Sheet Metal Form

Onshape ships with some standard forms in the Onshape sheet metal forms library. If you prefer to use your own custom form, it must first be created before it can be accessed in the Form feature dialog. See Creating a form for more information.

Before adding a Form feature, ensure you have a sheet metal model created in a Part Studio.

1. From the Part Studio where the sheet metal model is located, click the Form icon () on the Feature toolbar.

   

2. Click the Select Part Studio field to open the Select Part Studio dialog:

   

   1. Select from the Current document, Other documents, or Sheet metal forms (where the Onshape sheet metal forms library or user and enterprise/company form libraries can be selected).

   2. Select the Library, Type (the document in which the form is created), and Form (the Part Studio in which the form is created).

      If there is only 1 form in 1 Part Studio in the document, the Type field is not displayed.

   3. If additional configuration variables are available for your form, enter their values as required. For the Bridge lance example here, the Length, Width, Height, and Angle variables are available for the form.

   4. 单击“完成”添加成型。

3. Select the form Location(s) by selecting sketch vertices, points, or explicit mate connectors. You can also click the Mate connector icon () and hover over the model to select implicit mate connectors.

   

4. 或者，单击相反方向的箭头 ()，在目标面上反转成型。
5. 如果尚未选择，请选择要放置成型的钣金的目标面。
6. Click the checkmark ( ) to accept the new Form feature.

The form is added to the Sheet metal model and flat pattern:

The Louver form design below shows the form's top, side, and isometric views with its corresponding Tag feature (top). This form is then used in a Form feature and applied to the sketch points on the face of a sheet metal model (bottom).

• The Tag feature uses the blue Add part to add to the sheet metal model and the gray Subtract part to remove from it.

• The placement of the mate connector drives the Subtract part through the sheet metal and simultaneously attaches the Add part to the sheet metal.

• The Form origin mate connector (Mate connector 1) from the form's Tag feature determines the form's origin. When this form is placed on the sketch vertices (Vertices of Sketch 2) on the sheet metal face (Face of sheet metal model 1), the form's mate connector aligns with the sheet metal's sketch vertices.

  • Alternatively, an explicit mate connector can be used to align the form to the sheet metal model. In the example below, a mate connector (Mate connector 2) is used for the Form feature's Location instead of the sketch vertices. The mate connector's secondary axis is rotated 180 degrees, and both the Mate connector and Form features are patterned to create the same model as above, but with the louvers rotated.

    

• Forms cannot touch or cut into the boundaries of side walls, rolled walls, rips, joints, or corners of the sheet metal.

• Corner breaks do not work on any form feature edges. It is recommended they be modeled during the creation of the custom form.

• When exporting the Sheet metal flat pattern as a DXF/DWG file, form feature outlines and centermarks can be included or excluded. See Exporting DXF/DWG of flat pattern.

• Inserting a Flat pattern into a drawing also inserts its form features, such as form outline and centermarks. See Flat pattern view.

• Toggling the visibility of the Form feature in the Features list toggles the sketch visibility on the Sheet metal flat view (if a sketch is associated to the underlying form in its Tag feature):

  

  

  Form sketch visible on Sheet metal flat view

  

  Form sketch hidden on Sheet metal flat view

当钣金模型处于活动状态时（在创建或编辑的过程中），可使用其他工具：

• 法兰 - 为选定的每条边创建壁，通过折弯连接到选定的边。
• 卷边 - 在现有钣金零件上，为选定的每条边/每个面创建卷边。
• 薄片 - 向钣金法兰添加薄片。
• 折弯 - 沿参考线折弯钣金模型，并提供其他折弯控制选项。
• Form - Create form features on existing sheet metal models. Forms can be selected from the current document, other documents, or a predefined library of sheet metal forms.
• 制作接头 - 将两个壁的交点转换为接头特征，使其成为折弯（由圆柱几何图元接头的壁）或接缝（两个壁之间的小间隙）。
• 拐角 - 修改拐角类型和止裂槽比例。
• 折弯止裂槽 - 修改折弯止裂槽（折弯末端与自由边相交处的小切口）、深度和止裂槽宽度。
• 修改接头 - 修改现有接头，例如将折弯转换为接缝。当前，可以通过展开视图表使用此功能。
• 尖角倒钝 - 通过应用圆角或倒角来打破现有钣金零件的尖角。选择尖角边或顶点并指定尖角倒钝类型和距离。建议在钣金模型的所有法兰和联接点最终确定后使用此特征。
• 钣金表格和展开视图 - 打开和关闭接缝/折弯表以及钣金模型展开图样的可视化。使用此表将接缝与折弯互相转换。
• 结束钣金模型 - 关闭（取消激活）钣金模型；在特征列表中创建特征。

