SOLIDWORKS Composer Course Overview

The SOLIDWORKS Composer course is designed to teach participants how to leverage SOLIDWORKS Composer software to create detailed 2D and 3D output directly from CAD design data. This comprehensive course, spanning 3 days, covers a wide range of skills from basic navigation within the SOLIDWORKS Composer environment to advanced techniques for creating animations, interactive content, and high-quality marketing images.

Skills Learned:

Navigation and Basic Functions: Learn to navigate the SOLIDWORKS Composer user interface, including the use of the ribbon, quick access toolbar, views, and navigation tools.
Creating Detailed Images and Views: Master rendering tools, camera alignment, and custom rendering settings to produce high-quality images and detailed exploded views.
Exploded Views and BOMs: Develop skills in creating exploded views with visibility tools, explode lines, and labels, and learn how to generate Bills of Materials (BOMs) for documentation.
Animations: Create animations to showcase assembly processes or product functionalities, including timeline management, keyframe animation, and camera movements.
Interactive Content: Learn to create interactive content for educational or marketing purposes, including walkthrough animations and special effects.
Publishing: Understand the process of preparing files for publishing in various formats such as PDF, HTML, and SVG documents, and embedding content into Microsoft Word and PowerPoint.

Course Duration

3 Days (7 hours/day)

Prerequisites

Experience with the Windows operating system.

Course Examples

Exploded Views

Create detailed exploded views with callouts linked to bill of materials

Renderings

Create realistic renderings for marketing or how-to guides

Detailed Views

Create detailed views of parts or sections to provide visual detail

Multiple View States

Create multiple views to show sequences or processes from various orientations and angles

Publish Guides

Crete and publish high quality assembly or how-to guides for end users or operators on the shop floor

Step-By-Step Instructions

Create visually appealing step-by-step PDF instructions with external links and other objects to make instruction manuals easy to understand

SOLIDWORKS Composer Course Syllabus

Lesson 1: Quick Start

Quick Look at SOLIDWORKS Composer

Lesson 2: Getting Started

SOLIDWORKS Composer Terminology
SOLIDWORKS Composer User Interface

Ribbon
Quick Access Toolbar
Left Pane

Views
Navigation Tools

Common Mouse Navigation Tools

Updating Views

Properties Pane

Collaborative Actors
Camera Views
Transform
Creating 2D Output

Workshops

View Mode/Animation Mode

Timeline Pane

Exercise 1: Navigation Tools

Lesson 3: Creating Cover and Detail Images

Rendering Tools

Zoom and Rotate Tools
Navigation Settings

Camera Alignment Tools

Preset Camera Views
Align Camera on Face
Custom Camera Views
Perspective

Custom Rendering
Digger
Exercise 2: Digger
Exercise 3: Updating Views

Lesson 4: Creating an Exploded View

Visibility Tools
Exploded Views

Linear Explode

Collaborative Actors

Explode Lines
Labels
Magnetic Lines

Styles
Vector Graphics Output

Vector Detail Views
Vector Images

Exercise 4: Exploded View
Exercise 5: Styles
Exercise 6: Markups and Annotations
Exercise 7: Visibility and Rendering Tools

Lesson 5: Creating Additional Exploded Views

Importing Files
Paper Space
Update Views with Selected Actors
Align Actors
Explode Lines
Custom Views
Linking Between Views
Exercise 8: Importing Assemblies
Exercise 9: Custom Views

Lesson 6: Creating Bills of Materials

Bill of Materials

BOM IDs
BOM Table

Vector Graphics Output
Another BOM Table
Assembly Level BOM
Assembly Selection Mode
Exercise 10: Exploded Views, BOMs, and Callouts
Exercise 11: Assembly Level BOMs
Exercise 12: Vector Graphics Files

Lesson 7: Creating a Marketing Image

Selections
Textures
Lights

Multiple Panes in the Viewport

Scenes
High Resolution Image
Exercise 13: Lights and Textures
Exercise 14: Render Effects
Exercise 15: Merging and Aligning Actors

Lesson 8: Creating an Animation

Timeline Pane

Terminology
Moving Around in the Timeline Pane
Manipulating Playback

Location Keys

Auto-Keys
General Procedure

Exercise 16: Creating an Explode Animation

Lesson 9: Creating Interactive Content

Views for Animation
Improving the Animation

Removing Extra Keys
Filters
Improving the Collapse Sequences

Digger Keys
Selections in the Key Track
Events
Animating Collaborative Actors
Create View Collection
Exercise 17: Managing the Timeline Pane
Exercise 18: Animating Collapse Sequences
Exercise 19: Events

Lesson 10: Creating a Walkthrough Animation

Camera Keys
Grids
Additional Camera Functionality
Exercise 20: Camera Keys 1
Exercise 21: Camera Keys 2

Lesson 11: Adding Special Effects to Animations

Animation Library Workshop
Animation Special Effects
Assembly Selection Mode in Animations
Scenarios
Exercise 22: Animating Actors and the Digger
Exercise 23: Animation Library Workshop

Lesson 12: Updating SOLIDWORKS Composer Files

Update an Entire Assembly

How the Update Function Works
Warnings for the Update Function

Changing the Geometry of an Actor
Exercise 24: Updating from CAD

Lesson 13: Working with Projects

Overview
Product Files
Product Orientation

View Files
Scenario Files
Swapping Project Files

Exercise 25: Projects

Lesson 14: Publishing from SOLIDWORKS Composer

Preparing a File for Publishing
Publishing to PDF

PDF Plug-in
Default PDF
Custom PDF

Publishing Inside Microsoft PowerPoint

Embedding into Microsoft PowerPoint
Adding Custom Buttons

Publishing to HTML

Default HTML
Custom HTML

Linked SVG Files
Publishing Multiple Views
Exercise 26: Publishing to PDF
Exercise 27: Publishing Inside Microsoft Word
Exercise 28: Publishing Inside HTML
Exercise 29: Publishing SVG Documents