The Right & Wrong Way to Edit Sheet Metal Parts

I was recently asked by a customer why he was not able to add a tab to a simple sheet metal part. It seems that when he added a tab to his bracket SolidWorks added another solid body to the model and the cut list. The answer was in the technique he was using or to be specific, the surface he was selecting to create the necessary sketch and resulting tab. Here's the starting bracket:

When he went to add the new tab, he selected the wrong surface to sketch on - in this case the top of the existing flange:

Selecting this surface adds the tab, but as a seperate solid body. This is the result:

The correct surface to select is the large back surface:

Which yielded the proper tab:

If you're having trouble adding tabs to existing flanges, make sure you're selecting the correct surface to create the new sketch on.

Chicago SolidWorks User Group Meeting Announcement

The CSUG group is planning its next meeting for Monday, May 3rd, 2010.  Details appear below.

Date:  Monday, May 3rd, 2010
Time:  5:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Place:  Skokie Campus of Oakton Community College, (Ray Hartstein Campus) Room P134, Engineering/Manufacturing Lab, 7701 N. Lincoln Avenue, Skokie, IL  60077.

Agenda

• 5:00-5:30 pm:  Sign-in and networking
• 5:30 pm:  Sandwiches, chips and soft drinks served
• 5:30-6:30 pm:  Presentation
• 6:30 pm:  Meeting moves to another room
• 6:30-8:00 pm:  Presentation continues, Q&A, CSUG business, etc.
• 8:00 pm:  Meeting adjourned

Presentation Details
3D Scanning/Reverse Engineering & How to Use the Data in SolidWorks
by John Immonen of Rapidform, Inc. (Tentative), Bob McGaughey of Computer Aided Technology and Denny Bahl of Innovative Plastech, Inc.

John Immonen will give a presentation consisting of a general overview of the 3D Scanning/Reverse Engineering technologies available today along with a glimpse into the future.  This may also include some tips on CAD modeling that would aid in the reverse engineering process.  We will also briefly discuss the Scan-To-3D feature offered inside SolidWorks Premium.  We will have 3D laser scanners set up to demonstrate how parts are scanned.

The meeting should adjourn around 8 pm.  No RSVP is necessary. 

Leaders and Innovators

Our President and CEO, Charles Hess, is featured this week as a Leader and Innovator in the Great Lakes Innovation and Technology Report (GLITR), sponsored by Lawrence Technological University.  The article will be live for a week and then archived on the Lawrence Tech website.  Here's a snapshot of the interview, click below to Read More.

Charles C. Hess is co-founder and CEO of FISHER/UNITECH in Troy. Established in 1993, FISHER/UNITECH provides product lifecycle management products and services to manufacturing companies that improve their process of product development by integrating advanced software to replace legacy systems. The applications include CAID, CAD, CAM, CAE, PDM, KBE, reverse engineering, and rapid prototyping. Hess has more than 31 years of sales and marketing experience in the CAD/CAM industry. Read more.

Do you know a business, professional or community leader whom you think deserves being honored as a Leader and Innovator? Click here to nominate them.

3DU Instructor Tip #7 - Online Classes

OK, last 3DU post for a bit and then back to the tech tips, I swear.

I teach all the online classes except for Simulation, API, and 3DVIA Composer, in which case Ken LaVictor is the instructor.  We offer a total of 27 unique classes.

How does an online class work? 

What do we need to have to hook up? 

Let's answer those questions. Number 1, you need a decent Internet connection, cable modem or better. Number 2, you will need to dial into our conference number (248-577-5100). Why do we split this up, you may ask? It all comes down to the unique demand CAD puts on an online meeting setup. Rotating, rendering and movement put a large load on the stream. By adding audio, we risk a reduced quality of experience with potentially sketchy audio and or severe lag in the video stream.

Classes are generally scheduled for 2 to 2.5 hours in length and span from 6 to 8 days of instruction. Often, the only time a student has to work on his or her own exercises at the end of the chapters are during the scheduled class period. Because of this, I try to give time to complete these exercises at the end of each class. Questions about the previous days material or exercises are addressed via a phone call/email to the instructor or at the beginning of the next days class. If you have any more questions regarding this, email us at 3DU@funtech.com.

