopenthatobjectsattributesdialog,eitherdoubleclickonthedesiredobjectordrag
thecursortoselectagroupofobjectstocalluptheGroupSelectdialog.ClickOK,andthenclickthe
ObjectDetailsbuttonintheSidebar.
Adjustor Tool
UsetheAdjustortooltoperformthefollowingspecificmodificationstoyourplotanddata:
Changethelocationofindividualorgroupsofdatapointsinthegrid
Modifythevaluesofthedatasetvariablesataparticularpoint
Changethelengthorplacementofindividualaxes(2DCartesianandXYLineplottypesonly)
Changethespacingbetweenanaxislabelanditsassociatedaxis(2DCartesianandXYline
plottypesonly)
Changetheshapeofapolyline
Exceptfortheaboveactions,thebehavioroftheAdjustortoolisidenticaltothatoftheSelectortool.
Toselectmultiplepoints,youcaneitherSHIFTclickafterselectingyourinitialpointtoselectadditional
points,oryoucandrawagroupselectbandtoselectthepointswithintheband.(InLineplots,youcan
selectpointsfromonlyonemappingatatime.)
Onceyouhaveselectedalldesiredpoints,movetheAdjustorovertheselectionhandlesofoneofthe
points,thendragtothedesiredlocationofthechosendatapoint.Otherselectedpointswillmoveasaunit
withthechosendatapoint,maintainingtheirrelativepositions.
The Adjustor tool can alter your data. Be sure you want to use the Adjustor tool before
dragging points in the data region.
For XY Line plots: If several mappings are using the same data for one of the variables,
adjusting one of the mappings will result in simultaneous adjustments to the others. You
can avoid this by pressing the H or V keys on your keyboard while adjusting the selected
point. The H and V keys restrict the adjustment to the horizontal and vertical directions,
respectively.
Overview
16
Group Select
TheGroupSelectdialogisopenedwhenyouselectagroupofobjectswiththeSelectororAdjustortools.
Dragtocreatearectanglearoundtheobjectsyouwanttoselect.UsetheGroupSelectdialogtospecify
whichtypesofobjectswithinthespecifiedselectionregionshouldbeselected.
TheGroupSelectdialogallowsyoutospecifythefollowingobjecttypestobeselected(iftheselection
rectangledoesnotincludeaspecificobject,itsassociatedcheckboxisinactive):
Text
Geometries
Frames
Zones
AxisGridArea
ContourLabels
Streamtraces
TheGroupSelectdialogoffersthefollowingattributefilters:
GeomsofTypeChoosegeometriesofaparticulartypefromthemenu.
GeomswithLinePatternChooseallgeometrieshavingaparticularlinepattern.
TextwithFontChoosealltextdisplayedinaparticularfont.
ObjectswithColorChooseallobjectsofaparticularcolor.(Choosetheappropriatecolor
fromtheSelectColordialog.)
Zoom Tool
Thistoolenableszoomingintoorawayfromaplot.
Withthezoomtoolselectedasthemousemode,whenamouseclickoccurs(withoutdragging),the
zoomingiscenteredatthelocationofyourclick.
Therearetwozoommodes:plotzoomingandpaperzooming.
Forplotzooming,dragthemagnifyingglasscursortodrawaboxabouttheregionthatyouwanttofitinto
theframe.Theboxmaybelargerthantheframe.Drawingaboxlargerthantheframezoomsawayfrom
theplot.Theregionwithintheviewboxwillberesizedtofitintotheframe.
Toreturntothepreviousview,chooseLastfromtheViewmenu(CTRLL).Torestoretheoriginal2D
view,chooseFittoFullSize(CTRLF)fromtheViewmenu.
Theresultsofplotzoomingforthe2DplottypearedependentupontheaxismodeselectedintheAxis
Detailsdialog(accessedviathePlotmenu):
2DIndependentAxisModeTheindependentaxismodeallowstheselectedregionto
expandtoexactlyfitintheframe.Theaxesarerescaledindependentlytofitthezoombox.
2DDependentAxisModeIndependentmode,theaxesarenotfitperfectlytothezoombox.
Thelongestdimensionfromthezoomboxisappliedtotheassociatedaxis,andtheotheraxis
isresizedaccordingtothedependencyrelation.
If Snap to Grid is toggled-on in the Sidebar, you cannot make the zoom box larger than
the grid area.
17
Menubar
Forpaperzooming,SHIFTdragthemagnifyingglasscursortodrawaboxabouttheregionthatyouwant
tomagnify.Theplotisresizedsuchthatthelongestdimensionofthezoomboxfitsintotheworkspace.
YoucanfitoneorallframestotheworkspacebyusingtheFitSelectedFramestoWorkspaceorFitAll
FramestoWorkspaceoptionsfromtheView>Workspacemenu.Toreturntothedefaultpaperview,
chooseFitPapertoWorkspacefromtheView>Workspacemenu.
Translate Tool
UsetheTranslate/Magnifytooltotranslateormagnifydatawithinaframeorthepaperwithinthe
workspace.
WhileinTranslate/Magnifymode,dragthecursortomovethedatawithrespecttotheframe,orSHIFT
dragtomovethepaperwithrespecttotheworkspace.
Three-dimensional Rotation
TecplotFocusallowsyoutorotateyourdatainavarietyofways.Chooseoneofthesixpossible3D
rotationmousemodes,thendragthepointerintheworkspacetorotateyour3Dimage.Thesixrotation
mousemodescanbeengagedbyselectingoneofthesesixtools:
Spherical DragthemousehorizontallytorotateabouttheZaxis;dragthemouse
verticallytocontrolthetiltoftheZaxis.
Rollerball Dragthemouseinthedirectionyouwanttomovetheplotwithrespectto
thecurrentorientationonthescreen.Inthismode,yourmouseactsmuchlikearollerball.
Twist Dragthemouseclockwisearoundtheimagetorotatetheimageclockwise.Drag
themousecounterclockwisearoundtheimagetorotatetheimagecounterclockwise.
Xaxis DragthemousetorotatetheimageabouttheXaxis.
Yaxis DragthemousetorotatetheimageabouttheYaxis.
Zaxis DragthemousetorotatetheimageabouttheZaxis.
Onceyouhaveselectedarotationmousemode,youcanquicklyswitchtoanyoftheotherrotation
capabilitiesorrotationmodesusingthefollowingkeyboardshortcuts:
Use the center mouse button to zoom smoothly into or out of the plot.
Clicking anywhere in your plot while the zoom tool is active zooms in on the plot and
centers that zoom around your click.
Use the right mouse button to translate objects within a frame interactively.
Rescale image: You can rescale your image by choosing the translate tool and pressing
+ to magnify or - to shrink.
Rescale paper: To rescale the paper, first SHIFT-drag to move the paper, and then use
the rescale buttons + or - to magnify or shrink the paper, respectively.
Drag
Rotateaboutthedefinedrotationoriginwith
yourcurrentRotatetool.
ALTdrag
Rotateabouttheviewerpositionusingyour
currentRotatetool.
Middleclick Smoothzoominandoutofthedata.
Overview
18
Slice Tool
UsetheSlicetooltocontrolyourslicerenderinginteractively.
