It is true that the Dassault Systèmes SOLIDWORKS product definition team has many tools for asking users’ input throughout the year. But none are as simple, as straightforward and as successful as this event. As we reported in last year’s article, the implementation rate of the ideas voted in Top Ten is close to 70%.

Combing through the hundreds of ideas and filtering out the most useful is a lot of work. At the time of the writing of this article, there were 295 ideas submitted in this year’s competition.

Figure 1. Top 10 List – 2024.

If you have time, you can read all these ideas and decide on which to vote. This Wiki page provides all the details you need to know to find your way in the community. Depending on your field of interest, you can filter ideas based on tags such as:

• Drawing
• Assembly
• Part
• User interface
• Sketch
• PDM
• CAD administration
• Surfacing
• Equations
• 3D Sculptor

For those of you who are too busy using SOLIDWORKS to create our world to read every submission, each year EngineersRule.com combs through all the ideas and highlights the ones we believe are the most impactful for most users.

In this article, we compile two separate shortlists of ideas based on two criteria:

1. Low hanging fruit: Ideas that are simple to implement while providing huge benefits.
2. Fundamental or game-changing: Ideas that could bring major benefits but would require a lot of effort to implement.

To vote for any of the ideas included in this article, simply click the hyperlink and press the like button (Figure 2).

Figure 2. Like = Vote.

A.   Low-Hanging Fruit Ideas Shortlist (Easy to Implement)

1.      Instant Save As Dialog

Benefit: Brings the cut list functionality on par to that of BOM.

Figure 3.

Currently when saving an assembly or a drawing for the first time, or saving with a new name, it takes a significant amount of time before the Save As dialog appears. It is clear that SOLIDWORKS does a lot of processing before it asks the user for the file name, as you can see in this video:

This does not make sense. We should be able to type the file name right away and then go out for a coffee or read an email until SOLIDWORKS completes the save. Having to wait for this dialog to appear is very frustrating and a productivity destroyer.

Our verdict: Very easy to implement; huge reduction in user frustration.

2.      User Interface: Option to "Disable Cut List Update" in Large Assembly

Benefit: Reduces rebuild time in large assemblies containing parts with sheet metal or weldments.

Figure 4.

“Updating Cut List” is one of the most frustrating messages you see on the status bar when large assemblies are rebuilt. Having the option to temporarily disable the update of the various cut list when the assembly rebuilds can save users minutes for each assembly opening/rebuild operation.

Our verdict: Easy to implement; significant impact on productivity.

3.      Add "Rollup and Rolldown to Selected Component" Icons in Assembly Visualization

Benefit: Reduce rebuild time in large assemblies containing parts with sheet metal or weldments.

Figure 5.

Assembly visualization is a critical tool for quickly extracting useful information from assemblies. One of the best features is the ability to isolate components based on a huge number of criteria. There are two "roll-back" bars, one at the top of the tree (should be called Rolldown) and one at the bottom of the tree (should be called Rollup).

After sorting the assembly based on one or more criteria, to isolate a group of components in a given range, the user currently needs to start from the top of the tree, drag the rolldown bar down and then navigate to the bottom of the tree to find the rollup bar and drag it accordingly. On a large tree this operation is extremely difficult, and sometimes even impossible.

Let's implement a more elegant solution from the part feature tree, which allows right-clicking on any feature in the tree to access the icon "rollback to here." For the assembly visualization, we should have two icons:

Figure 6. Two New Icons - Huge Impact.

• Rolldown above the selected item.
• Rollup below the selected item.

This simple enhancement will close the last 5% of the missing functionality from the Assembly Visualization tool.

Our verdict: Very easy to implement; high impact on productivity.

4.      Visual indicator of published envelopes in assemblies

Benefit: Reduce feature tree clutter. This will save time finding components.

Figure 7.

