Simple hinge on cabinet with parameters

[paulGJCBP]

I'm having a difficult time attaching a simple hinge to a cabinet where the cabinet dimensions are parameters that can change. (file attached). I built hinge components from a McMaster-Carr hinge and want to place at  outside corner edge of cabinet.  It's not clear how to select the points on the hinge and cabinet to put the hinge in the corner intersection. I read that one must create a sketch built using the parameter dimensions and align the hinge to that sketch.  Also need a rigid joint to fix to the cabinet surfaces and maybe the door too.

Once done, how do I actuate the door without going to "drive"?  

Watching tutorial videos it seems so simple...until I actually try it 😞

Thanks!

[TheCADWhisperer]

@paulGJCBP 

Are you willing to start over from scratch with step-by-step instructions?

(Actually, you won't have to start over completely from scratch as you are almost there.)

You do not have Components for Cabinet Side and for Door.

Blue lines should keep you awake at night.

Add a Coincident constraint between the Origin and the upper left corner of your Rectangle in Sketch3.

What do you observe about the color of the Rectangle after adding the constraint?

[paulGJCBP]

Thanks, I'll see how far I get with using the Coincidence point.  You are saying I would refer the hinge to the Coincidence point so it fixes to that point even if I resize the panel?

I have converted everything now to components but find it difficult to use snap reference points on the hinge and cabinet to rigidly join the hinge to the cabinet front and sides at the proper location.

[paulGJCBP]

Looks like that fully constrained the sketch since it went black.

[paulGJCBP]

I've updated things a bit.  I am having difficulty aligning the hinge so its inner corner surface mates with the outer corner of the cabinet.

[TheCADWhisperer]

@paulGJCBP 

Now right click on the Cab Side component ang Ground.

Then we can move on to the next step.

How will you mount the Hinge(s) to the cabinet and door?

It would easiest to assemble if you go ahead and add the holes to the hinge leaves and the mounting holes to the cabinet and door.

[paulGJCBP]

Making progress - trial and error.  See attached. I grounded the cabinet side panel ( warnings are confusing but I ignored) and, after many attempts was able to move the hinge in place using the align function - align to the side and then the front panel. (This is a glue-on hinge and the panels will be plexiglass -). I thought I could use the joint command instead of move but just couldn't align it to the corner. I used the As-Built command to make rigid joints for each hinge leaf to each panel.  There has to be an easier way!

I still need to be able to resize the panel  dimensions ("height") while keeping the hinges aligned to the outside corner.  Right now the hinge doesn't move with the increased panel height even though there is a rigid joint to the panel.  I guess "rigid" is a bit ambiguous.

Thanks!

[g-andresen]

Hi,

Just try it this way

1. I recommend locating all hinge parts in a single component
2. The hinge can of course also be positioned at the upper and lower edge with a defined distance

günther

[paulGJCBP]

Thank you! Extremely helpful.  I was able to place the hinge another way before I saw your solution by setting a joint origin for a hinge leaf so that when I joined that point to the corner line where the two panels meet, it miraculously aligned. Seeing how you used the Measure function was very helpful. 

I also didn't realize that the parameters also included "model parameters" such as the Extrude used to create the cabinet panels.

Since I used a move/copy to make the second panel, they are not independent. The first panel was an extruded sketch so it seems I would need to have made two separate sketches if I wanted the panel widths and heights to be independently adjustable. Is that correct?

Thanks again  - you saved hours of agony 😥

[g-andresen · Accepted solution]

Hi,

1. joint origins can be particularly helpful if you have less experience in working with joints.

It also makes your work easier if you create a joint origin within a component that is to be copied (several times).

In this way, the origin also appears in the copies.

2. I recommend creating the sketch in such a way that the same dimensions (in this case the height) are interdependent (e.g. by projection).

günther

[paulGJCBP]

I will practice with joint origins to see how Fusion responds to different choices.