Thefollowingkeyboard/mouseoptionsareavailablewhentheSlicetoolisactive:
Rightclick Translatethedata.
O
Moverotationorigintoprobedpointofdata.
Thisshortcutcanbeusedwithoutfirstselecting
arotationmousemode.Hoveroveryour
intendedpointoforigin,typeO,andthen
CTRLrightclickanddragtorotatetheimage.
R SwitchtoRollerballrotation.
S SwitchtoSphericalrotation.
T SwitchtoTwistrotation.
X SwitchtoXaxisrotation.
Y SwitchtoYaxisrotation.
Z SwitchtoZaxisrotation.
+
PrimarySlices,Start/EndSlicesactiveTurnon
intermediateslices(ifnotalreadyactive)andadda
slice.
PrimarySlicesactive[ONLY]TurnonStart/EndSlices
andaddaslice.
Start/EndSlicesactive[ONLY]TurnonStart/End
Slicesandaddaslice.
PrimarySlices,Start/EndSlicesactiveRemovestart
andendslices.
PrimarySlicesactive[ONLY]Removetheprimary
slice.
Start/EndSlicesactive[ONLY]RemovetheStartand
EndSlices.
Clickdrag
Updatethepositionoftheprimaryslice(ifactive).If
onlystartandendslicesarevisible,clicktoupdatethe
positionofthesliceclosesttotheclick.
ALTclick/ALTdrag
DeterminetheXYZlocationbyignoringzonesand
lookingonlyatderivedvolumeobjects(streamtraces,
slices,isosurfaces).
SHIFTclick
Placethestartorendslice(whicheverisclosesttothe
initialclicklocation).ShowStart/EndSlicesasactivated,
ifnecessary.
SHIFTdrag
Movethestartorendslice(whicheverisclosesttothe
initialclicklocation).ShowStart/EndSlicesasactivated,
ifnecessary.
I,J,K(orderedzones
only)
SwitchtoslicingconstantI,J,orKplanesrespectively.
19
Menubar
Add Streamtrace
ChoosetheAddStreamtracetooltoaddastreamtraceinteractivelybyclickinganywhereinyourplot.
Selectthenumberofstreamtracestoincludewitheachclick(rake)using19onthekeyboard.
Streamtrace Termination Line
SelecttheAddStreamtraceTerminationLinetooltoaddastreamtraceterminationlineinteractively.
TodrawaStreamtraceTerminationLine:
1. Movethecursorintothedataregion.
2. Clickonceatthedesiredstartingpointfortheline.
3. Clickagainateachdesiredbreakpoint.
4. Whenthepolylineiscomplete,doubleclickonthelastpointofthepolyline,presstheESC
keyonyourkeyboard,orrightclick.
Thepolylinewillendanystreamtrace(s)thatpassthroughit.
Add Contour Level
ChoosetheAddContourLeveltooltoaddacontourlevelinteractivelybyclickinganywhereinthe
currentdataregion.Anewcontourlevel,passingthroughthespecifiedlocation,iscalculatedanddrawn.
YoucanusethefollowingkeyboardandmouseshortcutswhentheAddContourLeveltoolisselected:
X,Y,Z SwitchtoslicingconstantX,Y,orZplanesrespectively.
18
Numbersonethrougheightswitchtothe
correspondingslicegroup.
Refer to the Chapter 15: Streamtraces in the Users Manual for more information
about using streamtraces.
D Switch to streamrods
R Switch to streamribbons
S Switch to surface lines
V Switch to volume lines
1-9 Change the number of streamtraces added when placing a rake of streamtraces
SHIFT Draw a rake on concave 3D volume surfaces. These rakes are normally not
drawn, as they occur outside of the data.
ALTclick Placeacontourlinebyprobingonastreamtrace,slice,orisosurface.
Click Placeacontourline.
CTRLclick Replacethenearestcontourlinewithanewline.
Drag Movethenewcontourline.
SwitchtotheDeleteContourLeveltool.
Overview
20
Delete Contour Level
ChoosetheDeleteContourLeveltooltodeleteacontourlevelinteractivelybyclickinganywhereinthe
currentdataregion.Thecontourlinenearestthespecifiedlocationisdeleted.
Add Contour Labels
ChoosetheAddContourLabeltooltoswitchtotheContourLabelmode,whichenablesyoutoadda
contourlabelinteractively(byclickinganywhereinthecurrentdataregion).
Acontourlabelisaddedtotheplotatthespecifiedlocation;itslevelorvalueinformationistakenfrom
thenearestcontourline.Thisallowsyoutoplacelabelsslightlyoffsetfromthelinesthattheylabel.
Probe Tool
ChoosetheProbetooltoprobeforvaluesofthedatasetsvariablesataparticularpoint.
Toobtaininterpolatedvaluesofthedatasetvariablesatthespecifiedlocation,chooseanypointinthedata
region.Toobtainexactvaluesforthedatapointnearestthespecifiedlocation,CTRLclickatthedesired
location.
Insert Text
Toaddtexttoanyframe,clicktheAddTexttoolanddrawatextboxintheselectedframe.TheText
Detailsdialogwillbelaunchedautomatically.Useittoassignandmodifytext.
Insert Geometries
Usethecorrespondinggeometrybuttonsinthetoolbartoinsertgeometriesintoyourplot:
Polylines
Squares
Rectangles
Use the + key to switch to the Add Contour Level tool and the - key to switch back
to the Delete Contour Level tool.
The Contour Type must be Lines or Both Lines & Flood in order for this tool to be
active. You can set the Contour Type on the Contour page of the Zone Style dialog.
For XY plots - When you move into the axis grid area, the cursor crosshair is
augmented by a vertical or horizontal line, depending on whether you are probing along
the X-axis or the Y-axis. You can change the axis to be probed by pressing X to probe the
X-axis or Y to probe the Y-axis.
21
Menubar
Circles
Ellipses
Selectageometryshapeforinsertion,andthendragintheworkspacetocreatetheshapeofdesiredsize.
Create New Frame
SelecttheCreateNewFrametooltocreateanewframe.
Toaddaframe,dragintheworkspacetocreateaframeofdesiredsizeandshape.
Extract Discrete Points
ChoosetheExtractDiscretePointstooltoextractselectedpointstoadatafileoranewzone.
Toselectpoints:
1. Leftclickateachlocationwhereyouwouldliketoextractapoint.
2. Toendextraction,eitherdoubleclickonthelastpoint,presstheESCkey,orrightclick.
3. TheExtractDataPointsdialogappears;useittospecifyhowmanypointstoextractandhow
tosavethedata.
Extract Points along Polyline
ChoosetheExtractLinetooltoextractpointsalongaspecifiedpolylinetoadatafileoranewzone.
Toselectpoints:
1. Clickyourlefthandmousebuttonateachlocationwhereyouwouldliketoextractapoint
alongapolyline.
2. Toendextraction,eitherdoubleclickonthelastpoint,presstheESCkey,orrightclick.
3. TheExtractDataPointsdialogappears;useittospecifyhowmanypointstoextractandhow
tosavethedata.