Currently, components published as envelopes can only be identified by opening the envelope publishing tool. It would be very beneficial to indicate envelope publishing in the top-level assembly, like a tree structure:

Published envelopes > Publishing group > Published component@subassembly > destination subassembly.

Our verdict: Easy to implement; useful for top-down design users.

5.       Select Multiple Edges using Y/N Shortcut Keys

Benefit: Quick selection of chains of edges. This is ideal for surface modeling and mold design.

Figure 8.

Manually selecting multiple edges that are linked end-to-end is a laborious task that could take multiple minutes. SOLIDWORKS has already implemented an efficient workflow for doing that, but it works only when defining some mold features, as shown below:

Figure 9.

In a nutshell, once an edge is selected, an arrow points towards the next potential edge. The user presses "Y" to add it to the selection or "N" to change direction. This functionality would make a multi-minute boring and frustrating process into one that can be completed in seconds.

Our verdict: Easy to implement; high impact for surface modelers.

6.      Add Ability to Edit Cut List Tables in Drawings

Benefit: Brings the cut list functionality on par to that of BOM.

Figure 10.

Double-clicking on a cell in a BOM allows the user to edit the linked property and it feeds back to the part file.  Cut list tables should have the same functionality.

Our verdict: Easy to implement; useful for drafters.

7.       Exclude Specific Drawing Views from Standard Rebuild

Benefit: Could reduce drawing update time by a factor of 10 or more.

Figure 11.

Currently we can exclude specific drawing views from automatic updates. That is useful but not easy to manage. Many times, users simply press the Rebuild button (CTRL+B) which will update all drawing views, including the ones marked to “not update.”

Give us the opportunity to exclude views from rebuilding with CTRL+B. They will be updated in three scenarios:

1. One by one, manually by the user.
2. When using Force Rebuild (CTRL+Q).
3. When the drawing is saved.

The benefits are huge. Performance Evaluation could easily filter which drawing views are slow and give the user the option to exclude them from Standard Rebuild (maybe add checkboxes inside Performance Evaluation, also). When the user works, only what is essential gets rebuilt repeatedly. Everything else will be rebuilt at the end of the session, thus saving hours per day.

Our verdict: Extremely easy to implement; huge impact on productivity.

8.      Enhanced Diagnostics for Factors Affecting Drawing Performance

Benefit: Save hours in troubleshooting slow drawings.

Figure 12.

SOLIDWORKS is able to import more and more CAD formats. Some of them create models that dramatically impact drawing performance. We need a simple tool to point out which components are responsible for the slowdowns. For more information, please watch this short video:

Our verdict: Extremely easy to implement; huge impact on productivity.

9.      Tree Display: Show Flat Tree View for sheet metal

Benefit: Increase User Interface consistency.

Figure 13.

The Flat Tree view has been implemented as an option for more than a decade. The only exception is for sheet metal features. Having the opportunity to access sketches as main items in the tree can unlock the productivity of sheet metal designers.

Our verdict: Easy to implement; increases consistency.

10. Allow the Offset of Disconnected Sketch Entities or Edges

Benefit: Unlock Turbo Speed when Sketching.

Figure 14.

The Offset Sketch Entities command should get the same functionality that the Offset Surface command has. That would increase the UX (user experience) and save us a lot of time. It would also allow us to have one "offset dimension" for multiple sketch entities. Currently you cannot offset disconnected entities in a sketch.

Figure 15.

Our verdict: Easy to implement; increases speed.

B.    High Impact Ideas Shortlist (Harder to Implement)

1.       ESCAPE Should Terminate Any Process and Return the Model/Drawing to its Previous State.

Benefit: Eliminate the biggest cause for user-triggered crashes of SOLIDWORKS.

Figure 16.

Before any task is completed, the current state of the model should be saved in a buffer. Thus, any process could be stopped by pressing Escape.

Currently, if a task takes a long time to complete, users have no idea if it will take seconds or hours and many times, they will crash SOLIDWORKS.

