New user with sw doubt

Hello everybody,
I'm sorry to start with a doubt, but I have been trying in other sw
forums but can't seem to manage to solve this modeling riddle:

I have a profile, and a bunch of paths. The paths are all contained in
the same sketch
I want that profile to create different sweeps for every path in the
sketch, but of course I can't select the path because there are
multiple open lines in the sketch.

pd. It is difficult to explain but it would be a bit like modeling a
fingerprint, by having a triangle for the profile, and a hell of a lot
of weird splines for the paths but all contained in a single sketch)


Do you have any suggestion on how to go about with this?
Thanks a lot

 

SW07 deals with this using the SelectionManager.

In previous versions you can use "Smart Selections".

If you go back far enough you may have to use composite curves or
individual sketches with converted entities created from selected sketch
entities.

 

Hi Matt,
Thanks for the early response.
I'm not sure I understand you completely , but the curves contained in
the sketch are open curves, they dont meet each other, and that is why
it does not allow me to select a single set of lines from the sketch.
(my intention is to use these sets of lines as paths to create
progressive sweeps, all from the same sketch, but selecting different
path for each sweep)

 

Without having a closed loop to use for the feature, it will only give
you a thin type extrusion. You will have to get the loop closed in order
to have any chance of making any other type of extrusion. As for picking
them, this will have to probably be one at a time if they are not joined.

 

Cheers J,

I am afraid maybe I did not explain correctly,
I want to use those lines as paths for sweeping a shape.
Precisely what you mention is the drawback of extruding them (as I
would preffer to not go "thickening" all those lines in order to make
an extrusion).

 

Regardless of whether you want to create an extrusion or use the
sketches for sweep features, the sketch feature must contain lines that
are joined. A sweep will not jump an opening in the sweep path. Also the
profile must go thru the end of one of the paths as well. You are more
than likely going to need to create a new sketch for each of the paths
that you want to use and use the base sketch geometry and convert those
entities for each of the paths.

 

Ok, I will try separating all the paths in different sketches, as I
said to POH in the other post (sorry I doubled them up), I was hoping
to discover a magic trick to avoid that.
I will do as you say.

Thanks a lot for the help J,

 

I haven't seen what version you are using. That's important because some
selection features are available for some versions and not others.
Depending on what version you are using, you don't have to separate the
sketches.

2007 has the best tool for using a single sketch with multiple open loop
sketches which can be used as individual sweep paths, the Selection
Manager.


With 2006, you can use the "Smart Selection" to select an open loop from
a messy sketch to use as a sweep path. I don't remember how far back
Smart Selection goes, but I don't think its earlier than 2005.

 

Hi Matt,
I finally got what you meant, I had to extrude all the paths as a
surface to be able to activate this "smart selection" tool, but now it
works, I can select bits of the sketch, thanks a lot!!, and sorry I
didn't get it at first.