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Quicker Mate Replication

Question asked by David Flynn on Oct 10, 2017
Latest reply on Oct 13, 2017 by David Flynn

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I am looking for a quicker way to make repetitive mates. The mate in particular is shown below. It is a two piece assembly, which is concentrically mated (locked rotation), then coincidentally mated to the bottom of a hole. This mate is then repeated for identical holes in different locations.

Currently I am creating the mate once, then using copy with mates to fill other holes. This method works, but results in a lot of extra clicks which add up over time. Is there any way to either mass-replicate this mate, or at least copy the mate with less clicks? I have been trying to find a way to do it using smart components or smart fasteners, but as of now have not found a way to make it work.

Nick Birkett-Smith

Oct 16, 2017 4:46 AM

Correct Answer

David Flynn wrote:

To confirm do you mean that in the current build of SolidWorks I will not be able to quickly replicate the mates, but in a future build it may be possible? As of now Ian McEwen's suggestion of mate references has gotten me the closest, but the mates are made at the surface not at the bottom of the hole as I require.

That's correct. In the current version of SOLIDWORKS you won't be able to use a feature or pattern driven pattern to position those components, since the orientation of the patterned instances wouldn't match the holes.

If we implemented enhancement request SPR 753347 then this would allow you to use a pattern driven pattern to position and align the patterned components to the holes, providing a hole wizard feature (with a 3D sketch) was used to make the holes in the part.

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Iain McEwen

Oct 10, 2017 12:10 PM

What you could do is add mate references to the part.

That way when you drag it in, or ctrl+drag to copy it from an existing part, when you hover over the holes it should snap based on your mate references that you've set.

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Deepak Gupta Oct 10, 2017 12:12 PM

Have you tried looking into utilizing patterns? Also have you tried looking into smart mates?

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Dennis Dohogne @ Deepak Gupta on Oct 10, 2017 12:26 PM

I agree with Deepak. If your holes are patterned then it would be easy to mate one of the pins and then pattern it following the hole feature pattern. If that gives you the result you want it is by far the simplest method.

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David Flynn @ Deepak Gupta on Oct 10, 2017 1:03 PM

Unfortunately my application has pretty random holes as opposed to linear or circular patterns. I have not looked into smart mates yet, but I will be taking a look thanks!

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Deepak Gupta @ David Flynn on Oct 10, 2017 1:16 PM

You can try using the sketch driven pattern. Create a 3d sketch with point places at the center of holes and then use them to pattern.

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Glenn Schroeder Oct 10, 2017 12:29 PM

As others have said, if the holes were created with a feature pattern (or the Hole Wizard feature, which they didn't mention) then the "Pattern Driven Component Pattern" can be your friend.

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Nick Birkett-Smith

@ Glenn Schroeder on Oct 12, 2017 4:39 AM

This is a good suggestion from Glenn, Deepak and Dennis but unfortunately the Pattern Driven Pattern doesn't control the orientation of the patterned components, they'll all have the same alignment as the seed.

Enhancement SPR 753347 is requesting that a Pattern Driven Pattern controls the orientation of the patterned components when using a Hole Wizard feature with a 3D sketch to drive the pattern - i.e. the patterned instances would be aligned to the holes.

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David Flynn @ Nick Birkett-Smith on Oct 13, 2017 11:40 AM

To confirm do you mean that in the current build of SolidWorks I will not be able to quickly replicate the mates, but in a future build it may be possible? As of now Ian McEwen's suggestion of mate references has gotten me the closest, but the mates are made at the surface not at the bottom of the hole as I require.

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Nick Birkett-Smith

@ David Flynn on Oct 16, 2017 4:46 AM

David Flynn wrote:

To confirm do you mean that in the current build of SolidWorks I will not be able to quickly replicate the mates, but in a future build it may be possible? As of now Ian McEwen's suggestion of mate references has gotten me the closest, but the mates are made at the surface not at the bottom of the hole as I require.

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David Flynn @ Nick Birkett-Smith on Oct 13, 2017 12:03 PM

Hopefully this change goes through, thanks!

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10 Replies

Iain McEwen Oct 10, 2017 12:10 PM
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Correct Answer
What you could do is add mate references to the part.

That way when you drag it in, or ctrl+drag to copy it from an existing part, when you hover over the holes it should snap based on your mate references that you've set.
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Deepak Gupta Oct 10, 2017 12:12 PM
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Have you tried looking into utilizing patterns? Also have you tried looking into smart mates?
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- Dennis Dohogne @ Deepak Gupta on Oct 10, 2017 12:26 PM
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  I agree with Deepak. If your holes are patterned then it would be easy to mate one of the pins and then pattern it following the hole feature pattern. If that gives you the result you want it is by far the simplest method.
  Like • Show 1 Like1
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- David Flynn @ Deepak Gupta on Oct 10, 2017 1:03 PM
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  Unfortunately my application has pretty random holes as opposed to linear or circular patterns. I have not looked into smart mates yet, but I will be taking a look thanks!
  Like • Show 1 Like1
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  - Deepak Gupta @ David Flynn on Oct 10, 2017 1:16 PM
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    You can try using the sketch driven pattern. Create a 3d sketch with point places at the center of holes and then use them to pattern.
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Glenn Schroeder Oct 10, 2017 12:29 PM
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As others have said, if the holes were created with a feature pattern (or the Hole Wizard feature, which they didn't mention) then the "Pattern Driven Component Pattern" can be your friend.
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- Nick Birkett-Smith @ Glenn Schroeder on Oct 12, 2017 4:39 AM
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  This is a good suggestion from Glenn, Deepak and Dennis but unfortunately the Pattern Driven Pattern doesn't control the orientation of the patterned components, they'll all have the same alignment as the seed.
  
  Enhancement SPR 753347 is requesting that a Pattern Driven Pattern controls the orientation of the patterned components when using a Hole Wizard feature with a 3D sketch to drive the pattern - i.e. the patterned instances would be aligned to the holes.
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  - David Flynn @ Nick Birkett-Smith on Oct 13, 2017 11:40 AM
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    To confirm do you mean that in the current build of SolidWorks I will not be able to quickly replicate the mates, but in a future build it may be possible? As of now Ian McEwen's suggestion of mate references has gotten me the closest, but the mates are made at the surface not at the bottom of the hole as I require.
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    - Nick Birkett-Smith @ David Flynn on Oct 16, 2017 4:46 AM
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      David Flynn wrote:
      
      To confirm do you mean that in the current build of SolidWorks I will not be able to quickly replicate the mates, but in a future build it may be possible? As of now Ian McEwen's suggestion of mate references has gotten me the closest, but the mates are made at the surface not at the bottom of the hole as I require.
      That's correct. In the current version of SOLIDWORKS you won't be able to use a feature or pattern driven pattern to position those components, since the orientation of the patterned instances wouldn't match the holes.
      
      If we implemented enhancement request SPR 753347 then this would allow you to use a pattern driven pattern to position and align the patterned components to the holes, providing a hole wizard feature (with a 3D sketch) was used to make the holes in the part.
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      - David Flynn @ Nick Birkett-Smith on Oct 13, 2017 12:03 PM
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        Hopefully this change goes through, thanks!
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