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Design Table Question
3

Design Table Question

Design Table Question

(OP)
Hello,
I have to make these simple terminal block numbering tags and my questions comes from a design table standpoint.  The tags need to be numbered from 1-99 and I was wondering if there would be an easy way to do this with a design table?  The pic included "2" was done as a sketch entity and extruded.  I would like to be able to have one part and then on each instance of the part properties choose the config or "tag number" to show.  It seems to be a simple enough task, but maybe I am missing something.  Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
 
[IMG]http://img505.imageshack.us/img505/9223/83115955kd0.th.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

RE: Design Table Question

If I understand your need correctly you would have to suppress the sketch\feature (per config) that has that Text on it and make a new one per config.

I think what you want to do is change the actual numeral in the DT and it update in the part. If that was only possible... unfortunately its not.

Regards,

Scott Baugh, CSWP pc2
www.scottjbaugh.com

Quote:

"If it's not broke, Don't fix it!"
FAQ731-376: Eng-Tips.com Forum Policies

RE: Design Table Question

(OP)
Would it be possible for a Macro to do what I need?  I am not macro saavy but isn't there a place in the macro code where the "number text" could be changed for each one?  

Feel free to tell me that I don't know what the hell I am talking about as I hear it all the time :)

RE: Design Table Question

2
I haven't had time to try it, but what if you were to have one sketch containing all the numbers spaced so that only one number is on the face.  The DT could then shift the sketch over so that only one number shows at a time.

RE: Design Table Question

(OP)
gopack13 - I did try what you have suggested, however, it just moves the numbers off the tag and they show up hanging in space :(.

Good thought, thanks.

RE: Design Table Question

After gopack13's idea why not have an extrude cut that gets rid of the hanging numbers?  Hope this helps.

Rob Stupplebeen

RE: Design Table Question

Good call Rob, I was trying to figure out something with hding the solid bodies and I overlooked your simple solution.  I tried it with 1-9 and it worked well.  I would suggest having about an extrusion for 1-9, one for 10-19, one for 20-29, and so on.  This would make them easier to work with, and easier to tweak all the spacings, just suppress all the ones you aren't going to use.  

RE: Design Table Question

I may be missing something here, but couldn't you model it with all the numbers in the same location, and supress all but the one you want for that config? Config #1 would have numbers two thru 99 supressed, Config#2 would have numbers one, and three thru 99 supressed etc., etc., etc.

RE: Design Table Question

That would work, but you would have to manually add each config, which would be rather time consuming.  BoddyBagger asked wanted to know if it could be done using a design table.

RE: Design Table Question

Would not be difficult if sketch text could connect to custom properties.  I can't find a way to do this.

RE: Design Table Question

Me either, I tried.  I couldn't get it to link to anything, including dimensions and equations.  Enhancement Request?

RE: Design Table Question

What CSLufkin mentioned was my idea at first and it wouldn't be that time consuming. Make a single text string in a sketch is quite simple. Then you just copy and paste that sketch on the same plane. Use a separate sketch to control location of the text. Makes it far easier.

Using a Design table to control what configurations you have and what is suppressed and unsuppressed is so simple you would already be done trying to come up with a better solution.

In fact I made this sample example - Design table Example

I am using Excel 2007 so some may not be able to see this excel or open it so I exported it out as well.

The actual Design Table


Regards,

Scott Baugh, CSWP pc2
www.scottjbaugh.com

Quote:

"If it's not broke, Don't fix it!"
FAQ731-376: Eng-Tips.com Forum Policies

RE: Design Table Question

Either way, it would still be nice to have the ability to link sketch text to a DT, custom properties, or equations/dimensions.

RE: Design Table Question

You could do this with 20 sketches/features across 99 features, unsuppressing only the ones that apply.  10 sketches for 10s-place digits, 10 sketches for 1s-place digits.  You may also want to control position of one set to justify single-digit numbers appropriately.

