Workarounds: Difference between revisions
(small explanation for one workaround) |
(updated links to Link Branch) |
||
Line 100: | Line 100: | ||
| |
| |
||
* Manually trace over the geometry created by this tool |
* Manually trace over the geometry created by this tool |
||
* [https://github.com/realthunder/ |
* [https://github.com/realthunder/FreeCAD/releases Link Branch] - Defining Geometry tool |
||
<!--T:16--> |
<!--T:16--> |
||
Line 176: | Line 176: | ||
* Change the Lighting property in the part's view settings to "One side" (very rough equivalent, problem with multicolored parts) |
* Change the Lighting property in the part's view settings to "One side" (very rough equivalent, problem with multicolored parts) |
||
* [[Part_SectionCut|Persistent section cut]] tool - deselect all planes before pressing Close, doesn't work for intersecting parts in assemblies |
* [[Part_SectionCut|Persistent section cut]] tool - deselect all planes before pressing Close, doesn't work for intersecting parts in assemblies |
||
* [https://github.com/realthunder/ |
* [https://github.com/realthunder/FreeCAD/releases Link Branch] - experimental renderer |
||
<!--T:26--> |
<!--T:26--> |
||
Line 207: | Line 207: | ||
| |
| |
||
* Create a separate [[PartDesign_Body|body]] for each solid |
* Create a separate [[PartDesign_Body|body]] for each solid |
||
* [https://github.com/realthunder/ |
* [https://github.com/realthunder/FreeCAD/releases Link Branch] |
||
<!--T:30--> |
<!--T:30--> |
||
Line 216: | Line 216: | ||
* Select edges from the sketch and create a [[Std_LinkMakeRelative|SubLink]] or a [[PartDesign_SubShapeBinder|SubShapeBinder]] and pad that new object |
* Select edges from the sketch and create a [[Std_LinkMakeRelative|SubLink]] or a [[PartDesign_SubShapeBinder|SubShapeBinder]] and pad that new object |
||
* [[PartDesign_Pad|Pad]] a complete sketch located on the existing face of the model in the opposite direction (towards the existing shape) so that only new faces are created. Then it is possible to select these faces individually and pad them. This method should be used with caution since unnecessary 3D operations may lead to unexpected errors. Thus, it is recommended to use the previous workaround instead. |
* [[PartDesign_Pad|Pad]] a complete sketch located on the existing face of the model in the opposite direction (towards the existing shape) so that only new faces are created. Then it is possible to select these faces individually and pad them. This method should be used with caution since unnecessary 3D operations may lead to unexpected errors. Thus, it is recommended to use the previous workaround instead. |
||
* [https://github.com/realthunder/ |
* [https://github.com/realthunder/FreeCAD/releases Link Branch] - Export Single Geometry and Export Multiple Geometries tools or automatic [[PartDesign_SubShapeBinder|SubShapeBinder]] created when edges forming a closed loop are selected from the sketch before [[PartDesign_Pad|padding]] |
||
<!--T:31--> |
<!--T:31--> |
||
Line 567: | Line 567: | ||
| Improved appearance/rendering of 3D models |
| Improved appearance/rendering of 3D models |
||
| |
| |
||
* [https://github.com/realthunder/ |
* [https://github.com/realthunder/FreeCAD/releases Link Branch] |
||
<!--T:73--> |
<!--T:73--> |
||
Line 589: | Line 589: | ||
| |
| |
||
* Various customization packages created by the community |
* Various customization packages created by the community |
||
* [https://github.com/realthunder/ |
* [https://github.com/realthunder/FreeCAD/releases Link Branch] |
||
<!--T:76--> |
<!--T:76--> |
Revision as of 08:19, 23 August 2022
Introduction
The goal of this article is to list some currently missing features in FreeCAD and provide workarounds for them. It can be helpful for new users who can't find a particular functionality in FreeCAD.
