CATIA Tip: How to Lock in a Horizontal or Vertical Dimension in a CATIA Drawing

September 9, 2021 Trisha West

One of the things that my students get frustrated with when they are making drawings is how CATIA will switch the direction of the dimension you are making based upon where you are moving your mouse.

This can be especially annoying when doing a chained, cumulative, or stacked dimension. This can be controlled 2 different ways. The first way is to choose an option in the tools palette like the force horizontal or force vertical dimension.

The other way is to hold down the Ctrl key to lock the current dimension direction.

This topic is covered in more detail in the Rand 3D training class, CATIA V5: Generative Drafting.

About the Author

Technical Training Engineer<br><br>Trisha has been providing professional training services for Rand 3D clients since 2012. Her extensive experience makes her an ideal instructor for both on-site and online classes for people at all levels, from introductory to advanced. She currently focuses on teaching end users how to effectively use CATIA V5, VPM Navi, and Creo Parametric. She also helps develop and review training material. Trisha has a B.Sc. in Aerospace Engineering from Ohio State University, and she is a Dassault Systèmes Certified instructor for CATIA V5 Part, Assembly and Surfacing modeling.
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