RE: Design Table Question

(OP)
Scott, any chance you could redo that sample model in 2007?
THANKS

RE: Design Table Question

This is really rough and ready, but I think it gets the basic concept down, if I understand the OP correctly. It doesn't advance the numbers perfectly, so they crawl a bit, but that's just because I don't know the exact space between carriage returns in the font I used. Is this anywhere close?

RE: Design Table Question

Dekker, if you put the text on a construction line, you can center the text.  Then all you have to do is use the DT to drive the distance between this line and the bottom.

RE: Design Table Question

Well there you go. text driven by a DT.

RE: Design Table Question

Yeah, but the resulting file size is quite large.  I got the spacing by dividing total distance from the bottom of the 1 to the bottom of the 99 and dividing by 98.  So I have everything spaced out pretty well, and the file ends up being around 9MB.  If the DT could change the actual text, I imagine that number would be a lot smaller.

RE: Design Table Question

(OP)
DekkerDesign - Can you do the part file in 2007?  I would love to see it but we do not have 08 installed yet :(

RE: Design Table Question

Tahnks Scott, unfortunately we've upgraded everything here so I have no way to do older versions of parts for people who haven't upgraded, at least not without all the SW features like DT's.

RE: Design Table Question

I agree, it would be a great feature if we could change the text in a sketch thru a design table. It would make engraved and embossed part families so much nicer to work with. If we all do an enhancement request, it might generate some interest at SolidWorks.

RE: Design Table Question

I didn't get a chance to do it at home last night, so I did it this morning. It's a 07 file, but its using 07 excel still. I did make an AVI file of what I did. The only thing you won't see in the AVI file is when I RMB the sketch text I select "Properties". So to edit the actual text.

I made this "4" number example in about 5 minutes. It took longer to upload the files and type this then it takes to start and finish just 4 number with all the sketches, DT and extrusions.

AVI - requires codec - http://download.techsmith.com/tscc/tscc.exe

File

Regards,

Scott Baugh, CSWP pc2
www.scottjbaugh.com

Quote:

"If it's not broke, Don't fix it!"
FAQ731-376: Eng-Tips.com Forum Policies

RE: Design Table Question

(OP)
Scott,
I am working with your model, DT, and video now.  I assume that I will still need to make the 99 or so sketches (1 for each number).  If there was a different way to do it without the 99 sketches and I missed it, feel free to call me a name or two.

Thanks much for your time and a star for you.

RE: Design Table Question

You can do it with 10 sketches using a combo of all the ideas we came up with.  Have one cut for 1-9, one for 10-19, etc.  The spacings would be the same for all of them, just suppress the ones you aren't using in the DT.  I have a part made in SW08 and Excel07 that is 4.4MB.  I don't have any older versions of the software though.

RE: Design Table Question

gopack13. your solution seems to me to be the best of the set, giving the maximum number of numeral options with the minimum number of features.

RE: Design Table Question

(OP)
Thanks to all who have contributed on this subject, however, I can not open '08 files and I can not seem to grasp the way of doing it with lass than 99 sketches.

Thanks again and I'm on my way to sketch hell :)

RE: Design Table Question

Here is a little tutorial of sorts.  Download the zip file and look at the jpgs to get an idea of what I'm talking about.  I included an Excel 99-03 version of a DT you can use, but you have name the sketches and extrudes the same as you can see in the jpgs.

1: create base extrustion

2: create sketch for 1-9. draw construction line from left edge to right edge, dimension .0625 up

3: create sketch for tens digit.  draw construcion line from left edge to about middle.  make endpoint vertical with midpoint of baseline

4: create sketch for ones digit.  draw construction line from near middle to right edge.  make endpoint vertical with midpoint of baseline.

The spacing is based on century gothic 12pt text.  you can figure out the spacing on your text just by extruding one of the texts and dimension from the base of the 1 to the base of the 2 to as many digits as possible.

See if this works for you at all

RE: Design Table Question

(OP)
gopack, thank you this does help in clearing up the confusion.  Much appreciated.  A star for your enduring support :)

RE: Design Table Question

(OP)
Sorry, forgot to mention it is done in SW2007 SP4.0

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