Author Archives: Bill Mitchell

Customizing Windows Explorer Menus for Enterprise PDM

Posted on May 8, 2012 by Bill Mitchell

New in SolidWorks Enterprise PDM 2012 is the ability to customize menus for the Windows Explorer interface. These menu customizations can also be copied to other users to have a customized yet standardize UI experience. Example: Adding ‘Update References’ to the file right click menu. Log into the Enterprise PDM Administration application. Right click over the user or group to customize and select ‘Settings’. Select ‘Menu’ from the Settings dialog. Scroll through the list of ‘Available Commands’ and find ‘Update … Continue reading →

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Aligning Flat Pattern DXF Export

Posted on May 3, 2012 by Bill Mitchell

Many times the output of a sheet metal flat pattern is oriented as it was modeled versus being oriented in a way that would lend itself to being cut for manufacturing. The DXF / DWG output can be aligned to any orthogonal model edge and the origin can be placed on any vertex. To do this: Right click on the Flat Pattern feature and select ‘Export to DXF/DWG’. Provide a file name and location to save the resulting file. Find … Continue reading →

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Modify Dimension Dialog Box Hot Keys

Posted on April 16, 2012 by Bill Mitchell

Being more efficient with the SolidWorks user interface saves time and gets your models created with less effort. Leveraging the built-in hot keys is one way to increase efficiency without having to create shortcut keys. One set of hot keys are available in the Modify Dimension dialog. The default settings for the Modify Dimension dialog box has its Spin Box Increments set to 0.100 inches or 10.00 mm. This means that every time you click the up or down arrows … Continue reading →

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Knitting Surfaces using Gap Control

Posted on April 4, 2012 by Bill Mitchell

Knitting surfaces into a solid or larger surface body can be a complex task. However the Gap Control option within the Knit Surfaces feature helps simplify this task for small, difficult to find gaps. The Gap Control setting within the Knit Surface feature is automatically enabled by default. This setting analyzes the selected surfaces for gaps within the prescribed range. The limit for gaps that can be found ranges from .0001mm to 1mm but Gap Control can only close gaps … Continue reading →

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Exploded Views in Multi-body Part Files

Posted on March 16, 2012 by Bill Mitchell

New in SolidWorks 2012 is the ability to create exploded views for multi-body part files which can be very useful for with weldments, multi-body sheet metal parts or mold designs. Previously you had to create assemblies of multi-body parts or add extra move body commands with configurations. That could waste valuable time and add unnecessary file references. The part exploded view functionality works similar to the assembly level exploded view functionality. You access it by navigating to desired configuration in … Continue reading →

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