Dimensions

- When creating sketches, we are going to be adding dimensions extensively. Now I want to go through a few of the techniques for adding dimensions quickly and go over a few techniques for adding some special dimensions. So let's jump up here to the Smart Dimension tool. And first things first, now I can dimension a line just by clicking on the line and adding dimension here. So I can type in 100, for instance, but I can also do the same thing if I delete that dimension if I come up here and I add a dimension from this line here to this line over here and then place the dimension.

So that's a three-click dimension, same thing, 100 millimeters. Now, this comes into play if you have maybe a Fillet or a radius on these lower corners here. If I were to choose the line itself, that wouldn't be an actual representation of that full length, from side to side, so I generally try to use the 3-point click dimension. Let me give you an example right here. So if I click on Fillet and I'm going to fill up this corner up here and click Okay. Now if I were to take it to Smart Dimension and click on this line here, it's only going to give it to that point right there. Alright? It's not going to give it all the way up to here, so instead, if I wanted to dimension that, I could choose the Smart Dimension tool pick it up from the bottom line all the way up to the top line and then place the dimension.

65, and there it is. How about angles? Let's click on this line here, and then click on that line there, and then add that dimension. Now, depending on where you place that dimension is how you are going to define it. So over here it is 163, but as soon as I go past this line here, it turns into 17 degrees. So it is exactly the same angle, but your defining of how you would like to actually display that dimension or how you like to input that value. So again as you move around that circle, that dimension is going to change, so make sure you place it where you want it to be.

17 degrees, and there it is. How about circles? If I click on the outside line, I can just define its dimension. I can dimension from the outside to a line to get to the center point of it. Over here I could say from this line here and if I hold down shift on my keyboard I can define the outside or the inside dimension there. So check that out. Another cool technique you can use. Okay, same thing up here. I can dimension from this bottom line here, hold down Shift, and choose either the near side or the far side of that to define that dimension.

Type in 20, and let's give this 35. Okay? And then down here I will do another dimension of angles and I will call that 30. I can then dimension that to just about any other line in this sketch. So I can click on a line from here and dimension it to there and define that angle. Once I have a few dimensions added, I can also just grab at end points and still move things around, as long as it's blue and undefined, I can then snap something maybe over to here, to fully define it.

I get over here and I can slide things around. I can add relationships if I wanted to say this line here and this line here happen to be in line, that is a coincident. I can add a few dimensions as far as length, 150, and now you see I have almost a fully defined sketch. The last dimension we want to add here is from here to here and there it is. And I am going to say that is going to be 27. Now we have a fully defined sketch. Hopefully there's a few techniques in there you learned to quickly and effectively add dimensions to your sketches.