Examples:

• You start Import Diagnostics on a multibody part. You can look at the blue circle spinning for minutes or hours.
• MateXpert in a complex assembly could take hours.
• Updating drawing views should be stoppable using Escape.
• Rebuilding a part is supposed to be stoppable. Escape does not always work.

And so much more...

Our verdict: Extremely hard to implement; huge impact on productivity.

2.       Multibody Feature

Benefit: Easy management of multiple bodies and/or features.

Figure 17.

In the plastics industry (injection molding or 3D printing), it is common practice to design multi-material parts. In SOLIDWORKS, this translates into multi-body parts to which different materials are assigned. Currently, using weldment features is the only way to activate a multi-body environment but the name would be misleading for plastic parts. The idea is to provide a multi-body feature similar to the Weldment feature (but with a different name) in order to:

• Activate the multibody environment by clearing the Merge result check box in the PropertyManagers of features that add material.
• Create a Body List as a FeatureManager tree object.
• Act as a placeholder for common custom properties that are inherited by all body list items.

An option in document properties would, in addition, automatically display customizable text at component material level (e.g. "composite" or "multi-material") when materials are assigned to bodies.

Our verdict: Hard to implement; huge impact on productivity.

3.       Background Processing of Inactive Drawing Sheets (Optimal use of CPU Cores)

Benefit: Same time by optimal use of the hardware.

Figure 18.

When opening a drawing or when switching between the model and the drawing, start by updating the current sheet and give the user access to the mouse so she/he can start working. Use the other cores to update the rest of the sheets in the background.

Currently only high-quality views allow background processing using the sldbgproc.exe, but this can be further optimized. By updating the other sheets using the other CPU cores, the user would not experience lag when navigating to other areas of the model.

Our verdict: Hard to implement; huge impact on productivity when using drawings.

4.       Add GPU Support for Simulations

Benefit: Optimal use of hardware.

Figure 19.

Simulations studies are currently calculated with CPU. It would be much faster to have GPU support calculations (CUDA/ROCm).

Our verdict: Very hard to implement; huge impact on productivity.

5.       Optimize xShape for Tablet and Pen Users

Benefit: This will make xShape available to non-PC users.

Figure 20.

xShape is a great program but it was programmed by PC users for PC users. It is interesting that Dassault Systèmes promotes xShape as ideal for tablet users—and that makes sense, but not for the current version of the app. That is true for all xApps.

Currently the only pen/finder inputs are mimicking the use of the mouse. See the image of the current toolbar (attached). There is a tool called offset mouse that is clearly a workaround, great for a BETA version of the app but not for serious users.

Simply look at any other Windows, Android and iPadOS CAD application and you will see how powerful the use of a touch device like the Apple Pen could be:

• The pen selects, drags and manipulates geometry. Fingers cannot interact with the model.
• The fingers manipulate the viewport:
  • 2-finger pinch for zooming.
  • 1-finger drag for panning.
  • 2-finger rotate for rotating the viewport.

This idea is simple and proven to be the ultimate way for professional use of such sculpting applications. xShape and xDesign should be optimized for tablet usage as Dassault Systèmes positions them at every webinar, seminar or 3DEXPERIENCE World presentation.

Our verdict: Hard to implement; game changer for many users.

6.       Enhanced Offset Entities Command by adding a "Machining Mode"

Benefit: Huge time saver for sketchers.

Figure 21.

The offset entities command could be significantly improved to reduce frustration by adding a second option in its Property Manager: milling mode. Imagine a cutter with a radius equal to the offset traveling along the chain of selected entities. The offset entities could be approximated from the "virtual milling" result of such a cutter.

No offset would ever fail to complete, regardless of how complex the selected geometry is. Most of the time, a good approximation is all we need. For 100% precision, preserve the current algorithm as an option (check box or radio button).

This video shows what we need:

Our verdict: Very hard to implement; huge impact on productivity.

7.       Bring Back the QuickView Mode

Benefit: Optimal use of hardware.