Create Rectangular Zone (2D Only)
ChoosetheCreateRectangularZonetooltoaddnew2DrectangularzonestothecurrentTecplotFocus
dataset.
Tocreatearectangularzone:
1. Clickonceinthecurrentdataregiontoanchoronecornerofthezone.
2. Dragthediagonalcorneruntilthezoneisthedesiredsizeandshape.Thenewzonecreatedis
IJordered.
If you have data loaded into Tecplot Focus and you create a new frame, you can attach
the existing dataset to the new frame by changing the plot type to match that of the
existing dataset.
Overview
22
TospecifythemaximumIindexandJindex,usetheCreateRectangularZonedialog(accessedvia
Data>CreateZone>Rectangular).
Create Circular Zone (2D Only)
SelecttheCreateCircularZonetooltoaddnew2DcircularzonestothecurrentTecplotFocusdataset.
Tocreateacircularzone:
1. Clickonceinthecurrentdataregiontospecifythecenterofthezone.
2. Draguntilthezonehasthedesiredradius.ThenewzonecreatedisIJordered.
TospecifythemaximumIindexandJindex,usetheCreateCircularZonedialog(accessedvia
Data>CreateZone>Circular).
2 - 2.2 Status Line
Thestatusline,runningalongthebottomoftheTecplotFocuswindow,giveshoverhelp.Whenyou
movethepointerovereitheratoolinthetoolbar,abuttonontheQuickEditdialog,oramenuitem,a
descriptionofthecontrolappears.
2 - 2.3 Tecplot Focus Workspace
Theworkspaceistheportionofyourscreeninwhichyoucreatesketchesandplots.Eachsketchorplotis
createdwithinasubwindowcalledaframe.Thecurrentstateoftheworkspacemakesupalayout,
includingthesizingandpositioningofframes,thelocationofthedatafilesusedbyeachframe,andall
currentattributesforallframes.Bydefault,theworkspacedisplaysarepresentationofthepaperTecplot
Focusissetuptodrawon,aswellasareferencegridandrulers.Theactiveframeinwhichyouare
currentlyworkingisontop.Allmodificationsaremadetotheactiveframe.
2 - 3 Data Hierarchy
TecplotFocusstructuresdataintwolevels:datasetsandzones.Datasetsarecontainedwithinframes.Each
datasetiscomposedofazoneorgroupofzones,andeachzonecontainsavariableorgroupofvariables.
Allzonesinadatasetcontainthesamesetofvariables.
2 - 3.1 Frames
YoucancreatemultipleplotssimultaneouslyinTecplotFocususingsubwindowscalledframes.By
default,oneframeisopenwhenyoulaunchTecplotFocus.Youcanaddframestotheworkspaceusingthe
Framemenu.Datasetscanbeuniquetotheframeorsharedbetweenframes.Linkingdatabetweenframes
allowsyougenerateuniqueplotsofthesamedata.Formoreinformationonworkingwithframes,please
refertotheUsersManual.
The current frame must have a dataset attached to it in order for this tool to be active.
(This option is only available in 2D Cartesian plots.)
The current frame must have a dataset attached to it in order for this tool to be active.
(This option is only available in 2D Cartesian plots.)
23
Data Structure
2 - 3.2 Datasets
Adatasetisdefinedasalloftheinformationdatainaframe.Startingwithanemptyframe,adatasetis
createdandassignedtotheactiveframewhenyoureadoneormoredatafilesintoTecplotFocus,orwhen
youcreateazonewithinTecplotFocus.
2 - 3.3 Zones
Zonesareasubsetofdatasets.Adatasetcanbecomposedofasinglezoneorseveralzones.Zonesare
eitherdefinedinthedatafileorcreateddirectlyinTecplotFocus.Thenumberofzonesinaconcatenated
datasetisthesumofthenumberofzonesineachofthedatafilesthatareloaded.
Typically,adatafileisdividedintozonesbasedonitsphysicalcoordinates.Forexample,adatasetofan
airplanemayconsistofazoneforeachwing,eachwheel,thenose,andsoforth.Alternatively,zonesmay
bedefinedbasedonthematerial.Forexample,adatasetofafluidtankmayhaveazoneforthetankitself
andadditionalzonesforeachfluidtherein.
2 - 4 Data Structure
TecplotFocusaccommodatestwodifferenttypesofdata:orderedandfiniteelement.Thedatastructureis
definedwithinthedatafile.Eachzoneiscomposedofonedatatype.
2 - 4.1 Ordered Data
Ordereddataisasetofpointslogicallystoredina1D,2D,or3Darray,whereI,J,andKaretheindex
valueswithinthearray.Thenumberofdatapointsistheproductofallofthedimensionswithinthearray.
1Darray(Iordered,Jordered,orKordered)Asingledimensionalarrayofdatapoints,
whereonedimension(I,J,orK)isgreaterthanorequaltoone,andtheotherdimensionsare
equaltoone.Inaonedimensionalarray,thetotalnumberofdatapointsisequaltothelength
ofthesingleorderedarray.Forexample,anIordereddatasetwithI=5,J=K=1hasfivedata
points.
2Darray(IJordered,JKordered,IKordered)A2Darrayofdatapoints,wheretwoofthe
threedimensions(I,J,orK)aregreaterthanone,andtheotherdimensionisequaltoone.The
numberofdatapointsina2Dordereddatasetistheproductoftheallofthedimensions.For
example,inanIJordereddataset,thenumberofdatapointsisequaltoIxJ(whereK=1).
3Darray(IJKordered)A3Darrayofdatapoints,whereallthreeofthedimensions(I,J,and
K)greaterthanone.ThenumberofdatapointsistheproductoftheI,J,andKdimensions.
2 - 4.2 Finite Element Data
Whilefiniteelementdataisusuallyassociatedwithnumericalanalysisformodelingcomplexproblemsin
3Dstructures(heattransfer,fluiddynamics,andelectromagnetics),italsoprovidesaneffectiveapproach
fororganizingdatapointsinoraroundcomplexgeometricalshapes.Forexample,youmaynothavethe
samenumberofdatapointsondifferentlines,theremaybeholesinthemiddleofthedataset,orthedata
pointsmaybeirregularly(randomly)positioned.Forsuchdifficultcases,youmaybeabletoorganize
yourdataasapatchworkofelements.Eachelementcanbeindependentoftheotherelements,soyoucan
Overview
24
groupyourelementstofitcomplexboundariesandleavevoidswithinsetsofelements.Thefigurebelow
showshowfiniteelementdatacanbeusedtomodelacomplexboundary.
Finiteelementdatadefinesasetofpoints(nodes)andtheconnectedelementsofthesepoints.The
variablesmaybedefinedeitheratthenodesoratthecell(element)center.Finiteelementdatacanbe
dividedintothreetypes:
Linedataisasetoflinesegmentsdefininga2Dor3Dline.UnlikeIordereddata,asingle
finiteelementlinezonemayconsistofmultipledisconnectedsections.Thevaluesofthe
variablesateachdatapoint(node)areenteredinthedatafilesimilarlytoIordereddata,
wherethenodesarenumberedwiththeIindex.Thisdataisfollowedbyanothersetofdata
definingconnectionsbetweennodes.Thissecondsectionisoftenreferredtoasthe
connectivitylist.Allelementsarelinesconsistingoftwonodes,specifiedintheconnectivity
list.
