Can't dimension to hidden lines

dan_engerer

Hello. I'm having issues with Onshape's drawing capabilities. I am not able to create section views that are anything other than perfectly vertical or horizontal. As a result, I am left trying to get create in order to dimension my features in very kooky and indirect ways. But, I'm not even able to add dimensions to hidden lines. 

So, I'm not really able to make anywhere near a professional looking drawing because we are lacking some very basic features. I'm not cutting a section through a part arbitrarily so that I am able to select an edge. That's goofy. 

PeteYodis

Currently you can't create an angular section view (referred to as auxiliary section views sometimes) and this is an improvement we are planning on making.  As a near term solution, you can currently rotate a view such that the section needed would be horizontal or vertical and then create the section view and dimension.  You'll need to ensure the view has no dependents that prevent it from being rotated.

Dimensions to hidden lines is also another highly requested feature that we have plans to enable.  The creation of a section view is the workaround as you mention here...

StephenG

I also have been stymied by being only able to create a section views that are horizontal, or vertical with respect to the paper.

Creating a dimension to a hidden line is not allowed according to drafting/detailing standards. Creating section views to expose hidden lines is one way to satisfy the standard, but it also common to create "breakouts" to expose hidden lines (show them as solid line edges).  I have seen breakouts faked in drawing views associated to a solid using hand drawn entities, but some CAD system (ex. CATIA) have a create breakout function.

Is Onshape going to support creation of breakouts, or is it going to include 2D drawing tools to allow breaks to be faked? 

PeteYodis

Broken out views are also planned and will be an excellent option to dimension to actual visible geometry if you don't want to dimension to hidden lines (taboo for very good reasons some times).  One advantage of broken views is that they don't create another view and therefore are a compact way to define something in a drawing that can't be seen without removing some portion of the geometry in the view. 

It's possible to "fake" a broken out view now if you are willing to create a derived part (a new part studio) of the part you are detailing in the drawing.  In that derived part you can make your broken out cut feature.  From the drawing you can insert a view of that derived part with the broken out feature cut and detail that view as needed.  Not ideal, but possible today.

StephenG

Clever... derived part with added remove feature to expose edges that would normally be hidden in the drawing view. (A good engineer can always find a way to get things done given sub optimal resources.)

This drawing thing (requirement) is a difficult for developers of 3D mechanical CAD products to deal with. A lot of customers want/expect best in class in data management, 3D modeling and 2D drawing arenas, making it very difficult to achieve in a product when developers are competing for the same finite resources. I am sure this is a raging battle within Onshape as to where development efforts should be focused: moving towards a fully 3D solution, continue support for a 3D/2D hybrid solution with, or without a fully functional standalone 2D drawing tool.

It would be nice to know where the product is headed (with maybe a road map/timeline); right now it is not clear. Specifically, I think the user base would like to know Onshape's commitment to:

• Making the 3D model the record of authority where all Product Manufacturing Information (PMI) can be directly entered against (associated with the) model geometry.
• Supporting the classical use of drawings (2D paper based representations of 3D objects) to create "Release to Manufacturing" drawings.
• Providing a standalone 2D drawing tool capable of augmenting the design process which also has all the functionality to create a "Release to Manufacturing" document.

I trust the user base understands profitability is probably the main driver that steers product development; compromises have to be made and users will never get everything they want from Onshape. However, Onshape's cloud based architecture, which appears to allow for integration with other "best in class" products, is a real game changer in the CAD industry.