Tag Archives: Parts

Interference on detection on Weldments

Posted on May 17, 2013 by Joseph Richter

If you have ever wanted to check for Interference in between multiple weldment structural members in a SolidWorks Part, you will discover that there is no interference detection tools available while working on a part.  Any attempt to add the interference detection icon to your toolbar results in a greyed out button*(unavailable).  Now what?  Well with this tip, you will discover that you have 2 options for checking for interference on a weldment part:

1) Simply create an assembly with your weldment part *(no other parts are needed) and run Interference Detection from the pull-down Tools/Interference Detection or from the Evaluate tab on the CommandManager.  Make sure to use the following option, ‘Include Multi-body part interferences’.

2) In the weldment part file you can use the Combine Feature to check between 2 structural members. From the pull-down Insert/Features/Combine, simply select the ‘Common’ option and select 2 structural members to check if there is any overlapping volume between them.  You can use the Preview button in the command and you will see if there is any interference.  If there are none, you will get the following message: “Unable to create single body common to the input bodies” which would mean that there is no interference.

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Quickly Hollow Out a Part

Posted on May 8, 2013 by Quinton Rocke

There is a really quick way to hollow out a part in SolidWorks that you may not be aware existed.  Most are familiar with the Shell command where you can remove a face or faces and shell the rest of the part.  However what most don’t realize is picking a face to remove is optional.  If you define a shell thickness but do not select a face to remove it will still shell, or hollow out, your part to a specific wall thickness.

Of course, remember eventually you still need to manufacture the part.

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DDi CADcast 2013 What’s New: Parts

Posted on December 6, 2012 by Maurice Cherian

This DDi CADcast covers the new additions and enhancements to the Parts functionality in SolidWorks 2013.

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DDi CADcast 2013 What’s New: Features

Posted on November 30, 2012 by Maurice Cherian

This DDi CADcast covers the enhancements and additions to the features functionality in SolidWorks 2013.


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Bounding Box for Machined parts

Posted on November 29, 2012 by Michael Nolte

A lot of time when you’re machining a part you may need a rough size of material stock to start with. The bounding box ability is a quick way of getting a starting stock size. In SolidWorks 2013 the bounding box is a newly added feature for sheet metal and weldments however it this can also be used for any part in SolidWorks.

Here are the steps:
-Open the part you want a bounding box on.
-Select insert menu > Weldments > Structural Member
-Cancel out of the PropertyManager for Structural Member (This causes your SolidBodies folder to show up in the FeatureManager Design Tree as a “Cut List” folder)
-Right-Click over the “Cut List” Folder and select update


-Right-Click over the “Cut-List-Item” folder and select “Create Bounding Box”

 

When you expand your “Cut-List-Item”

folder you will now see a 3D sketch that is the bounding box. If you right-click over the ”Cut-List-Item” folder and select Properties you will have “Cut List Properties” for “3D-Bounding Box Thickness”, “3D-Bounding Box Width”, “3D-Bounding Box Length” and “3D-Bounding Box Volume”

Note: Make a copy of your part because once your SolidBodies folder is changed to a “Cut List” folder it cannot be changed back.

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