Distance Along Slot Places the component axis at a specified distance from the end of the slot.Center in Slot Centers the component in the slot.Free Lets the component move freely in the slot.There are four options you have to choose from once you select the Slot Mate: For Mate Selections, select a slot face and the feature to mate to it: In the PropertyManager, expand Mechanical Mates and select Slot.ģ. Click Mate (Assembly toolbar) or Insert > Mate.

This was released as an enhancement in 2014 but it seems to have been forgotten. One that I am finding really useful lately is the slot mate. Interested in learning more Onshape Tech Tips? You can review the most recent technical blogs here.SolidWorks has given us some great enhancements over the years. Want to learn more about Mate Connectors? Check out this Onshape webinar, “ All the Ways You Can Use Mate Connectors.” Once it’s aligned correctly, add the appropriate limits to the mate. Realign it with the edge of the slot as the secondary axis. Then, after the mate is created, you can expand the mate and edit the Mate Connector of the slot. To do this, first create the mate and accept the dialog box. Sometimes the slot is not aligned with an existing axis and you will have to adjust the implicit Mate Connector after creating the mate. This works to adjust the secondary axis from the X to the Y direction while you have that Mate Connector tool selected in the dialog.Īdjusting the Implicit Mate Connector After Mate Creation The question then becomes, how do you adjust this for a different alignment? Adjusting the Implicit Mate Connector on Mate CreationĪs you create the Slot Mate using the implicit Mate Connectors, you can choose to realign the secondary axis while creating the mate. The Slot Mate defaults to sliding in the X-axis alignment.

To do this, you can use the Slot Mate and apply limits.

Often in an assembly you want a hardware component to have the ability to slide within a slot.

Slot mate shop