Weldments - any way to suppress internal hollows?

You could add features to fill them back in, possibly. That wouldbe a lot of screwing around with configurations.

Have you fiddled with the settings in tools, options, system options, display/selection, selection of hidden edges?

Thanks for the reply. I was unaware of the option to turn off selection of hidden edges... that will be a great help.

Regarding supressing internal hollows of weldment tube, I wonder if I can play other tricks such as creating two different weldment profile directories. Then change the names of those folders when I wanted to switch between the detailed vs. simplified versions of the tubing. However, I suspect that once a particular profile is used, it is copied onto a new sketch on the drawing. So the original profile in the weldment profiles directory is never refered to again... meaning that this idea won't work.

Perhaps this can be addressed through programming [Visual basic?]. I have never attempted to write any programs for SW, so perhaps you can guide me whether this is a simpl or complex programming task. Using my concept above of two sets of weldment profile directories, the VB program can search for each weldment profile sketch, then erase and insert the new profile. This ability may even already be partically available in SW because you can choose different size tubing even after you have created the weldment. The task is just one of automating the substitution.

Joe Dunfee

I wouldn't want to tackle that. You'd have to know what you were doing, I think.

If you're willing to make a new profile library (IIRC the included one is pretty sparse anyway), you could make the profiles solid. Then use a shell feature or just a cut extrude. then control the suppression of the cut or shell.

Using cuts will probably rebuild faster, and give you control of the inside profile. Your profile sketches could include both inside and outside profiles. Just make the inside profile of construction geometry so it doesn't cause a hollow extrude. Then you make a new sketch for cutting the hollow, using convert entities on the profile sketch. A much simpler macro could probably do that, and even set appropriate suppression states for the hollows as you create them. A simpler macro, but still a pretty daunting task if you don't have any VB.

I guess you'll have to see if those selection settings help enough so that your problem doesn't warrant becomming a programmer or hiring one.

Perhaps I am misunderstanding how the weldment feature uses its profile library. If I try to guess how the program is using it, I would think that the feature inserts the sketch into the part, and then uses the extrude feature by selecting the entire sketch (which defaults to creating a hollow). Therefore I don't have the option of using the weldment feature and making the hollow a separate feature from the boss extrude. Am I correct?

Joe Dunfee

Right, you would have to create the profile for a solid extrude, then add the holow feature manually.

You would not need to create another profile, you just need to edit the sketch of the weldment component and change the inner contour to construction geometry. This will make the part solid, then when you are ready to make it hollow again, you can change the segments back to sketch geometry.

Jeff

It seems to me you would be much better off creating two configurations for each part - one hollow and one solid. Then, all you do is choose the appropriate configurations. Such an approach will be much less risky and simpler to implement.

Jeff wrote;

John Eric Volt> It seems to me you would be much better off creating two configurations for

Since it is common for my weldments to have over 100 pieces, it is important to change between the hollow and solid profiles automatically. If I am understanding both of your ideas correctly (and what SW can do) they are manual-only methods that wouldn't be pratical for me.

However, you gave me an idea. If I can somehow label the internal profile so that VB can recognize them, then I can use a simple routine to convert them to construction geometry and back to regular lines when I want that. I imagine there is some sort of internal number assigned to each line, but to be consistant between different size profiles, I would want the same label. Perhaps I can just set all the internal profiles to be a specific color and use that information to identify what lines to convert to construction lines.

Joe Dunfee

If each component has solid and hollow configurations, all assemblies you create could also have solid and hollow configurations that are built from the proper configuration of each component. Once setup, you will be able to change the configuration at the top level and all of the components will adjust accordingly. You wouldn't have to manually change every component each time you wish to flip between solid and hollow. Is that what you mean by manual only methods?

I am aware of the ability to create configurations using normal parts. However, this is using the weldment feature... I don't think it is possible to define a configuration in a profile template.

In order to create the configurations you are refering to, I must edit each hollow individually to supress them and make them part of the configuration. The weldment feature has limitations that don't allow this to be automatically done as I create each weldment.

Please correct me if I am wrong.

Joe Dunfee

Unfortunately, I don't use weldments very much. Therefore, my suggestions may not apply to your case.