Use a body as template

[sterfield]

Hello there,

I'm a new user of Fusion 360, and after spending some hours on the online documentation, I'm finally managing to do what I want (btw, great documentation, most answers to my questions are there !)

However, I'm trying to achieve something that I don't manage to do properly. Here's the context :

I have an object (a PCB with dozens of holes in it) and I want to create a case for this PCB. The case will then be cut by a laser cutter. As it's a case, I want to have a shape very similar to the PCB, but with very few holes in it. I also want to do some cutout in the case and they have to be centered on some holes in the PCB.

So the PCB is imported in a file as a component, then I created a new component, in order to clearly separate the PCB object from the case objects.

I tries several things :

• creating a new sketch, clicking on the PCB face as a plane. That creates a sketch that replicates the shape of the PCB, with all the holes. And this is not something I want.
• creating a new sketch, using a plan parallel to the PCB face. Then I select "Project" to project geometries of the PCB in my sketch. It's working but I have faced several issues.

Here's a list of the issues I faced :

• When I select all the edges to be able to do an offset, I have to manually select all the PCB edges one by one, which is a tedious process. Is there a simple / efficient way to select all edges of a body ?
• If by mistake, I click on the PCB face and not an edge / hole, then ALL the PCB holes / edges are selected and projected. Undo is my friend here, but is there a simpler way to avoid this behavior (clicking on a face select all the edges) ?
• When I have selected all the edges / holes I want and projected them in the sketch, I can then offset them. However, the projected lines are considered as "real" geometry, which means that the laser cutter will try to cut both projected lines and offset lines. I can then select the projected lines and set them as "construction", but I was wondering if a simpler workflow exists to do the same thing.

Whoa, that's a mouthfull ! I guess the big question is "how do you achieve this kind of workflow ?". The other questions in the second list are minor, but I would love to see the expert answers on those as well !

Thanks a lot for all your help !

Cheers,

[etfrench · Accepted solution]

I would go with the first option which is to create a sketch on the face of the pcb. 

1. Create a new component
2. Create a sketch in the new component using the face of the pcb as the base.
3. Use the window select tool to remove unwanted geometry. There are several different select tools, so use the one which works best for you.

At this point you should be able to select any line/arc segment on the pcb perimeter to create the full offset.  If not, attach your file to the thread to get a better diagnosis of the problem.

[sterfield]

Hey,

First, thanks for the information, it worked indeed as you mentioned !

I created a sketch on the PCB face, then removed all the holes in the newly-created sketch to clean it. The edges were then available directly, and a simple double-click select all the edges. Offset and I was done.

That solved my first question.

As for the second question (one click select all the edges of the face), I think that's a feature. A simple Undo command dealt with any misclick.

For the third question, again, feature. It makes sense to have a projected line to be a "real" geometry. If I don't want it, then I can switch it to construction line.

Thanks for the help !