How to make an aligned hole pattern

Hi.

I don't have access to solidworks right now, but i found small tutorial on youtube: SolidWorks Tutorials - Modeling with Patterns - the Instance to Vary Option - YouTube

Hi Lucian

In SW there are many ways to achieve the same result, but there are always pro's and con's.  Here is a versatile method that I use.  It takes a bit of head scratching at first but it's qiute simple really.

The basis is to use a 3DSketch to define the hole.  The hole itself is on the Top Plane,  but an extra line running along Y is coincident with a surface at one end.

I applied an equal relation to both construction lines, this has the effect of the hole becoming the same diameter as the normal distance to a point on the surface directly above the hole center.

So the surface controls the hole diameter.  I created the surface like this so that the diameter grows from 5 to 10 mm.

The final stage is to use a pattern, with vary sketch option.

For a half stepped pattern you would have to use more than one sketch and pattern, but the same principle would apply.

Again there are many ways to apply this method, this is just a simple illustration, I hope it helps..

2016 file attached

On way home I thought of this..  Used a Dome feature to create the surface