
April 2000 - June 2001 Improvements
At Power Line Systems we continually improve our programs. Below we list some of the more significant improvements made since April 2000.
PLS-CADD version 5.0 and prior versions
PLS-CADD/Lite
PLS-POLE
TOWER
PLS-CADD
- PLS-CADD version 5.0
- New and greatly improved user's manual
- On-line/electronic PDF user's manual
- Context sensitive help
- Undo & Redo- multiple levels (requested at every user's group)
- PLS-CADD/Lite interface for taps and Joint-Use
- Thermal rating improvements- graphics and reports
- Import/Export parts and assemblies to databases
- Separate load cases for tangents and dead ends (Sun Valley 2000 request)
- Load cases for broken conductor, unbalanced ice and other unbalanced loading scenarios (Sun Valley 2000 request)
- Separate load and suspension insulator swing calculations for each phase
- Improved text placement and orientation (minimizes collisions and eliminates upside-down text) (Atlanta 2000 request)
- Support attaching imagery in TIFF format including GeoTIFF extensions (requested at every user's group)
- Support attaching imagery in Enhanced Compressed Wavelet (ECW) format which is highly compressed (up to 50:1)
- Other recent PLS-CADD improvements
- Improved section/modify and section/global display
- Wires can be strung around line angles (not required to connect at angle structures) (Jackson 2000 request)
- Program Limits
- Survey point descriptor increased from 7 to 256 characters
- Terrain comment length increased from 80 to 256 characters
- Maximum number of sets increased from 20 to 60
- Maximum number of feature codes increased from 500 to 1000
- Maximum annotation length increased from 1024 to 4096 characters
- File names can now contain spaces
- Report column widths automatically resized to handle file names in excess of 12 characters
- Attachments
- FLIMAP video integration
- Attachment manager multiple select (Sun Valley 2000 request)
- Bitmap attachments
- Brightness control
- Transparancy of leading white or black edges
- DXF Attachments
- Added support for BLOCK, LWPOLYLINE, BULGE and MTEXT entities
- Can draw using colors from DXF
- Added AutoCAD 2000 export option (prevents AutoCAD crash)
- DXF export of rendered view using solids (allows rendering in CAD system)
- Layer names preserved on export (Atlanta 2000 request)
- Improved Graphics
- Inset structures in profile view (Home, End, PgUp,PgDown keys to rotate)
- Rendering of PLS-POLE and TOWER structures in 3d view
- Drawing and printing of dotted and dashed lines
- Edit/Copy of any graphics view for paste into other applications
- PanTo/ZoomTo (P and Z keys, middle mouse button)
- Interface Improvements:
- Project specific parts file, cable directory, structure directory
- Section Add/Modify now shows picture of structure to clarify set being selected
- Graphical spotting constraint editing commands (Atlanta 2000 request)
- Structure preview window in structure add, structure modify
- Convenience/Engineering
- Command to shift profile left/right/up/down to fix digitizing calibration problems
- IEEE Std. 738 graph ability to superpose multiple scenarios
- Longitudinal offset on structure attachment coordinates
- Structure loads criteria with different numeric strength factors for different structure components and materials
- Can string around angle structures
- Clearance checks between parallel lines (Jackson 2000 request)
- PLS-CADD/Lite
A new, streamlined version of PLS-CADD used to quickly model a few spans. Developed specifically for Joint-Use type applications, PLS-CADD/Lite is the ideal tool for quick sag-tension, clearance and loads calculations.
- Input kept to minimum needed to model span yet still flexible
- Span geometry entered using one or more of following:
- X, Y and Z coordinates of attachment points
- Span bearing, length and change in elevation
- Span bearing, wind span and weight span
- Wire tension determined from one of following inputs:
- Tension
- Catenary constant
- Mid span sag
- X, Y and Z of point on wire
- Automatic sagging criteria (% of RTS)
- Up to 60 wires fanning out in all directions
- Sag-tension calculations
- Structure loading calculations
- Clearances between wires and crossing spans
- Option to string wires to and develop loads for PLS-CADD, PLS-POLE and TOWER structures
PLS-POLE
- On-line/electronic PDF user's manual
- Context sensitive help
- Report width limiter (View/Edit customizations)
- File locking/synchronization for libraries (Sun Valley 2000 request)
- Structure property click to edit
- Ability to display member forces in graphics views
- Vang element
- Foundation springs (Sun Valley 2000 request)
- Wood pole defects and Bolt holes (Jackson 1999,2000 request)
- Cross brace optimizer
- Improved features for debugging structures that buckle or otherwise collapse under nonlinear analysis
- Project report with revision tracking capability
- Ability to compare structure models and results (Joint Use applications)
TOWER
- Release of all new version 5.0 complete with new manual (see TOWER web page for version 5 details)
- On-line/electronic PDF user's manual
- Context sensitive help
- Report width limiter (View/Edit customizations)
- File locking/synchronization for libraries (Sun Valley 2000 request)
- Structure property click to edit
- Graphical member split/intersect commands to create new members
- Ability to display member forces in graphics views
- Foundation springs (Sun Valley 2000 request)
- Improved features for debugging structures that buckle or otherwise collapse under nonlinear analysis
- Project report with revision tracking capability
- Ability to compare structure models and results
- Interface for linking to user supplied post processor
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610 N. Whitney Way, Suite 160, Madison, WI 53705, U.S.A.
Phone: (608) 238-2171, Fax: (608) 238-9241
Email: info@powline.com
© 2000 Power Line Systems, Inc. All Rights Reserved.