OOF2: The Manual

4.7.4. The Skeleton Info Toolbox

When the Skeleton Info toolbox, shown in Figure 4.10, is active, clicking the mouse on a Skeleton on the Canvas displays information about Elements, Nodes, and Segments in the Toolbox. Whether the Toolbox displays Element, Node, or Segment, information is governed by the setting of the Mode Selector buttons at the top of the Toolbox. In all three modes, the position of the mouse click, in physical coordinates is printed below the Mode Selector.

Figure 4.10. The Skeleton Info Toolbox

The Skeleton Info Toolbox

The Skeleton Info Toolbox and the Canvas, while querying an Element. The window has been resized to show the entire Toolbox, which would otherwise need to be scrolled to be seen.


In all three modes, the queried Skeleton component is highlighted in the Canvas. The Clear button at the bottom of the Toolbox erases the highlighting and clears the data listing. The Prev and Next buttons on either side cycle through the previously selected objects (changing the Toolbox mode, if necessary).

Element Mode

In Element mode, the Element being queried is highlighted with a blue perimeter,[10] as shown in the figure, and the following data is displayed in the Toolbox:

Node Mode

In Node Mode, the Node being queried is highlighted in the Canvas with a blue dot.[10] The following information is displayed in the Toolbox:

  • The Node's index. Like the Element index, this is just an integer used to identify the Node. When a Skeleton is modified, Nodes may get new indices.

  • The position of the Node, in physical units.

  • The mobility of the Node. Nodes that are pinned are marked as such. Nodes that are constrained to lie on the boundaries of the Microstructure are marked as x only or y only if they can move in the x or y directions, and as fixed if they cannot move at all. Nodes with none of these constraints are marked free.

  • A list of the Elements which surround the Node, in no particular order. The index of each Element is given.

    Clicking on an Element in the list highlights that Element's perimeter in pink[10] in the Canvas. Double-clicking will switch the Toolbox to Element Mode and display the information for the chosen Element.

  • The Node groups to which the Node belongs.

  • The point boundaries of which the Node is a component.

Segment Mode

In Segment Mode, the Segment being queried is highlighted in the Canvas with a blue line.[10] The following information is displayed in the Toolbox:



[10] The color and size of the markings used to highlight the queried Elements, Nodes, and Segments may be changed by editing the SkeletonInfoDisplay display Layer. This Layer is predefined and always displays the topmost Skeleton. It will be necessary to enable List All Layers in the Settings menu in order to edit the Layer.