Part Creation - Same part for multiple configurations

S_Regula

We have printed labels that are applied to both flat and curved surfaces with various radii. I've created a part with configurations for the flat-mounted and curved-mounted types using a configuration variable for the mounting surface radius. A thin rectangle sketch is used for the flat-mounted config, and a thin "arc" sketch is used for the curve-mounted, with formulas used in conjunction with the config variable to fully dimension/constrain the arc sketch. The configurations are defined so that the rectangle region is selected for the flat-mounted and the curved arc region is selected for the curve-mounted. Then, an extrude is created based on the region selected to create the label. Whether it's a flat-mounted configuration or any of the infinite curve-mounted configurations, it is still the same part/part number. Is there a way to ensure that no matter which configuration is selected, the part name, description, and part number are the same?

romeograham

You may be able to use sheet metal tools to make your label. If the label is on a flat or cylindrical surface - then the Sheet Metal tools are great. Onshape will give you the flat pattern / die line that you can show in a drawing. Onshape manages the two states of the part ("folded" and flat) and you can release just one part number.

Also - it eliminates all the math you mentioned to create the flat pattern!

MichaelPascoe

Hi @S_Regula

One way you can do this is by configuring the properties. Note that if the part is changing, you will need to create these same configurations for the new part. Alternatively, if you are ok with using composite parts, I prefer to use the custom feature Composite Selected by @monroe_weber_shirk so that any part automatically gets added to that composite part. You can apply whatever properties you wish to the composited part.

S_Regula

@romeograham Thanks for the idea. I'm not very familiar with the sheet metal tools in OS. Can a sheet metal flat pattern be inserted into an assembly? I'm not so much concerned about creating a drawing for the label as I am using the same label in 2 different assemblies (one applied to a flat surface, one applied to a curved surface with an arbitrary radius) and the BOM showing the same part name/description/part number in each assembly. And to take it a step further, using 2 of the same label in one assembly (one applied to a curved surface, one applied to a flat surface) and the BOM showing Quantity (2) of the label, not quantity (1) of the flat label and quantity (1) of the curved label.

S_Regula

@MichaelPascoe Thanks for chiming in. The problem with using an input variable (based on the radius of the surface to which the label will be applied) is there are an infinite number of parts that can be modeled as a result. So, configuring part properties becomes an insurmountable task.