Workarounds for the Sketcher Workbench
No. | Missing feature | Workarounds |
---|---|---|
1 | Auto snap to objects (midpoints, center points, quadrants, extensions, intersections) |
|
2 | Chamfer tool |
|
3 | Circular pattern |
|
4 | Offset tool |
|
5 | Rotate tool |
|
6 | Scale tool | |
7 | Adaptive dimension constraint |
|
8 | Input coordinates and dimensions on the go (when drawing an object) |
|
9 | Tangency to B-spline edge |
|
10 | Check geometric and mass properties of the sketch (area, center of mass, second moments of area and so on) |
|
11 | Possibility to use the results of the External Geometry tool directly for operations on the sketch |
|
12 | Project multiple edges at once with the External Geometry tool when a face is selected |
|
13 | 3D sketches |
|
14 | Projection of cut edges when making a sketch on a plane cutting through an object | |
15 | View section tool showing filled cuts |
|
16 | Rectangle from 3 corners and rectangle from 3 points by center tools |
|
17 | Diameter dimension with respect to a symmetry axis for revolved parts |
|
Workarounds for the Part Workbench and Part Design Workbench
No. | Missing feature | Workarounds |
---|---|---|
1 | Check the geometric and mass properties of the model |
|
2 | Display the center of mass of the model (part or assembly) | |
3 | Clipping plane that doesn't make the model look like it's hollow |
|
4 | Creation of an axis on the intersection of 2 planes and a plane midway between two faces/points, possibly more variants for datum creation |
|
5 | Automated midsurface extraction (for thin-walled parts) |
|
6 | Project (map/wrap) sketches on non-planar (e.g. cylindrical) faces |
|
7 | Support for multiple solids within a body |
|
8 | Select which part of the sketch to pad |
|
9 | Fillets and chamfers that can consume adjacent faces/edges |
|
10 | Variable radius for the PartDesign Fillet tool |
|
11 | Parametric curves | |
12 | Cosmetic threads | |
13 | Partitions (splitting surfaces and volumes with sketches and datum planes while keeping the number of parts unchanged) |
|
14 | Guide rails for Additive Pipe and Additive Loft or their equivalents in the Part Workbench |
|
15 | Twist for PartDesign AdditivePipe or Part Sweep |
|
16 | Bending existing parts |
|
17 | Pattern along a curve |
|
18 | Cut scope - cut tools affecting only selected part of the model |
|
19 | Merging adjacent faces |
|
20 | Hole tool using points from sketches |
|
21 | Datum points from coordinates |
|
22 | A tool for automatic creation of ribs (structural reinforcements) |
|
23 | A tool for automatic creation of domes |
|
Workarounds for the Draft Workbench
No. | Missing feature | Workarounds |
---|---|---|
1 | Snapping to apparent intersections, perpendicular extensions and arc extensions, geometric centers and tangent points |
|
2 | Keyboard shortcuts for Draft Snap tools |
|
3 | Draft objects automatically changing color back to normal when removing them from the construction geometry group |
|
4 | An option to quickly switch between the three main working planes and their projections at the selected point (for 3D drafting) |
|
5 | Removing one arrow from the radial dimension |
|
6 | Arrows in angular dimension aligned with the dimension line |
|
7 | AutoCAD-like command line input |
|
Workarounds for the TechDraw Workbench
No. | Missing feature | Workarounds |
---|---|---|
1 | Advanced section views (half, broken out, offset and aligned sections) |
|
2 | Auto diameter dimension on side views |
|
3 | Sketch in drawings |
|
4 | Shaded views in drawings |
|
5 | Ordinate dimensions |
|
6 | Broken (interrupted) views |
|
7 | Exclude ribs from hatching |
|
8 | Export of TechDraw pages as PDF without making the text from the template (path text) unmarkable/unsearchable. |
|
Workarounds for the FEM Workbench
No. | Missing feature | Workarounds |
---|---|---|
1 | Beams with arbitrary cross-section |
|
2 | Pressure load on shells, distributed load on beams | |
3 | Support for multiple meshes and thus possibility to define contact between touching (not separated) faces |
|
4 | Apply torque to any surface |
|
5 | Define rigid bodies and virtual elements |
|
6 | Advanced material models (hyperelasticity, creep and so on) |
|
7 | Composite shells |
|
8 | Simple creation of node and element sets as well as surfaces |
|
9 | CalculiX keyword editor that can fold data lines and allow changes not only right before running the analysis |
|
10 | Meshing with hexahedral elements |
|
11 | Analyses with 2D (plane stress, plane strain, axisymmetric) elements |
|
12 | Multistep analyses (e.g. preload for frequency/buckling analysis) |
|
General workarounds
No. | Missing feature | Workarounds |
---|---|---|
1 | Official assembly workbench |
|
2 | Improved appearance/rendering of 3D models | |
3 | Status bar instructions (“Now pick this …”) for many tools that would benefit from them (e.g. Sketcher constraints) |
|
4 | Consistent selection order - some tools require the user to pick the geometric entity first while others allow selection after enabling the tool |
|
5 | More GUI customization options - pie menus, different icon styles and themes and so on |
|
6 | Selection filter (picking only faces, edges, points and so on) |
|
7 | Assembly workbench with an option to constrain parts to the origin and to datums |
|
8 | Transform tool with an option to move and rotate with respect to edges and global coordinates |
|
9 | More texturing options |
|
10 | View normal to a face (useful for creating specifically aligned views in TechDraw) |
|
11 | Highlight only the individual PartDesign feature in the 3D view when the corresponding operation is selected in the Tree view |
|
12 | Select only the individual PartDesign feature in the Tree view when a corresponding element is selected in the 3D view. |
|
13 | Freeform modeling |
|
14 | Assembly component generators and calculators for: bolted and riveted connections, shafts, splines, keys, cams, gears (spur, bevel, worm), bearings, springs, belts and chains, pins, o-rings |
|
15 | A tool for kinematic analysis on properly constrained sketches | |
16 | GD&T directly on 3D models - MBD approach |
|