SOLIDWORKS Assembly Design PDF

Unit – IV ASSEMBLY 4.1 Introduction You can build complex assemblies consisting of many components, which can be parts or other assemblies, called subassemblies. For most operations, the behavior of components is the same...

Unit – IV ASSEMBLY 4.1 Introduction You can build complex assemblies consisting of many components, which can be parts or other assemblies, called subassemblies. For most operations, the behavior of components is the same for both types. Adding a component to an assembly creates a link between the assembly and the component. When SOLIDWORKS opens the assembly, it finds the component file to show it in the assembly. Changes in the component are automatically reflected in the assembly. 4.2 Approaches in assemblies The following approaches are used to create assemblies; 1) Bottom-up design 2) Top-down design 1) Bottom-up Design è Bottom-up design is the traditional method. You first design and model parts, then insert them into an assembly and use mates to position the parts. To change the parts, you must edit them individually. These changes are then seen in the assembly. è Bottom-up design is the preferred technique for previously constructed, off-the-shelf parts, or standard components like hardware, pulleys, motors, etc. These parts do not change their shape and size based on your design unless you choose a different component. 2) Top-down Design è In Top-down design, shapes, sizes, and locations of parts can be designed in the assembly itself. For example, you can model a motor bracket so it is always the correct size to hold a motor, even if you move the motor. SOLIDWORKS automatically resizes the motor bracket. This capability is particularly helpful for parts like brackets, fixtures, and housings, whose purpose is largely to hold other parts in their correct positions. è The advantage of top-down design is that much less rework is needed when design changes occur. The parts know how to update themselves based on the way you created them. 4.3 Creating assemblies To create a new assembly : 1) Click New (Standard toolbar) or File > New and select Assembly. 2) An assembly opens with the Begin Assembly PropertyManager active. 3) Select the parts or assembly from the list, or click Browse to open existing documents. 4) Use suitable Mates to properly align and assemble the parts. 57 To create an assembly from a part : 1) Click Make Assembly from Part/Assembly (Standard toolbar) or File > Make Assembly from Part. 2) An assembly opens with the Insert Component PropertyManager active. 3) Click in the graphics area to add the parts to the assembly. 4) Use suitable Mates to properly align and assemble the parts. To insert parts : 1) Click Insert Components (Assembly toolbar) or Insert > Component > Existing Part/Assembly. 2) Previously saved documents that are currently open appear under Part/Assembly to Insert. 3) Click Browse. In the dialog box, select a component and then click Open. 4) In the graphics area, a preview of the component is attached to the pointer. If necessary, rotate the component using Rotate Context Toolbar 5) In the graphics area, click to place the component. 6) Similar insert all the components of an assembly. Each component is inserted where you clicked to place it. 4.4 Mates Mates create geometric relationships between assembly components. As you add mates, you define the allowable directions of linear or rotational motion of the components. You can move a component within its degrees of freedom, visualizing the assembly's behavior. Some examples include : è A coincident mate forces two planar faces to become coplanar. The faces can move along one another, but cannot be pulled apart. è A concentric mate forces two cylindrical faces to become concentric. The faces can move along the common axis, but cannot be moved away from this axis. 4.4.1 Adding Mates To add a mate : 1) Click Mate (Assembly toolbar), or click Insert > Mate. 2) In the PropertyManager, under Mate Selections, select the entities that you want to mate together for Entities to Mate. 3) Click on the Mate type and Click. 58 4.4.2 Mate PropertyManager You add or edit mates in the Mate PropertyManager. Mate Selections Entities to Specifies the entities that you want to mate. Use the Alt key to temporarily Mate hide a front face when you need to select an hidden face (behind the front face) for mates. The components must be displayed in Shaded or Shaded with Edges modes. Move the cursor over a face and press Alt. The face is temporarily hidden. Multiple Mates multiple components to a common reference in a single operation. mate mode Standard Mates All the mate types are shown in the PropertyManager, but only the mates that are applicable to the current selections are available. Coincident Positions the selected faces, edges, and planes so that they share the same plane. Positions two vertices so that they touch. Parallel Places the selected items at a constant distance apart from each other. Perpendicular Places the selected