The Boolean sketch tools allow users to use separate sketch interactions to create designs/sketches that otherwise may be impossible or very time costly. A Boolean sketch tool allows the user to work with intersecting sketches to combine, subtract or keep the overlap in the two sketches.

When dealing with two applicable sketches in the XApps the Boolean context menu will pop up. The pop-up Boolean context menu contains the add, subtract, and intersect tools. The Boolean context menu is available for use in all the applicable XApps that make use of sketches. The benefit of using the Boolean sketch tools is that the original geometry of each sketch is retained in the Design Tree. The Boolean sketch tools can also be used for finding volumes. Below we will go over how to use the Boolean add, subtract, and intersect tools using a simple sample sketch below.

1. Add

To have the Boolean context toolbar pop up, control select two applicable intersecting sketches. Then click the add button. This option combines the two sketches, while retaining the seed sketch properties.”

2. Subtract

To have the Boolean context toolbar pop up, control select two applicable intersecting sketches. Then click the subtract button. The first sketch selected becomes the target sketch which will be what gets subtracted from. The second sketch selected becomes the tool object which will be the sketch that subtracts from the target option. The subtract button removes the tool object sketch from the target option sketch.

3. Intersect

To have the Boolean context toolbar pop up, control select two applicable intersecting sketches. Then choose the intersect button. The intersect button removes all parts of the two sketches that aren’t apart of the overlap.

The Boolean sketch tools can help designers create sketches that may be otherwise very time intensive to create. The add, subtract, and intersect Boolean tools are helpful for sketches but the same concepts can be extended to manipulate volumes.