Advanced Hole Functionality for SOLIDWORKS 2017

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If you design parts that require hole types that are not found in the standard Hole Wizard offerings, you’ll love the new Advanced Hole functionality in SOLIDWORKS 2017.

Most SOLIDWORKS users will find use for the Advanced Hole tool, but customers who design products with many customized holes, such as manifolds, molds and tooling, will find it especially helpful.

Creating Advanced Holes – The new Advanced Hole functionality lets you define your own hole types with combinations of counterbore, countersink, straight and tapered sections.  In this way, you won’t have to create multiple holes just to get what you need.

In addition you can save Advanced Hole features as Favorites to reuse them later. In the PropertyManager, on the Type tab, under Favorite, you can add, update, delete, save, or load a favorite advanced hole.  This helps speed up custom hole design, and can also help ensure adherence to design standards.

You can access Advanced Hole from the Features toolbar, or by Insert > Features > Advanced Hole.  The PropertyManager opens with the Near Side flyout displayed.  You can then define a series of hole features that can be built from the Near or Far sides of the part.  Finally, like Hole Wizard, use the Positioning tab to locate the hole.

Customizing Advanced Hole Callouts – You can customize hole callouts for advanced holes, which is useful for ensuring that proper manufacturing processes are used.  The manufacturing processes for holes do not always match the order shown in the advanced hole flyout. You can customize hole callouts that match the order and variables needed for manufacturing, then use these callouts in your drawings.

For example, the advanced hole flyout might show this order:

  • (1) Nearside Counterbore
  • (2) Straight
  • (3) Straight Threaded

However, this is the order in which manufacturing creates the holes:

  • (3) Straight Threaded
  • (2) Straight
  • (1) Nearside Counterbore

To customize Advanced Hole callouts, click Customize callout in the Advanced Hole PropertyManager, under Hole Callout.  Then reorder the callouts by selecting the Callout String and clicking to Move Up and Move Down.

To customize a callout string, double-click it in the Callout String list and select variables. You can also select Callout Variables to display a list of all variables.

Modified strings are marked with an asterisk in the list. To restore the default settings for individual Callout String items, right-click a string and click Restore Default String. To remove all customizations, under Hole Callout, click Default callout.

 

 

Craig Therrien

Craig Therrien

Craig Therrien is a 3DEXPERIENCE WORKS Senior Portfolio Manager with over 30 years of CAD and industry experience - engineer, consultant, CAD product manager, CAD company co-founder. Currently, serving as Senior Product Manager for SOLIDWORKS and 3D Mold Creator. Craig has a B.S.M.E. from WPI and is a Graduate of General Electric's Manufacturing Development Program.