Phase2_6


Developer's Tip: New Modeling Shortcuts in Phase² 6.0
Phase² 6.0 contains numerous improvements to the usability of its interface, which make the program easier, faster and more intuitive to use. A few of these improvements, which relate to the entry of boundaries and other modeling procedures, are described below.

Right-Click Menus
Some of the most significant interface improvements in Phase² 6.0 are the new right-click shortcuts. You can right-click on almost any object and a popup menu will be displayed with tasks specific to that object. This cuts down on the number of steps needed to accomplish a task. For example, to move an Excavation boundary you can right-click on it, select Move Boundary from the popup menu and start moving it immediately. In order to accomplish the same task from the main menu, you would have to select the menu option first, then select the boundary, confirm selection, and only then you can start moving the boundary.
Right-click menu for an excavation boundary
Other right-click shortcuts allow you to assign properties, staging information, boundary conditions, and more, as shown in the following figures.
Right-click menu for bolts
Right -click menu for assigning joint properties
Right-click menu for assigning restraints
There are also different context menus for each special mode that the program is in. For example, when adding a boundary, right-clicking on the screen will display a menu with tasks specific to geometry definition such as Circle, Arc, Snap, etc.
Context menu available during boundary entry

Entering Geometry from a Spreadsheet
This feature was originally introduced in Slide 5.0 based on customer feedback. It allows you to enter boundaries straight from a spreadsheet by using Copy & Paste or by importing from a text file. To access this option while entering geometry, enter “t” at the prompt or right-click and select Coordinate Table from the popup menu. You will see the dialog shown below. Geometry can also be edited in the same way by right-clicking on a specific boundary and selecting Edit Coordinates from the popup menu.
Coordinate Table dialog allows geometry entry from a spreadsheet

Relative Coordinates
Phase² 6.0 supports relative coordinates for entering or moving boundaries. The relative coordinates can be in the form of an X, Y offset or length and angle offsets. Suppose you want to add a 5 meter long bolt to the roof of an excavation, at a 60 degree angle to the horizontal. After entering the coordinates of the first vertex on the excavation boundary, you can type “@5<60” at the prompt (without quotes) and Phase² will automatically calculate the coordinates of the second vertex and enter them for you.
Bolt added to model using relative Coordinate entry

Circles and Arcs
The creation of circles and arcs has been greatly improved in Phase² 6.0. Circular excavations can be easily entered by specifying a center and radius or center and any point on the circle. Just type “i” at the prompt right after you start entering a boundary or right click and select Circle from the popup menu.
Arcs can now be defined in three ways: By specifying start and end points, and any point on the arc (as in v5.0) By specifying start and end points, and the arc center By specifying start and center points and the arc angle These new arc options allow you to easily create complex excavation profiles which are based on circular arcs (e.g. tunnel profiles).
Various ways of Defining an arc in Phase² 6.0

Exploiting a Symmetry of Closed Boundaries
If a closed boundary that you need to enter is symmetric about some axis, you can save time by entering only half of the points and then using the Mirror and Close option available in the right-click menu. Just start from the first point on the axis of symmetry and enter all the points on one half of the boundary. Then enter “m” at the prompt or select Mirror and Close from the right-click menu. Phase² will automatically close the boundary with a mirror image of the existing vertices.
Selecting the "Mirror and Close" option from the right-click menu during geometry entry is a fast and easy way for defining complex symmetrical boundaries

Copy Boundary
In Phase² 6.0, the Copy Boundary option can now be used with any type of boundary (previously it was only available for excavation boundaries). Also, you can now specify the location of the new boundary using relative coordinates. This allows you to easily create copies of existing boundaries, and place them at the desired location.
Example: Suppose you need to enter a pattern of 6 geotextile boundaries on a 45 degree slope with a spacing of 1 meter measured along the slope line. Here are the steps: 1. Enter the first boundary near the toe of the slope. 2. Right-click on the boundary and select Copy Boundary. 3. Enter “@1<45” at the prompt. 4. Repeat the last two steps to create a third boundary. 5. Now that you have 3 boundaries entered, you can add another 3 by copying the existing ones. Select Boundaries->Edit->Copy option from the main menu (or hit Ctrl+Shift+C key combination). 6. Select the 3 boundaries and hit ENTER. 7. At the prompt line enter “@3<45”. This will place the copied boundaries at a relative distance of 3 meters measured on the 45 degree slope line.
A) B) C)

A) After the first boundary is entered select Copy Boundary from the right-click menu. B) After copying the boundary twice. C) After selecting the 3 boundaries and copying them all at once to create 6 boundaries

Convert Boundary
Another handy new feature of Phase² 6.0 is the ability to convert a boundary into a different type of boundary, without having to delete the original boundary. For example, you may want to convert a joint boundary into a material boundary. This can now easily be done with the Convert boundary option.
Joint boundary converted to a material boundary

Conclusion
These are just a few of the many new interface and modeling improvements in Phase² 6.0. You will discover many new and useful shortcuts as you continue to use the program.

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