topic Re: Rotating part in assembly in Inventor Forum

Rotating part in assembly

Anonymous — Fri, 20 Mar 2015 18:08:36 GMT

Another 'I can't figure this out' moment. So I have this assembly created that consists of three parts, a case, hook, and cover (which is currently hidden). I'd like to rotate the magenta part around the peg that's holding it in place to make sure things look right and will work right before I export and start 3D printing it. However for the life of me I can't figure out how to do this in assembly mode. I can't figure out what needs to be constrained to what and how to then rotate the part. I've attached a zip file containing the four files, one assembly file and three dependent part files.

Re: Rotating part in assembly

mdavis22569 — Fri, 20 Mar 2015 18:18:29 GMT

Add a constraint thru the peg and the center of the magenta part.... you can then drive the constraint up and down (Mate 4)

Re: Rotating part in assembly

mdavis22569 — Fri, 20 Mar 2015 18:20:29 GMT

if you want it to rotate freely ..suppress or delete Mate:4

Re: Rotating part in assembly

Anonymous — Fri, 20 Mar 2015 18:29:16 GMT

Um ... ok. It's kinda hard to add that constraing on the peg and inside of the magenta part but I think I've managed to do that. However, Mate 4 is a Z-axis constraint (so I could build all the pieces at the exact spot they needed to be), so driving that doesn't rotate the part, it slides along the X-axis.

Re: Rotating part in assembly

Anonymous — Fri, 20 Mar 2015 18:51:33 GMT

Yeah, rotating freely doesn't keep it on the peg, it just rotates around a center point. It's like the angle constraint through the peg and center of the hole isn't there. I'm sure this is something I'm doing wrong, or did wrong as far as adding other constraints as I was building the parts up. The first one (case) is constraint to the parent's XYZ, and the rest are constraint to the Z-axis. Something, somewhere is probably causing problems and I just don't know what.

Re: Rotating part in assembly

mdavis22569 — Fri, 20 Mar 2015 18:52:42 GMT

can you open my model?

Re: Rotating part in assembly

mcgyvr — Fri, 20 Mar 2015 18:57:49 GMT

Didn't open you model but..

Ground the green part..

Then just use an insert constraint to attach the pin to the hole..

Then assuming you want some "animated/automatic" motion I'd drive an angle constraint to change the angle of the handle vs the green part..

All you need is the insert though then just rotate it manually..

And select both parts then right click and check "contact set" and the handle will stop whenever it intersects with the green body.. (Activate contact solver on the Inspect tab for it to work if its not already activated)

Re: Rotating part in assembly

Anonymous — Fri, 20 Mar 2015 18:56:53 GMT

Oh yeah, forgot to mention that. Yes I did, and I'm trying to figure out how you did it. 🙂 As in, what kind of constraint that is specifically. I'm trying to recreate it on mine.

Re: Rotating part in assembly

mcgyvr — Fri, 20 Mar 2015 19:11:44 GMT

ok opened your model..

You know your printer and how "accurate" it can be but.... Is only .45mm clearance from hole to shaft suitable?

You've got some learning to do.. TONS of missing dimensions,etc...Too much work for such a simple constraint need,etc..

And shell out that hook wherever possible to save on material/printing time,etc...

Always chamfer the bottom edge of where the print will sit on the plate,etc.. (the first few layers will "flow out" so a chamfer really helps to get a good flat side and not a "bump" around the whole thing..

And you will never get "sharp" teeth on that handle either.. Hopefully you are aware of that for whatever they are for..

I tend to avoid any sharp points in any printed part cause they won't be there when printed anyways..

Lots of tricks..

Re: Rotating part in assembly

Anonymous — Fri, 20 Mar 2015 19:24:07 GMT

Ok, figured it out with what Michael did on the file. I can rotate the way I want it to rotate, so that's good. Thanks for that.

mcgyvr, in reality I only need a 0.1mm gap between the parts. I already created this part in SketchUp (and printed it), I'm just using it as a learning piece to learn Inventor (while also transitioning all my designs to Inventor.) I will be adjusting that spacing in a bit here so it's actually snug (at 0.1mm) - 0.45 is actually way too much. I just never went back to change that. I also don't need the chamfer on the bottom against the glass, I have my printer fine tuned to where I don't need to do that (anymore.) And the hook needs to be 100% filled, otherwise it will break. Been there, done that.

As for missing dimensions and what not, yes I'm aware of that. I'm also aware that a lot of it is due to me not knowing how to create them. When I start off, most (if not all) of the lines are dimensioned and constraint properly, but as I work with it, I lose some of them. And that is completely and totally my own doing because of how I'm drawing the pieces (versus how I should be drawing them because I don't know how yet.) Now, for all intents and purposes, it still gives me a proper STL file and it prints just fine. However I do also realize that this is not the proper way of drawing/creating things and I should be learning how to do it right. This is a steep learning curve for me.

Re: Rotating part in assembly

Anonymous — Fri, 20 Mar 2015 19:27:40 GMT

Oh, sharp "teeth" ... I'm putting a fillet on them (thanks for the reminder), however I can get "teeth" sharp enough to cut skin from my printer with the right settings.