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Transform a Part

Create a translated or rotated copy of a Part without re-exporting the CAD. The original Part isn't changed, and the new Part goes in the same Part Library.

Before you start

  • The Part must have a mesh file. .blend Parts can't be transformed, and the Transform icon shows "Part has no mesh file".
  • You can transform a locked Part, because the result is a new Part.
  • Distances are in millimetres, the same units as the geometry.

Open the Transform Part dialog

  1. In the sidebar, under Setup & CAD, click Parts.
  2. Expand the Part Library.
  3. In the Part's row, click the icon in the Transform column. Transform Part: <part name> opens.

Set up the transform

  1. Check the New Name. It defaults to the Part name followed by the current date and time. The name:
    • is required, and up to 100 characters
    • can't start with a digit
    • must be unique within the Part Library. If it isn't, Transform Part stays disabled
    • shouldn't contain a full stop, because the Part name is cut off at the first .
  2. Under Transformation Type, choose:
    • Whole Part to move every zone, or
    • Individual Zones to move only some. Pick one or more zones in Select one or more Zones. The other zones are copied into the new Part unchanged.
  3. Under Transformation, choose Translation, Rotation or Rotation + Translation.

  4. Enter the values for the transformation you chose:

    Field Enter
    Translation (mm) The distance along each global axis in x, y and z. All three are required, so enter 0 for no movement
    Rotation Origin* (mm) A point on the rotation axis, as three numbers, e.g. 0 0 0
    Rotation Axis* The axis direction, as three numbers, e.g. 0,0,1. Use a unit vector
    Rotation Angle The angle to rotate by

    Separate the three numbers with commas or spaces. Write numbers as plain decimals, such as 5, -0.36 or 0.5. A leading +, a bare leading decimal point (.5), scientific notation (1e-3) and decimal commas aren't accepted. 5. Click Transform Part.

With Rotation + Translation, the rotation is applied first, then the translation along the global axes.

"Part Transformation Complete, new part successfully created" confirms the new Part is in the library. If you see "An error occurred while transforming a part, please contact support@bramblecfd.com", the message includes the reason, for example that a file with that name already exists.

Chaining transforms

To combine more than one rotation, transform the new Part again.

The dialog doesn't scale or mirror Parts. To do that, change the CAD and upload it again.

Related: Upload Parts · Create an Assembly · Geometry