Features

The building blocks of a part model are called features. There are four basic types of Features:

• Sketched features that require a sketch.
• Placed features that modify existing geometry. For example, a hole is a placed feature.
• Work features used for construction purposes.
• iFeatures that represent common shapes and are saved in a reusable library. An iFeature driven by a table can represent different shape configurations.

You can create surfaces with many of these operations to define shapes or aspects of the part body. For example, you can use a curved surface as a termination plane for cuts in a housing.

You can edit the characteristics of a feature by returning to its underlying sketch, or changing the values used in feature creation. For example, you can change the length of an extruded feature by entering a new value for the extent of the extrusion. You can also use equations to derive one dimension from another.

Tip: To terminate, abort, or cancel a feature operation in process, press the Escape key. The time it takes to cancel an operation may vary depending on the feature or data set that is in use. For operations with realistic preview, such as shell or fillet, you can interrupt the preview.

Currently, not all operations are interruptible and some operations do not respond immediately when pressing the Escape key. A message displays when the cancellation is complete.