Elbolets- how to locate?

[CADDapult]

We use elbolets in almost every piping design we do, but Inventor Routed Systems doesn't have them in the library.  Is there anyone out there willing to share how they've incorporated elbolets into their library and set them up to locate correctly?

Mike

[BLHDrafting]

While there is a lot in the Content Centre it is nowhere near complete. Just what the developers expect is the 'mostly used' bits.

I suspect you will need to model/author them to Tube & Pipe yourself. I'm currently doing that for thousands of Ryco hydraulic hose fittings.

I'm thinking you'll have some issues with the pipe junction weld end (non-threaded end) as the T&P system may not like this connection. You would probably be placing and constraining manually and then using T&P routes to make the thread end connections.

[cbenner]

Never tried one of these, but I suspect that may be correct. They will be tricky at best!

[CADDapult]

The issues with placing the part against the elbow is where I was hoping to get suggestions, or see an example of how the conection points were set up by someone who has it working.  Would someone out there have an example part or insertion macro they'd be willing to share??  I'd written a LISP routine a few years ago to place elbowlets on elbows in AutoCAD, but sadly, my LISP routine is of no help in Inventor.

In a similar vein, has anyone else observed that both the concentric and eccentric butt-weld reducers in Content Center are modelled wrong?  And weld neck flanges are modelled with only the Sched. 40 bore?  I'm disappointed in just how many common parts will have to be scratch-made, re-made, or modified to get us to a point where we can transition fully from designing our piping systems in AutoCAD to designing them in Inventor.

Mike

[blair]

Up to around release 7 or 8 Inventor shipped without any CC parts of any kind.

Incorrect CC parts has been an issue for a long time. Marketing would rather have a new interface and colorful splash screen.

[cbenner]

Many, if not MOST of our CC piping parts are taken from pre Tube & Pipe iparts that the folks here created years before I ever came on board.  Some we have replaced with out of the box CC parts as we found them to be more accurate dimensionally,... others we've kept because the CC parts were LESS accuarate.  Whatever you end up with, I guarentee, will be a mixture of the best of your fittings and their fittings.

STILL easier than using standard assembly constraints and adaptive pipe spools!  That's how we used to do it.

[CADDapult]

I do get upset when Autodesk adds some feature I can't imagine more than a handful of companies might need/use, but find problems with a CC part and the response is essentially "Fix it yourself". 

OK, that's enough griping, I'll stop.

Once again; does anybody have a way of locating elbolets accurately that they'd be willing to share?  It would be greatly appreciated.  (at least by me)

If I can figure out a good way to do it I'll share with the group.

Mike

[cbenner]

The issue I am seeing is that any olet is going to have to be a "branch" fitting.  Branch fittings are meant to be inserted on a pipe segment in the route.  Elbolets need to be placed on another fitting.  Short term expirimentation has shown that trying to insert a fitting onto another fitting has Inventor simply replacing the selected fitting with the olet.  Not what we were hoping for....

Back to the drawing board, or something to add to the Idea Station.  This is a legitimate wish for piping.

[stekis]

This may not be the best place for this but maybe I can be pointed in the right deriction if im in the wrong area.

Im needing to know of a formula or the proper way to lay an elbolet out onto the fitting. For years ive simply "eyeballed" the fitting after finding center on the 90. But theres gotta be a better way, more exact way of doing it besides using a couple og squares and just trying to get close. Any help?

[CADDapult]

Hope this gives you what you need: