Part Modeling > Base Features > Sweeps > To Create a Sweep
  
To Create a Sweep
1. Click Model > Sweep. The Sweep tab opens.
2. To specify one or more curves to use as references for the trajectory, perform one of the following actions:
Click the References tab, click the Trajectories collector, and then select chains of existing curves or edges.
 
Hold down the CTRL key to select multiple trajectories. Hold down the SHIFT key to select multiple entities in a chain. If needed, click Details to open the Chain dialog box to select the trajectory segments.
The first chain you select becomes the origin trajectory. An arrow appears on the origin trajectory pointing from the trajectory start to the path the sweep will follow. Click the arrow to change the trajectory start to the other end of the trajectory.
To remove a trajectory, right-click and choose Remove. This is valid for any trajectory except the origin trajectory. To remove an x-trajectory or a normal trajectory, clear the X or N check boxes to remove the attribute, then remove the trajectory. You cannot replace or remove trajectories where tangent references exist.
Sketch a curve asynchronously by clicking Datum > Sketch and sketching the curve. Click to resume the Sweep tool.
Under the following conditions, the curve is embedded in the Sweep feature. Embedding the curve makes feature regeneration faster, which is important for patterns with a large number of pattern members.
Constant sweeps
Normal To Trajectory for section plane control
Automatic for horizontal/vertical control
Default for the x-direction reference at start
 
* There are additional ways to embed datum features. For more information, see the Related Links.
3. To change the section type, on the Sweep tab, click to create a section whose size and shape remains the same, or click to create a section whose size and shape can vary along the sweep
 
* Unless you specify the section type, it is set automatically when you begin selecting trajectories. If you select one trajectory, the section type is set to constant. If you select more than one trajectory, it is set to variable. Clicking a section type command overrides the automatic setting.
4. Click to create a solid sweep, or click to create a surface sweep.
5. To remove material along the sweep, click . Click to flip the side of the sketch from which material is removed.
6. To give the sweep a thickness, click , and then type or select a thickness value. Use to switch the thicken direction between one side, the other side, or both sides of the sketch.
7. For surface sweeps that remove material, click the Quilt collector, and then select a quilt to trim.
8. Click the References tab, and then select items as required:
a. In the Section plane control list, select an option to determine how the section is oriented (the z-direction of the sweeping coordinate system):
Normal To Trajectory. If you also select Automatic under horizontal/vertical control, click the X direction reference at start collector and select a datum plane or datum curve, linear edges, or an individual axis of a coordinate system.
Normal To Projection. Click the Direction reference collector and select a reference for the projection. Click Flip to reverse the direction.
Constant Normal Direction. Click the Direction reference collector and select a reference for the projection.
If you also select Automatic under horizontal/vertical control, click the X direction reference at start collector and select a datum plane or datum curve, linear edges, or an individual axis of a coordinate system.
b. In the Horizontal/Vertical control list, select an option to determine how the frame rotation around the sketch plane's normal is oriented along the sweep (the xy-axis of the sweeping coordinate system):
Automatic—The section plane is automatically oriented in the xy-direction. The direction of the x-vector is calculated so that the swept geometry is minimally twisted. For an origin trajectory without any referenced surfaces, Automatic is the default.
 
* You cannot orient the sketched section for Automatic for straight edges unless they are sketched and X direction reference at start is specified.
Normal to Surface—The y-axis of the section plane is normal to the surface on which the origin trajectory lies. This is the default option when the origin trajectory reference is a curve on a surface, one-sided edge of a surface, two-sided edge of surface or solid edge, curve created though intersection of surfaces, or two projection curves.
X-Trajectory—The x-axis of the section plane passes through the intersection point of the specified x-trajectory and the section plane along the sweep.
9. To set tangency:
a. Click the Tangency tab.
b. In the Trajectories box, select a trajectory from the list.
c. Under References, select an option to set the sweep section to contain a centerline that is tangent to surfaces on either Side 1 or Side 2 of the selected trajectory, or to a Selected surface.
10. Create or retrieve a section to sweep along the trajectory by choosing one of the following actions:
 
* In some cases, the sketch snaps to the model geometry automatically, which could change the resulting geometry. To prevent the sketch from snapping to the model geometry, perform one of these actions:
To disable snapping as the default, click File > Options > Sketcher. Under Sketcher references, clear the Allow snapping to model geometry check box.
To disable snapping for the current action, while the Sketch tab is open, hold down the SHIFT key while you sketch.
To create a section, click to open Sketcher. Sketch the section at the cross hairs at the beginning of the trajectory, then click OK to close Sketcher.
To retrieve a sketch to use as the section:
1. Click . Sketcher opens with cross hairs at the beginning of the trajectory.
2. Click Sketch > File System. The Open box opens.
3. Select a sketch to use as the section, then click Open. The Open box closes.
4. Click the cross hairs. The section you selected appears at the beginning of the trajectory, and the Import Section tab opens.
5. Change any values in the dialog box to dimension the section relative to the cross hairs displayed on the trajectory, then click .
6. Click Sketch > OK.
A preview of the sweep appears.
11. Click the Options tab, and then select options as required:
To close the ends of a surface sweep, select the Cap ends check box.
To eliminate gaps where the sweep ends merge into an adjacent solid, select the Merge ends check box.
 
* Merge ends is available when the sweep section is constant, when there is one open, planar trajectory, when Normal To Trajectory is selected for section plane control, when Automatic is selected for horizontal/vertical control, with Default selected as the x-direction reference at start, and when the nearby item includes at least one solid feature.
To select the location along the trajectory to sketch the section, click the Sketch placement point box, and click a point on the origin trajectory. The start point of the sweep is not affected. The start point of the sweep is used as the default location where you sketch the section if Sketch placement point is empty.
12. Click .