Since the bodies are built from a 2D sketch, it seems that to use all three parameter dimensions one has to also set the extrusion distance as a parameter.  I see that when one copies a body, one can make it independent of the original but since the original is created from a common sketch,  it seems that the copy and original would still be tied in terms of the parameters that created the original.  Will test that.

Thanks again for the helping me overcome FOF (fear of Fusion)😳

[paulGJCBP]

The only available snap points on the door and side is at the edge centers. If I rigidly join the hinge at these center points, I can't move it up the edge without editing the rigid joint for each leaf. (See attached) Is there a way to easily move and duplicate additional hinges?

To place new joint origins do I first have to place a sketch on each face for the two leaves, side and door and then place joint origins for each hinge placed?

Thanks

[g-andresen]

Hi,

You can add offsets to both the joint origins and the rigid joints, e.g. a fixed distance x from the top or bottom edge.

günther

[paulGJCBP]

Sorry, not quite following.  I wanted to duplicate the hinge between the door and side panel and place at an arbitrary location. The rigid joints were created between each hinge leaf and the surfaces they are attached to. As in your video above, this involved snapping to the only available point - the mid points of the door and  side panel edge and the corners of the hinge leaves.  I then had to measure how far each leaf had to move in from the edge and edit each joint accordingly.  I have no idea where the joint origin points are on the panels. I tried to use "duplicate with joints". Selecting the hinge shows the two hinge leaves and it asked to select snap points.  Since there are no other snap points on the panels have no idea how to duplicate the joint to an arbitrary location from the mid point.  All of the videos I've seen show assemblies with obvious locations where the duplicate assemblies should go.

I could use the move and copy command but then the rigid joints to the panels are lost.

Any guidance would be very much appreciated 

[g-andresen]

Hi,

follow screencast and features in timeline

günther

[paulGJCBP]

Thanks very much. So the takeaway is to first define additional useful joint origins on the hinge assembly so that the joint feature can access them.

1) Could I also also have put several joint origins on the door to use rather than the top corner?

2) Why where the last as-built joints needed for the additional 2 hinges since they seemed to be behaving properly before those joints were added?

3) I've had problems with as-built joints when the depth of the side panel changes- they just remain in the original location. Yours behave properly.

4) I've tried using the "align" feature to place the hinges which required no measurements. I used as-built joints between the hinge leaf and door panels as you did - again they did not follow to the door panel when the depth of the side panel changed. Even though the hinges were in the correct position, that position did not follow parameter changes. Seems mysterious.

[paulGJCBP]

I created two identical versions of a simple hinge with side panel and door.  I used the "align" feature to place the inner hinge corner onto the outer corner of the door. The hinge already has the proper joints between the hinge pin and leaves. I use as-built to fix the hinge leaves to the door and side panel. In both drawings the door operates properly. In one drawing, changing the width of the side panel parameter changes the hinge position accordingly. In the other, the hinge stays in place even though the side width has increased.  There seems to be no way to diagnose the timeline to see any significant differences.

Any thoughts?

Thanks

[g-andresen]

Hi,

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@paulGJCBP  schrieb:

I use as-built to fix the hinge leaves to the door and side panel. In both drawings the door operates properly. In one drawing, changing the width of the side panel parameter changes the hinge position accordingly. In the other, the hinge stays in place even though the side width has increased.  There seems to be no way to diagnose the timeline to see any significant differences.

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Watch screencast and check your Files. 

  

1. No!  > only in 

2. Wrong!

 

günther

[davebYYPCU]

When changing parameters within the model, you are restricted to Normal Joints, because

Move, Capture Position, Align and As built joints do not take into account the changing parameters.

You don't need Joint Origins either if using Joint offsets from body edges.

Might help...

[g-andresen]

Hi,

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@davebYYPCU  schrieb:

You don't need Joint Origins either if using Joint offsets from body edges.

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In principle, I see it the same way.

But it makes it easier to create joints on the door and the side wall (especially if there are several hinges).

Günther