Duplicate features at 90 degree offset

Duplicate features at 90 degree offset

Anonymous
Not applicable
4,545 Views
12 Replies
Message 1 of 13

Duplicate features at 90 degree offset

Anonymous
Not applicable

bottom up viewbottom up viewHi, a basic and easy q, I just cannot figure it out.
I am building a funnel for use in dust collection in a CNC. I will be printing it on a CR-10s: the view is upside down as that is print orientation. The part is too large for my bed, so I am sectioning it and adding tabs so I can bolt it together after. 

The first section is a top bottom section; I will be quartering the bottom next.

For the top bottom join, I managed to build a set of tabs and then mirror them across the structure; 

my difficulty is that I cannot figure out how to then mirror/copy them through 90 degrees to get them onto the other two faces.

I'm sure it is a simple  thing; I just cannot find it in google. 

Archive file is attached; any help appreciated...

0 Likes
4,546 Views
12 Replies
Replies (12)
Message 2 of 13

etfrench
Mentor
Mentor

Circular pattern Smiley Happy 

ETFrench

EESignature

0 Likes
Message 3 of 13

davebYYPCU
Consultant
Consultant

Only make one tab, use Create > Circular Pattern, select Features in the Dialogue Box, and then select the Features in the timeline that make up your tab in the Objects section, and the axis is the centre line of the model, make four copies, all done.

 

Might help....

Message 4 of 13

Anonymous
Not applicable

yeah, so the model is not symmetrical, one axis is slightly longer than the other, causing circular pattern to fail. 

right idea, will not work in this case.

0 Likes
Message 5 of 13

TrippyLighting
Consultant
Consultant

If this is what you're after, you model one tab, and then 1 circular pattern and one mirror will do it.

If not, we'll try something else 😉

 Screen Shot 2018-07-13 at 12.48.05 PM.png


EESignature

0 Likes
Message 6 of 13

etfrench
Mentor
Mentor

Print it in ABS.  Glue it together with acetone.  No need for tabs Smiley Happy

ETFrench

EESignature

Message 7 of 13

mavigogun
Advisor
Advisor

@Anonymous wrote:

yeah, so the model is not symmetrical, one axis is slightly longer than the other, causing circular pattern to fail. 

right idea, will not work in this case.


 

 

There are a host of other problems- the tabs overlap the seam line as the tab sketch was not aligned with the seam; the tab was created by a simple extrusion that did not fully connect to the relate part.


Oops.JPG

 

To rectify this, I created a sketch on your splitting Construction Plane to Project the split geometry onto, allowing for the tab sketch to be aligned to the curved seam along its length.   I then swept the tab profile along the projected curve.   Assuming those holes are to be filled with bolts, it would behoove you to create parallel flats on the outer faces of the tabs.

 

Ahhhh.JPG
See the attached file for how these changes were performed.

0 Likes
Message 8 of 13

Anonymous
Not applicable

bottom funnel v15.jpg

 

I ended up doing two and then mirroring each, to get the tabs I wanted. 

as referenced above, non-equal sides meant circular pattern would not work...

just took me a while to figure it out.

 

attached a graphic of finished prototype drawing:

it is very sparse but hopefully functional...

0 Likes
Message 9 of 13

Anonymous
Not applicable

Printing in PLA, printer is not configured to get hot enough for ABS...

0 Likes
Message 10 of 13

mavigogun
Advisor
Advisor

Like , I reckon the design ignores the method of manufacture.   Why not glue/chemically weld the parts together?   Why not clip tabs?   Why not make the seam a nesting socket?   If the parts don't need to separate, bolts seem ill considered here.

I wonder, in your new design, did you bother to conform the tab geometry to the duct?   Ahhhh- my head is going to explode.   

(*muttering to self* "don't do it- don't design editorialize... just don't")

0 Likes
Message 11 of 13

Anonymous
Not applicable

I see what you did. 

I *think the original is OK as the flat plates will not impede assembly,

but you are correct they do not line up entirely with the seam and it is a good catch. 

Next refactor I will correct...

