Posts Tagged ‘Tips and Tricks’
Tuesday, May 28th, 2013
Imported data can become parametric with direct editing tools inside of SolidWorks. If you are moving from a different CAD system or if you work with many different file types, you may need to modify them. This modification can be moving a hole or changing the depth of a cut or virtually anything else.
SolidWorks has a feature called “Move Face” which does the direct editing. You can offset faces, move faces linearly, or rotate faces. It can be found under Insert>Face>Move.
When you offset a face, you can change the distance in a single direction. If you have a hole, you would use this to change the hole diameter.
When you would use the translate option in “Move Face”, you have the ability to use a triad to move linearly. You can move multiple faces or a single face with a triad in a specified direction and distance.
The final option in the “Move Face” command is to rotate faces. You rotate based on the triad and the value you specify.
When you make these “moves”, a feature is created in the feature tree. The “Move Face” command is making your imported body a Parametric part right before your eyes. This tool is available in all versions of SolidWorks.
This can also be used on “non-imported” parts. So models created with SolidWorks features can still have the “Move Face” command used on them.
Tags: 3DVision, 3DVision Technologies, Direct Editing, Imported, Josh Spencer, SolidWorks Modeling, Tips and Tricks
Posted in General, SolidWorks, SolidWorks 3D CAD, Tips & Tricks | No Comments »
Tuesday, April 2nd, 2013
RC Hovercraft #2 – SolidWorks
To review, I had 4 main design criteria for the Remote Control Hover Craft.
- Utilize the SolidWorks and SolidWorks Simulation Suite of software to develop and optimize the hovercraft design.
- The RC Hovercraft’s main components will be 3D Printed using the Stratasys UPrint.
- Easy to Assemble. I want to make the assembly as easy and as straight forward as possible with concise instructions.
- For purchases components, use low cost, off the shelf components including the electric motors, electronic speed control (ESC), batteries, and propellers.
I proceeded forward with the design of the Hovercraft using SolidWorks 3D mechanical design software. SolidWorks allowed me to quickly develop and execute a first pass design, utilizing Multi-Body Parts, In context Assembly Modeling, Sketch Pictures, Fastening Features, Interference Detection, and several other standard options. All of this came together in an initial design that meets the above criteria.
The design started with the Top Plate part that houses the downward facing fan assembly and gives the craft its overall dimensional size. I kept the craft under the 8″ by 8″ tray size of the Stratasys UPrint 3D Printer. The part consists of multi-bodies; one for the plate and the other for the fan housing. These bodies have minimal tolerance so they are a snug fit when pressed together for final assembly. This design criteria is so that if the propeller needs to be serviced later total dis-assembly of the craft does not have to take place. Simply pull the fan unit upward out of the top plate.
Top Plate
Exploded View Front
Exploded View Back
The chassis continues with a bottom plate and separating ribs. The chassis is hollow as the air needs to fill this cavity before exiting out of the skirt. The skirt is intended to be a bicycle inner tube cut to size with holes cut around the inner bottom portion allowing the air to escape. The skirt will be held on by two fastening plates and standard hobby store machine screws.
Section View
The back cowling snaps into place with a Snap Hook. The Fastening Feature command was used to create this geometry. The Snap Hook will allow for ease of assembly, and the cowl contains a cross bar with built in motor mount sized for a 9V-11V brushed can motor. The Cowling and Top Plate will make up the mounting location for the dual rudder system. The system is driven by an S75 Nano servo available at most local hobby shops.
Cowl
The canopy will cover all of the electronics including the Receiver, two Electronic Speed Controls (ESC), And two Li-Poly 300MAH 11.1V Batteries. One ESC and battery per motor. I originally set out utilizing the Sketch Picture and Surfacing to create the canopy structure. This worked out well, however at this time I did not have the electronics in the full assembly. When trying to accommodate the electronics under the first variation of the canopy I visibly had interference. Luckily utilizing in-context editing and having a well planned design intent, the changes to the canopy allowed for an easy and quick change.
