Seemingly Simple Question

[dbcox]

Hello everyone,

I know this seems like a dumb question, but I have not run into it before due to the nature of my work.

I have designed a machine for a customer using Inventor 2013.  The models and 2D shop drawings are complete.  In order to save time and money, my customer wants me to remove some of the bells and wistles for a stripped down version.  Seems simple enough, BUT, we want to keep all of the bells and whistles for possible future production.

Should I copy the entire project directory to a new directory, and modify as needed?  This will probably work, but then I am maintaining two sets of files.  Or, should I use representations (or similar) to achieve these two "versions" of the same machine?

Thanks!

[johnsonshiue]

Hi! There is no dumb question here. We are all learning the software and making it better. For your application, have you considered using iAssembly? It may or may not work for you depending your goal and your design.

Thanks!

[blair]

You could copy the IAM and delete the Bells & Whistles, or just create a new View Rep or LOD and label it as a "Basic" option and then suppress the fancy items. This keeps everything in one model.

[johnsonshiue]

Hi! Design View and Level of Detail may come in handy here and I have seen many users doing it for the same purpose. But, DV and LOD are not supposed to affect design intent (BOM structure or quantity). DV is for changing appearance of an assembly easily, while LOD is for managing capacity. The assembly definition is not altered in different DV or LOD.

Thanks!

[dbcox]

johnsonshiue, tell me more about iAssembly.  I am not familiar with it.

Thanks for the info on the LOD and DV ideas.  I too was leaning that way, and then realized from johnsonshiue's reply that my BOM will not change, which will be an issue.  I may look at the iAssembly feature, but it its too time consuming to "convert" this project, I may just copy all of the files and make two completely indepentent models and idw files.

Thanks!

[johnsonshiue · Accepted solution]

Hi! You should be able to find reference materials about iAssembly in Inventor Help, tutorials, this forum, and other Inventor related discussion sites. I am not going to repeat the process.

I can offer a few tips and tricks based on what I know and what I have seen from other users' design. Indeed, to fully exploit iAssembly's power, it requires a little bit planning before you start. It is best to use with assemblies not subject further change. After an iAssembly is created, it is better placed in a Library folder. If the assembly structure is not stable and more change can come, I would not recommend you create iAssembly files. Just keep in mind iAssembly (iPart) is supposed to be like Library components. It definition should be well-defined.

For your case, I agree with you. You might be better off just create a separate assembly without the need to manage an iAssembly table and member files.

Thanks!