Have an excellent week!

Rod Harper

3DU Instructor

3DU Instructor Tip #6 - 3DU Passes

Value, that's what our education passes are all about here at FISHER/UNITECH.

3DU-Education-Passes

Take a look at what our passes can offer you. For instance, our 3DU Education Pass Standard includes nine unique classes (CAD105 and CAD110 are online versus in-house) that can be taken over the course of a 12-month period. BONUS: you can take the classes as many times as you would like throughout the year if you need a refresher or if a newer version of SolidWorks comes out. This pass costs $2,495 and includes all required manuals in the price.

Let's take a look at individual class costs. 

• CAD110 (Essentials, $1295) plus CAD205 (Drawings, $795) plus CAD210 (Adv Part Modeling, $795) is equal to $2,885. You can see that purchasing the pass is the best value for your dollar.

We offer other passes as well such as our 3DU Education Pass Professional for $2,995 that adds PDM Workgroup classes and our 3DU Education Pass Premium for $3,995 that includes PDM as well as specialized classes like Simulation, Motion, Routing, and Administration.

I structured the class schedule this year so that it takes about three months to complete a cycle of classes. Our courses can be taken online or in-house (depending upon availability.) In-house classes are subject to the three student minimum rule. (i.e. we need three people registered to attend otherwise the class is subject to cancellation.) 3DU online classes take place regardless of how many students are registered and are almost never canceled except in extenuating circumstances.

If you have any questions or need any additional information, please email us at 3du@funtech.com.

Have an excellent week!

Rod Harper

3DU instructor

Stop using the "Measure" tool!

In case you didn't already know, the "Measure" tool isn't the fastest way to measure distance in SolidWorks. In most cases the fastest way to measure in SolidWorks is to simply click on what you are interested in and watch the measurement appear on the Status bar.

• Click a line to determine length.
• Click a spline to determine length.
• Ctrl-click two verticies to determine the distance of separation.
• Ctrl-click two planar faces to determine distance or the relative angular orientations.

3DU Instructor Tip #5 - Custom Classes

We offer two different kinds of custom classes at FISHER/UNITECH.  

One is a custom class tailored to the specifics of your business. This could be a combination of electrical routing, weldments, sheet metal, and surfacing all in one class. This would take some initial work to develop the class based on your specific needs and then time create the class accordingly. Please email us at 3du@funtech.com to have someone call you back to talk about the pricing and specifics of this.

The other custom option is a standard class held at a time that works with your specific schedule.  For 2010, I scheduled classes in three month time blocks from start to finish. This way, you could take about 90% of our classes in a short time period.  But even then, schedules sometimes just don't fit. If you have a class that you need to take that won't be offered for another three months, give us a call or email us to request a class at a sooner date. Chances are, we can make it happen for you.

Have an excellent day!

Rod Harper

3DU Instructor

3DU Instructor Tip #4 - New Enterprise PDM API Class

New for 2010!
API Fundamentals of SolidWorks Enterprise PDM Class

Want to know how to do some of your own custom programming in Enterprise?
Learn how to use the SolidWorks Enterprise PDM API (Application Programming Interface) to automate and customize SolidWorks Enterprise PDM. This course will help develop the basic skills for the semi-experienced to advanced programmer to create applications for customizing, enhancing, or automating new custom functionality within SolidWorks Enterprise.

Prerequisites for this course include, basic experience with the SolidWorks Enterprise PDM software, experience with the Windows™ operating system, and knowledge of a programming language, preferably Visual Basic™ 2005 or later. In order to get the most out of this class, students should be familiar with the concepts of interfaces, classes, structures, enumerations, collections and recursion.

The class is either 2 days in-class or 6 days @ 2hr sessions each for online. Price of this class is $1095.00. Please send an email to:  3du@funtech.com if you are interested in taking this class or have any questions.

