What’s New in SolidWorks 2013: Intersect (Wow!)

SolidWorks 2013 introduces a new and powerful tool called Intersect. Intersect enables you to perform complex operations to quickly combine surfaces, planes and solid bodies in practically any way you need without the need for multiple cut, trim and fill features.  The tool’s visual interface allows you to do all the experimenting you’ll need in order to create the final shape you want.  The following is an example of how Intersect can help you to quickly build a part from multiple intersecting surfaces.

This is a set of surface bodies that will be used to create the exterior of a new consumer product.  The goal is quickly combine these surface bodies into a final solid shape that can then be shelled.

1. Start the Intersect tool (found on the Features toolbar).
2. Select all of the surface bodies.  As you select each one, they populate the Selections box in the PropertyManager.  Hint: you can use window select to get all the surface bodies at once.
3. Choose Intersect button.
4. A list of intersection regions is quickly generated in the Regions to Exclude box in the PropertyManager.  In the case of this project, there is only one region, so there will be nothing to exclude.
5. Make sure Merge result is checked on the Options box in the PropertyManager.
6. Because we do not want the surface bodies to remain in the final part, make sure Consume surfaces is also checked.
7. Once you are satisfied with the previewed result, choose OK (green check mark button) to accept and apply.
8. The result is finalized.  The entire operation appears as one new Intersect feature in the Feature Tree.
9. Adjustments to your selections can be made at any time by editing the Intersect feature in the same manner as any other features are edited.

Preview of result

 Final result

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