Multiple XY windows can be defined. Any number of defined windows can be posted for simultaneous display. Any number of curves and titles can be posted for display in any window. The same curve or title can be posted to more than one XY window.

One window is selected as the current XY window. The current XY window is identified by a cyan inner border. It is the only one whose graph area, axis, tick marks, gridlines, and legend display attributes can be modified. Curves and window titles can only be posted/unposted in the current XY window.

Each curve has its own set of plot specifications and display attributes. Using the Post Curve action, one or more curves (selected from a global list of defined curves) can be posted for plotting in the current XY window.

Each title has its own set of display attributes. Using the Post Title action, one or more titles (selected from a global list of defined titles) can be posted for display in the current XY window.

For each curve posted to an XY window, the XY window’s legend box displays the curve’s title and a sample of its plot line and data point symbol. Each XY window definition includes a set of legend box display attributes.

Each XY window definition includes a set of graph area display attributes in which posted curves are plotted.

Each XY window definition includes the following axes display attributes:

Axis Line and Title: Display attributes, such as color, font size, and line thickness, are used to define the axis line and axis title.

Scale: Either linear or logarithmic axis scale can be selected. The number of primary tick marks, the min-max range, and the increment between primary tick marks can be entered manually, calculated automatically, or semi-automatically from the plotted data points of the posted curves.

Label: Display attributes, including the axis label format, are used to define the labels appearing at each primary tick mark on each axis.

Tick Marks: Separate sets of display attributes are used to define the primary and secondary tick marks that can be selected for display along each axis line.

Gridlines: Separate sets of display attributes are used to define the primary and secondary gridlines that can be selected for display. Gridlines originate at tick marks and extend through the graph area.

Any selected curve’s X and/or Y data point values can be displayed in spreadsheet form. Values appearing in this form can modified. The data point values in the spreadsheet can also be exported to a curve data file.

A posted XY window(s) can be selected for output to a hardcopy file (named patran.hrd). This file is translated to a device-specific hardcopy file and may be sent to a printer to produce a hardcopy of an XY window.