items at a 90° angle to each other. Tangent Places the selected items tangent to each other. At least one selection must be a cylindrical, conical, or spherical face. Concentric Places the selections so that they share the same centerline. Lock Maintains the position and orientation between two components. Distance Places the selected items with the specified distance between them. Angle Places the selected items at the specified angle to each other. Mate Changes the mate alignment. alignment è Aligned : Vectors normal to the selected faces point in the same direction. è Anti-Aligned : Vectors normal to the selected faces point in opposite directions. Advanced Mates Profile Center-aligns rectangular and circular profiles to each other and fully defines Center the components. Symmetric Forces two similar entities to be symmetric about a plane or planar face. Width Constrains a tab between two planar faces. 59  Path Mate Constrains a selected point on a component to a path. Linear/Linear Establishes a relationship between the translation of one component and the Coupler translation of another component. Limit Allows components to move within a range of values for distance and angle mates. Mechanical Mates Cam Forces a cylinder, plane, or point to be coincident or tangent to a series of tangent extruded faces. Slot Constrains the movement of a bolt or a slot within a slot hole. Hinge Limits the movement between two components to one rotational degree of freedom. Gear Forces two components to rotate relative to one another about selected axes. Rack Pinion Linear translation of one part (the rack) causes circular rotation in another part (the pinion), and vice versa. Screw Constrains two components to be concentric, and adds a pitch relationship between the rotation of one component and the translation of the other. Universal The rotation of one component (the output shaft) about its axis is driven by the Joint rotation of another component (the input shaft) about its axis. 4.4.3 Example Part – 1 Part – 2 Assembly To assemble Part – 1 and Part – 2 together, the following conditions must be satisfied : 1) Edge – 1 and Edge – 2 must be concentric. 2) Edge – 3 and Edge – 4 must be concentric 3) Face – 1 and Face – 2 must touch (coincide) each other. 60 Therefore, 1) Click Mate (Assembly toolbar), or click Insert > Mate. 2) Select Edge – 1 and Edge – 2. In the PropertyManager, click under Standard Mate and Click. 3) Select Edge – 3 and Edge – 4. In the PropertyManager, click under Standard Mate and Click. 4) Select Face – 1 and Face – 2. In the PropertyManager, click under Standard Mate and Click. 4.5 Subassemblies When an assembly is a component of another assembly, it is referred to as a subassembly. You can nest subassemblies in multiple levels, to reflect the hierarchy of your design. Creating a Subassembly There are several ways to create a subassembly : è You can create an assembly document as a separate operation, then make it a subassembly by inserting it as a component in a higher-level assembly. è You can insert a new, empty subassembly at any level of the assembly hierarchy while you are editing a top-level assembly, then add components to it in a variety of ways. è You can form a subassembly by selecting a group of components that are already in the assembly. This creates a subassembly and adds components to it in a single step. 4.6 Rebuild When you switch back to the assembly window after editing a component in a separate window, a message asks if you want to rebuild now. è Select Yes or No. Optionally, select Don't show again. Yes Rebuilds the assembly to incorporate the changes you made to the component. No Skips the rebuild of the assembly. Don't show again Suppresses the message. You can specify: Always Rebuild : Select Yes and Don't show again. Never Rebuild : Select No and Don't show again. To rebuild the assembly : è Click Rebuild (Standard toolbar) or Edit > Rebuild. 4.7 Isolate è You can use Isolate to set the visibility to hidden, transparent, or wireframe for components that are not selected, enabling you to focus on the selected components. 61  è You can Isolate parts or subassemblies to edit them in the context of the assembly. You can isolate components that share a mate. è Use the Isolate pop-up toolbar to change the visibility of the hidden components to Wireframe, Transparent, or Hidden. The transparency used when editing a component in the context of an assembly is not used when Isolate is active. To Isolate components : 1) Select the components to isolate in the graphics area or the FeatureManager design tree. 2) Click View > Display > Isolate, or right-click and click Isolate. 3) To isolate components that share a mate, right-click the mate in the FeatureManager design tree and click Isolate. 4) The removed components change their display state to hidden, wireframe, or transparent. 5) Select a component to edit and click Edit Part or Edit Assembly. 6) When you finish working on the isolated components, click Exit Isolate on the Isolate pop-up toolbar. 