DesignSpark Mechanical Online Help

Inserting another design

You can insert another design created in DS Mechanical or another application as a component of your design. The design is inserted as an external component, linked to the external file. You can make this component internal to your own design. Lightweight components are displayed with solid edges and transparent faces until you right-click the component and select Load component from the context menu.

You can also insert an image file or a video file.

To insert another design as a component

Drag and drop a file from outside DS Mechanical into the Design windowArea in the user interface that displays your model or assembly. Also known as Workspace., or follow the steps below.

1. Click  File in the Insert group on the Design2D or 3D model that contains at least one top-level component. tab.

2. Navigate to and select the design you want to include as a component, then click Open on the Open Design windowArea in the user interface that displays your model or assembly. Also known as Workspace.. You can select more than one DS Mechanical document, and they will be inserted as components.

   You can select from the Files of type drop-down menu to filter the files list.

   Progress is displayed on the status bar until the design is inserted as an external component. You can insert multiple copies of the same component. Modifying one of these components will modify every copy unless you make them internal to your design.

   If the design consists of multiple files and some files can't be found, you will get the Missing Files dialog which allows you to browse to locate these files.

To replace one component with another

1. Right-click the component in the Structure treeDisplay in the Structure panel that shows you each of the objects in your design. You can expand or collapse the nodes of the tree to view the objects. You can rename objects, create, modify, replace, and delete objects, as well as work with components..

2. Hover over the Source option then select Replace ComponentObject in a design, including the top-level design component. Each component consists of any number of objects, such as solids and surfaces, and can contain sub-components. You can think of a component as a "part." Components can be saved as a separate file. An external component is another design inserted as a component of your design. Making the component independent prevents changes from being made to the external component file. You can also create an external component by saving a component as a separate file. See Lightweight components, Assembly from the context menu.

3.  Navigate to and select the design you want to use as a replacement.

4. The component is replaced. 

Make an external component internal to your design

1. Right-click the external component in the Structure treeDisplay in the Structure panel that shows you each of the objects in your design. You can expand or collapse the nodes of the tree to view the objects. You can rename objects, create, modify, replace, and delete objects, as well as work with components..

2. Hover over the Source option then select Use Internal Copy from the context menu.

   If your design includes multiple copies of an external component, making one of them internal does not affect the other copies. Making another copy of the same external component internal creates a second instance of the same internal component.