TRIFLEX® Windows 2.5.0
April 8, 2004

Items prefaced with * were implemented in the limited release Version 2.4.0.

Enhancements

1. *Restraint Ripple – The ability to ripple restraint data from one component to the next has been incorporated in the Restraint Tab of the appropriate component dialogs.

2. *Miscellaneous Property Ripple – Several properties, entered on the initial tab of the component dialog, including Weight Off, Buoyancy Calculation, Number of Intermediate Nodes, and Maximum Node Spacing, are now able to be rippled to succeeding, preceding, and selected components.

3. *Wind Load / Uniform Load Direction – Previously, in order to specify the direction of wind or uniform loading on a component the user would need to specify the direction angles of the load vector. Now, if desired, the user may specify Cartesian vector components, and the direction angles will be calculated automatically.

4. *Input Spreadsheet Decimal Feet Display – An option has been added to the Main Menu / Setup / Input Units Dialog to display the component delta dimensions in the input spreadsheet in decimal feet as opposed to the feet-inch-fraction format that may be entered or shown in the component dialog, should English units be selected. This allows the copying of the spreadsheet data to external programs such as EXCEL in a form compatible with mathematical manipulation.

5. *Component Selection Based on Input Parameter – A selection set of components may now be built based on any of the input attributes available for display in the Input Parameter Dialog. Once a parameter is chosen, the Input Parameter Scale should be brought up and, by using CTRL - Left Click on the item description column, all components with that input attribute are added to the component selection set and the selected item row will be highlighted. Pressing CTRL – Left Click on the row again will reverse the row highlighting and remove all components with that attribute from the selection set.

6. *Point Distance Dialog – The Point Distance Dialog available under Main Menu/Utilities has been greatly enhanced in functionality. The dialog is now modeless, meaning that it can remain visible while other activity is occurring with the program. It is linked to the Graphic and Input Spreadsheet views such that the TO NODE of the current component can be brought automatically into the dialog so distances can be calculated with a single mouse click. Further, setting a node on the dialog can set the current component to the first component in the component list that has that node number as a TO NODE.

7. *Output Spreadsheet Printing – When requesting printing of the output spreadsheet, a dialog is now given, which allows the user to select from the available reports. This allows the printing of multiple reports without having to select each report and print each one individually.

8. *Node Labeling While Pasting – During the paste operation from one document to another, but not, at this time, within the same document, the paste dialog has an added check box, allowing the user to specify that the node labels in the selected clipboard components will be preserved during the paste, and, should a conflict exist between these node labels and those on the piping system to which the paste is being done, the existing system node labels will be modified per the node number start and increment fields on the paste dialog. For pasting into the same document from which the copy was done, or, if this box is not checked, the normal paste procedure will be followed, wherein the selected clipboard components are renumbered according to the node number start and increment fields on the dialog and, should a number conflict be encountered, the paste operation is aborted.

9. *PDS Import Settings – An options dialog has been added to the Main Menu/Utilities/Import Files/PDS Files item which allows the user to set parameters used by the program when interpreting PDS file data. Among these options are: node number assignment, default flange and valve types, and whether anchors should be fixed or free. Note that the default setting for anchors is now fixed rather than the previous free default.

10. *Branch Connection Specifications for FRP Piping – Additional selections for branch connection type to account for Molded and Fabricated Tees in FRP/GRP piping has been incorporated into the Branch Component Dialog. If fiberglass reinforced piping is chosen as the piping material, the user is prompted to select either a molded or fabricated tee, along with the appropriate parameters, as the branch element.

11. B31.3 Material Database – The complete material database from the ASME B31.3 piping code is included in this release of TRIFLEX®Windows. Selecting a material in the database when using the B31.3 code automatically enters material modulus of elasticity, thermal expansion coefficient, density, and allowable stress at the appropriate process temperature.

12. User Defined Structural Elements – The definition of custom structural elements, beyond those included with the AISC structural steel database, has been altered to allow the user to define the shape of the object to be rendered in the graphical view. Should the user wish to enter the outline of the flexible joint in the provided spreadsheet, the centroid, maximum fiber distances, and moments of inertia are calculated automatically. Not entering a shape definition requires the manual entry of the properties of the cross sectional area of the member, and a default shape will be used for the graphical representation.

13. Dynamic Calculations with Soil Interaction – Mode shapes and frequencies may now be calculated for portions of the piping system which are buried underground. This allows for Response Spectrum Analysis and Time History calculations for those sections of piping restrained by soil stiffness, rather than assuming that such sections were rigidly constrained as in previous versions of the program.

14. Expansion Joint User Defined Stiffness Axes – The input of the Expansion Joint axes has been simplified, now requiring only a single angle for the rotation of the axes around the axis of the expansion joint. This angle is to be interpreted as the counter clockwise rotation in degrees from the Most Nearly Up (MNU) direction. The concept of the MNU vector is also used to simplify angular input for eccentric reducers, rotated flexible joints, and vessels used as anchors. Essentially it is that vector, perpendicular to the object, making the smallest angle with the positive Y, vertical vector. In the situation where the object is vertical to begin with the MNU vector is defined as the positive X direction. Entering this offset angle on the expansion joint dialog automatically calculates the C and B direction angles, however, should the user still prefer to enter direction angles instead, he still may do so, and, if entered correctly, this offset angle will be calculated.

15. Import Capability Expanded – The UTILITIES/IMPORT menu has been expanded to include the import of files generated by Plant 4D, AutoPLANT, and CATIA IV. The Plant 4D and AutoPLANT files are *.PCF files generated by the respective programs and the CATIA IV import is a STEP (ISO 10303) AP227 file. The import capability is included as an optional feature in TRIFLEX®Windows and may be requested from the PSI sales staff.