Creating a Bidirectional Sweep

You can create sweeps for a mid-path profile in either direction or the entire path using Bidirectional.

You can also control the twist value of the path independently for each direction of the sweep and apply the twist value over the entire length. However, you cannot use guide curves or set the start and end tangency for a bidirectional sweep.

The bidirectional option is available for swept boss/base, swept cut (except for swept cuts using the solid sweep option), and swept surface parts. It is also available for swept cut assemblies.

To create a bidirectional sweep:

  1. In a part, click Insert > Boss/Base > Sweep.

  2. In the PropertyManager, under Profile and Path, click Sketch Profile and do the following:
    1. In the flyout FeatureManager design tree, select Sketch8 for Profile and select Helix/Spiral1 for Path.
    2. Click Direction 1 and Direction 2 to toggle the direction of the sweep.
      Direction 1 Direction 2
    3. Click Bidirectional .
      The sweep runs in both directions.

  3. Under Options, do the following:

    1. For Profile orientation, click Follow Path.
    2. For Profile twist, click Natural.
      You can specify the twist for each end of the sweep independently and apply the twist angle for the entire path.
      Show preview and Merge result are selected by default.
  4. Click .