Sketch Picture
Interference Original Canopy
Receiver & ESCs
Batteries, Receiver, and ESCs
Canopy Design Change
There is still much to do with the modeling aspect, but for now I have a good working start to the project and a starting point to investigate the flow and stress characteristics of the design. The next step is to utilize Flow Simulation to verify the lift ability of the motor and propeller combination for the lift fan and the rear facing fan assembly.
Top
Front
Back
Side
Tags: 3DVision, 3DVision Technologies, assemblies, assembly, Robert Warren, Simulation, SolidWorks, SolidWorks Modeling, Stratasys 3D Printers, Tips and Tricks, uPrint, workflow
Posted in COSMOSWorks, General, Simulation, SolidWorks, SolidWorks 3D CAD, Stratasys, Stratasys 3D Printers, Stratasys Dimension Printing, Tips & Tricks, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Monday, February 25th, 2013
RC Hovercraft #1
For this blog series I wanted to design something from scratch. Not necessarily a new idea but something fun and cool. My intention is to design a Remote Control Hovercraft from the ground up.
I want to give you a brief description and history of a Hovercraft:
A hovercraft or air-cushion vehicle is a vehicle capable of travelling over variable surfaces, such as land and water. The hovercraft operates by forcing a high pressure of air between the bottom of the craft and the surface below. This high pressure of air lifts the vehicle upward essentially “hovering” above the ground on a cushion of air. The first practical design for hovercraft derived from several coinciding inventions in the 1950s to 1960s. They are now used throughout the world as specialized vehicles for transport and other applications.
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Propulsion Propellers
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Air
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Lifting Fan
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Flexible skirt
I have specific goals in mind that I want to meet in the design and build of this project.
Goals of the Hovercraft Design:
- Utilize the SolidWorks and SolidWorks Simulation Suite of software to develop and optimize the hover craft design.
- The RC Hovercraft’s main components will be 3D Printed using the Stratasys UPrint.
- Easy to Assemble. I want to make the assembly as easy and as straight forward as possible with concise instructions.
- For purchased components, use low cost, off the shelf components including the electric motors, electronic speed control (ESC), batteries, and propellers.
I am starting from just an idea, and a sketch. We will see where the design leads.
Tags: 3DVision, assemblies, assembly, dimension, Robert Warren, Simulation, SolidWorks, SolidWorks Modeling, Tips and Tricks
Posted in Case Studies, COSMOSWorks, General, Simulation, SolidWorks, SolidWorks 3D CAD, SolidWorks 3DVIA Composer, Stratasys, Stratasys 3D Printers, Stratasys Dimension Printing, Tips & Tricks, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Friday, January 25th, 2013
The use of a bearing load is brought up frequently during training and technical support discussions. I want to elaborate on this topic with a simple example, illustrating when to use and when it is not necessary to use the bearing load.
Let’s step back a minute and talk about what a bearing load is. According to the SolidWorks Help file:
Bearing Loads
Bearing loads develop between contacting cylindrical faces or edges of shells.
In most cases, the contacting faces or edges have the same radius. The bearing forces generate a non-uniform pressure at the interface of contact. You can select between a sinusoidal variation and a parabolic variation in the appropriate half-space, as shown in the figure.
In contrast, a uniform load does not vary in strength closer to the tangency of the tube. The load is constant across the applied face.
Setup:
We will examine two models and four scenarios in this exercise. The models will be both a solid and a hollow shaft. The shaft dimensions will be 14″ long with a 2″ diameter. Additionally, the hollow shaft will have a wall thickness of 0.125″.
Both the Solid and Hollow tubes were loaded with a distributed and bearing load in order to compare and contrast the results. Both models were held fixed at either end. The load was applied to the entire length of the top half of the shaft in a vertical direction.
The Results:
Between the distributed and bearing load on the Solid model, there is no difference in stress and displacement. On the hollow tube, the bearing load shows a drastic difference in the displacement compared to the uniform load. The bearing load shows the majority of the load is being focused on the center of the tube.
Model Load Stress Displacement
| Model |
Load |
Stress |
Displacement |
|
|
|
|
| Solid |
2000lb Distributed |
3943.6 psi |
0.001066 in. |
| Solid |
2000lb Bearing |
3943.4 psi |
0.001065 in |
| Hollow |
2000lb Distributed |
11,534.6 psi |
0.003009 in. |
| Hollow |
2000lb Bearing |
12,084.9 psi |
0.003467 in. |
Significant digits are for illustration only.
The stress is 4.5% higher in the ‘hollow shaft – bearing load’ combination as compared to the ‘hollow shaft – distributed load’ example.
Stress Above Displacement Below Solid Distributed Load
Stress Above Displacement Below Solid Bearing Load
Stress Above Displacement Below Hollow Distributed Load
Stress Above Displacement Below Hollow Bearing Load
Summary:
In summary, the bearing load should be utilized when dealing with a hollow or thin walled, cylindrical geometry. Utilizing solid geometry the load differences do not affect the results. The solid geometry distributes the load throughout the solid volume and is inherently stiffer. The hollow tube, missing its internal mass, shows a difference in the displacement of the applied load. The uniform load displaced evenly from tangent edge to tangent edge where as the bearing load concentrated in the center.
A bearing load can be applied to solid and hollow cylindrical geometry however it is only necessary for hollow or thin geometry.
Tags: 3DVision, 3DVision Technologies, Robert Warren, Simulation, SolidWorks, Tips and Tricks
Posted in COSMOSWorks, General, Simulation, SolidWorks, Tips & Tricks, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Friday, June 29th, 2012
Here’s a feature that you might not use too much or even know about. The “Fill Pattern” patterns a feature or a predefined cut shape in a defined area. This is great for weight reduction or ventilation.
In the image below, you can see that you can pattern selected features or create a seed cut. The seed cut has the 4 predefined shapes that are created on the fly. You just need to specify the size of the seed and it can take care of the rest.
You can specify the “buffer zone” or “margins” that the pattern can be created in. That is the area of clearance around any of the edges. In the image below you can see the holes are no closer than 0.25″ to the model edges. This option is set in the “Pattern Layout” and is the third box down.
That great but what if you only want the pattern in a certain area and there are no model edges around. Well all you need to do is create a closed sketch and select just the sketch and NOT the face. You don’t need to split the face with the sketch or anything.
If you would select both the face and the sketch, it will create the fill pattern on the face and NOT inside the sketch.
*The large circle is just a sketch that is shown and not a model edge.
The fill pattern was added in 2006 and hopefully will help you be more productive.
Tags: 3DVision, 3DVision Technologies, Josh Spencer, SolidWorks, SolidWorks Modeling, Tips and Tricks
Posted in SolidWorks, SolidWorks 3D CAD, SolidWorks Training, Tips & Tricks | No Comments »
Monday, May 21st, 2012
Here’s a cool shortcut, added in SolidWorks 2012, to hide and show components in an assembly; “Tab” key.
If you move your mouse over a component and press the “Tab” key, the component gets hidden. If you hold “Shift“+”Tab“, it will bring the component back. Try holding the “Tab” key down and moving your mouse over the assembly and see what happens.
You can learn some other good tips in regards to assemblies in the Assembly Training Class. We will cover everything from Top-Down assembly modeling, to all the selection capabilities, to working with large assemblies.
Tags: 3DVision, 3DVision Technologies, assemblies, Josh Spencer, SolidWorks, SolidWorks Modeling, SolidWorks Training, Tips and Tricks
Posted in SolidWorks, SolidWorks 3D CAD, SolidWorks Training, Tips & Tricks, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Monday, March 26th, 2012
Here’s a cool trick that we teach in the Advanced Parts Class. You want to create a linear pattern but there isn’t a good edge to choose. Maybe that’s because there isn’t an edge going in the correct direction . Well if you have a dimension that is going the right way, you can choose that.
This is just one of the cool things you will learn in the Advanced Parts Class. Here is a link to our training page that you should check out.