当钣金模型处于活动状态时（在创建或编辑的过程中），可使用其他工具：

• 法兰 - 为选定的每条边创建壁，通过折弯连接到选定的边。
• 薄片 - 向钣金法兰添加薄片。
• 制作接头 - 将两个壁的交点转换为接头特征，使其成为折弯（由圆柱几何图元接头的壁）或接缝（两个壁之间的小间隙）。
• 拐角 - 修改拐角类型和止裂槽比例。
• 折弯止裂槽 - 修改折弯止裂槽（折弯末端与自由边相交处的小切口）、深度和止裂槽宽度。
• 尖角倒钝 - 通过应用圆角或倒角来打破现有钣金零件的尖角。选择尖角边或顶点并指定尖角倒钝类型和距离。建议在钣金模型的所有法兰和联接点最终确定后使用此特征。
• 结束钣金模型 - 关闭（取消激活）钣金模型；在特征列表中创建特征。

1. Parts are created and stored in Part Studios. The Documents containing these Part Studios are then saved in Onshape folders. Depending on how you want to set up and organize your library, create a folder from the Documents page (Create > Folder). Enterprise/Company libraries must be created in the root folder.

2. 如果这是企业/公司库，请从“文档”页面中：

   1. 单击层次结构中根文件夹上的“共享”图标以打开“共享设置”对话框：

      

   2. 选择“团队”选项卡。

   3. 搜索并添加“所有企业/公司用户”团队。

   4. 选中“链接文档”和“共享”复选框。

   5. 单击共享按钮：

      

   6. 单击关闭按钮。

3. On the Documents page, right-click on the form folder and select Set library > My sheet metal forms. When the library is first set up, the folder icon changes to indicate this folder is a form library ():

   

Forms do not need to exist in a form library. You can create a form in the same document as your sheet metal model or any other document outside the form library.

A form part must have the following 2 conditions met:

• The Part Studio that contains the part must have a configuration variable named thickness, and its Type must be set to Length.

• The form part(s) must be tagged.

You can have only 1 valid form tag feature per Part Studio. Create 1 form per Part Studio.

A document version must also be created if you are externally referencing the form from another document.

Do the following to create a form document:

1. If you are creating the form in a user or enterprise/company form library folder, go to that folder and click Create > Document. Otherwise, open the document in which you want to create the form and Insert a new Part Studio tab.

2. In the Document's Part Studio tab, create one or more parts that define the form. These can be parts that are added to or removed from the sheet metal (or both).

3. 使用以下格式创建配置变量：

   1. 名称 = 厚度

   2. 类型 = 长度

      

      The thickness FeatureScript ID is used to drive the form thickness from the Sheet metal model feature's Thickness value. See Editing configurations and tables for more information.
      
      

4. (Optional) Use additional configuration variables when creating the form. When the form is selected via the Form feature's Select Part Studio dialog, these variables are displayed as input options beneath the form:

   

5. Create a Tag feature, and tag the part(s).

6. 在“文档”面板上单击“创建版本”。输入版本名称和描述（选填）。然后单击创建按钮：

   

7. If the form document exists in a user or company/enterprise form library, update the form library.

See the steps section above for information on how to add this form to your sheet metal model.

From the Documents page right-click on the form library folder and select Sheet metal form library > Unset my library (shown below). This removes the folder's designation as the user or enterprise/company library but does not delete the folder or its content. The folder changes to a standard folder icon to indicate that it is a standard folder ().

If changes are made to a form document inside a form library folder, the folder must be updated to have the new changes propagate to any Form features that reference the form.

From the Documents page right-click on the form library folder and select Sheet metal form library > Update my library:

If a form is updated in the form library, any existing models that reference that form still use the previous form. To update the form

1. Open the Sheet metal model document that uses the form.

2. Double-click the Form feature on the Features list.

3. Click the Form Part Studio field (Louver C in the image below) to open the Select Part Studio dialog.

4. The Form label displays (previous version) and the generic form thumbnail is shown, both indicating the model is using an older version of the form. Click the Form dropdown to open the selection menu:

   

5. Select the updated form from the list and click Done:

   

• Forms do not need to exist in a form library. Any part from any Part Studio can be used as long as it is a valid form document and meets the form document requirements.

• Form library folders cannot be deleted. First, unset the folder, then delete it.

• Share permissions for form library folders cannot be edited. First, unset the folder. Then edit the folder’s share permissions.

• Create several Part Studios, each with their own form, and all located in 1 document. If multiple forms exist in a document, the Select Part Studio dialog displays a new Type field which displays the document's name, and the Form dropdown, where the Part Studio is selected:

  

  1 form in 1 Part Studio in a document (left); multiple forms in multiple Part Studios in a document (right)