3DEXPERIENCE - Is There an Associated Drawing?

A common question I hear from 3DEXPERIENCE users is, “How can I see if a part or an assembly has any associated drawings?” Turns out there are many ways to get this information. In this blog, I’ll start with some simple methods and then move on to some that take a little more setup but are worth the effort.

Information Pane (various locations)

There are many places in the 3DEXPERIENCE web interface where the Information Pane is available, but here are the most common places to access it.

3DSearch

When performing a search with the 3DSearch tool, after receiving your results, select a part/assembly file, then open the information pane by clicking the “i” icon on the far upper right of the screen. Use the All Relations tab and expand CAD Dependency of to see if there is a drawing for that file.

Product Explorer

In the Product Explorer tool, select a part/assembly from the list, and open the information pane from the “i” icon from View tab of the bottom toolbar. Scroll over to the All Relations tab and expand CAD Dependency of to see if there is a drawing for that file. Now you can leave the information pane open and click through the various part and sub-assembly files to see if there is a drawing.

Inside SOLIDWORKS

The Information Pane is also available right inside the SOLIDWORKS interface! A lot of people don’t know this because it is slightly hidden. In the 3DEXPERIENCE tab of the task pane, from the bottom toolbar, choose the View tab, and then the icon for Display Side Panel. Make sure you have a part or assembly selected and then use the Relations tab and CAD Dependency of to see if there is a drawing. Once again, make sure that All Relations is set in the dropdown.

Relations App 

Using the Relations Explorer app is another great way to see if there are associated drawings with a little less clicking around to get there. Just open the part/assembly in the app and then use the plus sign on the left side to expand up the relations tree to see if there is an associated drawing listed under CAD Dependency of.

If you are using the Datagrid View, it would look like this:

Product Explorer App  

I mentioned earlier that the Information Pane is available in the Product Explorer app, but there is an even easier way to see if relations exist directly in the part/sub-assembly list, it just needs to be enabled.

Right-click on the Title header bar, and choose Show Relations.

Then, as you start expanding the different nodes, if a part/assembly has any relations (including child parts/assemblies) it will have a Relations line item that you can further expand to see if there is an associated drawing.

If you haven’t figured it out yet, Product Explorer is an awesome tool for finding tons of information about parts and assemblies right from the web browser interface!

Enable “Drawing” Column (in various apps)

The last method to see if a file has associated drawings is the best as far as user access and most visibility, but it requires the Platform Admin to do the setup first. This setting will provide a clear and concise column that will show you whether or not there is a drawing. It can be enabled in many apps, but Product Explorer and Bookmark Editor are the most common places to use it.

A 3DEXPERIENCE platform administrator needs to access the Relations Control Center app.

In the upper window, you need to set up the wanted Relations Sets. In the Included Relations list box, set any columns you want to be available to a user. You can start typing if you know what you are looking for (e.g., “Drawing”) or you can choose from the list. Setting the dropdown right above that to Document Relations helps narrow down the list. In this example, I am adding columns that would show if there were associated Specification Documents, Attachments, and Drawings. 

In the Applications list box, set where these columns will be available (i.e. what apps). Here, I am enabling them for Bookmark Editor and Product Explorer. Be sure to hit the Save button in the upper window.

In the lower window, you must also set what relation sets will be available by default. This must be done for each app that you want the columns to be available in. Choose the Application, Document Relations, Save, and then repeat for other apps (if needed). Be sure to save each time.

That is all the platform administrator needs to do.

Now a user will have the option to turn on those new columns in a particular app.

To do this, right-click on a column header in the app and choose Tree List View Options.

Turn on the desired columns.

Click Close and the columns will be shown.

Another really cool feature is if you click on one of the checkmarks it will automatically open the Information Pane and expand to the relation for that Drawing, Specification Document, Attachment, etc. You can then Open With or just drag and drop into 3DPlay or whatever app you want to view or work on the related file.

The above methods and tools will allow you and your coworkers to find out if parts and assemblies have any associated drawings faster than ever before. Want to learn more about 3DEXPERIENCE?  Check out more tips and tricks below. Additionally, join the GoEngineer Community to ask questions, create forum posts, and answer questions from other SOLIDWORKS and 3DEXPERIENCE users. 

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