The existing limitation applies both to interactive Creo Parametric and equivalent functionality via the Toolkit API. A solution is needed for both.
This request applies to all supported versions of Creo Parametric since 3.0, when UNITE support for MultiCAD reuse was introduced. Today that is Creo 7, 8 and 9.
Creo Parametric can directly open SOLIDWORKS parts and assemblies, with or without the Collaboration Extension for SOLIDWORKS. In this context, 'directly' means opening the .sldasm or .sldprt file, without first translating the non-native models to a neutral format such as STEP.
Like Creo, SOLIDWORKS 3D models may have family tables defined within them. The SOLIDWORKS terminology for a family table member ('instance' in Creo) is 'configuration'. A SOLIDWORKS model having no family table has only a single configuration, called Default or some locale-specific variant. A model's Default configuration is equivalent to Creo's generic part or assembly.
Today Creo can only open the last-saved configuration of a 3D model, even though the .sldprt or .sldasm file may contain any number of other non-default configurations, and each of these may have a very different geometry from the default configuration. I'm requesting that PTC add support for opening a non-default configuration of a SOLIDWORKS 3D model, by name, both interactively and through the API.
The use case is inserting into a Creo assembly a selected model that is defined within the family table of a SOLIDWORKS part or assembly. Without this capability, the Creo designer can only design around a family table configuration happened to be the last-saved, and often this will not be the one he needs to reference in his Creo assembly.
The business value is higher-fidelity MultiCAD reuse, for customers working with standalone Creo as well as Creo connected to a PDM system.