Figure 22.

The QuickView mode for drawings was removed in SOLIDWORKS 2022 because the Product Definition considered that the new Detailing mode made the QuickView mode obsolete.

Detailing mode is very powerful for the drawings that have the Detailing Mode Data saved in the drawing file. That being said, many users disable the functionality for saving this data for two reasons:

1. The file size can increase by a factor of 10.
2. The saving time for files containing draft quality views can take hours.

Such users have no other options for quickly opening drawings.

Figure 23.

The QuickView mode was extremely powerful for professionally trained users. They could:

1. Open the drawing instantaneously.
2. Navigate to any sheet in the drawing.
3. Zoom in/out and pan.
4. Load one or more sheets without loading the rest. This unlocks the productivity of multi-sheet drawing users.

Please vote to get this amazing functionality back.

Our verdict: Possibly hard to implement; huge impact on drawings productivity.

8.       Add Measure, Hide and Show in Snake Cam

Benefit: Great for saving time when navigating an assembly.

Figure 24.

Short video describing the idea:

In a nutshell, the Snake Cam (walkthrough) is a fantastic tool for large assembly users. You can get in tight places without the need to create and update a ton of section views, or needing to hide/show or isolate.

Imagine how much better this tool would be if you could select, measure, hide and show components as you explore your assembly.

Our verdict: Hard to implement; huge impact on conceptual design, revisions and review meetings.

9.       Add Selection Filters (F5) for Features and Part Components

Benefit: Huge time saver when working with imported geometry.

Figure 25.

The F5 selection filter is amazing, and a true time saver.

Figure 26.

Have you noticed the two most important types of entities missing in the options above? There is no filter for Features or for Components.

Why is this a huge problem for users? Here are two examples:

• A complex multibody part resulting from importing a STEP file. You want to select in the graphics area for the imported features to keep, then invert the selection and delete the rest.
• You cannot do that without using complicated workarounds. When you select in the graphics area, you think you selected features (you see them selected in the Feature Manager Tree) but you actually selected faces. If you invert the selection, you see this:

Figure 27.

Figure 28.

If only there was a filter that would allow selections of features in the graphics area.

The same limitation exists in assemblies. There is no selection filter for selecting part or subassembly components.

Our verdict: Possibly hard to implement; huge impact on productivity.

10.  Filter Modified Components in Resolved and LightWeight Modes

Benefit: Reduce error, save time during revisions.

Figure 29.

There is no better tool than "Filter Modified Components" to see what has changed in your assembly. Unfortunately, this tool exists only when an assembly is opened in Large Design Review mode. We need it in all modes to save time and reduce the possibility of errors.

For more details, please watch this video:

Our verdict: Possibly hard to implement; huge impact on error reduction.

Call for Action

The goal of this article is to make it very easy for any user to vote on a curated list of ideas. If you like any of them, voting is as simple as Click and Like.

That being said, we are sure that once you see how easy is to read the rest of the ideas, you will spend more time in the Top Ten List Community and find even more ideas worth voting for.

Let’s help SOLDIWORKS improve by taking a few minutes to make our preferences known.

If you want to see which of the ideas made the Top Ten, you can attend The Top Ten List Session at 12:30 pm CT on Wednesday, February 14, 2024 at 3DEXPERIENCE World 2024.

About the Author

As an Elite AE and Senior Training and Process Consultant, working for TriMech Solutions, Alin Vargatu is a Problem Hunter and Solver. He has presented 43 times at 3DEXPERIENCE World and SOLIDWORKS World, twice at SLUGME and tens of times at SWUG meetings in Canada and the United States. His blog and YouTube channel are well known in the SOLIDWORKS Community. In recognition for his activity in the SOLIDWORKS Community, the SWUGN (SOLIDWORKS User Group Network) awarded Alin the SOLIDWORKS AE of the Year title.

