PMEVC: Class 
You use a variant class to classify the material that you want to edit in the modeling environment for Variant Configuration.
You can also use the class as a starting point for editing the lower-level characteristics, characteristic values, and their dependencies.
Prerequisites
A class must exist before you can work with variant classes in the modeling environment. You cannot use the modeling environment to create variant classes.
Features
You can use the context menus in the model tree and the detailed views to edit the class and the objects below it.
Model Tree
You can launch the wizard for creating a table constraint from the context menu for the class.
The characteristic and characteristic values that belong to the class as well as the object dependency of the characteristics or characteristic values are displayed below the class.
You can use the associated context menus and detailed views to edit these characteristics and characteristic values.
Detailed View
The detailed view of the class contains the following:
Tab Page |
Function |
|---|---|
Basic Data |
Basic data and authorization settings |
Characteristics |
Table showing the characteristics assigned to this class. By double-clicking an entry in the table, you can go directly to the detailed view for the characteristic in question. Alternatively, you can select the characteristic and choose the icon to display the detailed view. |
Class-Specific Overwriting of Characteristics
In the PMEVC, you can overwrite characteristics on a class-specific basis. You can overwrite the following data:
Object dependencies for characteristic
Document info record for characteristic
Characteristic values
Descriptions of characteristic values
Object dependencies for characteristic values
Definitions of default values
Document info record for characteristic values
If a characteristic was overwritten, you can copy the changes made to the neutral characteristic to the overwritten characteristic.
Values that only exist for a neutral characteristic are copied with their language-dependent descriptions. You can choose whether existing object dependencies are to be copied as well.
For values that exist for a neutral characteristic as well as for an overwritten characteristic, you can choose whether the descriptions are to be copied. If descriptions for the overwritten characteristic exist in different languages than for the neutral characteristic, these descriptions are kept. Object dependencies for a value can be copied if, at that point in time, there are no object dependencies assigned to the value of the overwritten characteristic. If object dependencies have already been assigned to the value of the overwritten characteristic, the object dependencies are not overwritten.
To call the functions for overwriting characteristics and characteristic values, or to copy the changes made to the neutral characteristic, right-click the characteristic in the model tree.
Assignment of Characteristics
You can assign a characteristic to a class.
To do this, open the Detailed View of the class, and choose Change. You can insert or append the characteristic in the table on the tab page Characteristics.
You can create a characteristic and assign it to a class in one step.
To do this, select the class in the model tree, right-click to call the context menu for the class, then choose Create characteristic. The system then appends the newly created characteristic at the end of the list of assigned characteristics.