Tags: 3DVision, 3DVision Technologies, dimension, Josh Spencer, SolidWorks, SolidWorks Modeling, SolidWorks Training, Tips and Tricks
Posted in SolidWorks, SolidWorks 3D CAD, SolidWorks Training, Tips & Tricks, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Friday, February 3rd, 2012
PROBLEM:
Have you ever noticed how disorganized all your default SolidWorks files are (document templates, sheet formats, BOM’s, cut lists, custom property templates, etc.)? After a default installation, they are all randomly crammed into a handful of directories including but not limited to the locations listed below:
- C:\Program Files\SolidWorks\SolidWorks\data\
- C:\Program Files\SolidWorks\SolidWorks\lang\english\
- C:\ProgramData\SolidWorks\SolidWorks\
There’s something extremely dangerous about storing your customized files in directories like the ones listed above. What happens if you upgrade? Uninstall? Reinstall? Files in your ‘Program Files’ directory are not safe, so why store all your customized templates there? How are you going to share your customized files with the rest of your co-workers?
SOLUTION:
Download and run:
This executable file will automatically extract a ‘SolidWorks Files’ directory to your C:\ drive with a host of sub-folders that mimic the list of file locations available in your system options (see image below). I’ve already organized these folders to include all of the default 2012 template file sets.
To finish the setup, a PDF file will automatically open explaining the finishing touches that need to be completed. Pay attention to the fact that the instructions you need to follow vary depending on whether you’re setting up the files for multiple users or just a single user.
BONUS:
You’ll also notice that I’ve included a handful of bonus files along with the file set:
- Document Templates
- Sheet Formats
- Drafting Standards
- Custom Property Tab Template
- My personal keyboard shortcuts, mouse gestures, and toolbar layout
You can read an explanation of these additional files by clicking here.
If you enjoyed this post, you might also be interested in:
Tags: 3DVision, administration, Installation, Jordan Tadic, Tips and Tricks
Posted in General, SolidWorks, SolidWorks Training, Tips & Tricks | 2 Comments »
Tuesday, October 25th, 2011
If you come to this blog to learn tips and tricks, you’ve just hit the jackpot. Have you ever noticed those little tips in the lower right hand corner of the ‘SolidWorks Resources’ tab of your task pane? Have you ever clicked the ‘Next Tip’ link a countless amount of times because you just couldn’t get enough?
Well, this is quite a spoiler to anyone that wakes up in the morning overwhelmed with curiosity of what each day’s SolidWorks tip is going to be, but here’s the complete list. Just be aware that this list was pulled from a 2012 installation, so there is exclusive 2012 SolidWorks functionality referenced in some of the tips. Enjoy all 163 of them!
Tags: Jordan Tadic, SolidWorks, Tips and Tricks
Posted in SolidWorks 3D CAD, Tips & Tricks | 2 Comments »
Wednesday, October 5th, 2011
I must confess, ever since mouse gestures were introduced a couple of years ago, I haven’t been using them. The truth is that I’m too hooked on keyboard shortcuts. Why try to do everything with your right hand when your right (on the mouse) and left hand (on the keyboard) can work together in perfect harmony? Not only that, but you also had to memorize exactly where each mouse gesture command resided in each of the modeling states (Part, Assembly, and Drawing). Much too hard for my scrambled mind to manage.
Well, SolidWorks 2012 SP0 (which was officially released earlier this week) has introduced an enhancement that will probably fly under most peoples’ radars, but it will finally get me using mouse gestures on a daily, hourly, minutely, and even secondly basis. The enhancement is simple – you can now assign the ‘OK’ and ‘Cancel’ commands as mouse gestures (you also now have the ability to assign custom macros to gestures). The ‘OK’ command as a mouse gestures saves me from stumbling my left hand all the way across my keyboard to the ‘Enter’ key which may or may not have been recognized as the ‘OK’ shortcut.
This enhancement is too great to be overlooked. If mouse gestures were too much trouble for you to use in the past, try giving my ultra-simplistic mouse gesture mapping a try in 2012.
Tags: 2012, Jordan Tadic, SolidWorks, Tips and Tricks
Posted in General, SolidWorks, Tips & Tricks | No Comments »
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