Mirror dependancy

[SW]

I've created a dependant mirrored feature within a Wildfire 4 part. If I alter the dimensions of the original feature, the mirror updates fine. However, if I change the sketch plane or anything like that, the mirrored feature doesn't change. Is there anything I'm doing wrong or is this just bad functionality within Pro/E?

The mirror feature also seems poor in that you can't redefine the features within the mirror. I guess the solution is not to reference mirrored features, but this is hardly great.

Sam

 

[michaelpaul]

The mirror feature also seems poor in that you can't redefine the features within the mirror. I guess the solution is not to reference mirrored features, but this is hardly great.

Sam

Mirrors in Pro E suck! I generally try to do anything I can to avoid using a mirrored feature to eliminate the problem you've experienced. if I want to add a feature to a mirrored group, you must delete the mirror, add the feature, re-mirror. if you want to change the sketch, you must make the mirror independent. what good is a mirror if you can't work with it after you mirror?

Michael

 

[SW]

Thanks Michael, I think I'm swinging round to your way of thinking. I generally try to keep sketches simple but I'm starting to mirror within the sketch more to avoid the mirrored feature problems.

Sam

 

[csusie]

try mirroring using copied surfaces rather than mirroring features themselves. After the surface is mirrored then use solidify. Now you can always go back and add features and depending on how you did the surface copy, ie seed and bound, solid surfaces, etc. you may not have to modify the surface copy to see the new features on the other side. If you did just a single selection of surfaces in the copy then you may have to modify the surface copy to include the new feature surfaces. However either way it 1 reduces the regeneration time cause you're not "creating" all the features you are mirroring, you are just mirroring the quilt and 2 it handles changes much better than mirroring features.

 

[feisthammela]

I have to agree. Mirroring a group of features sucks. I also try to keep to mirroring in sketches if thereare only certainfeatures of my model that are symmetric. Otherwise, if your entire part is symmetric, you can do a mirrored merge. This can be done byhighlighting your part name in the model tree and then selecting mirror. Pro/E will then create a mirrored merge feature in the model tree. Now if you modify any of the existing geometry before the mirror feature, the mirrored part will always update. Also if you want to add features, all you have to do is put them before the mirrored merge feature, and they will be added to the mirror. Hope this is helpful!

 

[jason_]

try mirroring using copied surfaces rather than mirroring features themselves. After the surface is mirrored then use solidify. Now you can always go back and add features and depending on how you did the surface copy, ie seed and bound, solid surfaces, etc. you may not have to modify the surface copy to see the new features on the other side. If you did just a single selection of surfaces in the copy then you may have to modify the surface copy to include the new feature surfaces. However either way it 1 reduces the regeneration time cause you're not "creating" all the features you are mirroring, you are just mirroring the quilt and 2 it handles changes much better than mirroring features.

This is a good technique to use for complex or large patterns as well. If you're trying to copy more than one feature (ie groups) this is very useful because it turns the multiple features into one. In a large assembly this can mean big time performance gains and it seems to be easier to maintain.
Edited by: jason_