Tolerance display in drawing.

[michaelpaul]

why oh why must I actually go into the drawing detail options and turn ON an option to display a dimension with a tolerance? WTF is the point of that? why can't the freaking option just be contained within the dimension properties menu. a simple check mark would suffice. display dimension with tolerances? Yes or No. done. instead I have to spend 10 minutes trying to figure out why the !@#$#$^%^@%@# dimension properties box isn't allowing me to select symmetric tolerance for the dimension. after racking my brain I decide to check the drawing detail options and find that the option is off. ARGHHHHHHHH. it's these kind of things that will cement Pro Engineer as the best CAD package in the universe at least in PTC's mind!

Michael

 

[SRINIVASANIYER1]

I share your thoughts.. PTC has conveniently ignored the drawing details part of it for any enhancements. It is as though drawing is not important at all. even the PTC help is verbose, completely (at least mostly) devoid of examples and pictures. What could be achieved thru dialog boxes have been shoved deep inside config settings. I hope they listen.

 

[phoxeoy]

The future of CAD is not to have and maintain two separate files in order to achieve a single part's design intent. It all should rest in one file and that is the model. Why spend countless hours creating a model and then turn around and create a drawing to finish the process when all the information is there in the model in the first place.

This is the move at which CAD companies are heading and rightfully so. The problem is drawings have been around a very long time and flipping a switch will not work. You also have compatibility problems among the different CAD packages. Once the egg heads figure out that having a file format that holds all this information but can't be read by any other system is bad for business, the better this paperless scenario will work out. I say, open up the output and differentiate yourself by features and capabilities.

 

[SRINIVASANIYER1]

The future of CAD is not to have and maintain two separate files in order to achieve a single part's design intent. It all should rest in one file and that is the model.

Yes true but partly. Even with the annotation features available, I prefer to have the drawing wherein I can define all the tolerances, sections, GDT, surface finishes, heat treatment, surface treatment and other manufacturing specific notes on the drawing. 3D annotations are good for simple parts. But with parts getting more and more complicated, it is necessary to have a 2D representation (you may call it a drawing).


I have worked without drawings too. But then that is a case where in the model is directly given to the CAM package, which creates the machining code. This is suitable for free form shapes and molds and dies.


For machine parts where the Limits and Tolerances, and fitment is important, I still prefer the drawing.