
When does SOLIDWORKS save a virtual model? You can check the references for an assembly ( File > Find References) and it will show. As long as they are virtual, the suffix of a power sign (^) and the assembly name appear in the part name. You can change the name of virtual parts in the tree by selecting the part and pressing F2 or by slowly double-clicking the part name. When you close the assembly, you close all virtual components as well. SOLIDWORKS then also deletes the files in the temporary folder. When you save the assembly, the virtual models are stored inside the assembly. SOLIDWORKS saves your virtual components in a temporary folder somewhere on your pc. I advise you to do just that, don’t leave them lingering around in your assembly. You cannot edit InPlace mates, you can only delete them and replace them with a set of proper mates.

InPlace mates lock your part in place with regards to another part or assembly. InPlace mates are special mates for virtual parts and they appear in very few situations. That plane can either be a plane in the assembly or a face of another part. You have apparently not selected the option No External References before creating the virtual part.Īn InPlace mate will automatically replace the fixed relation when you select a front plane. That icon disappears after you exit that sketch and return to the assembly. In previous SOLIDWORKS versions, a fixed icon (f) appeared before the new part’s name when editing the first sketch. No mates are added whatsoever when you disable external references, so the part can freely float in space. That means you might have to go into that menu once, just to make sure your next virtual part will be created without mates. This option is only available in Edit Component mode. This happens when you have selected the option ‘No External References’ in the Sketch toolbar before creating the new virtual model. If you abort the process of assigning the front plane, the fixed relation remains. SOLIDWORKS fixes the part until you give it a better option. You can create three types of mating schemes: Option 1: Fixed When you add virtual parts to an assembly, SOLIDWORKS helps you by fixing them in space. You can do this by right-clicking the part/assembly and selecting Save Part(in External File). In the next phase, you will have to convert all virtual models to normal files. You might use virtual components in the concept phase. Just right-click it (in the tree or in the modeling area) and select Make Virtual. You can turn a standard part (that is, a part with a file name) into a virtual part. The type of mate depends on what buttons you click in what order. The plane you select coincides with the Front Plane of the new part.Īfter you select the front plane location, SOLIDWORKS goes into Edit Component mode and it starts a new sketch on the Front Plane. SolidWorks now prompts you for a reference plane, without really telling you. Go to System Options > Assemblies > Save new components to external files.) (You can change a setting so that new parts are not virtual, which means you have to select a filename after creating one. You create a new one by selecting Insert > Component > New Part / New Assembly or by clicking these buttons in the Command Manager: You can only use virtual components in assemblies. You can recognize them by the circumflex symbol: part1 ^assembly2. Virtual components are assembly components (parts or subassemblies) that you can quickly add, edit and delete.
How to use parts from solidworks toolbox how to#
How to add a new virtual part or assembly When you should not use virtual components.When does SOLIDWORKS save a virtual model?.Convert a virtual part to a normal part.How to add a new virtual part or assembly.Just make sure you are aware of the trade-offs.

You can dramatically improve your design speed by not having to come up with a name for each file. You can create hundreds of these models without creating a single file.
