Solidworks

CREATING A PART IN SOLIDWORKS
UCO Department of Engineering and Physics
Prepared by Daniel Reser, Justin Hawkins, Michael Potts

Table of Contents
1. DRAWING SETUP 1.1. Create a New File 1.2. Plane/Origin Selection 1.3. Create and Position Centerline 2. CREATING THE PART 2.1. Create the Profile 2.2. Create the 3-D Part 3. CREATING THE RETAINING TABS 3.1 Create the Tab Profiles 3.2 Createthe 3-D Tabs 4. CREATE TOP RECESS 2 2 2 3 4 4 6 8 9 10 11

Table of Figures
Fig. 1-1 Fig. 1-2 Fig. 1-3 Fig. 1-4 Fig. 1-5 Fig. 2-1 Fig. 2-2 Fig. 2-3 Fig. 2-4 Fig. 2-5 Fig. 2-6 Fig. 3-1 Fig. 3-2 Fig. 3-3 Fig. 3-4 Fig. 3-5 Fig. 4-1 Fig. 4-2 Fig. 4-3 Fig. 4-4 2 2 2 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 9 9 10 10 11 11 12 12

1.

DRAWING SETUP

1.1 CREATE A NEW FILE Begin the tutorial by opening SolidWorks andselecting “new” from the “file” menu. Notice that “part” designates a 3-D representation of a single design component. 1.2 PLANE/ORIGIN SELECTION Click on the sketch icon and select a plane of reference as shown in figure 1. The box on the left hand side of the drawing has selection options. For the purpose of this part select the front plane. Notice in figure 2 that once the plane has beenselected the origin remains visible, and the screen appears blank.

Fig. 1-1

Fig. 1-2 3

Placement of the origin with respect to the sketch is very important. Thus, the best placement for this part is bottom center. 1.3 CREATE AND DIMENSION CENTERLINE Select “centerline” from the menu options then click the origin and draw a vertical line upward. Select the smart dimension tool from the menu andclick on both endpoints of the centerline. Drag the dimension line away from the drawing as shown in figure 3. The smart dimension tool allows the user to designate the exact length of the line required by double-clicking the dimension associated to the line drawn and entering the necessary value in the Modify box.

Fig. 1-3 SAVE THE DRAWING as IntroEngr1 Enter 31.75mm for this value. Click atany open point in the field to finalize the dimension change made. The lines will become black rather than light green. Additionally, find the command in the upper toolbar to “zoom to fit.” Figures 4 and 5 below depict these settings.

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Fig. 1-4

Fig. 1-5 2. CREATE THE PART The completed part will be circular. However, the sketch is that of (½) of the transverse section of the entirecomponent. Accordingly, select the line function to draw this section.

2.1 CREATE THE PROFILE Begin at the origin and (WITHOUT DRAWING A LINE) move along the horizontal axis a small undefined distance as shown. Next draw a backward “7” or upside down “L” as shown in figure 6. 5

Fig. 2-1 Now, by selecting any two references points established on the drawing, one can now easily dimension thecomponent to the desired specifications. Using smart dimension, you may now complete the process by sizing the dimensions of the cross-section to the values shown in fig. 7. Remember to save the sketch periodically throughout the drawing process. Notice that each dimension is given in millimeters. To enter values in inches, simply enter the numerical value followed by in, the conversion is automatic.Fig. 2-2 2.2 CREATE THE 3-D PART 6

The centerline is the reference line that will be used to revolve the entire cross-sectional sketch forming a 3-D part. From the Features menu, select the revolved boss/base option. The resulting revolved cut is shown in figure 8.

Fig. 2-3 Be certain to click on “selected contours”, as this will determine whether the part is solid or hollow. Since line1, (center line) is the axis of revolution, no change is necessary under revolve parameters. You must designate the contour of revolution as shown in figure 9. Verify the cut is 360 degrees, one direction, and then click enter or the green check mark. Figure 10 represents the basic 3-D component.

Fig. 2-4 . 7

Fig. 2-5 Now by exploring the various viewing options contained in the toolbar,...