show missing parts when loading an assembly 1

[rjason71]

I would like to load an assembly with missing parts and have them show as lightweight. I can see the missing part in the preview mode when the assy is loading but when i tell SW not to find the missing part it goes away.

 

[ctopher]

Right-click on the parts in the feature tree and reload, browse to their location.

Chris
SolidWorks 06 5.1/PDMWorks 06
AutoCAD 06
ctopher's home (updated 02-10-07)

 

[CorBlimeyLimey]

I believe the preview is just a screen captured bitmap image of the last saved condition. If components have gone "missing" since then, how is SW expected to reference the component to know what to load?

 

[handleman]

Have you tried opening the assembly "View Only"?

 

[rjason71]

If I load the assembly with the view only option I can see the missing part and it allows me to rotate the view.

 

[rjason71]

I guess thats the best I can get. It would be nice to combine the two options.

 

[handleman]

There would be no way to get true lightweight parts without actually finding the files. I'm not sure exactly how much geometry data is saved in the assembly model. I believe it's only graphics data, since if you add a huge block to an assembly that swallows all the geometry and then save the assembly, the file size is reduced. I believe lightweight parts actually load the solid geometry (just no features) from the part file itself. My guess is that if they tried to combine the pure graphics data from missing parts with the full geometry from parts that are found the results would be undesirable.

Of course, any/all of the above could be wrong. Never hurts to submit an ER.