SolidWorks CSWP - logo

The CSWP – Mold Tools exam is the latest Certified SolidWorks Professional (CSWP) specialty exams in-which I have received certification. Of the specialty exam series, I still have yet to take the CSWSP-FEA exam (simulation tools), and of the CSWP specialty exams I have taken, the CSWP – Mold Tools is the most unusual of the series. I say this because the questions seem to require a different way of thinking from the other exams, and this is the only CSWP exam where I was able to finish before the time clock expired. In-fact, I was able to finish at a rather leisurely pace. However, because this CSWP exam had fewer questions to answer, miss just answering one question correctly and you may fail the test.

Read the rest of this entry »

CSWP - Sheetmetal logo

The CSWP – Sheetmetal exam is one of several Certified SolidWorks Professional (CSWP) specialty exams currently being offered by SolidWorks. Previously, I have reviewed the CSWP – Core, Surfacing, and Weldment exams from previous posts, and the sheet metal exam is one of the more challenging CSWP exams. I highly recommend that the CAD model be of very robust construction so that is does not fail during modifications to the model while working through some of the successive exam questions.

Read the rest of this entry »

SolidWorks CSWP - logo

After completing the CSWP – Core, Surfacing, & Sheet metal certification exams, my next challenge was to take up the CSWP – Weldment certification exam. As the bulk of my experience using SolidWorks 3-D CAD is in designing molded parts, sheet metal parts, and machined parts, weldments is an area where I am still in the process of developing expertise. Although I have worked on a few projects in SolidWorks that require weldments, it is not typical of the project requests I receive from other clients. As a result, I needed to spend more time in studying for the CSWP – Weldment exam than I did for the other CSWP specialty certification exams.

Read the rest of this entry »

CSWP - Surfacing logo

The SolidWorks certification program, in-addition to the CSWP – Core exam, includes 5 CSWP specialty exams: Mold Tools, Sheet Metal, Simulation, Surfacing, and Weldments. Of these specialty exams, the surfacing exam (with the possible exception of simulation) is considered to be one of the most challenging to pass. For those of you unfamiliar with 3-D CAD surface modeling, it is typically used to create molded parts with complex geometry that could not otherwise be created from solid modeling techniques. Industrial Designers primarily use surface modeling, and so do engineers that are designing consumer goods & medical device molded products.

Read the rest of this entry »

CSWP - Core logo

In the recent past, there has been much discussion among SolidWorks users about becoming a Certified SolidWorks Professional. I recently received my CSWP – Core (see here) on 02/01/2011 (Certificate ID: C-2FZWGXDCD8), and I had passed the CSWP specialty exams: Surfacing, Sheet metal, and Weldments exams before passing the actual Core exam itself. Many SolidWorks users who take the CSWP exams typically complete the core exam first before moving on to the CSWP specialty exams. Of the specialty exams I had previously taken, only the Mold Tools exam was taken after the CSWP – Core exam.

Read the rest of this entry »

One of the previous drawbacks in SolidWorks Drawings was that, unlike Pro/Engineer, the title block data fields could not be entered / edited by double clicking on the note containing the custom property (Pro-E: parameter).  The previously solution was to open the part or assembly file and edit the custom properties directly in the model, and then the title block data field would update accordingly. As of SolidWorks 2009, this capability became available in SolidWorks although it has existed in Pro/Engineer for several years.

Read the rest of this entry »

Most of you realize that 3-D CAD can be used to develop complex geometry through surface modeling, such as injection-molded plastic & die-cast parts, but how often do we really think about the equations used that actually drive these part models? Although we may dimension points on the splines, add constraints (tangent, curvature, etc.), and / or use splines as bridges between curves, we may not always realize there is an equation that describes the shape of the curve.

This brief tutorial is intended to introduce the SolidWorks or Pro-E user to using equations.  Equation driven curves are frequently used in features for the purpose of modeling surface or solid geometry in the part model. Some examples include: springs, wave washers, and optical lenses. Although there are mathematical tools available that integrate into 3-D CAD software (ex: MathCAD with Pro-E), I would like to demonstrate curve driven equation using the existing tools within the CAD software to create 3-D curves starting with Euler’s Equation (http://www.songho.ca/math/euler/euler.html).

Read the rest of this entry »

On June 30th in Chicago this year, a Solidworks 2010 vs. Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire 5.0 Shootout (see here) occurred for the purpose of comparing Design Engine’s “rapid fire” surface modeling technique as applied in each CAD system. Design Engine defines “Rapid Fire” as work flow constructing sketches & surface model features for sequential rapid modification. I was invited to be on the SolidWorks team with Bart Brejcha that was in competition with the Pro/Engineer team at this event.

Read the rest of this entry »

When modeling a part in SolidWorks, there are specific situations where a curvature continuous (C2) fillet is desired, but a double hold-line fillet or the “atomic bomb” fillet (split line, delete face, and fill surface) is unable to be created. The delima is how to create these fillets using as few features in the model tree as possible.

Read the rest of this entry »

With the introduction of the iPhone, there has been much discussion among both the SolidWorks and Pro/Engineer communities about how to model this shape in 3-D CAD. Although it can be done in either CAD system, and has been previously discussed in Josh Mings’s SolidSmack blog (see here) and the Pro-E MCAD forum (see here), I will discuss what I believe to be the most robust / straight-forward approach in creating this model in SolidWorks.

Read the rest of this entry »