Overview

What it is

EZWire is a custom tool for quickly creating 3D wire or solid tube paths inside Onshape. It’s meant to save you from manually sketching, trimming, and joining curves by letting you build a path step by step from the geometry you already have. Once the path is set, EZWire can automatically sweep it into a solid tube of a chosen diameter.

EZWire differs from Routing Curve and other similar features by building the path out of segments which reference your existing geometry, rather than by placing endpoints for each curve or turn.

What it can do

• Flexible path creation: Build paths from axes, edges, sketches, loops, or points. Each type of input has its own options so you can match the path to your design needs.
• Automatic connections: Each step you add links smoothly to the previous one, with bridges that can be straight (polyline) or smooth (spline). You control how those bridges behave with offsets, radii, and style.
• Geometry reuse: Follow along existing model edges, snap directly to tangent directions, or reuse sketches and mate connectors to avoid redrawing.
• Arc and loop creation: Generate loops around an axis with a defined radius and angle.
• Freeform curves: Fit a smooth spline through points you pick in the model.
• Live adjustment: Use on-screen handles to move segments or adjust bridge curves without reselecting geometry.
• Wire length reporting: The feature automatically calculates and labels the length of the wire in either inches or meters.
• Wire generation: Optionally sweep a round profile along the path to make a finished solid body with the thickness you specify.

User Guide

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Initial UI

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• Name Units (choice)

  The Final curve and/or part will be named by its length in these units.

  • meter
  • inch

• Wire Diameter (non-negative length)

  Diameter of final swept tube. 0 will produce only a curve.

• Hide Thickness (boolean)

  Hides swept tube during edit, and will suppress creation of part

• Hide Skeleton (boolean)

  Hides debug lines during edit.

• Segments (array)

  The array of Segments. Segments are composed of a Selection and a Bridge. Each Segment (after the first) automatically creates a Bridge connecting it to the previous Segment.

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Building a Wire

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Add Segments in order. But you may re-order the array at any time. Adding a Segment gives you several options for Segment and Bridge construction.

Each segment starts with the following items. Some items are not available for Segment 1 as each Segment array item controls the current Segment and the Bridge connecting it to the previous Segment.

• Bridge Style (choice, not available for Segment 1)

  The method of creating the Bridge between Segments.

  • BSPLINE Bridge
  • POLYLINE Bridge

• Extend Segment Start (non-negative length)

  Extend the start of the Segment in a linear direction.

  NOTE: AXIS and TANGENT Segments begin with 0 length

• Segment Type (choice)

  The method of creating the segment shape, depending on the picked entity.

  • ON AXIS
  • TANGENT to Edge
  • FOLLOW Edges
  • FOLLOW Sketch
  • LOOP AROUND Axis
  • FIT to Points

• Selection Entity (query)

  Will vary depending on Selection Type

• Flip Connecting End (flip boolean)

  Swaps which end of the Segment the incoming (and later, outgoing) bridge connects to.

• Extend Segment End (non-negative length)

  Extend the end of the Segment in a linear direction.

  NOTE: AXIS and TANGENT Segments begin with 0 length

• Realign Manipulator (boolean)

  Realign the Triad Manipulator to existing geometry.

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Bridge Styles

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• BSPLINE Bridge

  Creates a 5-point, degree-3 bSpline between the current Segment and the previous Segment.

  The bSpline Bridge will have two Bias Points, which can be moved by Linear Manipulators.

  To move a Bias Point, click the Point Manipulator to activate that Point, then drag the Manipulator. Only one Bias Point can be active at a time.

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