Thursday September 5, 2013 at 3:33pm
The Property Tab Builder, introduced in SOLIDWORKS 2009 makes the input of custom properties easier than ever. Properties are used to add data to SOLIDWORKS files to populate drawing borders and Bills of Materials tables, but can also be used as a search criteria in Windows Explorer and SOLIDWORKS PDM systems.
The Tab Builder allows you to create an Input Form so that values can be entered with minimal effort, but maximum consistency. You can create check boxes, lists and even links to external databases and spreadsheets.
One option within the builder that isn't immediately obvious is the means of assigning materials. Within the tab builder, a text box control must be used, in conjunction with the syntax [SW-Material].
With this assigned, the input form provides a drop down menu that then shows the material favourites as well as an option to open the full material database.
To customise the material favourites so you see your most common materials immediately, use the Edit Material option from the Feature Tree and then Manage Favourites.
This also supports
Custom Materials, to see how to create these, take a look at this
video on our Solid Solutions TV website, and for more information on the Tab Builder itself, check out the Help Documentation via this
link.
Adam Hartles
Training Manager