I have been fortunate enough to get my hands on the prerelease of next year’s version, and had a chance to look at some of the features that I’ve been hearing about.

Over the course of three articles, this one being the last, I review some of the new features of SOLIDWORKS 2024. For this final article, I will focus on the new drawing features.

Each feature will get a small description of how to use it, as well as a final review. Each feature will receive a rating of 1 to 5 “Trains.”

Reattach Dangling Dimensions

Every SOLIDWORKS user has been in a situation where the 3D model has changed and as a result your dimension becomes dangling, which means it can no longer find its original attached location.

What does it do?

While it was possible to reattach the dimension by dragging it into place, it may be troublesome to do so. In SOLIDWORKS 2024, it has become much easier to reattach dangling dimensions. You can do it with just two clicks.

How to use it?

When you have a dimension that is dangling, as seen above, simply right click on it and select reattach.

After the reattach command is activated, you can see the “unattached points” marked with red.

The point you are currently working in has a little red X.

As you can see in the animation below, once you have attached the first dimension, the other attachment point becomes active and you can attach that one, as well.

Do we need it?

This can be a huge time-saver, because we no longer must drag the dimension into place. It is simple and intuitive to use, which is why I am giving it 5 trains.

Keep Link Property Dialog Box Open

When creating a custom property link from model to Drawing in SOLIDWORKS, a surefire way to get the correct properties is by selecting them with the property Dialog box.

What does it do?

In previous versions, the dialog box closed whenever you had created one property link, and you had to reopen it to add another value to the annotation.

For instance, if you wanted to add the value “description” and “number” to a certain note, you first had to add description and press OK and then open the dialog box again and select the number.

However, in SOLIDWORKS 2024 the dialog box stays open until you decide to close it.

How to use it?

With a text annotation activated, press the “Link to property” button. Select the first property you want to add and press “Add.”

Select the other property you want to add and either press Add if you want to add more, or just click OK if you only want to add that property.

The end result is a dynamic textbox that updates as you change the custom properties.

Do we need it?

Working with support, I know many companies who use multiple properties in their description. While you can do this within a single line on the model, it’s a very good solution when setting up your link to properties in a text.

This will get 4 out of 5 trains.

Overridden Dimensions

In SOLIDWORKS, you might find it useful to overwrite a dimension manually on a drawing. However, when opening the drawing after a couple of months, it can be difficult to see which dimension has been changed.

In SOLIDWORKS 2024 it has become a lot easier to find your changed dimension.

What does it do?

This new feature gives your changed dimension a specific color which makes it stand out compared to the other dimensions.

How to use it?

It is already active by default. To test it simply select a dimension and press “override dimension.” Change it and you can see the dimension has changed.

You can, of course, set the color yourself. Simply go to Options > System Options > Colors.

Within the color scheme, you can find the line “Drawing, overridden dimensions.”
If you want this rule to apply to drawings pre-SOLIDWORKS 2024, you have to reload your drafting standard.

Pro Tip: If you decide to use the original value again, simply right click on the dimension and press “Restore Original Value.”

Do we need it?

This feature has its merits, especially with older drawings, as it makes it a lot easier to find dimensions that have been changed manually. In my previous employment, I would often find myself searching for old dimensions that had been changed.

Out of sheer nostalgia, I am giving this 5 out of 5 trains.

Highlight Referenced Elements

This turned out to be a favorite of mine once I got to know it. When selecting a dimension, you can see where it is referenced. This means that you can see if it is a point-to-point selection.

How to use it?

This is a document setting, which means that you want to add it to your template.

Go to Tools > Options > Document Properties > Detailing.

In this pane, you will find a checkmark for “Highlight associated elements on reference dimension selection.”

With that checkmark set, you can see the first measurement selected is the bottom line for my measurement.

And in the second measurement, I selected the two vertical lines.

And then, with the third dimension I selected two points.

Do we need it?

As I wrote earlier, I really like this feature as it can help you find out how you have dimensioned your model.

