SolidWorks 2010- P5 doc

After selecting Center Rectangle in the shortcut bar, the mouse pointer will update to show the Sketch tool selected with a small icon next to a pencil, as in Figure 3.4.. SolidWorks wi

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2 Click the downward-pointing arrow next to the Corner Rectangle

com-mand to show the available rectangle types Select Center Rectangle

This creates a rectangle from a center point in the sketch

3 After selecting Center Rectangle in the shortcut bar, the mouse

pointer will update to show the Sketch tool selected with a small icon next to a pencil, as in Figure 3.4 Select the sketch origin in the cen-ter of the screen by clicking and releasing the left mouse button with the tip of the pencil directly on top of the origin

F i g u r e 3 4 Creating a rectangle from a center point in the sketch

4 After releasing the mouse button when selecting the sketch origin,

move the mouse pointer away from the origin A rectangle will be shown but will not actually be created until clicking the mouse but-ton again Next to the mouse pointer, the X and Y coordinates of the mouse pointer will be displayed in relation to the rectangle origin instead of the sketch origin, as in Figure 3.5

5 To create the rectangle, after dragging to the shape of the rectangle,

click the left mouse button once again SolidWorks will apply the appropriate relations to the rectangle including making the edges

horizontal and vertical and making the center point coincident to the

sketch origin, as shown in Figure 3.6

F i g u r e 3 6 Undimensioned sketch with relations

More About rectangles

When you were selecting Center Rectangle from the shortcut bar, you may have noticed that there are actually five different types of rectangles that can be used

in sketches Each of the five rectangles offers its own advantages, and you will

be using each of them at least a few times during your time in SolidWorks Here

is a quick explanation of the five types of rectangles available in SolidWorks:

Corner rectangle The Corner Rectangle option creates one of the most

com-monly used rectangles in SolidWorks A corner rectangle is created by selecting two points that make up the opposite corners of the rectangle

Center rectangle The Center Rectangle option creates a rectangle by selecting

the center point and then one of the corner locations The opposite corners of the rectangle are connected with a hidden line, and a point is placed where the lines intersect

3 Point Corner rectangle The 3 Point Corner Rectangle option creates a

rect-angle at an rect-angle by selecting the location of three of the corners The first point specifies the origin of one of the corners The second point determines the angle

of the rectangle in relation to the first point selected The third point defines the width or height of the rectangle

3 Point Center rectangle The 3 Point Center Rectangle option is a

combina-tion of the Center Rectangle and 3 Point Corner Rectangle choices It allows you to specify a center point of the rectangle; then the angle is defined with the



You’ll further define

sketch relations

throughout the book

as the need arises.

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second point and specifies the midpoint of one the sides The third point defines

the width of the rectangle

Parallelogram The Parallelogram option is drawn much like a rectangle (which

is a parallelogram as well) The parallelogram is defined with three points that

coincide with three of the corners The first point defines the origin of

parallelo-gram, the second point defines the angle of the base of the paralleloparallelo-gram, and

the third point defines the angle and length of the adjacent edge

Define the Sketch

With the rectangle drawn, you could create the extrusion of the base feature

and continue modeling, but it is considered very bad practice to not fully define

your sketch You will be tempted many times in the future to not fully define a

sketch in order to save a little bit of time, but keep in mind that the extra couple

of minutes you take to do something right the first time will save you even more

time in the long run

Not only will you avoid time-consuming errors by fully defining your sketch,

but you will also be able to better capture your design intent Design intent is

how your part reacts as parameters are changed For example, if you have a hole

in a part that must always be 250≤ from an edge, you would dimension to the

edge rather than to another point on the sketch As the part size is updated, the

hole will always be 250≤ from the edge

Since this sketch only has a rectangle and no other sketch entities, the only

design intent to capture is the overall size and orientation of the rectangle When

the rectangle was created, the orientation was defined with the center point

becom-ing coincident to the sketch origin and the sides bebecom-ing made horizontal and

verti-cal That only leaves defining the size of the rectangle This involves specifying the

height and width of the rectangle by using dimensions To specify the dimensions

of your rectangle, do the following:

1 With the mouse pointer anywhere in the graphics area, press S on

your keyboard to open the shortcut bar

2 To view all the available dimension types in sketches, select the

downward-pointing arrow next to the Smart Dimension icon

3 Select the very first option, Smart Dimension The mouse pointer will

change to include an icon that represents the Smart Dimension tool

4 There are a few ways to apply dimensions to sketch entities One way

is to dimension to points in the sketch to define their relationship to

each other Select the upper-left corner of the rectangle by clicking the corner The corner will be highlighted with a small filled-in circle when the mouse pointer is in the correct position, as in Figure 3.7

F i g u r e 3 7 Selecting a point in a sketch for a dimension

5 Move the mouse pointer over to the upper-right corner of the

rect-angle, and click that point, as in Figure 3.8

F i g u r e 3 8 Selecting second point for dimension on sketch

6 A dimension will now be shown with the current width of the

rectan-gle Drag the dimension anywhere you want it to sit We usually like

to place it a short distance from the area being dimensioned since it makes it easier to determine which feature is being dimensioned in the sketch

7 Click the left mouse button once again to place the dimension.

8 Once you place the dimension, the Modify window will pop up and

allow you to specify the value of the dimension placed, as shown in Figure 3.9 You can choose to scroll the wheel that spans the entire

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length of the number field, but this is extremely slow and inaccurate

Instead, using the keyboard, enter the width of the rectangle as 6.

F i g u r e 3 9 Defining the width of the rectangle

9 To accept the value entered and update the width of the rectangle,

click the green check mark (or press the Enter key on the keyboard)

The width of the rectangle will update, and the dimension will now show the new distance

10 Now you need to specify the height of the rectangle As mentioned

earlier, there are a number of ways to place dimensions in a sketch

This time, instead of selecting the corners of the rectangle, select the line that makes up the left side of the rectangle, as shown in Figure 3.10

F i g u r e 3 1 0 Applying dimension by selecting a sketch segment

11 The entire length of the line will automatically be dimensioned Drag

the dimension to the side of the rectangle, and place it by clicking the left mouse button once again

12 Enter the new height of the rectangle to be 4, as shown in Figure 3.11

You do not need to specify a unit since you specified the units in the document settings

F i g u r e 3 1 1 Defining the height of the rectangle

13 Click the green check mark to accept the new value and update the

height of the rectangle

14 To exit the sketch, click the Exit Sketch icon in the upper-right

cor-ner of the graphics area, as shown in Figure 3.12 This area of the

graphics window is referred to as the confirmation corner and allows

you to exit most editing modes while working in SolidWorks

F i g u r e 3 1 2 Confirmation corner of graphics area

Dimension Types in Sketches

When you selected the Smart Dimension tool in the shortcut bar while creating the sketch, you may have noticed that there were a few more dimension types

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available The Smart Sketch dimension type will be the type you will use most of

the time, but it still wouldn’t hurt to become familiar with all the dimension types:

Smart Dimension The Smart Dimension tool will be your most used tool when

defining sketch elements Smart Dimension automatically selects the

dimen-sion type that will be used based on the sketch entities that are selected Not

only does Smart Dimension determine the dimension type based on the type of

entity selected, but it also can choose another dimension type, such as angles

and point-to-point dimensions, based on where you place the dimensions

Horizontal Dimension The Horizontal Dimension tool creates a dimension

where the dimension line is horizontal and the extension lines are vertical

regardless of the entity selected in the sketch

Vertical Dimension The Vertical Dimension tool creates a dimension where the

dimension line is vertical and the extension lines are horizontal regardless of

the entity selected in the sketch

Ordinate Dimension In ASME Y14.5, ordinate dimensions are referred to as

rectangular coordinate dimensions without dimensions lines—that’s quite a

mouthful Luckily, in SolidWorks they are only referred to as ordinate dimensions,

and you create them with the Ordinate Dimension tool This type of dimension

is shown with the dimension’s value on the extension line without the addition

of dimension lines or arrows In a sketch, a zero dimension is specified, and then

each subsequent dimension is shown with the value of the distance from the zero

dimension Like in smart dimensions, the Ordinate Dimension tool automatically

determines the orientation of the dimension based on the entities selected

Horizontal Ordinate Dimension The Horizontal Ordinate Dimension tool

cre-ates a dimension with the value above the extension line without a dimension

line or arrows It will only place ordinate dimensions that are horizontally

related to the selected dimension origin

Vertical Ordinate Dimension The Vertical Ordinate Dimension tool creates a

dimension with the value next to the extension line without a dimension line or

arrows It will only place ordinate dimensions that are vertically related to the

selected dimension origin

use instant3D

With your first sketch created, you are now ready to create the base feature As

with most areas in SolidWorks, there is more than one way to create an

extru-sion Most users will, for this feature, create an extrusion using the Extruded

Boss/Base command on the Features tab of the CommandManager That is a perfectly fine approach to creating extrusions, but you’ll learn how to quickly create extrusions by using Instant3D.

Instant3D was introduced to SolidWorks in the 2008 release; it allows you

to create and modify features by using drag handles and on-screen rulers

Ultimately, this means fewer mouse clicks and less keyboard entry, which will make modeling and modifying parts and assemblies much quicker and easier

The Extruded Boss and Extruded Cuts options still serve an important role in SolidWorks, and you will definitely be spending some time on those commands later, but I wanted you to become familiar with using Instant3D since it is a method that is largely ignored by many users Here’s how to use it:

1 Using the middle mouse button to rotate the view, or by pressing

Ctrl+7 on keyboard, rotate the sketch to an isometric view or where close to isometric Since using Instant3D requires dragging the sketch out to extrude, you need to have a good angle on the sketch in order to do this It is not possible to drag a sketch that is normal to the viewing plane

some-2 Before being able to use Instant3D, you need to ensure that the

abil-ity is enabled Turn on Instant3D by clicking the Features tab in the CommandManager and clicking the Instant3D button, if disabled

3 With Instant3D enabled, select any of the lines in the sketch A green

arrow, or drag handle, will be shown originating from the selected

point on the sketch perpendicular to the sketch plane If you do not see a drag handle when selecting the sketch line, ensure that you have exited the sketch and that Instant3D is enabled per the previous step

4 Click and hold the left mouse button with the mouse pointer

any-where on the drag handle You will know you are directly on the drag handle when its color changes from green to amber

5 While still holding the left mouse button, drag the arrow away from

the sketch This will create the actual extrusion Using the on-screen ruler, you can specify the extrusion height With the mouse pointer

directly on top of the on-screen ruler, specify the value of 1.5, and

release the left mouse button, as shown in Figure 3.13

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F i g u r e 3 1 3 Creating an extrusion using Instant3D

Understanding the on-screen ruler is an important aspect of using Instant3D

The on-screen ruler allows you to precisely select the value of any operation that

uses a drag handle to create or modify geometry As you drag the drag handles, the

ruler will appear on-screen running perpendicular to the feature being dragged

As you drag, the ruler will show the distance from the origin, and a green line and

number with your current value in relation to the origin will be shown Figure 3.14

shows the on-screen ruler as it appears while moving the mouse pointer

F i g u r e 3 1 4 On-screen ruler in Instant3D

As you drag the location of your mouse pointer in relation to the on-screen

ruler, you can snap the values to the ruler increments If your mouse pointer

is not directly over the ruler, the value does not snap, and you can change the

value freely This approach is not at all precise

On the on-screen ruler, two levels of increments appear The major increments

are shown with longer ticks and a number value The intermediate increments are

shown with shorter lines and no numbers The numbers and increments shown are

based on your current view As you zoom in closer, the increments become finer,

giving you more accuracy, and as you zoom out, the increments are less accurate



Throughout this book you’ll learn about tools such

as Instant3D, FilletXpert, and others that reduce mouse clicks and save time.

When dragging the drag handle, when the mouse pointer is over the outside

of the ruler with the larger increments, the values will only snap to the number increment At any point you can release the mouse button when your desired value is highlighted green Figure 3.15 shows the mouse snapping to the larger increments of the on-screen ruler

F i g u r e 3 1 5 Snapping to major increments on the on-screen ruler

If the mouse pointer is over the inside of the ruler with the finer increments, you will be able to select a value that is a little more precise The smaller hatch marks will be displayed with a value when the increment is active while drag-ging Figure 3.16 shows how the mouse will snap to the smaller increments

F i g u r e 3 1 6 Snapping to minor increments on the on-screen ruler

t I p Even when Instant3D is not activated, the on-screen ruler can be used when using the Extruded Boss, Extruded Cut, Extruded Surface, Revolved Boss, Revolved Cut, Revolved Surface, and Base Flange commands

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Add an extruded Cut

In the previous section, you created the base feature by drawing a sketch and

then creating an extrusion with Instant3D You can easily continue modeling

the lamp base solely with this technique, but I want to make sure you are aware

of the various ways to create a model As you become familiar with the different

approaches to modeling, you can use the technique that is best suited for the

task at hand

Create a Sketch on a Planar Face

For the next feature of the lamp base, you’ll cut away an angled section of the

base to create a more appealing look Instead of creating the sketch first and

then selecting the feature, you will need to select the feature first This will

eliminate a few mouse clicks, and when you are working, every mouse click

saved saves you time Here’s how to do it:

1 With the lamp base in an isometric view, press S on your keyboard to

display the shortcut bar Select the downward-pointing arrow next to the Extruded Cut icon

2 The menu will display the five cut features available in part modeling

For this particular feature, you will be creating just a simple linear cut, so select Extruded Cut from the top of the list

3 After selecting Extruded Cut, the PropertyManager will inform you

that must select a plane, planar face, or edge on which to create a sketch or select an existing sketch Since you have not created a sketch yet, you will need to select a plane or face

4 Select one of the side faces of the block, as shown in Figure 3.17 This

is the face on which you will create the sketch for the cut

5 As soon as the face of the block is selected, a new sketch will be

cre-ated on the side Although you could make the sketch from this ing angle, it is often easier to change the view for the sketch plane to

view-be normal to the viewing plane To change the view to view-be normal to

the viewing plane, press Ctrl+8 on your keyboard, or select Normal

To from the Heads-up View toolbar You now have a canvas on which

to create your next sketch

F i g u r e 3 1 7 Selecting a face on which to create a sketch

6 Press S on your keyboard to view the shortcut bar Select the

downward-pointing arrow next to the Line icon

From the two commands shown in the flyout menu, click Line

N O t e It is not necessary to view the menu flyout each time you want to select a command For demonstration purposes, you will see all the available tools in each flyout The last command selected in each flyout will become the icon in the shortcut bar Selecting this button will initiate the command

7 After clicking the Line command in this toolbar, the mouse pointer

will change to a pencil with a blue line next to it to show that you can draw a line Select the top-left corner of the face of the block by pressing and releasing the left mouse button When the point can

be selected, a small orange circle will be shown on the corner, as in Figure 3.18

8 Move the mouse pointer horizontally along the top edge of the face

a little more than half of the length of the edge The edge of the part

will be highlighted to show that the line being created is collinear

with the edge For this case, this is exactly what you want to achieve

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Click the left mouse button and release to draw the line, as shown in Figure 3.19

F i g u r e 3 1 8 Creating a sketch on a selected feature

F i g u r e 3 1 9 Drawing a line along an edge

9 Click and release the left mouse button while the mouse pointer has

highlighted the left edge of the part, as in Figure 3.20

F i g u r e 3 2 0 Drawing a line to create an angled cut

10 To complete the sketch, click and release the left mouse button with the

mouse pointer directly over the original point at the upper-left corner

of the part, as shown in Figure 3.21 Since the profile created is properly closed, moving the mouse will not create another line segment

F i g u r e 3 2 1 Closing the profile

Fully Define the Sketch

Two of the lines in the sketch are black to represent that these segment tions are fully defined Although you did not specify any relations, SolidWorks assumed that the points you selected on the corner and the two edges are coin-cident These automatically placed relations were enough to define these two segments, leaving only the hypotenuse (the angled segment) of the triangle drawn You can tell that this segment is not fully defined since it is shown as a blue color To fully define the sketch, you must follow these steps:

direc-1 Press the S button on your keyboard, and select Smart Dimension in

the shortcut bar

2 The first step to fully define the sketch is to specify the length of one of

the segments of the sketch This is a perfect example of dimensioning a sketch for design intent There are a number of ways to fully define the sketch, but you need to ensure that the top of the base always includes enough room for the shaft you will be modeling later To do this, instead

of dimensioning the length of the top segment, you will dimension the top-flat area of the lamp base Click the top-right corner of the part and the corner of the sketch, as shown in Figure 3.22

F i g u r e 3 2 2 Dimensioning for design intent

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3 Place the dimension, and update the dimension value to be 1.625 This

will ensure that no matter how the part dimensions are changed, the top of the part will always remain the same The one end point of the hypotenuse is not defined, so it will change from blue to black

4 You can tell by the blue line in the sketch that it is not fully defined

yet Once again, you can define the sketch any number of ways, but this time you’ll specify the angle of the hypotenuse in relation to the top edge of the part While still in Smart Dimension mode, select the hypotenuse of the triangle, as shown in Figure 3.23

F i g u r e 3 2 3 Applying dimension to the hypotenuse

5 Next select the top of the segment of the sketch, as in Figure 3.24 The

dimension will change from a linear dimension to an angular dimension

F i g u r e 3 2 4 Specifying the angle of sketch segments

6 Just for demonstration purposes, without clicking the left mouse

but-ton, move the dimension around, and you will notice that the lar dimension changes based on the angle being defined Place the dimension inside of the triangle, and click the left mouse button

angu-7 In the Modify window, enter the value 20, and click the green check

mark to accept the value Figure 3.25 shows the resulting sketch