Flatten to 2D

[yoshimitsuspeed]

I understand that sheet metal is a huge project that would be expected to take a while to complete but 95% of the requests for similar features are just flatten to 2D. It seems like this is something that could be completed much faster. I know that when I talked to the sheetmetal team like a year or more ago I stressed the fact that this feature would do most of what people needed to do as far as "sheetmetal" type work.
So this has me wondering if this is really the first step and if it will be 2-3 years from the time sheet metal started development till we get that very basic capability or if the sheetmetal team is planning on rolling out a big sheet metal interface once we hit that point of release? If the latter wouldn't it be possible to get something simpler out soon?
How hard could it be to do basic stuff like take a simple folded shape, flatten it to 20 and make drawings and DXFs of it?

[kb9ydn]

I suspect it's probably harder than you would think.  Outside of sheet metal parts, Solidworks only just introduced a flatten surface feature for 2015.  Granted it's probably not a highly requested feature outside of sheet metal parts, so I'm sure that had something to do with why it didn't exist until recently.

I hardly ever do sheet metal parts but certainly when you need this functionality, you REALLY need it.  And sheet metal without flattening would be completely useless so I doubt they would release it without at least basic flattening functionality.  I think sheet metal is intended to be released sometime this year.

C|

[promm]

@yoshimitsuspeed,

Our plan for sheet metal is to release with core functionality that we feel will meet the needs of a majority of our users.  For example, the users we talked with all need to create closed profile, open profile, edge and miter flanges.  We will also have unfold/refold to allow users to cut across bends and of course a flatten command.  The development team has been making some great progress, and I will be working with select costumers this summer to get constructive feedback before a target release of late fall.

Cheers,

Mike Prom

[yoshimitsuspeed]

I understand that everyone needs everything right now but it seems to me like the ability to flatten is leaps and bounds more important than getting all the details just right to do full blown sheet metal. I mean 95% of the work I would want to do with this type of capability could be done with just the ability to split radius and flatten. I mean it's pretty easy to design most shapes in the model environment if you just had a way to flatten it once done.

Are there other things preventing this from happening?

Would the flatten capability not work without implimenting all this other capability?

Once it's finally all done will I be able to flatten a part made in the model or sculpt environment?

[promm]

@yoshimitsuspeed,

If you are looking to flatten a thickened surface created with T-Splines, Patch or Modeling, you can do this now with our ExactFlat add-in. http://www.exactflat.com/fusion360.html

There are many reasons why we are not developing flattening for sheet metal before we create the ability to create a sheet metal part.  First, there are rules such as k-factor or bend tables, that take into account stretching of metals when they bend and flatten.  This is example scratches the surface of all the rules that have to be created in order to design sheet metal parts that can be manufactured.  Second, for a part to be manufactured it need to be a constant thickness.  In converting a part to sheet metal and or in the creation of a sheet metal part, the thickness needs to be evaluated to make sure it will flatten properly.  There are other factors behind the scenes that have to deal with the architecture of how we handle flat pattern assets.  Since a flatten model is derived from the bent model Fusion needs derived asset functionality.  To speed up the timeline for release we have another team developing the asset that will be used by sheet metal.  Hopefully this sheds some light on the situation and what our team goes through during the development of new functionality.

Cheers,

Mike Prom

[yoshimitsuspeed]

$695 per year. Pretty sure that's more than an annual Geomagic subscription. And they had pretty decent sheet metal and flattening capabilities when I played with it.
I haven't checked them out in a while. I didn't hate it.

I understand that a lot of things need to be just so to make "perfect" sheet metal. Even then there is variance from what is modeled to what is cut to what is formed. It seems it should be possible to have something that did this to a semi accurate degree without a lot of that and just have a warning that the process doesn't guarentee the same precision as advanced software.  Then build on it as time allows.

It also makes me wonder is all flattening going to be directly related to sheet metal or will it be able to do other things as well? Reading through the sheet metal and flattening posts many of them are not even related to sheet metal with interest in fabrics, wood, and other materials as well as just general flattening.

I will say once again as has happened with everything else from drawings to modeling capabilities and many other things the biggest issue is when things are promised in 6 months only to be delivered partially in a  year and a half. When you are using software for your business and deciding if that software that doesn't meet your needs will be growing with your needs fast enough to stay with it, it is very disappointing when you hear, "This will be available very soon" some time in 2014, then "This is roadmapped for the middle of 2015", then oh wait it will be some time in 2016 we will have some partial functionality. The most imporant to almost everyone being able to flatten to 2D apparently being one of the later things available according to a couple threads. I don't even need this particular feature urgently right now but I do have a project on the back burner that brought it up. If I land a big sheet metal job all of a sudden I would panic and be trying to decide if I fork out a buttload of money for additional software or suck up all the lost time and money and switch CAD programs. Again. It's more just that one can only take so much of road map promises that end up taking three times longer than initially promised.

I mean I would be perfectly happy if a fully functional sheetmetal and flattening system but it's what like a year behind schedule as of right now?

[yoshimitsuspeed]

2018 and this still isn't possible inside F360? 
As far as I can tell I would need to pay $70 a month to use exactflat. Seems steep when my CAD program should have this integrated. 

[TheCADWhisperer]

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@yoshimitsuspeed wrote:

...How hard could it be to do basic stuff like take a simple folded shape, flatten it to 2D and make drawings and DXFs of it?

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Can you File>Export and then Attach your *.f3d file here?

[yoshimitsuspeed]

When I posted that this is the type of thing I was talking about. This capability is requested far more than any other sheet metal functionality and yet it still isn't possible. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3w1v1g79m0

Right now I am trying to do something  more like this though. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dt1hwKGk8mE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mi7GSdZTrEs

Sheet metal design is awesome if you are trying to design something that is simple and will be made out of sheet metal. But as soon as you are trying to model complex intersecting angles or for example something like an automotive oil pan with a flange or most other things in the real world it is so much easier to model it and then convert to sheet metal to flatten. 

[TheCADWhisperer]

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@yoshimitsuspeed wrote:

....and yet it still isn't possible. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3w1v1g79m0
...

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I'll try again.

Can you File>Export and then Attach your *.f3d file here?  (This is a binary Yes or No response.)

[yoshimitsuspeed]

Then no
It's obvious what this is in regards to and those examples are more than enough to show what should be possible. There is no need or reason I should have to.