How to create a snap-joint for an enclosure?

[Anonymous]

I am an electronics engineer that doesn't have any 3D related experience. My aim is to design an enclosure for our PCB, and then print it on a 3D printer. I am using Fusion 360.

I would like to have something very similar on this tutorial https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0bhdr84FNU however, I would like to use snap joint to open/close the enclosure. Something like this:

Does Fusion 360 have a tool to create such snap fit automatically? Or what would be easiest way to add them on my design? 

I am going to print the design with ABS material.

Thank you in advance,

Serdar

[Oceanconcepts · Accepted solution]

Greetings, you are in the right place.  Fusion is a great option for those new to 3D. 

I’m a fellow designer of electronics housings- though ours need to be water and pressure proof, so we tend to go more with screws and O-rings. I’ve done a number of snap fit closures, and my experience has been that you need to do a fair bit of trial and error tweaking to get the right fit and feel. There is no automated tool in Fusion to design a snap fit- they would be very dependent on overall size, material, and the desired use- for instance, will they be repeatedly disassembled, or is it a one time closure? Each use would indicate a different type of design. A great deal will also be dependent on the tolerance that your printing process can hold. 

Most design tips you will find online or in books are geared to injection molding, but the overall issues would be the same, and you can do thing with 3D printing that you couldn’t with injection molding. I have “Plastic Part Design for Injection Molding”, by Robert A. Malloy, a sadly very expensive book that helped me though several issues.   MIT has many online resources for learning, one is: 

http://web.mit.edu/2.75/resources/random/Snap-Fit%20Design%20Manual.pdf

My suggestion would be to find some examples of closures you would like to imitate, and measure them with some calipers. Pay particular attention to clearances between parts. Draw some sample closures, and print them for fit and feel. 

The forum here is very active if you get stuck on how to create something. 

[Anonymous]

Hi Ron,

Thank you for the well explained answer and suggestions.