CSWP Advanced and Mechanical Mates — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which mechanical mate simulates a gear relationship between two rotating components by maintaining a fixed ratio of angular velocities?
- Rack and Pinion mate
- Gear mate (Correct answer)
- Hinge mate
- Cam mate
Correct answer: Gear mate
The Gear mate constrains two rotating parts so their angular velocities maintain a constant ratio defined by their pitch circle radii.
Question 2: When defining a Cam mate in SolidWorks, what geometry types are valid for the cam follower?
- Only flat faces
- Only cylindrical faces
- A point, line, or planar face tangent to the cam profile (Correct answer)
- Only circular edges
Correct answer: A point, line, or planar face tangent to the cam profile
The cam follower in a Cam mate can be a point, line, or flat face that remains tangent to the cam surface during motion.
Question 3: A Rack and Pinion mate requires which two geometric references to be specified?
- Two circular edges
- A linear edge for the rack and a cylindrical face for the pinion (Correct answer)
- Two cylindrical faces
- A planar face and a circular edge
Correct answer: A linear edge for the rack and a cylindrical face for the pinion
The Rack and Pinion mate links the linear translation of the rack (specified by a linear edge) to the rotation of the pinion (specified by a cylindrical or circular face).
Question 4: What does the 'Reverse' option do when configuring a Gear mate between two shafts?
- Swaps which shaft is the driver
- Changes the rotation direction so the shafts rotate in the same direction instead of opposite directions (Correct answer)
- Reverses the gear ratio
- Switches between angular and linear motion
Correct answer: Changes the rotation direction so the shafts rotate in the same direction instead of opposite directions
By default, meshing gears rotate in opposite directions; the Reverse option makes them rotate in the same direction, simulating an internal gear arrangement.
Question 5: Which advanced mate type is used to constrain a component so that it always maintains a specific angle relative to another component as both move?
- Width mate
- Angle mate with 'Flip Dimension' enabled (Correct answer)
- Profile Center mate
- Symmetric mate
Correct answer: Angle mate with 'Flip Dimension' enabled
An Angle mate with a defined value constrains the angular relationship between two components' reference planes or faces throughout motion.
Question 6: In a Width mate, what does SolidWorks center between the two 'width' faces?
- The center of mass of the assembly
- The tab component (selected faces) equidistant between the two width references (Correct answer)
- The coordinate origin of the assembly
- The mated component's bounding box center
Correct answer: The tab component (selected faces) equidistant between the two width references
A Width mate centers the selected tab faces of one component symmetrically between the two width-reference faces of another component.
Question 7: A Screw mate relates which two types of motion between components?
- Translation along X and translation along Y
- Rotation about an axis and translation along the same axis (Correct answer)
- Rotation about two different axes
- Translation along an axis and rotation about a perpendicular axis
Correct answer: Rotation about an axis and translation along the same axis
The Screw mate links axial rotation of one component to its axial translation, simulating lead-screw or threaded-fastener behavior.
Question 8: When using a Limit mate, what happens when the component reaches the defined maximum angle or distance boundary?
- The mate is deleted automatically
- The component stops moving at that boundary (Correct answer)
- SolidWorks displays an error and rebuilds fail
- The component passes through the boundary and snaps to the other limit
Correct answer: The component stops moving at that boundary
A Limit mate acts as a hard stop, preventing the component from moving beyond the defined minimum or maximum value during motion studies or manual dragging.
Question 9: Which SolidWorks mate allows you to define that a component must remain within a specific distance range from a reference, rather than at a fixed distance?
- Symmetric mate
- Distance mate with Limit option (Correct answer)
- Parallel mate
- Coincident mate with offset
Correct answer: Distance mate with Limit option
Enabling the 'Distance' mate's Limit option lets you specify a minimum and maximum allowed distance, giving the component a range of free travel.
Question 10: In SolidWorks, what is the primary purpose of the 'Profile Center' mate?
- Aligns two profiles end-to-end
- Centers the cross-section centroid of one component's face with another face's centroid (Correct answer)
- Offsets two parallel profiles by a set distance
- Mirrors one component's profile across a plane
Correct answer: Centers the cross-section centroid of one component's face with another face's centroid
The Profile Center mate automatically centers the geometric midpoints of two similar cross-sectional profiles (e.g., rectangular slots and tabs) relative to each other.
Question 11: Which statement correctly describes the behavior of a Symmetric mate?
- It mirrors a component across a plane, creating a copy
- It constrains a component so its selected entity lies equidistant from a symmetry plane relative to another entity (Correct answer)
- It locks all DOF of the component symmetrically
- It creates a pattern of the component about a plane
Correct answer: It constrains a component so its selected entity lies equidistant from a symmetry plane relative to another entity
A Symmetric mate keeps two selected entities (one on each component) equidistant from a specified symmetry plane, so they mirror each other's position during motion.
