How to build your own library of symbols in CAXA

CAXA Draft is a module in IRONCAD which is also available as a separate program and is called IRONCAD DRAFT. We will call it DRAFT in this post. DRAFT is specifically designed to manage existing and create new 2D drawings and documentation. Part Library is a part of DRAFT that allows users to store, manage and use ready-made components, symbols or parts in their drawings. The library contains a collection of ready-made symbols that are pre-defined with dimensions, construction details and other relevant properties.

These symbols can be easily placed and used in drawings, allowing users to quickly and efficiently create complex collections of parts. Part Library is an important feature of DRAFT because it allows users to improve productivity and increase the accuracy of their drawings. By reusing ready-made symbols instead of creating each part from scratch, users can save time and minimize the risk of inaccuracies in their drawings. For IRONCAD users, this can be compared to IRONCAD's catalogs in 3D. So how do you go about building your own library of components in DRAFT?

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How to build your own library with symbols in the DRAFT

DRAFTsymbols are special blocks of geometry (and attributes) stored within the Part Library. They are special because they can be easily dragged and dropped into the drawing, can contain multiple views and can be controlled by parameters (like AUTOCAD's Dynamic Block).

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Before we start, you'll need a set of custom symbols in DWG/DXF format, but if you don't have that, you can download ready-made components from this site: FreeCads.

Then start by launching the DRAFTsection in IRONCAD by clicking on the image below:

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Then press Open.

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Start by setting the file format filter to All Files. Browse to the folder where you have your DWG/DXF files. Select the desired file and then press Open.

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Now make sure to blow up all lines/text first, if you do not want any special function or block. You do this by either clicking once on the symbol or making a box mark over the symbol.

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Then type Explode (or use the keyboard shortcut [X], you can also right-click and select Explode) and press the [Enter] key, or use the right mouse button, to execute.

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Now go to the Insert tab and then press Define.

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* Box mark all lines to be included in the symbol (this mode is called View No.1 - i.e. the content of the symbol from "view direction 1"). NOTE! In this case we will only use one view direction.

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* Then click out the zero point of the symbol. This is similar to the Anchor Point for objects in the 3D scene.

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* Use right click or [Enter] to execute the symbol(View No.1 etc). This symbol has now been defined and the program wants to go on to define view direction 2(View No.2) or 3 etc.

To finish the steps of defining a symbol - use right-click or [Enter] to execute one last time.

TIP! If you want to add additional lines/text to the symbol's"View No.2" (when looking at the same symbol from another side) -> then you should run the two above steps that have an asterisk * in front of the text). 

The next step is to choose where to save the symbol.

The New Class option requires the name of a folder in the library. NOTE! This is not necessary if the folder already exists. You can select the folder in the tree structure on the left instead and leave New Class empty.

The name of the symbol itself is indicated below by Symbol Name.

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Now you have created your first symbol in your new library! Now just repeat the process to add more components.

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Basic example of a parametric symbol

This is a very basic example of a parametric symbol, with only one driving dimension. Hopefully the process is simple enough to encourage your users to try this feature themselves. Note that the process is similar for more complex symbols with multiple driving dimensions.

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Thank you Malcolm Crowe for the movie.

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How to share your library with other users DRAFT

Thank you Malcolm Crowe for the movie.

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