Part VII: Working with Specialized Functionality
FIGURE 31.8Locating the profile
In addition to locating the profile sketch, you can also rotate the profile using the Angle field in the
Settings panel. This rotates all the bodies that are created by the Structural Member feature at the
same time. In the example of the four-legged frame, if the legs are rectangular or circular, they can
all be created in the same Structural Member feature because they are all rotated in the same way.
However, if the legs are made from an asymmetrical shape such as an angle, then each leg will
need to be made using a separate Structural Member feature, with each leg rotated differently.Disjoint sketch segments
You can select disjoint sketch segments in a single Structural Member feature if they are parallel to
the first segment and use the same profile height location and orientation. For example, in Figure
31.6, notice the four angled supports in the corners attaching to the legs. Because they are parallel
in pairs, all four of these supports could not be made in a single group. Later in this section, when
those path segments are actually used to place Structural Members, the additional requirement of
using an angle profile means that the profiles each need to be rotated differently from one another,
and thus cannot be used in a single group.Custom profiles
Most of the custom profiles that you will need may be simply new sizes of existing profiles. You
can easily create a custom profile by opening an existing profile, editing it, and saving it under a
different name using the Save As command. It is important to note that when creating a weldment
profile, a sketch must be selected prior to initiating the Save As command. Weldment profiles are
library features, and use a *.sldlfp filename extension. Each size must be saved as a separate
library feature in order to appear in the selection list. While library features are configurable, the
configurations are not selectable for weldment profiles.