This feature is also rated 5 out of 5 trains.

Keeping Chain Dimensions Colinear

A lot of users have requested this one, as most users of the chain dimensions prefer their arrows to be colinear.

What does it do?

This is a purely cosmetic change but a great addition nonetheless.  It ensures that your chain dimension is colinear at all times, no matter how small the space is.

How to use it?

This is a document setting. Go to Options > Document Properties > Dimension > Linear > Chain Dimensions

You actually have two options. To avoid having the text and the arrowheads overlap, you can put a check mark in “offset text automatically when space is limited.” If you are using the ANSI or ISO drafting standard, this checkmark is added automatically in your options. However, if you want to ensure that the arrowheads do not overlap, you can make a decision on what should be done.

Under “When Arrowheads overlap substitute arrowhead termination automatically with” you can select either Points or Oblique Strokes.

If you are using the ISO drafting standard, this checkmark is added automatically in your options.

The result is as you can see below.

Do we need it?

It is a great addition to the options for the chain dimensions and I know quite a few people who will be very pleased with it. You still have the option to use the chain dimension as you want to, and you are not chained down (see what I did there?) to only one option.

This is why I am giving this new feature 5 out of 5 trains.

I really like all these additions to the drawing and sketching environment. There is no absolute favorite. They are all good ways to create drawings, spot errors and troubleshoot.

Each feature will get a small description on how to use it, as well as a final rating of 1 to 5 “Trains.”

Rip Tool

In SOLIDWORKS 2024, you can use the rip tool to create rips in hollowed out cylindrical bodies and convert it to sheet metal.

What does it do?

In previous releases of SOLIDWORKS, converting a conical or cylindrical body to sheet metal would require you to insert a cut before converting it.

How to use it?

To use this tool, you need a hollowed out solid body that is not a sheet metal component.

For this test, I am going to create a point on one of the end faces. If you use a point that is not on the face, it will be projected to the face.

Select the Rip tool and then select one of the edges of the model.

A menu will appear. First select the starting point of the rip (1). Afterwards, you can use the menu to fine tune the placement and size of the rip. (2)

After pressing OK, you can see the rip in the body.

After that you can use Insert Bend.

Then select an edge and convert it to a sheet metal object.

Do we need it?

This is something that users have been wishing for and I like how Dassault Systèmes has approached it and created an easy-to-use solution.

5 out of 5 trains from me.

Stamp Tool

SOLIDWORKS 2024 has made it a lot easier to create stamps.

What does it do?

In previous versions, you had to save a file with the .SLDFTP extension in order to use the Stamp tool, but now you can just use a sketch.

How to use it?

After creating a sheet metal component, you can either sketch your stamp or insert a saved block.

With the sketch (or sketch block) selected, press the Stamp tool.

Modify your stamp as needed.

Press OK and a stamp is created.

Do we need it?

This is some of the best news about this year’s version of SOLIDWORKS. It makes creating stamps very simple and can really improve your workflow.

Because of its simplicity and great interface, this feature receives 5 out of 5 trains.

Repairing References in Patterns

In SOLIDWORKS 2024 you have the option to repair the reference for a linear or circular pattern.

What does it do?

Depending on the type of pattern, SOLIDWORKS can do one of two things:

With a linear pattern, SOLIDWORKS will attempt to replace the reference by selecting a reference on the component that has the same orientation or type, as well as the reference which is located closest to the original reference.

With circular patterns, SOLIDWORKS will attempt to select a reference which is coaxial to the original reference.

How to use it?

After opening your model with the problematic pattern, right click and press Auto Repair.

You might find yourself in a situation where an auto repair is not possible due to the complexity of the model. In that case you will have to do a manual repair.

It is also worth noting that the Auto Repair feature is not available when the assembly is in large assembly mode.

Do we need it?

While writing this article, I came up with quite a few scenarios where the auto repair could be helpful – and in each case, it worked very well.