7) The model returns to its original display state. 4.8 Creating Exploded Views in Assemblies You create exploded views by selecting and dragging parts in the graphics area, creating one or more explode steps. To create an exploded view : 1) Click Exploded View (Assembly toolbar) or Click Insert > Exploded View. 2) Select one or more components. Rotation and translation handles appear in the graphics area. 3) Drag a translation or rotation handle to move selected components. 4) Modify explode options : 62  Option Description Reverses the translation direction. Reverse Direction Specifies the translation distance. Explode Distance Reverses the rotation direction. Reverse Direction Specifies the rotation angle. Rotation Angle 5) Click Done. 6) Similarly select other components and drag the translation or rotation handle as required. Click Done. 7) Click when completed. 4.8.1 Radial Explode You can explode components aligned radially/cylindrically about an axis in one step. You can explode radially by diverging along an axis. To radially explode components about an axis : 1) In an assembly, click Exploded View (Assembly toolbar) or Insert > Exploded View. 2) In the Explode PropertyManager, under Add a Step, click Radial step. 3) In Explode Step Components , select the components to explode. 4) In the graphics area, drag the handle and release. 5) Click. 4.8.2 Exploding and Collapsing an Exploded View An exploded view is stored with the configuration in which it is created. Each configuration can have multiple exploded views. To explode and collapse an exploded view : 1) In the ConfigurationManager tab , expand the configuration. 2) Right-click the Exploded View feature, and click Explode or Collapse. 3) To animate the exploding and collapsing of the view, right-click Exploded View , and click Animate explode or Animate collapse. The Animation Controller pop-up toolbar appears and provides basic controls over the animation. 63 4.9 Appearances An appearance defines the visual properties of a model, including color and texture. Appearances do not affect physical properties, which are defined by materials. In a part, you can add appearances to faces, features, bodies, and the part itself. In an assembly, you can add appearances to components. 4.9.1 Appearance Types You can apply procedural appearances, which wrap around the reference, or textural appearances, which are mapped to the reference. Procedural Textural One color or a blend of colors applied to the An image representing the complex colorings of the entire reference. appearance, mapped to the reference. Use the Examples : Brushed Aluminum and White Mapping tab of the Appearances PropertyManager to High Gloss Plastic. size, orient, and position the appearance on the model. Examples : Fire Brick and Polished Ash. Brushed Aluminum Fire Brick 4.9.2 Changing an Appearance Change an appearance by assigning a predefined appearance or by using the Appearance PropertyManager to edit appearance properties. To assign an appearance : 1) In the Task Pane, click the Appearances, Scenes, and Decals tab. 2) In the Appearances folder, select a category. 3) Do one of the following: è Drag an appearance onto the model. Then from the Appearance Target palette, select the area of the model where you want to assign the appearance. You can pin the Appearance Target palette when adding multiple appearances to improve workflow. è With nothing selected, double-click an appearance to apply it to an entire part or assembly. è With an entity selected (for example, face or feature), double-click an appearance to apply it to the selection. è Drag an appearance onto an item in the FeatureManager. 64 Editing Appearance Properties : To edit appearance properties such as texture mapping and colors, do one of the following: 1) Right-click a model and on the context toolbar, click Appearances. 2) Alt + drag an appearance from the Task Pane. 3) Click Edit Appearance (Heads-up View toolbar) 4) Click Edit > Appearance > Appearance. 5) At the top of the FeatureManager design tree, click to expand the Display Pane. In the Appearances column , right-click and select Appearance. 4.10 Rendering You can generate high quality, realistic renderings, but it can take time depending on your hardware, project complexity, and resolution of renders. To create renderings : 1) Click Output Tools > Render. 2) In the dialog box, on the Render tab: a) In the Smart Control Bar, select a render profile from the drop-down list or create a custom profile. b) Set options. c) Do one of the following: è Click Start Render to begin the rendering process. If you have enabled Show Progress, the Render viewport opens to let you see the rendering è Select Send to Queue in the rendering options and click Send to Queue to add the current rendering to the SOLIDWORKS Visualize Queue so you can render it later. è Click Close to save the current position and composition for later reference. 3) When finished, the rendering is saved in the Images library. 65