add duplicate a sketch

[sprior913]

I recently wanted to do a bunch of similar sign engravings (same font and size for each, but different text) and thought the way that most sense would be to create the first sketch, then make a copy of it and edit the text for signs 2 through n, then finally go back and explode the text as required in each.  I was surprised to discover that they is in fact no way to copy a sketch.

I don't think that making the first sign sketch, exploding the text, then going into the CAM environment, post processing the gcode, then returning back to the modeling environment would work because I'd have to be able to undo the explode text operation so I could edit it, and as far as I know once you exit a sketch you can't go back an undo individual operations in that sketch.

I ended up making a new sketch for each sign from scratch.

[roambotics_scott]

IMO sketch features should just be timeline aware so the sketch isn't a single snapshot but a continuous evolving thing like components or assemblies 

[HughesTooling]

Copying a sketch is not as easy as you think, what happens if the copy has a different orientation and has projected geometry? For your simple example it might work but it would have to work in all situations or you'd have people asking why did copy sketch not work this time, it worked before.

You can edit a sketch and select all, copy then start another sketch and paste in to the new sketch by the way.

Also you might not need to expolde your text, you should be able to select the unexploded text in the CAM workspace. That said I have seen it fail on some fonts but you might be lucky and it works with the font you're using.

Here's an example without exploding the text.

Mark

[daniel_lyall]

@HughesTooling you bet me to it

if you do the copy and past of just a sketch in the same design it can be done, if you wont to just copy and past from one file to another you can't just copy and past a sketch.

But if you do the sketch in a component you can copy and past the component as many times as you like between files.

@roambotics_scott before you say anything I have posted a question to the dev team to give a definition for what is the expectation with using components from know on if it's best to do everything with components or are they going to change so we can copy and past just a sketch between diffrent files  

[roambotics_scott]

Derived geometry is easy enough to handle - just duplicate as is and break links (or give the option to lock to the origin) if the orientation changes

Patterning and symmetry would be awesome though. If I'm duplicating something I'd nearly always want to propagate changes

[HughesTooling]

You can copy and paste sketch contents between documents, you just need to have something selected in the destination sketch. See this thread.

Mark

[roambotics_scott]

@daniel_lyall once you have the timeline, a reasonable person would expect it to work consistently and everywhere.

The lack of support in sketches is either an unimplemented feature, a bug, or a major oversight

[daniel_lyall]

@HughesTooling yer I forgot that gem from you I do that.

@roambotics_scott will see what or if the dev team give a reply it may just be they wont everything done in components or no one can make there mind up what they wont, ever or it still works in the same file or another like mark shows or if it's a drawn sketch in the same file or if it's to go to a new file a component copied and pasted with the sketch to the new file works fine as well.

but it's for use to argue about how it should be done and them to do something with the arguments, idea's is what they need to see and these reactions give the idea's or they just remove them.

anyway the program is only 3

[sprior913]

@HughesToolingI wasn't even thinking about duplicating a sketch from one document to another (though that would be the next logical question), I was just looking to duplicate it within the same document.  I was using the engrave function in the CAM environmen to do V-cut signs, so I created a sketch for each sign with a single body to represent the stock for all.  I still ended up bouncing from the CAM to the model workspace between each time just to hide all sketches except for the one I wanted to carve next.

As for your example about not necessarily needing to explode the text, I was using the 2D engrave operation to make the signs, I think that does always require the text to be exploded (would be convenient if it didn't).

[HughesTooling]

Doesn't look like I can attach an example but the image above is 2d engrave, here's another example. If you've tried it and it didn't work you might be unlucky and picked a font that doesn't work!

Mark

[HughesTooling]

@sprior913 Here's a short screencast to demonstrate using text without exploding to curves and how easy it should be to modify and regenerate the tool path.

Mark

[promm]

@daniel_lyall,

Below are my responses to you comments earlier.

@HughesTooling you bet me to it

if you do the copy and past of just a sketch in the same design it can be done, if you wont to just copy and past from one file to another you can't just copy and past a sketch.

But if you do the sketch in a component you can copy and past the component as many times as you like between files.

You are correct, in that you can copy and paste within a model "file" and not from one file to another.  As you mention we do have this capability with components because the sketch lives within the component.  Having the ability to reuse a sketch across models is a workflow that we have in our backlog.  Right now the team is focusing taking constrain coloring out of preview. 

@roambotics_scott before you say anything I have posted a question to the dev team to give a definition for what is the expectation with using components from know on if it's best to do everything with components or are they going to change so we can copy and past just a sketch between different files  

As mentioned above, we plan on having a solution for the workflow that you describe.  For now, you can copy components or create a sketch and save it as a separate component.  Then when you have a new design insert the component, project the sketch and since it is linked, if you make a change to the original the model it is projected in will update.

There was another comment about this idea asking for sketch have its own timeline.  Is this to have quick access to features such as editing pattern?    Adding a sketch timeline will decrease compute performance, do you think it would be worth it?

Thank you,

Mike Prom

[promm]

@HughesTooling you bet me to it

if you do the copy and past of just a sketch in the same design it can be done, if you wont to just copy and past from one file to another you can't just copy and past a sketch.

But if you do the sketch in a component you can copy and past the component as many times as you like between files.

You are correct, in that you can copy and paste within a model "file" and not from one file to another.  As you mention we do have this capability with components because the sketch lives within the component.  Having the ability to reuse a sketch across models is a workflow that we have in our backlog.  Right now the team is focusing taking constrain coloring out of preview. 

@roambotics_scott before you say anything I have posted a question to the dev team to give a definition for what is the expectation with using components from know on if it's best to do everything with components or are they going to change so we can copy and past just a sketch between different files  

As mentioned above, we plan on having a solution for the workflow that you describe.  For now, you can copy components or create a sketch and save it as a separate component.  Then when you have a new design insert the component, project the sketch and since it is linked, if you make a change to the original the model it is projected in will update.

There was another comment about this idea asking for sketch have its own timeline.  Is this to have quick access to features such as editing pattern?    Adding a sketch timeline will decrease compute performance, do you think it would be worth it?

Thank you,

Mike Prom

[daniel_lyall]

@promm thank you

[keqingsong]

Hey there! Thanks so much for submitting your idea. Unfortunately, this idea did not get a lot of votes from the community, and now is 2 years old. We're changing its status to archived. If you still feel strongly about this idea, you can resubmit it. Check out some idea submission best practices here: https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/community-faq/ideas/m-p/5384681#M44