References and Dimensions with Library Features

When you open a part saved as a library feature, the SolidWorks application adds a References and a Dimensions folder in the FeatureManager design tree under the library feature.

References

Lists the references that you need to specify when inserting a library feature.

All library features include at least one reference, the Placement Plane . Other references are added when you create the library feature. To create these references, you can:

• Dimension library feature entities to the base feature.

• Add relations (for example between the sketch origin and a library feature entity).

Library features with face references such as fillets do not need reference dimensions.

You can rename references.

To rename any reference:

1. In the FeatureManager design tree, select the named reference in the References folder.

2. Click-pause-click the reference name.

3. Type the new name.

You can also position a library feature without references other than the Placement Plane ,  by dimensioning the library feature sketch to the part.

Dimensions

Lists the dimensions that belong to features marked as library features.

You can edit dimension names.

To edit dimension names:

1. Select a dimension in the Dimensions folder or the two subfolders: Locating Dimensions and Internal Dimensions.

2. Click-pause-click the dimension name (for example D1 in D1@Extrude2).

3. Type a new name.

Locating Dimensions

You can specify a dimension as a Locating Dimension. A Locating Dimension allows you to edit the placement of library feature after positioning the feature using References.

To mark a dimension as a locating dimension:

1. Select the dimension from the Dimension folder.

2. Drag the dimension to the Locating Dimensions folder.

Internal Dimensions

Mark a dimension as an Internal Dimension to prevent it from appearing in the Library Feature PropertyManager when you insert the library feature into a part. This reduces the clutter of unnecessary dimensions in the PropertyManager and helps to avoid accidental changes to the dimension.

After the library feature is inserted, all of its dimensions are available for edit, including those in the Internal Dimensions folder.

To mark a dimension as an internal dimension:

1. Select the dimension from the Dimension folder.

2. Drag the dimension to the Internal Dimensions folder.

If you make any changes to the references or dimensions, you need to save them.