how do I allow drawings to modify parts?

[carltonium]

I made the mistake of not allowing drawings to drive part dimensions which seems to be preventing me from selecting dimensions without having the dimension tool selected. I also can't seem to modify construction geometry I draw on drawings to describe features.

I've poked through the system and document option menus quite a bit and can't get things working.

 

[carltonium]

Agh, nevermind.

I didn't realize that I had selection filters turned on. I didnt' see the little filter logo wasn't showing and I didn't have the filter options visible so I never noticed it was on until I panned off the view.

 

[TateJ]

I hate the SELECTION FILTER...

Also... I never let my drawings drive my models...

You actually use that?

Windows XP / Microsoft Wireless Optical Mouse 5000 / SolidWorks 2007 SP2.2 / SpaceBall 5000

http://www.Tate3d.com

"Right-click. It's friggin' magic!"... Jack L. Tate
FAQ376 I'm famous.

 

[CorBlimeyLimey]

I use it all the time, but I'm the only SW user here so I don't have to worry about others screwing with the dimensions.

BTW, I have no use for the selection filter either and have removed it from the toolbar.

 

[MadMango]

About the only selection filter I use is the keyboard shortcut "X" which toggles the selection of faces on/off.

"Art without engineering is dreaming; Engineering without art is calculating."

Have you read faq731-376 to make the best use of Eng-Tips Forums?

 

[TheTick]

ALWAYS open the model and inspect it when making changes. From there, it is a short hop in logic to NEVER change models from drawings.

 

[rfus]

I think you guys are being way to hard on the selection filter. Using it in combination with Invert Selection is quite powerful. The selection filter lives at the bottom of my screen and if I want to get rid of it its an F5 away.

 

[CorBlimeyLimey]

I agree it's not a good habit to get into, especially in a multi-user environment. I find the associative drawing dimensions very useful for applying tolerances when detailing. The tolerances are propagated back into the model and not just on the drawing.

BTW, good habits are not my strong point.

 

[TateJ]

I'm not enthusiastic about adding tolerances to my feature dimensions.
But... I freely admit to having no real experience with CNC machining.

We are hi-jacking the snot out of this thread...

Windows XP / Microsoft Wireless Optical Mouse 5000 / SolidWorks 2007 SP2.2 / SpaceBall 5000

http://www.Tate3d.com

"Right-click. It's friggin' magic!"... Jack L. Tate
FAQ376 I'm famous.

 

[carltonium]

I still don't want my drawings to drive part dimensions. I just thought that removing the option to modify dims in drawings was preventing me from selecting dims for repositioning or tolerance adjustment. It turned out that the problem was that selection filter was toggled on.

sidebar:

The selection filter is a pretty useful tool with feature dense parts and assemblies. I assign the toggle filters command to one of my spaceball buttons. I think I accidentally hit it somewhere while working on my drawing. Remove the button assigment in the context sensitive options should deal with this.

 

[StefanHamminga]

I like the selection filter, use it mostly in weldments, some verticles are impossible to select without (the verticle dims are used to give the welder some help checking his work for straightness).

I am not a fan of (over) tolerancing, but when I have to I think you should use the actual feature dims. It is just as much design intent as the overall model shape in my opinion.

Stefan Hamminga
EngIT Solutions
CSWP/Mechanical designer

 

[carltonium]

Usually I like to use the dims as driven by the part design but it goes all messy when I derive parts from a central template drawing. Machinists don't like to see dims related to other parts as they make stuff in the part context. On the design side, many parts dimensions can be driven from the assembly context so I find myself detailling part drawings for machinists from an understanding of critical dims from an assy perspective.

Oops, self thread hijack.

 

[TheTick]

TateJ:
Perhaps we could have Mr. Murphy design a "hijacker" emoticon?