CAD files often contain valuable information stored as properties or parameters (the term varies from product to product). Some examples of these properties include:

The CAD properties or parameters can be mapped to aPriori User Defined Attributes (UDAs) and to certain system-defined production input attributes using an XML mapping file. The following illustration shows an example of mapping two production inputs (Process Group and Annual Volume).

In the past, the mappable production input attributes have included Material, Description, and Revision. As of Release 2018 R1 SP1, this has been extended to also include Process Group, VPE, Annual Volume, and Batch Size, meaning that now ALL inputs required for costing a part can be provided by CAD properties.

A material property can automatically drive aPriori Material. A description property can contain meaningful text that complements the component part number. A surface or heat treatment requirement property could be mapped to a UDA to indicate that aPriori needs to add a secondary process.

aPriori extracts properties from CAD files whenever it extracts (or re-extracts) GCDs. All properties are extracted and stored in the aPriori database with the GCDs, but with one exception only mapped properties are visible to aPriori users. (The exception is CAD standard CAD material properties, which will automatically get mapped to the aPriori material property IF it exactly matches an aPriori material.)

Properties get mapped to UDAs and production inputs by means of a user-written XML file. This XML mapping file is prepared externally and then is loaded and stored in the aPriori database from the System Administration menu item File > Import > CAD Property Mapping File.

Notes: