How do I move a derived sketch?

nick_papageorge073

I have a skeleton sketch that I am deriving into another part studio. It comes in at the origin on the target studio. I want to move it. I can't move it using the transform tool. In contrast, I can move a derived feature that is solid geometry using the transform tool. But this particular derive is 100% a sketch, and I can't select it within the transform tool to move it. Is there any workaround? Thanks.

Evan_Reese

I'm probably too late to help with your project, but using the Super Derive feature from @ilya_baran should work. It lets you pick a mate connector to orient to (among many other awesome things). Here's my example.

matthew_stacy

@nick_papageorge073, it is far from elegant but the best I could come up with is to extrude the derived sketch into a part.  Transform the part.  Then sketch on the face of the part:  Use(Project/Convert).

https://cad.onshape.com/documents/2246180696d2dd9071364d78/w/d3c7255baacac10f96ce833b/e/d31291726b2ea80abf44ec95 

Does that help?  I must say that I am a bit miffed that OS allows us to DERIVE sketches and parts with the same tool but provides no direct provisions to transform a derived sketch.  Maybe I missed something obvious.  Wouldn't be the first time ... nor the last.

robert_scott_jr_

I found that if you create a new sketch on the same plane as the derived sketch, select the USE tool and rectangle select the entire derived sketch, a copy of the derived sketch is created. It (the copy) then can be transformed. The derived sketch can also the be deleted if desired. - Scotty

nick_papageorge073

matthew_stacy said:

@nick_papageorge073, it is far from elegant but the best I could come up with is to extrude the derived sketch into a part.  Transform the part.  Then sketch on the face of the part:  Use(Project/Convert).

https://cad.onshape.com/documents/2246180696d2dd9071364d78/w/d3c7255baacac10f96ce833b/e/d31291726b2ea80abf44ec95 

Does that help?  I must say that I am a bit miffed that OS allows us to DERIVE sketches and parts with the same tool but provides no direct provisions to transform a derived sketch.  Maybe I missed something obvious.  Wouldn't be the first time ... nor the last.

Wow, that is clunky! But it can work. Thanks for the idea. I'm coming from ProE/Creo, where I would make a surface skeleton model of a subassy, pub geom all the surfaces, sketches, datums needed to a subsequient part file. And when importing those features in the subsequent part file, they can be placed by coordinate system.

Upon further messing around, if I derive a group of features such as a body, some construction planes, etc, I have to transform all of them individually in the target part studio. I can't group the entirety of the derived items and move them together. Doesn't seem worth it to do it this way at all. Too many workarounds.

nick_papageorge073

robert_scott_jr_ said:

I found that if you create a new sketch on the same plane as the derived sketch, select the USE tool and rectangle select the entire derived sketch, a copy of the derived sketch is created. It (the copy) then can be transformed. The derived sketch can also the be deleted if desired. - Scotty

I tried this just now, and could not move the "use edge" sketch made from the derived sketch. I actually could not select any of the new sketch in the transform selection tool. So I took it a step further, and made a new sketch from scratch, not linked to any derived sketch, and simply tried a transform on that sketch. The same thing happened, I could not select the sketch once inside the transform tool.

nick_papageorge073

I suppose knowing this, I should probably switch my thinking to make skeletons that will be derived to other part studios more surface/solid based, rather than sketch based.

bruce_williams

Are you in edit sketch mode?  There is a transform command while a sketch is open and another for parts.

Evan_Reese

I'm probably too late to help with your project, but using the Super Derive feature from @ilya_baran should work. It lets you pick a mate connector to orient to (among many other awesome things). Here's my example.

nick_papageorge073

Evan_Reese said:

I'm probably too late to help with your project, but using the Super Derive feature from @ilya_baran should work. It lets you pick a mate connector to orient to (among many other awesome things). Here's my example.

Hi Evan, this is really good. Thank you for sharing. I tried it out and its much better than the built in Derive. I can add planes, sketches, etc, to the SuperDerive feature, and locate them all wherever I please in the target part studio. The only functionality I see missing is the ability to select a mate connector on the source geometry for location. The way I'm seeing it now, is it mates only the origin of the source geometry to any selected mate connector on the target part studio.

Evan_Reese

nick_papageorge073 said:

Evan_Reese said:

I'm probably too late to help with your project, but using the Super Derive feature from @ilya_baran should work. It lets you pick a mate connector to orient to (among many other awesome things). Here's my example.

Hi Evan, this is really good. Thank you for sharing. I tried it out and its much better than the built in Derive. I can add planes, sketches, etc, to the SuperDerive feature, and locate them all wherever I please in the target part studio. The only functionality I see missing is the ability to select a mate connector on the source geometry for location. The way I'm seeing it now, is it mates only the origin of the source geometry to any selected mate connector on the target part studio.

It would be super handy sometimes to be able to pick a mate connector as the part coordinate system. I'm not sure how someone would even write that into the feature, but I bet @ilya_baran could figure it out. An alternative could be transform by mate connectors in the part studio you're deriving from first. if you need multiple different mates as origins, then you could add one transform feature per position, and configure their suppression.

ilya_baran

We can't cleanly select a mate connector on the source without a lot of work.  Without a lot of effort I could add a custom feature (that would be used in the source part studio) for marking a mate connector as the "origin" for a super-derive and then use that.

Evan_Reese

ilya_baran said:

We can't cleanly select a mate connector on the source without a lot of work.  Without a lot of effort I could add a custom feature (that would be used in the source part studio) for marking a mate connector as the "origin" for a super-derive and then use that.

Interesting! would this use attributes?

ilya_baran

@Evan_Reese
I think so.  Since code is public, feel free to give it a shot.  The key ingredient is the mateConnector option in addInstance, as described here https://cad.onshape.com/FsDoc/library.html#module-instantiator.fs -- that'd be the query for the special attribute.

christian_petty

@ilya_baran @Evan_Reese Super Derive is great. Is there a way to do sketch-only part studios and still create and orient mate connectors for location parameter? Solid geometry or a surface I think is required to have an owner when creating a MC. The implied MCs all align to the origin orientation, but this skeleton specifically is on the XZ plane.