SWEEP (Command)

Creates a 3D solid or 3D surface by sweeping a 2D object or subobject along an open or closed path.

Access Methods

Tool Sets: Modeling tab > Solid panel > Modeling drop-down > Sweep.

Menu: Draw > 3D Modeling > Sweep.

Open-ended objects create 3D surfaces, while objects that enclose an area can be set to create either 3D solids or 3D surfaces.

You can use the following objects and paths when creating a swept solid or surface:

Objects that Can Be Swept	Objects that Can Be Used as a Sweep Path
2D and 3D splines	2D and 3D splines
2D polylines	2D and 3D polylines
2D solids	Solid, surface and mesh edge subobjects
3D solid face subobjects	Helices
Arcs	Arcs
Circles	Circles
Ellipses	Ellipses
Elliptical arcs	Elliptical arcs
Lines	Lines
Regions
Solid, surface and mesh edge subobjects
Trace

Note: Select face and edge subobjects by pressing Ctrl while you select them.

To automatically delete the original geometry used to create the object, use the DELOBJ system variable. For associative surfaces, the DELOBJ system variable is ignored and the originating geometry is not deleted.

The following prompts are displayed.

Objects to Sweep

Specifies an object to use as the sweep profile.

Sweep Path

Specifies the sweep path based on the object you select.

Mode

Controls whether the sweep action creates a solid or a surface. Surfaces are swept as either NURBS surfaces or procedural surfaces, depending on the SURFACEMODELINGMODE system variable.

Alignment

Specifies whether the profile is aligned to be normal to the tangent direction of the sweep path.

If the profile is not perpendicular (normal) to the tangent of the start point of the path, then the profile automatically aligns. Enter No at the alignment prompt to prevent this.

Base Point

Specifies a base point for the objects to be swept.

Scale

Specifies a scale factor for a sweep operation. The scale factor is uniformly applied to the objects that are swept from the start to the end of the sweep path.

• Reference. Scales the selected objects based on the length you reference by picking points or entering values.

Twist

Sets a twist angle for the objects being swept. The twist angle specifies the amount of rotation along the entire length of the sweep path.

• Bank. Specifies whether the curve(s) being swept will naturally bank (rotate) along a 3D sweep path (3D polyline, spline, or helix).