Thanks,

Rod Harper

3DU Instructor

Sheet Metal Closed Corner Improvements

You can now use the existing Closed Corner command with a greater variety of sheet metal parts. You can use the Closed Corner command to add material between sheet metal features:
When there is a cut across flanges
With large radius bends
When the part is created using Insert Bends or Convert to Sheet Metal
With faces that are part of a larger corner
The new Automatic propagation option controls automatic recognition of matching faces. It is enabled by default. If you delete a face from one of the face set selection boxes, the option turns off to let you make manual selections.

3DU Instructor Tip #3 – Pack and Go

Pack and Go is a utility found under the File pull down menu. It's the ability to grab all related files such as parts, assemblies, drawings, references, design binders, and SW Simulation results and copy them to a zip file or other folder/folders.

Pack and Go functionality can be used in a multitude of ways. Here are a couple examples.

Creating a new project based on an existing project.

I have an existing project (1999 PROJ) that has been completed and will not be changed from here on out. However, a new generation product (2010 PROJ) will be created but will be primarily based on the existing project. By using Pack and Go I can pull all these files into the new project folder. Start by either opening the top level Drawing or Assembly file. In this case, I will open the Assembly. I go to File > Pack and Go….

Because I picked the top level assembly, I need to also check Include Drawings. This will grab any drawings related to the parts in the existing Pack and Go window. I will also add a suffix to differentiate this project from the old project as well. I can choose to do this globally as we did here or individually by double-clicking the names in the Save To Name column. The green lettering signifies a change in names. Change your location to the new project folder and click Save.

Sending a project to a customer.

In this example, we'll send a complete working copy to a customer. Our customer requested changes have been completed. Go to File > Pack and Go…. If the customer is using a data management system, I will keep the naming convention the same. If they are not, I will add a suffix to the end to help differentiate this project from the old. Choose the Save to Zip File button, then click Save. You can now attach this to an email to send to your customer. When the customer extracts the zip file, the assembly will now look for all it's parts and/or sub-assemblies in their local drive.

I might also use Pack and Go for backing up projects that may have parts scattered around my network. This will ensure I have a copy that I know will find all it's parts over time without risk of accidental movement of parts or folders on a network.

Good luck and have a great week! 

Rod Harper

3DU Instructor

Adaptive Methods in SolidWorks Simulation

Based on error estimation, there are two Adaptive Methods in SolidWorks Simulation to help improve the accuracy of the results of your static studies:

The H-Adaptive Method

The concept of the h-method is to use smaller elements in regions with high errors. After running the study and estimating errors, the software automatically refines the mesh where needed to improve results. Options include:

• Target Accuracy - Sets the accuracy level for the strain energy norm. This is NOT the stress accuracy level . However, a high level of accuracy in the convergence of the strain energy norm indicates good stress results. Use the slider to set the desired level. 
• Accuracy Bias - You can move the slider towards Local to instruct the program to concentrate on getting accurate peak stress results using a fewer number of elements. Or you can move the slider towards Global to instruct the program to concentrate on getting overall accurate results. 
• Maximum No. of Loops - Sets the maximum number of loops allowed when you run the study. The maximum possible number of loops is five. 
• Mesh Coarsening - Select to allow the program to coarsen the mesh in regions with low error during the adaptive loops.

The P-Method

The concept of the p-method is to use more efficient elements in regions with high errors. After running an analysis and estimating errors, the program increases the order of elements in regions with errors higher than a user-specified level and reruns the study. The p-method does not change the mesh. It changes the order of the polynomials used to approximate the displacement field and it does so only where it is needed. This approach is called the selective adaptive p-method.

This option is supported for solid elements only. When this option is checked, the program may run the problem several times. After each loop, the program assesses the global and local errors and decides whether to make another run.

The program stops the loops when one of the following conditions is met: 

• the global criterion converges, 
• all local errors converge (i.e. for each element), or 
• the maximum number of loops is reached

You can base the convergence check on total strain energy, Root Mean Square (RMS) of von Mises stresses, or RMS of resultant displacements.

Limitation: In this release, the p-method works with solid elements only, shells are not supported. The p-adaptive method does not work with nonuniform pressure, nonuniform forces, or multiple pressures defined on a face.

For an example on adaptive methods, refer to the Online Tutorial.

