Rectangular pattern not working in 3d sketch

[cad99VUF]

Hello,

i have a 3d sketch where i need to create a parameter driven rectangular pattern but can not select the objects for it. The tool window shows the numbers of rows and collumns are 0 and colored red and the lines are not selectable.

The long horizontal pipes have to have the pattern from the lower right

I don't want to make separate sketches for every horizontal pipe and stitch them together as a workaround as the pattern function is ment for that. Is that a bug or am i using it wrong?

How do i get this pattern tool to work? 

[TheCADWhisperer]

@cad99VUF 

Can you File>Export your *.f3d file to your local drive and then Attach it here to a Reply?

First thing I notice is that there is no need for 3D sketch for this geometry.

Second thing I notice is that the sketch is not fully defined.

The usual practice is to Pattern Features or Bodies or Components rather than pattern in sketch, but without the file, not sure in this case.

[cad99VUF]

Sorry, somehow the file was not uploaded the first time.

The picture shows the whole project, there is a 3d sketch and the part of the workaround in an other component.

This is a single line turned into a pipe. The pattern has to be in the sketch.

[TheCADWhisperer]

@cad99VUF 

If this were my work, I would create the 3D sketch path by Project Intersection of Extruded Surfaces from 2D sketches. Then Pattern Feature or Bodies and Join.

Would be easier to create, especially easier to edit, and less taxing for the computer to calculate.

Unfortunately, this is advanced techniques that I don't have time at the moment to demonstrate.

Maybe someone else will jump in here.

Do you need to have the number of "zigzags" as a parameter, or only the dimensions? (Parametric pattern of sketch elements will not work.)

I see a lot of duplication of dimensions (and the 5 is functionally a duplication of 2.5).

If this were my design, there would be no duplication of these dimensions.

[jeff_strater · Accepted solution]

A quick answer to your original question:  Sketch pattern only supports 2D geometry (meaning:  on the sketch plane).  If there are ways to achieve your design objectives without using either sketch pattern (it is slow), or 3D sketch geometry (it works fine, but if what you have is a series of 2D sketches, that is always going to be simpler), it will be better for you.

[cad99VUF]

Thank you! So it's not a bug, it is just not implemented yet 😉

@TheCADWhisperer The number of "zigzags" depend of the depth of the drawer so it has to be parametric. Their dimensions are parametric so i can make 30,7 zigzags "fit".

Sorry for the duplication of the dimensions, but this is not the original design. I draw it quickly to ask about the pattern problem and did not care about the constrains as pattern would not work either.

I think a 3d sketch is the fastes and most futureproof design for this object and i would not spend more than 10 minutes on this. Drawing this 3d sketch takes seconds and with working pattern it would be minuts. Its a clean one sketch and one pipe command construction. One could change the paramters like angles / length / radius of every line if setup correctly.

The 'stitching the 2d sketches' aproach would make the construction bulky and tedious. There would be a lot of planes with its own angles and distances. I don't  think it's woth the time.

Thank you all for looking into it!

[TheCADWhisperer]

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@cad99VUF wrote:

The 'stitching the 2d sketches' aproach would make the construction bulky and tedious. There would be a lot of planes with its own angles and distances. I don't  think it's woth the time.

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@cad99VUF 

All wrong.

Everything I do is the easy way.