0 Likes
Message 12 of 13

Anonymous
Not applicable

Like , I reckon the design ignores the method of manufacture.   Why not glue/chemically weld the parts together?   Why not clip tabs?   Why not make the seam a nesting socket?   If the parts don't need to separate, bolts seem ill considered here.

 

 

ok, so stepping back a bit, since you seem interested, here is the back story..

@TrippyLighting will remember me around here a couple of years ago trying to use Fusion 360 as a CAM engine for CNC carving replicas of works of antiquity. I had a X-carve CNC and was trying to flatten scans of busts and carve them out of firewood. 

IMG_2844.jpg

 

At some point i decided that it would be good if the flattening part could go away, so I upgraded the CNC with a rotary axis and now I'm trying to carve 360 degree versions of models; my current carving target is still https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:456203 . As an aside, Fusion 360 is still not a good Cad/Cam solution for this: I'm using DeskProto for generating the G-code from the STL.

 

When I started carving using the rotary axis it quickly became clear that the dust collection strategy you use for flat surface sign carving was not going to work on a rotary axis machine. I ignored it for a while, and now I'm circling back on it to figure out a capture strategy that will work for this particular implementation. I bought the 3d printer specifically to make parts to enable this.

 

The CNC implementation I am using looks like this: 

IMG_0691.jpg

The design I am working on is to replace the initial 'TJMAXX back with a hole cut in it for a vacuum hose' implementation, which has worked about as well as you would expect and has many more issues than you have collectively identified with my drawing.

A vertical view is like this: 

IMG_0692.jpg

you can see in this picture I am also prototyping and printing some small perimeter shielding as well. 

 

To answer your specific questions: 

 - I've had a 3D printer for ~10 days and am still learning how to use it.

 - before last Thursday I had not used Fusion in ~> 1year and I'm still coming up to speed on it again

 -the printer bed is 300 x 300 x 400 and the part I am working on has to be printed in pieces or it will not fit

 - printer has a specific limitation of 50degree overhang without supports. need validate that in a test print.

 - the CNC throws dust and debris in specific patterns based on cut direction etc: I expect I will need to replace specific sections of perimeter or collection pan with refactored prints shaped specifically to be more effective in capturing/transporting them in a locationally specific way, implying that I need sections which are easily swapped in and out. This eliminates the idea of gluing the pieces and making a permanent installation. 

 - The tabs I built in the design could easily be used with alligator clips to hold the whole thing together; I put screw holes in because you never know when you will need screw holes, and they work for cable ties as well..

 - the design is to manufacture, recognizing a 50degree minimum vertical print angle without supports, and the need to print in sections to fit the printer. As noted above, it was a conscious decision to build tabs for mechanical joining instead of gluing as I expect to rapidly prototype this based on actual / observed performance... You may argue there are better designs for this aspect and I agree there may well be, but it took me two days to figure out how to do the simplest possible thing that you are saying is not done properly, so patience with the new guy here please. I'll get there.

 

Could this design be a lot better? Sure, and you guys are pointing out things I can implement in the next pass.

Rather then endlessly tweak, I'm going to print a couple of pieces, and see if it fits together, and if it does, I'll put one on the table and see how it performs. From there, in the next major refactor I can add/fix a bunch of things and try again.

 

(*muttering to self* "don't do it- don't design editorialize... just don't")

We all do it. Really, it's cool.

0 Likes
Message 13 of 13

ToddHarris7556
Collaborator
Collaborator

Just adding to what others have already offered: 

 

In general, we'll use mirroring and circular patterns at the BODY level (as in your case), but as soon as you shift to COMPONENT level, then we avoid mirroring. For example, building a table with (4) duplicate legs - we'd model the left front one in place, then place another instance manually (using a joint) at the left rear. Then use a circular pattern to place the other two at the right end. This way, your BOM ends up correctly showing (4) Legs, as opposed to (2) Legs and (2) Leg (Mirror). 

 

When create part features as you're doing here, mirrors are great. 


Todd
Product Design Collection (Inventor Pro, 3DSMax, HSMWorks)
Fusion 360 / Fusion Team
0 Likes