Surfacedataisasetoftriangularorquadrilateralelementsdefininga2Dfieldora3Dsurface.
Infiniteelementsurfacedata,youcanchoose(byzone)toarrangeyourdatainthreepoint
(triangle),orfourpoint(quadrilateral).Thenumberofpointspernodeandtheirarrangement
aredeterminedbytheelementtypeofthezone.Ifamixtureofquadrilateralsandtrianglesis
necessary,youmayrepeatanodeinthequadrilateralelementtypetocreateatriangle.
Figure22. Thisfigureshowsfiniteelementdatausedtomodelacomplex
boundary.Thisplotfile,feexchng.plt,islocatedinyourTecplot
Focusdistributionundertheexamples/2Dsubdirectory.
25
Creating Plots
Volumedataisasetoftetrahedralorbrickelementsdefininga3Dvolumefield.Finite
elementvolumecellsmaycontainfourpoints(tetrahedron)oreightpoints(brick).Thefigure
belowshowsthearrangementofthenodesfortetrahedralandbrickelements.
Inthebrickformat,pointsmayberepeatedtoachieve4,5,6,or7pointelements.Forexample,
aconnectivitylistofn1n1n1n1n5n6n7n8(wheren1isrepeatedfourtimes)resultsina
quadrilateralbasedpyramidelement.
InTecplotFocus,eachFEdatazonemustbecomposedexclusivelyofoneelementtype.
However,youmayuseadifferentdatapointstructureforeachzonewithinadataset,aslong
asthenumberofvariablesdefinedateachdatapointisthesame.
Section45FiniteElementDataintheDataFormatGuideprovidesdetailedinformation
abouthowtoformatyourFEdatainTecplotsdatafileformat.
2 - 5 Creating Plots
ThebasicstepsforcreatingaplotinTecplotFocusarethefollowing:
1. Defineyourdatasetbyusingoneofthefollowingmethods:
a. UsetheLoadDataFile(s)commandfromtheFilemenutoloadanytypeofdatafile.
b. UsetheOpenLayoutcommandfromtheFilemenutoloadlinkedlayoutorlayout
packagefiles.
c. UseanycombinationoftheoptionsintheCreateZonesubmenuoftheDatamenuor
theInsertmenutocreateyourdatasetsdirectlywithinTecplotFocus.
2. Choosetheplottype(3D,2D,XYLine,PolarLine,orSketch)fromtheSidebar.
3. ToggleonanymappingorzonelayersfromtheSidebar(forexample,contourzonelayeror
symbolsmappinglayer).UsetheDetailsbuttontocustomizezonelayers.
4. [OPTIONAL,3Donly]Toggleonzoneeffects(translucencyandlighting).
5. [OPTIONAL]UsetheZoneStyleorMappingStyledialogstooptzonesinandoutofplot
layersortheentireplot.
6. [OPTIONAL,2Dor3Donly]Addderivedobjects(slices,streamtraces,orisosurfaces).Use
theDetailsbuttontocustomizeanyderivedobjects.
For cell-based element types (triangular, quadrilateral, tetrahedral, or brick), you can
simulate zones with mixed element types by repeating nodes as necessary. For
example, a triangle element can be included in a quadrilateral zone by repeating one
node in the elements connectivity list, and tetrahedral, pyramidal, and prismatic
elements can be included in a brick zone by repeating nodes appropriately.
N1
N2
N3
N4
Tetrahedralconnectivityarrangement Brickconnectivityarrangement
Figure23. ConnectivityarrangementsforFEvolume
Overview
26
YouarenotlimitedtoworkingwithonlyoneplotatatimeinTecplotFocus.Youcancreatemultiplefiles
atonceusingframesandframelinking.
Onceyouhaveloadedyourdata,youcanusetheoptionsinthePlotmenu(suchasBlankingorAxis
Details)tocustomizehowyourdataisdisplayed.YoucanalsousetheoptionsintheDatamenu(suchas
SpecifyEquationsorInterpolation)toalterthedataset.
2 - 6 Output Formats
Onceyouhavecompletedyourplot(s),youcanuseanyofthefollowingmediatodistributeorpublish
yourplot(s)outsideofTecplotFocus:
PrintingUsethePrintoptionfromtheFilemenutoprintyourplots.
ExportingtoanimagefileUsetheExportoptionfromtheFilemenuandchoosethe
desiredimageformatintheExportdialog.
ExportingtoananimationfileAccessthisexportoptionviaanyoftheAnimationdialogsby
choosingToFileintheAnimatefield,orbychoosingamoviefileformatfromtheExport
dialog(accessedviatheFilemenu).
PublishingUsethePublishoptionfromtheFilemenutosaveyourplotsinHTMLformat.
Copyingtheplottoaclipboard(WindowsandMacintoshoperatingsystemsonly)Usethe
CopyPlottoClipboardoptionfromtheEditmenutopasteyourplotintowordprocessing
software.
27
3
Engine RPM Data Tutorial
3 - 1 Introduction
ThistutorialwalksyouthroughthebasicstepsofloadingdatafromaMicrosoft
Excel
spreadsheetand
performingtriangulation.Thistutorialtakesapproximately1015minutestocomplete.
Step 1 Load an Excel Data File (Windows
Only)
A. LoadtheaddinintoExcelusingtheinstructionslaidoutin
$TEC_FOCUS_2010\util\excel\readme.txt
1
.
ExcelVersion2007Onceyouhavesuccessfullyinstalledtheaddin,Tecplotwillappearin
ExcelundertheAddInsmenu.
Step 1 is platform dependent. The Excel add-in is available for Windows platforms ONLY.
Unix users should use the Import option located in the File menu. See instructions for
Unix platforms next in Step 1 Load an Excel Data File (Unix, Windows Optional).
1. $TEC_FOCUS_2010 is the installation directory. On Windows
Notepad
).
B. Thetextwilllookasfollows:
Line1Allmacrofilesmuststartwiththisline.
Line3ThisisanoptionallineautomaticallywrittenbyTecplotFocuswhichcreateda
variableforthefilelocation(TecplotFocushomedirectory).
Line4Thislineresetstheworkspace.Toensureforwardcompatibility,macrofilesmust
containthiscommand.
Line5Thislineloadsthedatafile(s)inthestring.
Line13Thislinesetstheinitialplottypeoftheloadeddatafile(s).
Line15Thislinechangesthenameoftheactiveframe.
