SOLIDWORKS Error
You must have the SOLIDWORKS ScanTo3D Add-in enabled before you can save parts as the ScanTo3D 3DS file format. There are a few ways for you to enable SOLIDWORKS add-ins as described in this blog article. However, saving the part files directly as a ScanTo3D file format shows the warning message stating: “No available entities to process through 3DS.” The problem is due to incompatible types of files. A .3ds file is a ‘mesh file’. It is not compatible directly with graphics, solids and surface bodies. You must create a mesh file from the file to be exported and then save to .3ds file format. Create a compatible Mesh file: STEP 1: Save SOLIDWORKS .STL file from a SOLIDWORKS part file through File > Save as > .STL STEP 2: Now open SOLIDWORKS .STL file in SOLIDWORKS using File > Open > select the file type as ScanTo3D Mesh (.STL)….
So you are working on a SOLIDWORKS Weldment part, you go to save, and suddenly the following error message appears: If you are unable to save after changing a Weldment Profile, this could be caused when there is a set of custom properties whose value is defined by a cut list property; e.g. length, mass, and the setting “Update automatically” is turned off, as seen in the image below. Right click on the Cut List then select Update Automatically will turn it on, as indicated by the check mark on the left. Solution Weldment Save Issue So if you are unable to save after changing a Weldment Profile, the first step would be to remove all custom properties associated with the cut list. Next, right-click the Cut list folder and select Delete from the drop-down menu. This will reset the items populated in the Cut list. From there, make sure…
Problem running the latest or another version of eDrawings: “Input string is not in a correct format”?
Recently an eDrawings user contacted our tech support asking why he couldn’t run newer or other versions of eDrawings on his machine. In this particular case the user was trying to run eDrawings 2019 but he already had eDrawings 2018 installed on the same machine. Installing and running eDrawings 2019 resulted in an error message: “Input string is not in a correct format” Follow the steps below to resolve this issue: Check to see if ‘GraphicsInfo’ key is created under HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\eDrawings\e2019 in the registry editor. If not , I would assume that you have ‘GraphicsInfo’ created for eDrawings 2018 , so what you can do is the following : Open the registry editor. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\eDrawings\e2018 , right click ‘GraphicsInfo’ >Export , save it on the desktop. Edit the exported registry key in note-pad , and change the path to e2019 it should look like this.[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\eDrawings\e2019\GraphicsInfo] Save the file after…
Microsoft has announced a new video card driver structure for all hardware manufacturers: “DCHU (Declarative, Componentized, Hardware Support Apps, Universal API compliance) “. What does this mean for SOLIDWORKS? Towards the end of 2018, hardware manufacturers began shipping new systems with the new video card driver structure. Systems older than 2018 (or systems shipped with legacy driver models) may continue to use the legacy driver model moving forward with no changes required. Older hardware is able to use the DCHU driver version ONLY if a “clean” Windows installation occurs. The OS cannot use both versions interchangeably. Whatever type was installed first will be the driver type going forward: You cannot install a DCHU driver on a legacy driver system. You cannot install a legacy driver on a DCHU driver system. There are no advantages in performance or features to either driver structure. Customers should use the same type that their systems…
Common Sheet Metal Issues When I visit clients, I am surprised that SOLIDWORKS users are not aware of the sheet metal bend tables included with the software and quite often I find there is a disconnect between design/engineering and manufacturing departments. Typically this means: Engineering/design may not be providing the right information to manufacturing. The as built part can often be different to the design drawing. Costs are incurred as the wrong material is ordered for inventory. Wasted time defining sheet metal characteristics, and sometimes use tooling that does not exist in store! Wasted time with rework, and purchasing unnecessary tooling and material. Using a generic K-factor of 0.5 (or similar value) to calculate sheet metal part flat patterns means that when working with thicker gauges, and multiple bend parts; the inaccuracy of using a generic value results in parts that are off by as much as a 1/4 inch!…
Have you ever received this SOLIDWORKS Sheet Metal Error? “No bends found.” Why do I get this error? This is a common sheet metal error I used to see all the time. This typically occurs when you are converting a solid body part into a sheet metal part using the Insert Bend feature. There are limitations to the gap size when converting. If you are concerned about the gap size being too large then this article is for you. A solution to the problem I have an easy example part that is 48″ in diameter, but the smallest gap I could get (without going crazy into decimals) was a 0.004″. With the Flatten feature the total diameter is 150.3998″. This is what I do to get a smaller gap. I start a sketch on the right plane and use the 3 Point Arc command. I then draw two construction lines…
If there is a mismatch in the Back-up settings of the SOLIDWORKS PDM Archive Server Configuration application, the message ‘Failed to Make Backup!’, will appear in the Archive Server log. If the error message is opened from the Archive Server log, the below description will be displayed. Date: 2018-05-18 09:07:02.000 Module: ArchiveServerService Function: MainClass::muiBackupProc Code: E_INVALIDARG Code Description: An invalid argument was given to the method. Failed to make backup! The Back-up that is failing is that of the PDM settings. These are the settings found in SOLIDWORKS PDM Administration. To correct this issue, launch the Archive Server application and choose Back-up Settings from the Tools pull-down. Then reset the password and make sure that the backup location is a valid. Read our article on using the SOLIDWORKS PDM Archive Server Configuration application for more information
SOLIDWORKS Toolbox in a SOLIDWORKS PDM Vault – Unable to backup destination database
When using the UpdateBrowserDatabase.exe utility to update SOLIDWORKS Toolbox in SOLIDWORKS PDM vault manually, you may receive the error “Unable to backup destination database” as shown below: The unable to backup destination database error occurs if the UpdateBrowserDatabase utility cannot delete the swbrowser.sldedbold backup file. When the UpdateBrowserDatabase utility runs an update, it removes the swbrowser.sldedbold file and replaces the file with the new backup. To prevent this issue, clear the ‘Read-only” check box in the ‘Properties‘ dialog box for the swbrowser.sldedbold file.