5 out of 5 trains from me.

Specify Default Prefix or Suffix for Components

Now you can specify a prefix or suffix for your hand mirrored components.

What does it do?

In previous versions, you had to decide your prefix or suffix every time you wanted to create an opposite-hand mirrored component. With SOLIDWORKS 2024, you can specify a default prefix or suffix for your mirrored components as well as for your internal files.

How to use it?

Open your options (Tools > Options, or via the cogwheel) and within the system options find the assembly pane.

In the bottom of the assembly pane, you can select whether you want a default prefix or suffix for your hand mirrored components. You also can set a prefix for internal files created from external references.

If you have an assembly, and you select to create an opposite hand version, you have the option to save it. You will get a predefined prefix (if that’s what you selected).

If you want to save a file as an internal reference, the prefix is added by default.

Do we need it?

Hand mirrored versions have been very popular for quite some time, and I know quite a few people who will be happy about this addition.

While it is not revolutionary, it will definitely help in the workflow for some users, which is why I give this feature 4 out of 5 trains.

Defeature Rule Sets

Defeature has been around for 12 years now and has always been a popular feature to use when improving the performance of your model.

With this year’s version, you can define your own set of rules within defeature.

What does it do?

When using the Silhouette defeature method, you will be given the option to create a set of rules to help you automate the simplification of your model.

This will enable you to set up a rule for many different variables.

How to use it?

With your SOLIDWORKS assembly open, start the defeature tool.

First you need to select the defeature method. If you want to set up your rules, you must select the Silhouette defeature method.

After pressing next, you will get the option to load a previously saved rule set or create a new set of rules.

Start by selecting Edit Rules.

If you are well-versed in Advanced Search, then this might seem very familiar to you. If not, allow me to give you a few pointers.

Start by naming your first rule. In this case, I will call it Remove Pins.

Next you should give a selection criterion. in this case, we select all files that are named “pin.”

Next you should select the defeature type. I will not go into the different defeature types, but you’ll find mention of it in a previous article.

For now, I will select the bounding box which will also give me the option to include all components with the name “pin,” in one bounding box or in one bounding box per part.

With the next selection you can select the orientation of the defeature.

And finally, you can select if you want to include the appearance of your part, which is also a new feature of SOLIDWORKS 2024.

When the rule has been set up, press Save to save the rule set to be used later.

Once the rule is loaded into the system, click Apply and the rule is applied to your model.

Afterwards, you can continue to use defeature as you see fit.

Do we need it?

This is a great addition to the defeature tool. The selection criteria can really help you narrow it down.

And I can certainly see how this will save a lot of time for users.

Another 5 out of 5 trains from me.

Those are all the features we will cover in this article. Stay tuned for the next one. The train is just around the corner.

This year I’ve had the good fortune to get my hands on the pre-release of next year’s version of SOLIDWORKS. It has given me a chance to look at some of the features that will be offered—and select favorites.

 I have more favorites than can fit in a single article, so this will be the first of a series in which I give new features a rating of 1 to 5 “Trains.”

Backward Compatibility

This one is very exciting: it is finally possible to save a SOLIDWORKS 2024 file as a 2022 or 2023 compatibility version – to some degree.

What does it do?

When saving the file, you now have the option to save it as a SOLIDWORKS 2022 or 2023 compatible file.

How to use it?

After saving your file as a 2024 version, you can use File > Save As.

With the Save As window open, you can select if you want to save it as a 2022 or 2023 SOLIDWORKS file.

Once saved, you can open the file in that particular version.

However, if you are using one of the new features of SOLIDWORKS 2024, a popup screen will warn you that you cannot save your file before you remove that particular feature.

Once the feature is deleted, you will be able to save your file.

Note that you need to be on subscription in order to use this feature.

Do we need it?

All users have been waiting a long time for this and I really like what they have done with the option.

