Feature Library 1

These can be tricky, it took me a few times understanding it myself. I suggest you read over the help a few times as well, it helped me.

Anyway you have to have a base-extrude feature like a circle or a square. Just something, it will not be used when you insert it into a part. The face you pick to design your library feature from will help define the first plane of the library feature. Now make your library feature, it can have multiple features. Once you have finished it, pick only the features (and sketches if you have any without features that need to be there) and click on save as library feature. It should save the entire file to the Library, but only those features that you picked, will have an "L" through them. Only those features should show up in your part as well.

If you want try taking apart one of library features that came with SW.

I hope that helps, Scott Baugh, CSWP
George Koch Sons,LLC
Evansville, IN 47714
sjb@kochllc.com

Hello Scott,

I read the help to find something like that I did everything that was wrote there and it's the same thing you said me... but the problem appears when I try to insert a library with a base part included. SW don't let me do it :-( Feature library parts without the base part included work well, why just the other one (with base part) don't work??

Thank you,
Rodrigo Basniak
Curitiba, PR
Brazil

You have to BE SURE you have picked the features in the design tree or FM, that you want to save in your Library file. The Base-extrude Must be Excluded from the list of features used. The reason for this is, because this is the Base for defining itself and so it can be used in future parts.

Imagine building a house's foundation (Base-extrude). You don't want to use that foundation over and over again. You want to build a different foundation every time. The only repetitive thing your going to add is the Door's and windows (Library Features). Everything else is made (other areas of your model). I hope that was a good representation of what I'm trying to describe. If not at least you can see the way my mind visualizes things...LOL

I hope that helps you, If not please repost your Questions, Scott Baugh, CSWP
George Koch Sons,LLC
Evansville, IN 47714
sjb@kochllc.com

I'm sure I selected every items that must be on the features library... but I need the base part together... this time I want to build a lot of houses with the same foundation... maybe you can ask me why I'm not using a design table to do that, it's because I need them in separated files...
I found in the help the following:

"Do not select the Base feature unless you plan to insert the library feature into an empty part."

I need to insert it into an empty part, because this I have to select the base part...

Regards,
Rodrigo Basniak
Curitiba, PR
Brazil

Forget it I have an idea, I shall create it using a template drawing! The end result will be almost the same...

Rodrigo Basniak
Curitiba, PR
Brazil

Rod,

I know you said forget it, but someone maybe having the same problem as you are. Since I read your post from before I think I have a better answer for you.

You have the Base-Extrude selected in your library feature and your inserting it into an empty part. You are receiving a message impling that you need to insert this library feature into an empty part. You are confused because it is an empty part. I'm I right so far??

So the reason for getting this message is because you have the base-extrude in your library feature. (SW needs to change that error message, it is and can be confusing) You need to make a boss extrusion below your base-extrude. (Yes this can be done, but it's not easy.) Or you can start a new part and make a Base Extrude that you will not need in your library. Then copy your sketches into that new part and rebuild your library feature. Do Not include the base feature when you save it.

From the SW help file:
You can create a library feature part that excludes some of the features of the source part, or one that contains all the features in the source part (with the exception of the base feature). It is important to note that excluding some features may cause rebuild errors in the library feature part because of unresolved dependencies.

I hope this helps you and others, ;-) Scott Baugh, CSWP
George Koch Sons,LLC
Evansville, IN 47714
sjb@kochllc.com

Scott,

I'd try what you said me... I made a boss extrude below my base-extrude, and when I created the library file I just selected all items except the base-extrude. Up here no problems... now, when I try to insert it in a empty model SW gives me the message:

"Cannot drop to this location. Drag/Drop failed"

Do you know why?

Rodrigo Basniak
Curitiba, PR
Brazil

Yes I do Rodrigo. SW is looking for a face or plane to drop it on. You can't just pick a plane and place it on there. You need to start out with a face then edit definition to place it on a plane. Palette Features, are items that are used while building a part, not at the beginning of the part. If you add some kind of base-extrude in your new part. I’ll bet you it will work fine, except you may have some dangling properties, depending on how you designed your library feature.

Are you wanting to have one part used time and time again?
If the above is true then you need to make a new directory under the directory

Example: C:\Program Files\SW01\data\Palette Parts\Rodrigos_Parts\Foundation.SLDPRT ;-)

Only problem is this can only be used in assemblies not in parts. This is nice, in the way that you can use DT’s with those models, because once you insert the model into the assembly it asks you which Config you want to use.

Let me know if that helps you, ;-)
Scott Baugh, CSWP
George Koch Sons,LLC
Evansville, IN 47714
sjb@kochllc.com

Yes, design tables are a great solution, but in this case I have to make them in separated files... At the end I think that in this case use a template part is the better solution. But this topic was so interesting, thank you all the help Scott.

Rodrigo Basniak
Curitiba, PR
Brazil