Updating Revision Tables

[BodyBagger]

Hello all,
Is there a way to update a rev table on the drawing without having to delete it and insert a new one? Some of our rev tables have 20+ revisions and if we insert a new one we have to mnaually retype all the descriptions for each rev. I would like to be able to change the rev table format (maybe font size, bold, etc) and then point to it and update to the new one while retaining all the info.

Thanks,
BB

 

[SteveMartin]

I suspect you could write a macro to make these changes to the formatting of the table, I don't know an easy way to do it. The rev table template is only called when the table is first inserted into the drawing, updating the template won't update the existing table, and unlike sheet formats there is no format file for tables that you can update and reapply.

 

[rgrayclamps]

Hi, BodyBagger:

Can you remove some of accient revisions to make room for your new revision?

Best regards,

Alex

 

[BodyBagger]

rgrayclamps,

All revs must remain, unfortunately.

BB

 

[rgrayclamps]

Hi, BodyBagger:

It does not make any sense. What happpens if you have 200 revisions to a print?

ASME does not mention that all revs must remain, or does it?

Best regards,

Alex

 

[macduff]

BodyBagger,
Alex is right. You can start over, that's why you keep a history of the ECO's against that p/n, plus they're more detailed.

Colin Fitzpatrick (aka Macduff)
Mechanical Designer
Solidworks 2009 SP 4.1
Dell 490 XP Pro SP 2
Xeon CPU 3.00 GHz 3.00 GB of RAM
nVida Quadro FX 3450 512 MB
3D Connexion-SpaceExplorer

 

[fcsuper]

You may not be using your table correctly. You don't need to delete your entire table to remove rows. This article is about general tables, but the same methods are used for revision tables:

Editing row of tables



Matt Lorono
Lorono's SolidWorks Resources & SolidWorks Legion

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/solidworks & http://twitter.com/fcsuper

 

[fcsuper]

Forgive me, I misread. You *may* be able to copy the information out of the table and into your new table.

ASME says that revisions can be removed.

Matt Lorono
Lorono's SolidWorks Resources & SolidWorks Legion

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/solidworks & http://twitter.com/fcsuper

 

[BodyBagger]

Hello all,

Keeping all the revs is a company policy only, one of which I have tried to change but to no avail.

 

[MikeMcL]

But do they have to be visible on the drawing?
If you've done your rev table correctly, you can hide the early rows without deleting them, thus keeping the history within the file, but only showing what there is room for.

 

[fcsuper]

BodyBagger, From your description of your limitations, I'm guessing you are not using any form of PDM?

Matt Lorono
Lorono's SolidWorks Resources & SolidWorks Legion

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/solidworks & http://twitter.com/fcsuper

 

[rgrayclamps]

Hi, BodyBagger:

I can understand "Keeping all the revs is a company policy". But that does not mean you need to show all revision records on its current drawing document. Showing 3 to 6 revisions in the current drawing document should suffice.

MikeMcl:

Do you hide the early rows without deleting them? Is this a new feature in SW2010? I do not see it in SW2008.

Best regards,

Alex

 

[BodyBagger]

All,
We seem to have gotten side-tracked here, please understand that asking me to change the way we do things is NOT an option as I do not make the rules here. I am simply looking for any available ways to get the rev table content settings to update to new table setttings.

All revs have to show
All revs have to be saved

Thanks
BB

 

[fcsuper]

BB,

We aren't actually sidetracked. The solutions offered so far are legitimate, though I understand why you may not be able to implement them.

In my experience, with your tight constraints and limited functionality (no PDM), there is no easy solution for you without some costly development of custom add-ins or other forms of custom script. Even if you had an automation tool like BatchProcessor (

http://www.angelsix.com),

you'll still be left filling in all your data manually when you replace the rev block.

Matt Lorono
Lorono's SolidWorks Resources & SolidWorks Legion

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/solidworks & http://twitter.com/fcsuper

 

[mjcole]

You might try spliting or dividing the table in to two and just keeping the latest Revs on the actual sheet you can put a note such as old revs shown on last sheet or something similar.

Michael

 

[BodyBagger]

fcsuper,

We are using PDMWorks Enterprise but have more complaints about it than good things to say. Even our VAR said it is a product that should be shelved until it is properly developed. But, we are stuck with using it until something better comes along. We do use PDM for revision control. What are your thoughts....?

Thanks,
BB

 

[fcsuper]

Well, nothing more than what has already been said. The PDM itself maintains the revision history in a way that is visible for all time. It can also be used to manage your rev block (once you have one established).

Matt Lorono
Lorono's SolidWorks Resources & SolidWorks Legion

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/solidworks & http://twitter.com/fcsuper

 

[carlbud]

I must be misunderstanding the question but if you just want to add a revision to an existing table all you have to do is RMB on the table and select Revisions - Add Revision. This will add a line to the table with the next rev level and you maintain the previous revisions without having to retype the information.

Carl
Dell M70
SW 2010 SP2.0

 

[CorBlimeyLimey]

I'm a little confused too.

Why do you have to retype the Descriptions?
What type of Rev Table are you using?
Are you just running out of room?

 

[fcsuper]

My understanding is that the OP is asking for a way to REPLACE the current table with a brand new table, but maintain all the information in the original table.

Matt Lorono
Lorono's SolidWorks Resources & SolidWorks Legion

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/solidworks & http://twitter.com/fcsuper