It makes sense, in my book, that it is not possible to save 2024 features in an older version. However, I am missing two things:

1. An option to delete the features that will not let you save to a previous version from within the Save dialog box itself. That would make the process a lot easier.
2. I can imagine that a lot of people will be using this, which means that it would be great if there was the option to set up a shortcut for saving in either 2022 or 2023 compatibility mode.

This is why I am giving the “Backward Compatibility” feature 4 Trains.

Sketch Dimension Preview

You now have the option to preview a sketch dimension before you create it.

What does it do?

Selecting a sketch entry now gives you a preview of the dimension, and clicking on it will give you a preview of the dimension.

How to use it?

After creating a sketch, click on one of the sketch entries and you will get a preview of the dimension.

Clicking on the dimension changes your tool to the dimension tool, and you can change the dimension you want.

Once this is done, you can either create a new dimension or press escape to exit the dimension tool.

By holding down CTRL and selecting two lines, you can get a preview of the angle between the two lines. And as before, you can change the dimension as you see fit.

Do we need it?

I really like this new way of dimensioning as it feels more organic and can really help you speed the up your sketch creation.

It gets 5 out of 5 Trains from me.

Within the models and features, there are two things that I want to emphasize on:

Convert Assembly to Multibody Part

At a first glance, this seems like “save assembly as part” in another wrapping, but it is quite the upgrade.

What does it do?

In SOLIDWORKS 2024, it is possible to create a multibody part from an assembly much like you would make a stock part.

How to use it

With the assembly open, go to tools and press “Make Multibody Part.”

This opens a new menu which gives you the option to decide what configuration you want to export to the new file, including covert surface bodies, axes, planes, coordinate systems and material. Solid bodies are always transferred.

You also get the option to break the link to the original file, as well as keep the visual properties from the original file.

Press OK and the file is created.

If you have selected to keep the link to the original file, the file will update if you add components to the assembly.

With previous versions, it was possible to save your assembly as a multibody part file. However, this part had no link to the original file and any updates were lost, and you had to create a new file. With this feature, it is possible to always have the latest file of the assembly on a part.

Do we need it?

I really like the possibilities with this new feature. By suppressing components in a configuration, you can easily decide what you want included in the exported part. This is also one of those things we did not know that we needed, but which has been provided.

Once again 5 out of 5 trains from me.

Hide and Show

If you select multiple instances, i.e. sketches, bodies or planes with different visibility, in SOLIDWORKS 2024 you will get an option to either hide all or show all.

What does it do?

In previous versions, when you selected instances where some are hidden and some are visible, your option was limited after selecting them.

In SOLIDWORKS 2024, you get the option to either hide them all or show them all.

How to use it?

Select either multiple bodies, sketches or planes by hold down CTRL while you select the different objects. Or select them by using the selection tool.

A selection menu will appear allowing you to hide all instances or show all instances.

Do we need it?

You can achieve the same effect with a right click after selecting the components, meaning that you save a mouse click. I was a bit skeptical at first, but after playing around with it, I can see its potential.

This is why I am giving this feature 4 Trains.

Use an Existing Sketch in Hole Wizard

This one is one that I remember missing, while working in my previous job.

What does it do?

In previous versions, you had to select the points individually if you wanted to use an existing sketch.

Now you can use an existing sketch as a hole location.

How to use it?

You can start by selecting the sketch and start the hole wizard and select the hole size.

Or you can select the hole wizard, select the sketch and when you need to place the holes, you select the sketch from the flyout tree.

For both cases, the location of the holes will be determined by the placement of the points. This means that if you have a rectangle, the holes will be placed in the corners.

You can plan your hole location using different sketches, and if you add a hole in the sketch, a hole will be added to the model.

The sketch menu will also give you the option to skip instances of points in the sketch.

Do we need it?

This addition can be a real time saver, as well as a great way to edit your Hole Wizard locations.

I am feeling generous and will give this 5 out of 5 Trains.

That’s all for now, but stay tuned for the next article in the series.