SW Failure while using Design Tables, Configurations, and Global Variables 1

[danaap]

Hi All,
I'm totally new to posting on forums at all, but chose this one cuz I've found the best answers here in the past. I have a problem now though that is driving me crazy.

I'm on SW2014, x64. I'm making weldment parts using global variables, equations and design tables. Everything seems to work great for a while, then my files start to fail and stays currupted forever. Luckily I have backups at EVERY SAVE (thanks, dropbox) and can revert back to the most recent functioning file. The failure sometimes only shows up after I've closed and reopened the file, so I cannot even trust the "functioning" saves I've made.

SO the problem...
In my Equations dialog, the little dropdown menu for "This configuration, All configurations, or Specify" disappears, and I have no way to control which configuration gets the change. If any change is made, it applies to all configs, rendering them all identical.

Now a bunch more info/clues that don't make any sense to me.

-While any change i make to a global variable through the Equations dialog propegates to all configs, if i go directly through a sketch to change the global variable, it applies only the the specified configs as it should. However the "This configuration, All configurations" dropdown is absent here as well, so its no longer possible to change the assigned config.

-My Design Table no longer works at all. If I try to update my design table, it tells me "when configuring a global variable in a design table, you can only assign constant ingeger values. If you want to assign an equation driven value, define it in Equations. Exiting design table without completing model update." This is spooky to me as obviously somebody at solidworks wrote this text, so it must be fact, yet until this point my design table has been FULL of equations and it works beautifully. Anyhoo, the whole reason for my design table is to specify different equations for different configurations.

-I cannot figure out which step corrupts my file. I check frequently to see if the "This configuration, All configurations" dropdown is working, and whenever it works, I save. Then going back multiple saves, I find the file corrupted quite a ways back, even though it seemed to be working while it was still open. I have NO IDEA when the corruption happens nor what I was doing at the time. It also seems like it sometimes corrupts and sometimes doesnt, even if I make the exact same changes to the file. Also if I delete any features/changes I made, it doesn't fix. Nothing I have tried has brought a mucked up file back to functioning.

-The "This configuration, All configurations" dialog STILL WORKS for constant integer, non-global variable values. NO global variables work, not even constant integer global variables that apply to all configurations. No equations work. Just constant integer, non-global variable values.

-I've tried the same files on multiple different machines with the same results, so its not the machine nor the install.

Attached are some screengrabs of various steps along the way. Anybody have ANY Idea what could be happening here?

http://files.engineering.com/getfil...7af-4637-b122-fbb84984735d&file=7_Working.png

http://files.engineering.com/getfil...-4100-bd48-39111fef51c0&file=7_notworking.png

http://files.engineering.com/getfil...a1-e9fba0a5bd86&file=7_Mysterious_Message.png

http://files.engineering.com/getfil...4470-9cd5-a488da414009&file=7_myEquations.png

Thanks a bundle in advance!!!
Dan

 

[bonmotwang]

Hi Dan

I am having exactly the same problem, which is driving my nuts. Have you found a solution to that? or it is just a limitation in SW?

Thanks

Paul

 

[danaap]

Hi Paul,
i'm glad I'm not the only one! But of course would never wish harm on anyone, so on the other hand wish I were the only one?

Regardless, I DID find a solution to the problem. It seems to be linked to the design table itself, compounded by the strangeness that the problem only shows itself after the file has been closed and reopened. Concurrently, to enact the solution the file must also be closed and reopened.

SO: delete your design table, then close and reopen the file. The Configuration dropdowns will reappear, and configurations will again begin working. At this point I decided to quit using the design table alltogether, since it was just causing me more trouble than helping.

As a replacement for the design table i found the function "configure feature". Right click any feature and select "configure feature" and an excel-like table will appear allowing you to supress or unsuppress the feature in all configurations. You can copy-paste the check mark (or un-check mark) onto multiple fields at once to save time. You can select multiple features to configure and they will all appear at once in the table. Any configuration-dependant value within the feature (like a length or whatevery) will also automatically appear in the table, allowing you to configure it as well. I found this for my purposes to work better than a design table anyhow.

If you MUST use an excel table then I suppose you could delete, close and open, then reapply the same table and just hope the problem doesn't happen again. Or if it does, at least you have a fix for it.

Hope this helps!
Dan

 

[Agriego]

Dan,

Configure feature sounds interesting, but how would I use it in hardware, for instance? If I were to create AN3 bolts, could I have different lengths/thread sizes that would show up with the proper part numbers in the BOM?

Al

 

[danaap]

Hi Al,
I'm not familiar with BOM funktions (other than weldments) so I'm not sure how to answer your question.
Dan