While it is useful to read through the definitions and functions of all the sketch entities, tools, and
relations, using your mouse to create is what this is all about. This tutorial makes sure that you get
to know all the major functions in SolidWorks sketches. Almost every part that you build will start
with a sketch, so this is a skill worth mastering. Follow these steps to learn about sketch relations:
Open a new part using a template that you set up in the Template tutorial from
Chapter 1. If you do not have this template, there is one provided for you on the
CD-ROM named BibleInchTemplate.prtdot. Copy it to your templates folder and
use it to create a new part. You may also use a SolidWorks default template.
Select the Front plane in the FeatureManager, and click the Sketch button on the
Sketch toolbar. Click the Line tool from the Sketch toolbar.
Move the cursor near the Origin; the yellow Coincident symbol appears.
Draw a line horizontal from the Origin. Remember that there are two ways to sketch
the line: Click+click or click and drag. Make sure that the line snaps to the horizontal and
that there is a yellow Horizontal relation symbol. The PropertyManager for the line
should show that the line has a Horizontal relation. Also notice that the line is black, but
the free endpoint is blue (after you hit Esc twice to clear the tool, then clear the selection).
This means that the line is fully defined except for its length. You can test this by
dragging
the blue endpoint.
Click the Smart Dimension tool on the Sketch toolbar, use it to click the line that
you just drew, and place the dimension. If you are prompted for a dimension, type
1.000. If not, then double-click the dimension; the Modify dialog box appears, enabling
you to change the dimension. The setting to prompt for a dimension is found at Tools ➪
Options ➪ General, Input Dimension Value.
Draw two more lines to create a right triangle to look like Figure 3.40. If the sketch
relations symbols do not show in the display, turn them on by clicking View ➪ Sketch
Relations. You may want to set up a hotkey for this, because having sketch relations is
useful, but often gets in the way. Note that the sketch relation symbols may also be green,
depending on how your software is installed.
Drag the blue endpoint of the triangle. Dragging endpoints is the most direct way to
change the geometry. Dragging the line directly may also work, but this sometimes produces
odd results. The sketch leaves a ghost when dragging so that you can see where
you
started. Note that the setting for leaving a ghost when dragging a sketch is found at
Tools, Options, Sketch, Ghost Image On Drag.
Click the Smart Dimension tool, and then click the horizontal line and the angled
line. This produces an angle dimension. Place the angle dimension and give it a value
of 30°.
Click the Sketch Fillet tool, set the radius value to 0.10 inches, and click each of the
three endpoints. Where the 1.000-inch dimension connects to the sketch, SolidWorks
has created virtual sharps. Figure 3.41 shows the sketch at this point. You may now want
to turn off the Sketch Relations display because the screen is getting pretty busy. You can
find this setting at View >Sketch Relations.