Step 5 Add $!Loop to the File
The$!LOOPcommandhasthefollowingsyntaxintheTecplotFocusmacrolanguage:
$!LOOP<int>
...macrocommands
$!ENDLOOP
Withinthe$!LOOPcommand,theloopvariablecanbecalledusing|LOOP|.Usethe
followingstepstoadda$!LOOPcommandtoyourfile:
Line1 #!MC1120
Line2 #CreatedbyTecplotFocusbuild11.30539
Line3 $!VarSet|MFBD|='C:\ProgramFiles\Tecplot\TecFocus2010'
a
Line4 $!NEWLAYOUT
Line5 $!READDATASET'"|MFBD|\tutorials\gas_burner\data\burner_1.plt"'
Line6 READDATAOPTION=NEW
Line7 RESETSTYLE=YES
Line8 INCLUDETEXT=NO
Line9 INCLUDEGEOM=NO
Line10INCLUDECUSTOMLABELS=NO
Line11VARLOADMODE=BYNAME
Line12ASSIGNSTRANDIDS=YES
Line13INITIALPLOTTYPE=CARTESIAN3D
Line14VARNAMELIST='"X""Y""U/Umax""V4""V5""V6""V7""V8""V9"
"V10""V11"'
Line15$!FRAMENAME='Burner1'
Line16$!RemoveVar|MFBD|
a. The directory value is the Tecplot Focus installation directory. The value
in your file will reflect the installation directory on your machine.
Gas Burner Tutorial
42
A. Add$!LOOP4belowLine4($!NEWLAYOUT).
B. Add$!ENDLOOPbelowLine15($!FRAMENAME).
C. OnLine5($!READDATASET),replaceburner_1.pltwithburner_|LOOP|.plt.
D. OnLine15($!FRAMENAME),replaceBurner1withBurner|LOOP|.
Themacrofilewillnowlookasfollows:
Lines5and17havebeenadded,andlines6and16havebeenchangedinordertoadda$!Loop
tothefile.
Step 6 Add an $!IF Statement
IfweleftthemacrofileasitisinStepStep5,thedataintheframewouldbeoverwrittenwitheverystepof
theloop.Toavoidthis,wewilladdthe$!CREATENEWFRAMEcommandtothemacrofile.Withthe
$!CREATENEWFRAMEcommand,thenewframebecomestheactiveframe,soeachnewdatasetwillbe
loadedintoanewframe.
Because$!NEWLAYOUTcreatesframe1,weonlyneedtousethe$!CREATENEWFRAMEcommandfor|LOOP|=24.
The$!IFcommandhasthefollowingsyntax:
$!IF<conditional_expression>
...macrocommands...
$!ENDIF
SeetheScriptingGuideforacompletelistingofthesyntaxavailableforconditional_expression.
Usethefollowingstepstoaddan$!IFlooptoyourfile:
A. AfterLine4($!LOOP4),add$!IF|LOOP|<>1.
Line1 #!MC1120
Line2 #CreatedbyTecplotFocusbuild11.30539
Line3 $!VarSet|MFBD|='C:\ProgramFiles\Tecplot\TecFocus2010'
Line4 $!NEWLAYOUT
Line5 $!LOOP4
Line6 $!READDATASET
'"|MFBD|\tutorials\gas_burner\data\burner_|LOOP|.plt"'
Line7 READDATAOPTION=NEW
Line8 RESETSTYLE=YES
Line9 INCLUDETEXT=NO
Line10INCLUDEGEOM=NO
Line11INCLUDECUSTOMLABELS=NO
Line12VARLOADMODE=BYNAME
Line13ASSIGNSTRANDIDS=YES
Line14INITIALPLOTTYPE=CARTESIAN3D
Line15VARNAMELIST='"X""Y""U/Umax""V4""V5""V6""V7""V8""V9"
"V10""V11"'
Line16$!FRAMENAME='Burner|LOOP|'
Line17$!ENDLOOP
Line18$!RemoveVar|MFBD|
<> is used to denote not equal to in the Tecplot Focus macro language.
43
Laying Out the Frames
B. Onthenextline,add$!CREATENEWFRAME.
C. Onthenextline,add$!ENDIF.
Themacrofilewillnowlookasfollows:
Lines6,7,and8havebeenaddedtocreatean$!IFstatementtothe$!LOOPinyourfile.
D. Saveyourmacrofileandexityourtexteditor.
4 - 3 Laying Out the Frames
Nowthatyouhavewrittenyourmacrofile,youarenowreadytoloadyourmacrointoTecplotFocusand
tiletheresultingframes.
Step 7 Load your Macro File
MacrofilescanbeloadedintoTecplotFocususinganyoneofthefollowingmethods:
GotothePlayMacroorScriptFiledialog(accessedviaScripting>PlayMacro/Script),choose
themacrofile,andclicktheOpenbutton.
UsethemacrotolaunchTecplotFocusbysimplydoubleclickingonthemacrofile(Windows
andMacintosh
Only).
Line1 #!MC1120
Line2 #CreatedbyTecplotFocusbuild11.30539
Line3 $!VarSet|MFBD|='C:\ProgramFiles\Tecplot\TecFocus2010'
Line4 $!NEWLAYOUT
Line5 $!LOOP4
Line6 $!IF|LOOP|<>1
Line7 $!CREATENEWFRAME
Line8 $!ENDIF
Line9 $!READDATASET'
"|MFBD|\tutorials\gas_burner\data\burner_|LOOP|.plt"'
Line10READDATAOPTION=NEW
Line11RESETSTYLE=YES
Line12INCLUDETEXT=NO
Line13INCLUDEGEOM=NO
Line14INCLUDECUSTOMLABELS=NO
Line15VARLOADMODE=BYNAME
Line16ASSIGNSTRANDIDS=YES
Line17INITIALPLOTTYPE=CARTESIAN3D
Line18VARNAMELIST='"X""Y""U/Umax""V4""V5""V6""V7""V8""V9"
"V10""V11"'
Line19$!FRAMENAME='Burner|LOOP|'
Line20$!ENDLOOP
Line21$!RemoveVar|MFBD|
It it not necessary to record your macro within Tecplot Focus in order to play it back in
Tecplot Focus. You can simply write the macro commands by using a text editor and
saving the file with the extension *.mcr. If you write your macro in this manner, we
recommend loading your macro file using the Macro Viewer dialog (accessed via
Scripting>View/Debug Macro). The Macro Viewer dialog allows you to step
through and debug your macro.
Gas Burner Tutorial
44
GototheMacroViewerdialog(accessedviaScripting>View/DebugMacro),clicktheLoad
Macrobutton,andnavigatetoyourmacrofile.EitherclicktheStepbutton(toviewlineby
line)ortheGobutton(toplaytheentirefileatonce).
Step 8 Tile the Frames
Theresultingmacrofileplacedeachframedirectlyontopofoneanother,sowewouldliketotilethe
frames.
A. ChooseQuickMacrosfromtheScriptingmenu.
B. ClickTileFramesintheQuickMacroPaneldialog.
C. Enter2intheEnterTextStringdialog.
D. ClickOKtoapplythechangesandclosethedialog.
E. ClickClosetoclosetheQuickMacroPanel.
If you decided to skip the section on writing a macro file, use the
$TEC_FOCUS_2010\tutorials\gas_burner\data\load_4_files.mcr file.
45
Adjusting the Axis Settings Simultaneously in All Frames
4 - 4 Adjusting the Axis Settings Simultaneously in All
Frames
Wewillnowadjustthe3DPlotView(axesrangesandrotation)inoneframe.Inthiscase,wewouldliketo
modifytheaxisrangesinallframes.Whenyouaremakingchangestooneframethatyouwouldalsolike
toseechangedinotherframes,itisusuallybesttouseframelinking.Thisautomaticallypropagates
changesmadetooneframetoallotheropenframes.
