Creating a reference point

From the main menu bar, select ToolsReference Point to create a reference point on a part or on the assembly. A part can include only one reference point, and the reference point appears on each instance of the part in the assembly. Alternatively, you can use the Assembly, Interaction, or Load modules to create multiple reference points on the assembly. For more information, see What is a reference point?.

Related Topics
Rigid parts
The reference point
Renaming a feature
What is a reference point?
What is a reference point used for?

  1. From the main menu bar, select ToolsReference Point.

    Tip: In the Interaction module you can create a reference point using the tool in the module toolbox.

  2. Select a point to act as the reference point. You can use either of the following techniques to position the reference point:

    • Select any existing vertex from the part, including datum points. If you want to move the reference point, you must edit the vertex or datum point. Alternatively, you can delete the reference point and select a new vertex or datum point.

    • Type the components of a vector representing the X-, Y-, and Z-coordinates of the reference point. If you want to move the reference point, you can use the Feature Manipulation toolset to edit its coordinates.

    Abaqus/CAE displays the reference point at the desired location along with its label. If you create the reference point on a part in the Part module, Abaqus/CAE labels it RP. If you create the reference point on the assembly, Abaqus/CAE labels it RP-1, RP-2, RP-3, etc. You can change the reference point label by clicking mouse button 3 on the feature in the Model Tree and selecting Rename from the menu that appears. If desired, you can turn off the display of the reference point symbol and the reference point label; for more information, see Controlling reference point display.