Drafting
You can draft in 2D in SolidWorks drawing documents using Sketch tools, Dimension tools, and Annotations as described in Creating Drawings. Concepts to consider include:
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Sketch entities
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In SolidWorks drawing documents, as in 2D CAD documents, you can add sketch entities (lines, circles, rectangles, and so on) at any time. You can create your own line styles using layers , the Line Format tools, or Line Style Options.
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Drawing views
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You can add sketch entities and annotations to the drawing sheet or to drawing views
. Drawing views allow you to move and scale all the items in the view in one operation. You can insert empty views onto drawing sheets to contain drafted entities.
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Standards
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The drafted elements follow the standard specified in Tools, Options, Document Properties,
Drafting Standard
. Such items as dimension arrows, tolerances, annotation display, and so on are generated based on the standard, but you can also edit the items manually (choose a different arrowhead style, for example).
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Sheet formats
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SolidWorks drawing templates contain drawing sheet formats. You can edit the formats and save them. You can also use a template without the format and create your own format, or import a 2D CAD block (a title block, for example).
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Grid
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To display a grid, right-click and select Display Grid. Specify the grid spacing and snap control in Tools, Options, Document Properties, Grid/Snap.
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Dimensions
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Dimensions in SolidWorks control the geometry. The sketch entity or model element must agree with its dimension. You cannot sketch an entity at a certain size and display a dimension of a different size. However, you can scale entities in a drawing sheet or drawing view.
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Relations
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Relations (such as Horizontal, Concentric, Tangent) also control geometry. Some relations are inferenced as you sketch. You can add, display, and delete relations. To prevent automatic relations, press Ctrl as you sketch, or clear Automatic relations in Tools, Options, System Options, Sketch, Relations/Snaps.
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Annotations
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Most annotations work with sketch entities the same as they do with drawings derived from 3D models. Some exceptions are hole callout and autoballoon. Single balloons and stacked balloons appear with question marks, which you can replace with custom text. You can import into drawings the dimensions and tolerances you create with DimXpert for parts.
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