A. ChooseFrameLinkingfromtheFramemenu.
B. IntheSetLinksforActiveFramedialog,toggleon3DPlotView.
C. ApplysettingstoallframesinthisgroupbyclickingtheApplySettingstoAllFrames,ofthis
groupbuttonandclosethedialog.
D. ClicktheClosebutton.
Gas Burner Tutorial
46
Thefinalresultwilllookasfollows:
Step 9 Adjust the X-Axis Settings
ClickAxisfromthePlotmenutolaunchtheAxisDetailsdialog.
TheX,Y,andZbuttonsatthetopofthedialogallowyoutonavigatebetweenaxes.
A. ClicktheXbuttonatthetopoftheAxisDetailsdialog.
B. ToggleonShowXAxis.
C. OntheRangepage,enterthefollowingvalues:
i.Min=2.
ii.Max=2.
47
Adjusting the Axis Settings Simultaneously in All Frames
D. SettheDependencytoXYDependent(thischangewillbereflectedontheRangepagefor
eachaxis).
Step 10 Adjust the Y-Axis Settings
A. ClicktheYbuttonatthetopoftheAxisDetailsdialog.
B. ToggleonShowYAxis.
C. OntheRangepage,enterthefollowingvalues:
i.Min=2.
ii.Max=2.
Step 11 Adjust the Z-Axis Settings
A. ClicktheZbuttonatthetopoftheAxisDetailsdialog.
B. OntheRangepage,enterthefollowingvalues:
i.Min=0.
ii.Max=1.
Gas Burner Tutorial
48
C. ClicktheClosebutton.
Step 12 Rotate the Axis View
A. ChooseRotatefromtheViewmenu.
B. AdjustthecenterofrotationbymakingthefollowingchangesintheCenterofRotation
regionofthe3DRotatedialog:
i.SetX=1.
ii.SetY=1.
iii.SetZ=0.5.
C. SpecifysphericalanglesbymakingthefollowingchangesintheSphericalAnglesregionof
the3DRotatedialog:
i.SetPsi=25.
ii.SetTheta=225.
iii.SetAlpha=0.
D. ClickClose.
You can also use the tool (located in the Menubar) for spherical rotation. Use the
dialog to achieve precise rotation angles.
49
Adjusting the Axis Settings Simultaneously in All Frames
Step 13 Magnify the Frames
A. ChooseTranslate/MagnifyfromtheViewmenu.
B. SettheMagnificationFactorto0.8.
Theframeswillnowlookasfollows:
You can also use the tool (located in the Menubar) to zoom into the plot. Use the
dialog for precise magnification.
Gas Burner Tutorial
50
4 - 5 Preparing a Stylesheet
Thereareadditionalchangesthatwewouldliketomaketooneframeandpropagatetotheotherframes.
Thesechangesarenotavailablethroughframelinking,sowewillusestylesheetsinstead.
Step 14 Select One Frame
A. SwitchthemousemodetotheSelectortoolbyselectingthe buttonfromtheMenubar.
B. Selectaframe.
Step 15 Change Active Layers and add a Contour Legend
ToggleontheContourlayer.
Step 16 Add a Contour Legend
A. OpentheContourDetailsdialog(byeitherchoosingContour/MultiColoringfromthePlot
menuorbyclickingtheDetailsbuttontotherightofContourintheSidebar).
B. IntheContourDetailsdialog,chooseU/UmaxastheContourVariable.
C. ClicktheMore>>buttontoexpandtheContourDetailsdialog.
D. SwitchtotheLegendpage.
All of the changes made in Section 4 - 4, Adjusting the Axis Settings Simultaneously in
All Frames can be propagated among frames using stylesheets.
51
Preparing a Stylesheet
E. ToggleonShowContourLegend.
F. ChangetheLegendPosition:
i.SetX(%)to95.
ii.SetY(%)to65.
X(%) and Y(%) values position the anchor point of the legend as a percentage of the
frame size.
Gas Burner Tutorial
52
iii.ChoosetheNoBoxradiobuttonintheLegendBoxregion.
G. ClickClose.
Step 17 Save the Stylesheet to a File
A. ChooseCopyFrameStyletoFilefromtheFramemenu.
B. Navigatetothedesireddirectoryandsavethefile(forexample,mystyle.sty).
Step 18 Load the Stylesheet
Now,thestylesheetyoucreatedcanbeusedtoquicklymodifyeachoftheremainingframes.
A. Selectoneoftheremainingframes.
B. ChoosePasteFrameStylefromFilefromtheFramemenu.
C. NavigatetothestylesheetyoucreatedinStep17SavetheStylesheettoaFileandclickthe
Openbutton
D. RepeatStepsAthroughCfortheremaining2frames.
Alternatively, you can load gas_burner.sty located at:
$TEC_FOCUS_2010\tutorials\gas_burner\data.
53
Adjust Contour Ranges
Thefinalresultwilllooksimilartothefollowingimage:
4 - 6 Adjust Contour Ranges
Thefinalstepistoadjustthecontourrangeofeachframesothatthedatafitswithintheframe.For
illustrativepurposes,thefollowingstepswalkyouthroughthreedifferentmethodsofadjustingthe
contourrange.Anyofthemethodsareavalidwaytochangethecontourrangeforanyoftheplots.
Step 19 Reset the Contour Range
A. ClicktheBurner2frame(tomakeittheactiveframe).
B. OpentheContourDetailsdialogandselectU/UmaxastheContourVariable.
C. SwitchtotheLevelspageofthedialog.
D. Clickthe1button,thenclicktheResetLevelsbutton.TheResetLevelsbuttonadjuststhe
contourlevelsbasedontheminimumandmaximumvaluesofthecontourvariable.
The contour ranges (and therefore the coloring) will vary depending upon which frame
you used to create the stylesheet. Burner 1 was used for this illustration.
The following steps assume Burner 1 was used to create the stylesheet.
Gas Burner Tutorial
54
E. Enter10intheEnterValuedialogforthenumberofContourLevels,andclickOKtoclose
thedialog.
F. ClickClosetoclosetheContourDetailsdialog.
TheBurner2framewilllookasfollows:
Step 20 Change Contour Range Using a Maximum, Minimum, and
Steps
A. ClicktheBurner3frame(tomakeittheactiveframe).
B. OpentheContourDetailsdialogandselectU/UmaxastheContourVariable.
C. Clickthe>>buttontoexpandtheContourDetailsdialog.
D. ClicktheNewLevelsbutton.TheNewLevelsbuttonadjuststhecontourlevelsbasedonuser
inputminimumandmaximumvalues.
55
Adjust Contour Ranges
E. ChoosetheMin,Max,andNumberofLevelsradiobutton(default)intheEnterContour
LevelRangedialog:
F. Enterthefollowingvalues:
i.MinimumLevel=.02.
ii.MaximumLevel=.96.
iii.NumberofLevels=10.
iv.ClickOKtoapplythechangesandclosethedialog.
