This SOLIDWORKS Automation Course is Best Suited for:

• •  SOLIDWORKS Design Engineers / Drafters.

• • university students undertaking STEM-related courses.

• • Developers learning about SOLIDWORKS automation hands-on.

Technical Support

• • Premium technical support benefits for subscription-based members.

Material

• • Sample files are in SW 2017, and the instructor of this course is using SOLIDWORKS 2023

Overall Objectives

This SolidWorks automation training teaches students the knowledge and ability to:

• • Automate repetitive tasks within the SOLIDWORKS environment with incredible gains in productivity and efficiency.

• • Develop own custom VBA macros to automate complex design procedures.

• • Improve the functionality of SOLIDWORKS with custom user interfaces and tools.

• • Gain a deeper level of understanding of the SOLIDWORKS API and what it can do.

• • Write lean, easy-to-maintain, error-free, and robust SolidWorks VBA code.

• • Become an absolute expert at how to automate various aspects of the SOLIDWORKS design process, including part modeling, assembly, and drawing creation alike.

Key Concepts

This wholesome course covers many crucially important aspects, and after learning them, to put them to the test we’ll be working on a mini-project. For that project, we’ll make a DXF exporter for sheet metal components. At the end of it, you’ll have the skills to create your own VBA macros to automate drawings, assemblies, and parts.

As mentioned earlier, we’ll cover many important topics such as:

• • VBA Fundamentals:

    • • Introduction: The past, present (evolution), and future of multiple use cases of VBA across various fields.
    • • Macro Recorder: Step-by-step practical guidance on how to utilize the macro recorder to automate repetitive tasks and then how to create custom buttons on the SOLIDWORKS user interface (to access the most used processes fast and easily).
    • • VBA Editor: Navigation within the VBA editor, its workspace, and personalisation in order for you to be able to work with utmost efficiency.
    • • Programming Basics: Fundamentals of programming, including variables, data types, and control structures (if statements, loops, operators, and expressions too).
    • • Subroutines & Functions: Writing and implementing subroutines and functions in the VBA environment.
    • • Data Structures: Exploring various data structures available in VBA for you to be able to organize and manage data more effectively.
    • • Modules & Classes: Learning about the distinct difference between standard modules and class modules, and their respective roles in VBA programming.
    • • Code Quality: Emphasis on writing neat, readable code with good naming conventions, enough comments in the code, and good documentation.
    • • Debugging: Identification and resolution of frequent bugs in VBA code through the use of debugging tools and techniques.
    • • Error Handling: Developing good error handling procedures to prevent abrupt program crashes and ensure code stability.
    • • Option Explicit: Learning about Option Explicit in forcing variable declaration and code stability.
    • • Events: Learning how to develop and utilize events within the VBA context to achieve specific actions.
    • • User Forms: Designing and implementing user forms through interactive objects (buttons, text boxes, etc.) to further enhance user interaction with VBA applications.

• • SOLIDWORKS API:

    • • API Documentation: Familiarity with comparing online and offline API documentation, as well as experience in using offline documentation for quicker reference.
    • • SldWorks Interface: Creating a good familiarity with the SldWorks interface, its key features, and functionality.
    • • Common Functionalities: Mastering essential API functionalities:

        • • Opening, activating, and closing SOLIDWORKS documents.
        • • Accessing and modifying system options and document properties.
        • • Managing custom properties at both document and configuration levels.
        • • Navigating and manipulating the feature manager tree.
        • • Utilizing the selection manager to efficiently select and interact with objects within the SOLIDWORKS environment (e.g., GetSelectedObject, GetSelectedObjectType, GetSelectedObjectCount).
        • • Working with configurations, including listing, creating, activating, and deleting configurations.
        • • Creating new documents using templates.
        • • Parts Automation:

            • • Accessing and manipulating bodies.
            • • Traversing the geometry tree (entities, faces, edges, vertices).
            • • Creating and editing references (e.g., reference planes).
            • • Sketching and utilizing sketches for operations like extrusion and cutting.
            • • Suppressing features.

        • • Assembly Automation:

            • • Traversing the assembly component tree.
            • • Working with referenced configurations within components.
            • • Inserting components within assemblies.
            • • Advanced selection techniques for creating mates.
            • • Mating components using the API.

        • • Drawing Automation:

            • • Creating drawings with pre-defined views.
            • • Generating Bills of Materials (BOM) tables.
            • • Traversing drawing annotations.

        • • Mini-Project:

            • • DXF Exporter for sheet metal parts in assembly.