Multibody Parts & Material Properties

Let's say you have a new design that has multiple pieces and you want to assign different materials to the solid bodies for weight analysis. You could build an assembly, but here's another approach....create a Weldment.

Here's how:

1. Design your product (make sure that "Merge Result" is unchecked when using Extruded Boss/Base) 
2. Select the Weldments tab and then the Weldment icon 
3. This will create a Cut List with multiple bodies 
4. You can then assign unique materials to each solid body

Happy Birthday To Us!

April 1st marked FISHER/UNITECH's 17th birthday.  Our President, Charlie Hess, celebrated by sharing the story of how FISHER/UNITECH came to be.  I thought it was pretty interesting so I wanted to share it here:

On April 1^st, 1993, FISHER/UNITECH, Inc., formed through the merger of two companies, Unitech Solutions, Inc. and Fisher Engineering Solutions Corporation. Unitech was founded on May 2, 1991, as a CAD/CAM VAR, by myself. FESC was founded in 1989 as a Unix systems engineering services company, by Greg Fisher. Unitech contracted FESC to provide installation services for the CAD workstations sold, since all Unitech could afford to employ at the time were application engineers, and not systems engineers. Yes, we are that old, meaning that in those days everything ran on Unix….Windows was just a baby! Over the first two years of Unitech, FESC became our biggest supplier and Unitech was their biggest customer. So we merged, and today marks our 17^th birthday.

Here's to another 17+ years!

InspectionXpert and Office2PDM Webinars Announced

In today's highly regulated industries, quality inspection reports are a fact of life. Whether you are touched by regulations in the Automotive, Aerospace & Defense, Medical Device, Pharmaceutical or Food Safety industries you can take advantage of InspectionXpert to make things easier.

FISHER/UNITECH is a reseller for Extensible CAD Technologies and the products they provide for quality assurance and inspection automation. The company also offers an add-in called Office2PDM, that enables you to work with your SolidWorks Enterprise PDM Vault from inside Microsoft Word, Excel or Powerpoint.

Attend of one three upcoming webinars featuring Office2PDM.

April 21st, @ 10 am ET

May 26th @ 2 pm ET

June 23rd @ 10 am ET

For more information on Office2PDM visit the website.

InspectionXpert makes it a breeze to generate quality inspection sheets.  Instead of a 6 to 8 hour process for generating a ballooned drawing and corresponding quality inspection sheet, you will be taking minutes to create your ballooned drawing and quality inspection sheet.

InspectionXpert First-Article enables you to quickly generate quality inspection forms and ballooned drawings from your 2D drawings. Many 2D formats are supported including Autocad, Autodesk Inventor, Cadkey, ME10, PDF, SolidEdge, SolidWorks, TIFF, Visio and more.

Webinars for InspectionXpert are offered once per week typically on Wednesdays.  To view the upcoming webinar schedule and to register online, please click here.

SolidCAM TIP - Reduce Numer of Lines of GCODE

GCODE FILE really large?

Here are a couple of tips that can greatly reduce your file size.

"Arc Approximation" is a way for the output of the GCODE file to be generated as arcs rather than a large number of single straight line segments.

Here is how you can take advantage of that.

In the operation...i.e. 3D Milling - Finish - "Constant Z" there is a data tab.

Put a check in the box that reads "Arc Approximation"

This will greatly reduce the number of lines of code.

Note: Some operations do not have this as an option.

Another area that will control this is in the "Tolerance" settings

We can set the facet tolerance to a higher value...i.e. (.0001)

This will represent a more accurate depiction of the model and effect the amount of lines generated as well.

Sketch Dimension Modify (input) GUI is Not Working

When I try to input a numeric value into the "Modify" dimension value GUI using the keyboard keypad:

1. I cannot input a value\nothing happens.
2. The "Equation" window opens.
3. The "Shared Value" window opens.

Solution: This occurs when the NUM LOCK is NOT turned on. If the NUM LOCK is off, it turns the keypad into "hot keys".

The number bar across the top of the keyboard will allow you to input numbers. Simply turn the NUM LOCK back on to allow numeric input from the keypad.