Automatic Block/Tool Palette Updates

[Anonymous]

I'm looking into streamlining wiring diagram creation in Autocad using standard tool palettes. Unfortunately, we don't use Inventor at my workplace to do real harness modeling and drawing creation (Solidworks routing is living up to it's lack of hype). I'm looking into how easy it is to maintain these wiring diagrams over a product's life (Say a connector changes, etc.). Replace has worked well, but I'm trying to see if you can automatically update blocks on another drawing sheet should the block design change (adding a feature to it, etc.). If I update the block on the template the tool palette pulls from, how can I easily update the existing blocks on the drawings I'm using them in?

This thread doesn't seem to help me: http://forums.autodesk.com/t5/autocad-2013-2014-2015-2016-2017/tool-palette-updating/m-p/5756781#M89...

Thanks,
Aaron

[elshawadfy · Accepted solution]

Hi @Anonymous,

Have you considered inserting the part as an Xref instead?

In that case changing any thing within the reference file will happen automatically in all drawings..

You may also add the changes in reference as a new visibility state, so that you maintain some control over what sheets change and what don't.. (In that case though you will need to change the visibility state of the inserted xrefs manually within the changed sheets)..

Regards

[Anonymous]

Hey @elshawadfy,

   Thanks for the tip. I looked into using Xrefs. The concern with this is we have lots of little connectors in the tool palette I'm setting up. It's nice to control this from a read only template and just drag and drop. Xrefs would require a drawing for each of our parts, which seems to only make our drawing management issue a little worse. Any other ideas? Thank you!

Aaron

[pendean]

You want to replace the blocks already in the file as a project evolves?
Or you need to update block definitions in Tool Palettes for your users to drag-n-drop?

One has nothing to do with the other and your link is not really relevant.

Explain more, use AutoCAD terms and command functions/names where possible.

[Anonymous]

Dean,

      Here's my problem: Need to easily update wiring diagrams. Connectors and other parts are currently set up as blocks in a template drawing from which  a tool palette references.

• BLOCKREPLACE works well to replace blocks. GOOD
• If I updated BLOCK in template drawing, drawings using BLOCK do not automatically updated. Example: I update connector to be bigger, but the change won't permeate to all drawings using it. BAD
• TOOLPALETTE does update when in a new drawing. GOOD
• XREFS lead me to more drawings (one needed for each part), so I want to avoid lots of files. BAD
• Is there a way to get BLOCK to update in every drawing ?

Otherwise, I will generate a similar block (instead of updating existing) and just do BLOCKREPLACE. 

Hopefully that helps clarify.

Aaron

[pendean · Accepted solution]

That's better 🙂

A dwg file you are in NEVER looks back at the template it was created from: that cord was cut the moment you did a saveas. If you want that feature, you need to look at the option you do not like, XREF.

Same with the wish for blocks to update "in every drawing": there is no hook, no tie, no connection between them unless you XREF.

Question: do you need all these separate DWG files, or can everything be in one DWG file with many Layouts for a project? Assuming a project is multiple DWG files and what you seek to replace is for the one project.

[Anonymous]

Dean,

   We do have multiple layouts for a project (project being a product line). However, we reuse parts across all product lines, so if a mass change occurs throughout our factory, I wanted to see if that could be an automatic update.

So you've answered my question - XREFS are the way to go. I'll provide this option as well as BLOCKREPLACE. To me, it seems like better data management for us to have one template with all blocks and we replace as necessary.

Thanks for all your help.

Aaron

[elshawadfy]

Hi @Anonymous!

If your worries are more about having to create all these files, you may find some of these lisps useful, they all basically extract all blocks of a certain file to separate files.. so you can apply them to your template to get out your block files..

- http://forums.autodesk.com/t5/visual-lisp-autolisp-and-general/batch-wblock-of-blocks-in-drawing/m-p/789693#M15351

- https://lispbox.wordpress.com/2014/12/15/export-wblock-all-blocks-in-drawing-in-one-click/

- http://www.cadforum.cz/cadforum_en/download.asp?fileID=457

- http://www.cadtutor.net/forum/showthread.php?68946-Exporting-multiple-blocks-in-one-dwg-to-having-them-as-individual-dwgs&p=471801&viewfull=1#post471801

Regards 🙂