G. ClicktheClosebuttontoclosetheContourDetailsdialog.
TheplotforBurner3willlookasfollows:
Step 21 Change Contour Range Using a Minimum, Maximum, and
Delta
A. ClicktheBurner4frame(tomakeittheactiveframe).
B. OpentheContourDetailsdialogandselectU/UmaxastheContourVariable.
C. ClicktheMorebuttontoexpandtheContourDetailsdialog.
Gas Burner Tutorial
56
D. ClicktheNewLevelsbutton.TheNewLevelsbuttonadjuststhecontourlevelsbasedonuser
inputminimumandmaximumvalues.
E. ChoosetheMin,Max,andDeltaradiobuttonintheEnterContourLevelRangedialog:
F. Enterthefollowingvalues:
i.MinimumLevel=.02.
ii.MaximumLevel=.4.
iii.Delta=.025.
iv.ClickOKtoapplythechangesandclosethedialog.
G. ClickClosetoclosetheContourDetailsdialog.
TheplotforBurner4willlookasfollows:
57
Final Result
4 - 7 Final Result
Theentireworkspacewilllookasfollows:
Step 22 Export Your Results
ThereareseveralwaystoexportyourresultsinTecplotFocus.Inthistutorialwewilldemonstratehowto
exportyourplotasaJPEGimage.
A. GotoFile>Export.
Gas Burner Tutorial
58
B. IntheExportdialog,chooseJPEGfromtheExportFormatmenu.
C. ChangetheRegion toAllFrames.
D. ClickOK.
E. IntheSelectExportFiledialog,specifythefilename(forexample,gas_burners).
F. ClickSave.Yourfileisnowreadytobeimportedintoyourpresentationsoftware.
4 - 8 Conclusion
ThisconcludestheGasBurnerTutorial.Youshouldnowbefamiliarwithrecordingandeditingamacro
file,adjustingplotaxissettings,addingacontourlegend,usingastylesheet,settingcontourlevels,and
exportingyourplotasanimage.RefertotheUsersManualfordetailsregardinganyofthesefeatures.
59
5
Performance Envelope Tutorial
5 - 1 Introduction
Acommonuseofperformanceenvelopesistodescribetheperformancecharacteristicsofanairplane.In
thisexample,weshowthevariablePsbasedonthemachnumberandturnrate.
Inthistutorial,wewillcovervalueblankingtoisolateseveralregionsofthedatasetandcontourplotsof
multiplevariables.Thistutorialtakesapproximately2530minutestocomplete.
Allassociatedfiles,includingthelayoutfilethatdisplaysthefinalresultofthetutorial,arelocatedat:
$TEC_FOCUS_2010\tutorials\perf_envelope
1
.
5 - 2 Loading the Dataset
FirstwewillloadadatasetusingtheTecplotDataLoader.
Step 1 Load a Tecplot Focus Data File
A. GotoFile>LoadDataFile(s).
1. $TEC_FOCUS_2010 is the installation directory. On Windows
).
A. GotoEdit>CopyPlottoClipboard.
B. IntheCopyPlottoClipboarddialog,selectActiveFramefromtheRegionmenu.
Performance Envelope Tutorial
74
C. ClickOK.Theplotcannowbepastedintoothersoftware,suchasMicrosoft
Word
.
5 - 7 Conclusion
ThisconcludesthePerformanceEnvelopeTutorial.Youshouldnowbefamiliarwithloadingadataset,
modifyingaxisdetails,activatingvalueblanking,addingacontourlayer,andcopyingyourplottothe
clipboard.RefertotheUsersManualfordetailsregardinganyofthesefeatures.
75
6
Transient Tutorial
6 - 1 Introduction
ThistutorialillustrateshowtouseTecplotFocustovisualizethemovementofahurricane.Wewillgo
throughthestepsofhowtoworkwithvectors,modifyaxes,importanimagefile,andanimatethemotion
ofthehurricane.
6 - 1.1 Dataset Background
HurricaneFrancesbecameatropicaldepressiononAugust25,2004,about655milesWSWoftheCape
VerdeIslands.Bymiddayonthe26
th
,itreachedhurricanestrength.
FrancesmadelandfallontheeasternFloridacoastonSeptember5
th
.Propertydamagewasestimatedtobe
$9billion
1
.
Figure61. ThepathofHurricaneFrancesfromAugust29September6,
2004takenfromthe[HurricaneResearchDivision].Usedwith
Transient Tutorial
76
6 - 1.2 Tutorial Summary
Thistutorialwilltakeapproximately2530minutestocomplete.Allassociatedfiles,includingthelayout
filethatdisplaysthefinalresultsofthetutorial,arelocatedat:$TEC_FOCUS_2010\tutorials\hurricane
1
.
6 - 2 Getting Started
Theinitialdatasetcontains28samplesofsurfacewindmeasurementstakenfromAugust25toSeptember
8,2004.ForthepurposesofthistutorialthedatasetwasconvertedtoTecplotFocusformat
2
.
Step 1 Load the Dataset
A. GotoFile>LoadDataFile(s).
B. ChooseTecplotDataLoaderfromtheSelectImportFormatdialogandclickOK.
C. IntheTecplotDataLoaderdialog,navigatetothe
$TEC_FOCUS_2010\tutorials\hurricane\datadirectory.
D. Highlightallofthefilesinthedirectorybyselectingthefirstfile(andusingtheSHIFTkey)
thenselectingthelastfilewithinthewindow.
1. The datasets provided are preliminary research data, courtesy of the Hurricane Research Division (HRD) of
NOAA's Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory; Director, Hurricane Research Division; Atlan-
tic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory; 4301 Rickenbacker Cswy; Miami, Florida 33149. Thanks
also to Dr. John Knaff, NESDIS/STAR - RAMMB, CIRA/Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, for
technical assistance.
1. $TEC_FOCUS_2010 is the installation directory. On Windows
, or Raster Metafile
format) via the Destination menu.
Alternatively, you can create a new frame using the New Frame button located in
the Menubar.
Transient Tutorial
82
ii.SettheHeightto5.
C. ClickClose.
Step 9 Change the X and Y Axes
Forthisplot,wewouldliketoplotthehurricanepathalonglongitudeandlatitudevariables.
A. GotoPlot>AssignXY.
B. IntheSelectVariablesdialog:
i.SetXtoLON.
ii.SetYtoLAT.
C. ClickOKtoapplyyourchangesandclosethedialog.
Step 10 Adjust the Axis Ranges
Ultimately,wewouldliketoplotthehurricanepathalongamap.Wehaveincludedamapfileforyou,
withthefollowingcoordinates:
North=37.5N
South=12.5N
West=88W East=50W
83
Hurricane Path
A. GotoPlot>AxistolaunchtheAxisDetailsdialog.
B. OntheRangepageofthedialog:
i.ClicktheXbutton.
ii.ChangetheMinto88.
iii.ChangetheMaxto50.
iv.ChangetheDependency toIndependent.
C. OntheRangepageofthedialog:
i.ClicktheYbutton.
ii.ChangetheMinto12.5.
iii.ChangetheMaxto37.5.
iv.ClicktheClosebutton.