Question 12: What additional input beyond two component references is required to define a Symmetric mate?
- A rotation axis
- A symmetry plane or planar face (Correct answer)
- A distance value
- A ratio value
Correct answer: A symmetry plane or planar face
The Symmetric mate requires a plane (or flat face) to serve as the mirror reference about which the two selected entities are kept equidistant.
Question 13: In a Hinge mate, which degrees of freedom remain after the mate is applied?
- Only translation along the hinge axis
- Only rotation about the hinge axis (Correct answer)
- Rotation about and translation along the hinge axis
- All three rotations
Correct answer: Only rotation about the hinge axis
A Hinge mate combines a Concentric and a Coincident mate, leaving only one rotational DOF — rotation about the shared hinge axis.
Question 14: When setting up a Gear mate, the ratio is defined by entering values for which parameters?
- Number of teeth on each gear
- Pitch circle radii or a manually entered ratio (Correct answer)
- Module and pressure angle
- Gear face width and helix angle
Correct answer: Pitch circle radii or a manually entered ratio
SolidWorks Gear mates accept either pitch circle radii (from which it computes the ratio) or a directly entered numerical ratio to define the angular velocity relationship.
Question 15: What does the 'Reverse' checkbox do specifically within a Rack and Pinion mate?
- Swaps the rack and pinion roles
- Reverses the direction of pinion rotation for a given rack translation direction (Correct answer)
- Inverts the distance-per-revolution ratio
- Enables the rack to rotate instead of translate
Correct answer: Reverses the direction of pinion rotation for a given rack translation direction
The Reverse option in a Rack and Pinion mate flips the sign of the relationship so that rack motion in one direction causes pinion rotation in the opposite sense.
Question 16: Which advanced SolidWorks mate would you use to ensure a pin always stays in contact with a slotted track as the assembly moves?
- Gear mate
- Path mate (Correct answer)
- Screw mate
- Linear Coupler mate
Correct answer: Path mate
A Path mate constrains a selected point on a component to travel along a specified curve or edge path, keeping the pin within the slot throughout motion.
Question 17: In a Path mate, the 'Pitch/Yaw/Roll' controls define what?
- The speed of the component along the path
- How the component's orientation is controlled relative to the path tangent, normal, and binormal directions (Correct answer)
- The starting position along the path
- The loop count for repeated motion
Correct answer: How the component's orientation is controlled relative to the path tangent, normal, and binormal directions
Pitch, Yaw, and Roll settings in a Path mate govern whether the component's orientation follows the path tangent (aligned), stays free, or is locked about each local axis.
Question 18: A Linear Coupler mate links the motion of two components in what way?
- Forces both components to rotate at the same angular velocity
- Defines a ratio between the linear (or angular) displacement of one component and another (Correct answer)
- Locks both components to the same global position
- Creates a gear-like relationship only for translating parts
Correct answer: Defines a ratio between the linear (or angular) displacement of one component and another
A Linear Coupler mate lets you specify that a defined amount of motion (linear or angular) in one component produces a proportional amount of motion in another, using a user-defined ratio.
Question 19: When would you use an 'Angle' mate's 'Flip Dimension' option?
- To change from degrees to radians
- To switch which side of the reference the angle is measured from, selecting the supplementary angle (Correct answer)
- To reverse the rotational direction defined by the mate
- To enable angular limits
Correct answer: To switch which side of the reference the angle is measured from, selecting the supplementary angle
Flip Dimension switches the angular measurement to the supplementary side (180° − θ), effectively changing which face normal direction is used as the angle reference.
Question 20: Which mate type would best simulate a ball-and-socket joint allowing rotation in all three axes while preventing all translation?
- Hinge mate
- Concentric + Coincident combination
- Ball mate (Lock rotation unchecked Concentric with spherical faces)
- Coincident mate on two spherical faces (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Coincident mate on two spherical faces
Applying a Coincident mate between two spherical faces constrains all three translational DOFs while leaving all three rotational DOFs free, simulating a ball-and-socket joint.
Question 21: In an assembly with a Cam mate applied, which mate property ensures the follower stays in continuous contact with the cam surface rather than passing through it?
- Tangent option selected for the follower
- Lock Rotation checkbox enabled
- Cam mate is inherently contact-tangent; selecting 'Tangent' enforces continuous surface contact (Correct answer)
- Distance limit set to zero
Correct answer: Cam mate is inherently contact-tangent; selecting 'Tangent' enforces continuous surface contact
The Cam mate with the Tangent constraint option enforces that the follower geometry remains continuously tangent to the cam profile surface, preventing penetration or separation.
CSWP Advanced and Mechanical Mates
Which mechanical mate simulates a gear relationship between two rotating components by maintaining a fixed ratio of angular velocities?
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Sources & references
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- solidworks.com — Test delivery, eligibility, exam format, passing score, retake policy, time limit, score validity · verified Oct 2026