Techniques for Fixing
Mate Problems
Many over
defined and redundant mate problems can be solved by working through the
steps below. See Mate
Errors for information about handling other mate errors, such
as missing references.
Use MateXpert
to identify and automatically fix simple problems. Even if MateXpert cannot
fix the problem, it often narrows down the problem by identifying which
mates are directly involved in the problem.
In the FeatureManager design tree, look for red
error symbols
in the Mates
folder.
The red error symbol indicates a mate is trying
to move a component to a position to which it cannot move, due to other
mates or because the component is fixed. If the red mate reflects your
design intent (meaning that you want to keep this mate), suppress the
other mates on the component (using View Mates to find
them), to allow the red mate to solve. This step lets you see the other
mates on the component that need attention.
After you suppress conflicting mates, drag
the component to see which degrees of freedom are available. This shows
you which mates can be added or unsuppressed without conflict.
Temporarily suppress unrelated components.
This suppresses
the corresponding mates and further narrows down the problem.
Look for fixed components
that should not be fixed. Float these components.
You can also use mate
callouts and View
Mate Errors to help identify and resolve mating problems. You
can click Force Mate
in the callout of a red mate to force the mate to solve,
thus breaking another mate. You can perform iterations of forcing mates
to help you discover the problem mate.
If no red error
symbols appear, there is generally a redundant distance or angle mate,
or a component is fixed which should not be. Use the same procedures in
Step 2, but focus on distance and angle mates, or fixed components. ![](../art_local/example_button_w_text.gif)
Mates that should logically work occasionally
fail to solve themselves.
Any time mates should work
but do not, report the case to your reseller or SolidWorks.
Try these actions, which sometimes fix the
problem:
Drag a component to snap it into place.
Suppress and unsuppress the affected mates.
If
the components are far from their correct positions, suppress some of
their mates, move the components closer to their correct positions, then
unsuppress the mates.
Adhering to the Best Practices for Mates
can greatly reduce the number of mate errors.