12 SolidWorks Tips in 2012 #5: Library Features to "Die" For (with video tutorial)

I know this may sound like a repeat from SolidWorks Tip #3, There's a Bug in My Library Feature, but it seems like I have been getting tons of questions lately about how to create Library Features.  In Tip #3, I didn't go in great detail about how to create a library feature from start to finish, so I wanted to spend the time to go into this process a bit more.

The main example in the video tutorial provided below stems from a Stamping customer of mine that makes small Stamping and Progressive Dies. They create most of their punches and forms as inserts, so they can be easily replaced or sharpened. Most of the time, these inserts are assembled via a simple cut in the main die blocks. The cut-outs could be a number of different sizes, but are still very simple (basically a rectangle with reliefs in the corners), which led us down the path of library features to Die for.





To sum up, the basic steps of library feature creation are:

1. Create one or more features in a sample part that you want to be your library features (be cautious about how these are created, explained in more detail in video).
2. Add these features into your Design Library
3. Make any necessary modifications to the newly created library feature part
4. Test and tweak as needed

Obviously there is a little more involved within the four steps, so go through the above video for a more detailed explanation and start creating your own library features to Die for.



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