There is something about how the sketch pattern is being created. It's basically creating an additional 4 instances. "Draft-screw-hole1" is the original body. You can see how there are 4 more Sketch-pattaern6 bodies.mattpeneguy wrote: ↑Fri Jul 30, 2021 12:50 pm Haven't done it yet, but what if you don't merge the standoff extrusion and then pattern the body, then use a combine?
So, I have to have two sketches then? One for the first location and one for additional locations? I'm trying to set something up that we can reuse to start projects.
I've had poor results in the past actually getting what I want trying to use the boss feature. I'm not sure I want to do that.
The hole pattern isn't symmetric. In the future, the housing is likely not to be a simple rectangle either.
This is expected behavior. If you are patterning bodies it will create a new body for each sketch point. There's the original, and 4 more, 1 for each sketch point. So if you delete the sketch point at the original instance, you'll have the correct number. Then you need to use a Combine or Intersect feature to knit it all back together.CarrieIves wrote: ↑Fri Jul 30, 2021 1:01 pm There is something about how the sketch pattern is being created. It's basically creating an additional 4 instances. "Draft-screw-hole1" is the original body. You can see how there are 4 more Sketch-pattaern6 bodies.
image.png
I have been reluctant to use patterns in SolidWorks because I don't get the results I expect.
HOUSING-forum.SLDPRTNo, you have the circle sketch for the boss, and then a sketch with centerpoints of the 3 additional patterned features you want to create.CarrieIves wrote: ↑Fri Jul 30, 2021 1:06 pm So, I have to have two sketches then? One for the first location and one for additional locations? I'm trying to set something up that we can reuse to start projects.
You don't need a plane. Just a dimension. It's pretty straight forward, and it makes the draft and the hole all in one feature.I've had poor results in the past actually getting what I want trying to use the boss feature. I'm not sure I want to do that.
<edit> I have a plane that locates the top of the boss. I can make an extrusion from that plane with no problem. Controlling the "Mounting Boss" feature with that plane isn't straightforward as far as I can see.
The hole pattern isn't symmetric. In the future, the housing is likely not to be a simple rectangle either.
Except, I am setting up the real part to be tied back to a skeleton in my assembly. So, the sketch that contains the points also contains the location of the first boss. It appears that changing that point to a circle, will solve the problem. I will consider this. (I still don't like patterns in SolidWorks. They seem to be trouble makers more often than helpers.)
I may take a look at this feature again, but not being able to control it's height with a plane is frustrating. I want the plane to control the mounting surface. It isn't defined from the bottom of the enclosure. I am defining it from the default planes. I am doing this because the planes are stable. The shell providing the inside surface may be stable, but there are good odds that something will change enough to cause problems here. Also, it isn't unlikely for the mounting features to not come off a flat surface. Here's the inside of the last enclosure I designed.
I think you may be selling this functionality short. It doesn't have to have a flat base, just something to use as an axis direction. If the main face of the part is not stable, you've got problems that a stable boss isn't going to fix.CarrieIves wrote: ↑Fri Jul 30, 2021 2:49 pm I may take a look at this feature again, but not being able to control it's height with a plane is frustrating. I want the plane to control the mounting surface. It isn't defined from the bottom of the enclosure. I am defining it from the default planes. I am doing this because the planes are stable. The shell providing the inside surface may be stable, but there are good odds that something will change enough to cause problems here. Also, it isn't unlikely for the mounting features to not come off a flat surface. Here's the inside of the last enclosure I designed.
image.png
I made a surface on my plane and was able to have the mounting boss feature use that surface for the height. So it may be possible to use this, but I am not sure if it will work for the requirements I have. This is definitely backwards from the way I had set the extruded boss up. The extrusion starts from the plane where the PCB will mount and then extends to the body of the housing.
As I said, I am trying to make a generic model that can be copied and modified and still keep some functionality as a starting point. I am starting with a rectangular box, but more then likely for future projects, the main shape will be quite different than just a plain rectangular box. That's part of the reason for the plane controlling the board mounting surface.
