Geometry Layers
Geometry layers enable the surfaces of a model to be grouped and organized in a hierarchical structure. This facilitates editing. Geometry layers can also be used with the configuration system to hide or display surfaces in a given layer.
The 
Surface tab in the Shaper sidebar contains each of the surfaces contained in the layer you are editing.
Each layer is represented by a zone containing its name and its properties. All the operations that modify the state of a layer are applied by default to the active model that is shown highlighted.
Initially, a model has only one layer. You can create new layers via the Layer > New menu. You can then distribute the surfaces into the various layers to form logical assemblies of surfaces.
Operations on Geometry Layers
Each geometry layer is listed with several status indicators:
Indicator | Description |
|---|---|
| Visible layer. |
| Hidden layer. |
| Unfrozen layer. |
| Frozen layer. |
| Layer that contains the active layer. |
| Active layer. |
| Select all surfaces in this layer in a single click. |
Operations on the layers can be carried out using the buttons below the list of layers:
Icon | Description |
|---|---|
| New layer. |
| New layer within the selected layer. |
| Duplicate the selected layer. |
| Rename the selected layer. |
| Find and select the surfaces in the selected layer. |
| Delete the selected layer. |
Each layer has properties that directly affect the surfaces it contains. These operations are available via a right-click on the name of the layer.
The most commonly used operations are the following:
Operation | Description |
|---|---|
Show these layers | Modifies the visibility of the active layer. The surfaces in an invisible layer do not appear in the geometry of the model and cannot be modified in Shaper. You can use the visibility of the layers to momentarily hide the surfaces on which you are not working and to simplify accessing the other surfaces. You can also vary the visibility of the layers to test the geometrical variations of a model. |
Freeze these layers | Modifies the editable state of the active layer. The frozen layers are still included in the geometry of the model, but can no longer be modified in Shaper. The frozen surfaces appear differently in the 3D view of Shaper: they are shaded. You should only freeze a layer when the surfaces of the layer no longer need to be edited. |
Duplicate | Duplicates the active layer and also all of the surfaces it contains. If the active layer is not the only layer in the model, you can delete it by right clicking on the layer and choosing Delete. |
The principal operations on layers are also available via right-click on a geometry layer in the sidebar. The right-click context menu also provides access to the following operations, among others:
Icon | Operation | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Duplicate layer with symmetry | Creates a duplicate of the selected layer but reflects all of its surfaces over a given plane: YX, XZ or YZ. A window will open and you will be asked to choose the plane of symmetry. |
| Show child layers | Modifies the visibility state of all child layers in order to make them visible. |
