TUTORIAL: How to specify new profiles of welding structural members in SolidWorks?

Kamil Kobylinski

9 Aug, 2013 10:46 PM

This is very easy to do, please follow me...

1. Step 1:

   1. Create your profile in 'Part Design".
   

   

2. Step 2:

   2. Select the sketch from the list as shown on the picture (this is important step, if you don't your profile " will be empty").
   3. Go to FILE -> SAVE AS -> Lib Feat Part
   

   

3. Step 3:

   4. Go to the SolidWorks installation folder:
   SolidWorks Corp -> SolidWorks -> data -> weldment profiles
   5. Create the folder for ex. "Tubes"
   6. Name the sketch file to be easily recognized for ex. 42,4_3,25
   

   

4. Step 4:

   7. In created folder in step 3 -> create subfolder for ex. CrNi and save your profile file in this subfolder
   

   

5. Step 5:

   8. To check if everything is ok... create the path, go to Insert -> Weldments -> Structural Member
   

   

6. Step 6:

   9. Select for standard: "Tubes"
   - for Type: "CrNi"
   - for Size: "42,4_3,25"
   Then select your profile as "Groups"
   

   

7. Step 7:

   Success! :)
   

   

8. Step 8:

   Now do some weldment design and use your just created profile...
   

   

9. Step 9:

   BTW, it is important to remember that "center of the coordinate axes", from your profile sketch, will follow the path...
   

   

10. Step 10:

    as shown on below picture...
    

    

11. Step 11:

    Now we edit our profile and change the position of the center of the coordinate axes..
    

    

12. Step 12:

    ... now this point follow the path.
    Done!

    Hope it will be usefull.