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84
Step 11 Insert the Map Image
A. GotoInsert>Image.
B. IntheInsertImageFiledialog,navigateto$TEC_FOCUS_2010\tutorials\hurricaneandselect
map.jpgfile.
C. ClicktheOpenbuttontoimportthefile.
Step 12 Modify the Image Dimensions
A. OpentheImageGeometryDetailsdialogbyselectingtheimageandthenclickingtheObject
DetailsbuttonintheSidebar,orbydoubleclickingontheimage.
B. Inordertolineupthecoordinatesofthemapfilewithyourdataset:
i.ChangetheCoordinateSystemfromFrametoGrid.
ii.SettheXvalueoftheimageoriginto88.
85
Hurricane Path
iii.SettheYvalueoftheoriginto12.5.
C. Adjustthewidthandheightoftheimagetomatchtheaxesranges:
iv.SetWidthto38.
v.SetHeightto25.
D. SettheDrawOrdertoBeforeData.
E. ClicktheClosebutton.
F. ToggleofftheEdgelayerandtheShadelayerintheSidebar.
If Preserve Aspect Ratio is selected, you will not be able to enter whole numbers in the
width and height text fields. Tecplot Focus will auto-adjust one or the other to maintain
the aspect ratio of the image file.
Transient Tutorial
86
Thefinalresult(withallplotlayersdeactivated)willlookasfollows:
Step 13 Create a New Variable
Wehaveindividualwindcomponents(UandV),butwedliketolookatacompositevector.
A. GotoData>Alter>SpecifyEquations.
B. EnterthefollowingequationintheEquation(s)portionofthedialog:
{wind_vector}=sqrt({u}**2+{v}**2)*1.944
The curly braces ({}) are used to identify variables in equations. If the variable does not
exist, Tecplot Focus creates a new variable using the characters within the curly braces as
the name of the new variable (left side of the equation only).
Two asterisks are used to indicate an exponential. The power to which a number is raised
is designated after the asterisks (for example, 3**2 = 3
2
= 9, and 3**3 = 3
3
= 27).
The current dataset is in units of meters per second. Multiplying the vector by 1.944
converts the units from meters per second to knots.
87
Hurricane Path
C. SelectallzonesintheZonestoAlter window(byclickingtheAllbuttonorbyhighlightingthe
nameswithyourmouse).
D. ClicktheComputebuttontoapplytheequation.
E. AnInformationdialogwillappearconfirmingthatthecomputationwassuccessful.Clickthe
OKbutton.
F. ClicktheClosebuttontoclosetheSpecifyEquationsdialog.
Step 14 Add a Contour Layer
A. ToggleontheContourlayerintheSidebar.
Clicking the Compute button again will apply the equation to the data set a second time.
Transient Tutorial
88
B. IntheContourDetailsdialog(accessedbyeitherclickingContour/MultiColoringfromthe
PlotmenuorbyclickingtheDetailsbuttontotherightofContourintheSidebar),click1
tomanipulatefirstcontour,andselectwind_vectorasthecontourvariablefortheplot.
C. ClickClose.
Thecontourlayerwillbeappliedtoallzonesintheplot,asfollows:
Step 15 Add a Contour Color Cutoff
Inordertomaketheshapeofthezonesmatchahurricaneshape,wewouldliketoaddacontourcoloring
cutoff.Thiswillroundouttheedgesoftheplot.
A. OpentheContourDetailsdialog(byeitherchoosingContour/MultiColoringfromthePlot
menuorbyclickingtheDetailsbuttontotherightofContourintheSidebar).
B. ClicktheMorebuttontoexpandthedialog.
C. OntheColoringpageofthedialog,gototheColorCutoffregionofthedialog(bottom
third).
89
Hurricane Path
D. ToggleonCutoffColorBelowandenter33inthetextfield.Windspeedsgreaterthan33
knotsareconsideredgaleforcewinds.
E. ClicktheClosebutton.
Theresultwilllookasfollows:
Step 16 Add Dynamic Text
Sincewearelookingatacontourplotofthewindvelocityvector,itwouldalsobeinterestingtoknowthe
maximumvalueofthevelocityateachpointintime.WewillaccomplishthisbyaddingDynamicTextto
theplot.
A. InsertatextboxintotheactiveframebygoingtoInsert>Textorclickingthe buttonfrom
theToolbaranddrawingaboxintheframe.
If your graph does not display the rounded edge (contour cutoff) of the hurricane,
ensure that the contour you are manipulating is the first contour (choose 1) in the
Contour Details dialog.
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90
B. IntheTextDetailsdialog:
i.TypeinthetextstringMaximumWindSpeed.
ii.Pressenterandthentypeinthetextstring&(MAXC%.3f)knots.
iii.ChangethefontcolortoRed.
iv.Tocenterthetext,clicktheOptionsbuttoninTextDetailsdialog.
v.IntheTextOptionsdialog,choosethecenterradiobuttonintheTextAnchorLocation
region.
vi.CloseboththeTextDetailsandTextOptionsdialog.
Dynamic Text strings begin with an ampersand (&), followed by the variable enclosed in
parentheses. In this example, the variable MAXC identifies the maximum value of the
contour variable for the active zone.
The precision of the output can be specified using standard C formatting (optional). In
the above example, (%.3f) results in the value being displayed to the thousandth
place. See the Section 18 - 1.5 Dynamic Text in the Users Manual for a complete list of
Dynamic Text variables.
91
Hurricane Path
Theresultwilllookasfollows:
Step 17 Animate the Hurricane over Time
A. Toviewthemotionofthehurricaneovertime,gototheAnimatemenuandchooseTime.
B. IntheTimeDetailsdialog,select ToFilefromtheDestinationmenu.
C. IntheTimeDetailsdialog,clicktheGenerateAnimationFilebutton.
D. IntheExportdialog,acceptthedefaultsettingsbyclickingtheOKbutton.
Transient Tutorial
92
E. Enterthedesiredfilename(forexample,hurricane_path)intheSelectExportFiledialogand
clickSave.
ThemoviefilecannowbeimportedintoaMicrosoft
PowerPoint
presentationorplacedona
website.
6 - 5 References & Resources
1. Beven,J.L.,TropicalCycloneReport:HurricaneFrances25August8September2004.
2. Knaff,JohnA,.CIRA/ColoradoStateUniv.,Ft.Collins,CO
3. Powell,M.D.,S.H.Houston,andT.A.Reinhold,1996:HurricaneAndrewsLandfallinSouth
Florida.PartI:StandardizingMeasurementsforDocumentationofSurfaceWindFields.
WeatherandForecasting,Vol.11,pp.304328.
4. Powell,M.D.,andS.H.Houston,1996:HurricaneAndrewsLandfallinSouthFlorida.PartII:
SurfaceWindFieldsandPotentialRealtimeApplications.WeatherandForecasting,Vol.11,
329349.
6 - 6 Conclusion
ThisconcludestheTransientTutorial.Youshouldnowbeconversantinworkingwithvectors,modifying
axes,importinganimagefile,andanimatingdataovertimeincrements.RefertotheUsersManualfor
detailsregardinganyofthesefeatures.
The easiest way to insert and play SWF files into PowerPoint (versions 2003 and older) is
to download the Swiff Point Player