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SOLIDWORKS Fundamentals

The SOLIDWORKS® application is mechanical design automation software that takes advantage of the familiar Microsoft® Windows® graphical user interface.

This easy-to-learn tool makes it possible for mechanical designers to quickly sketch ideas, experiment with features and dimensions, and produce models and detailed drawings.

This chapter discusses some basic concepts and terminology used throughout the SOLIDWORKS software.

Contents

  • Basic Concepts

  • Basic Commands: Cut, Copy, Paste, Undo, and Redo

  • Help, Search, and Web Resources

  • Document Basics

    You can open, close, save, share, and print SOLIDWORKS documents, and send SOLIDWORKS documents to another system by email.

  • Overview of SOLIDWORKS Options

  • Display

  • Selection

  • File Properties

  • Measure Tool

    Measures distance, angle, radius, and size of and between lines, points, surfaces, and planes in sketches, 3D models, assemblies, or drawings.

  • Sensors

    Sensors monitor selected properties of parts and assemblies and alert you when values deviate from the limits you specify.

  • Equations

    Define dimensions using global variables and mathematical functions, and create mathematical relationships between two or more dimensions in parts and assemblies.

  • Mirror and Opposite-Hand Disambiguation

    Various commands are available for mirroring and creating opposite-hand versions of items such as sketch entities, features, parts, and assembly components. The command you need depends on the type of item for which you want to create a mirror or an opposite-hand version.

  • Industry-Specific Design Tools

  • Xperts Overview

    The SOLIDWORKS Xperts are tools that help novices use SOLIDWORKS like experts, without having to understand the details of the software. The Xperts take care of the details of software functionality. Using Xperts, you can focus on your design intent while the Xperts focus on what the software should do to achieve it.

  • Add-Ins

    You can load compatible applications into your SOLIDWORKS software, for the current session or at the next startup, or both. The add-in applications must be installed on your computer.

  • SOLIDWORKS Fast Start

    To launch more quickly, SOLIDWORKS begins loading components in the background when you start your computer.

  • Object Linking and Embedding

    You can embed an OLE object from another program into the active SOLIDWORKS document.

  • Recording and Playing Macros

    Macros are scripts that let you run operations in the SOLIDWORKS software automatically.

  • Future Version Components in Earlier Releases

    You can open SOLIDWORKS parts and assemblies using Service Pack 5 of the previous release.

  • SOLIDWORKS API

    The SOLIDWORKS Application Programming Interface (API) is a COM programming interface to the SOLIDWORKS software. The API contains hundreds of functions that you can call from Visual Basic (VB), Visual Basic for Applications (VBA), VB.NET, C++, C#, or SOLIDWORKS macro files. These functions provide the programmer with direct access to SOLIDWORKS functionality.

  • SOLIDWORKS Task Scheduler

    The SOLIDWORKS Task Scheduler lets you set up tasks to perform at a future time.

  • Tasks

  • Options

  • About SOLIDWORKS



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