Replace assembly components

In the design process, you often need to replace one or more components in an assembly or assembly pattern. You may design a placeholder component that you eventually replace with a standard purchased component, or replace one vendor's component with another.

You can select a single component or all components to replace existing assembly components regardless of their location in the directory structure. When you select a component in a pattern element, usually all occurrences of that component in the pattern are replaced. If there are multiple instances of a component in each element of an assembly pattern, not all occurrences of the component in the pattern are replaced. For example:

The new component or all occurrences of the component are placed in the same location as the original component. Assembly constraints are retained, if possible. The origin of the replacement component is coincident with the origin of the replaced component. If the replacement part has a different shape than the original, some constraints might need to be reapplied to correctly position the component.

Procedures

Replace assembly components

You can replace one assembly component with another component or replace all occurrences of the component in the current assembly. If possible, constraints are retained, unless the replacement part has a different shape. In that case, some constraints may not survive and must be reapplied.

In the browser or the graphics window, select the component to replace. On the Assemble tab, Component panel, click the down arrow on the Replace command, and then choose one of the following: Click Replace, and then click a component to replace. Click Replace All, and then click the component to replace all occurrences in the current assembly. In the Open dialog box, go to the folder that contains the component, select the component, and then click Open. A message notifies you that constraints and iMates will be retained, if possible. Click OK to continue or Cancel to discontinue replacing a component. The new component or multiple occurrences are placed in the same location as the original components. The origin of the replacement component is coincident with the origin of the replaced component. If some constraints were not retained, apply assembly constraints as needed to remove degrees of freedom.

NoteWhen you replace a component with a member of an iAssembly or iPart, the Open dialog box browses to the factory file of the member. You can select a different member of the factory or create a new member using the Place iPart or Place iAssembly dialog box.