flat patterns in iam files

[cadman777]

does anybody know a way to "place component" into an assembly as a "flat pattern"?

thanks ...

[JDMather]

The only way I know is to save the flat pattern as a separate file (and import back into Inventor).

Associativity lost in the process.

I usually recommend against using the Fold command, but another method might be to model the flat pattern and then Derive Component and Fold up the flat.  This preserves associativity.

[cadman777]

Thanks JD.

I try to never do that, b/c I need to keep associativity in tact.

What I'm trying to do now is make a gore elbow, such that all the gores get cut out of a rolled cylindrical shape.

So, what I'm trying to accomplish now is model the cylinder in a way that shows all the stitch-cuts outlining each gore on the outer surface of the cylinder.

I need it for my drawing flat pattern, for when they dxf them out of one one plate on the burn table.

[LMajors666]

Could you derive the original part into another sheetmetal part, then use the unfold facility. This should retain associativity

Leigh

[JDMather]

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@LMajors666 wrote:

Could you derive the original part into another sheetmetal part, then use the unfold facility. This should retain associativity

Leigh

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How does this get the flat pattern into assembly file?
Can you post an example of your proposed workflow?

[cadman777]

JD,

Find attached my work-flow.

Here's how I did it:
1. I made a base sketch that drove both cylindrical parts.

2. There's a "multi-body part" (GoreElbow-PipeMBP1a) for the model, and a "flat pattern" (GoreElbow-PipeLayout1b) part for the idw.

I usually make the gore segments out of a cut shell that gets thickened, so the edges are true to real-life.

But since I couldn't do that with hard-core associativity, I did it the way you see in these 2 simple parts.

I also sent a pdf of the gore elbow idw so you can see how I made both a "weldment" and "as-machined" version.

The "weldment" is the ISO view and BOM. The "as-machined" is the rest of the drg (they're both marked as such).

On the weldment, all the parts that get machined are derived from "stock" parts (not included in the zip file).

The reason I did that is b/c I need 2 kinds of parts for any given weldment that gets machined:
1. burn-table parts that we order from the steel supplier, and

2. weld-prep parts, which are the burn-table parts that the shop preps for the weldment.

The burn-table parts go on my flat patter drg sheet for dxf'ing out to the steel supplier.

The weld-prep parts go into my "weldment" model.

Then I just "place" the weldment (which is really only an iam file, not a weldment file) into another iam file and use assembly features on it to make it "as-machined".

Note there are 2 base sketches:

The bottom-most sketch-part (Pump-WiireframeGA1a) locates all the finished pump parts.

The elbow sketch-part (DischargeElbow-Wireframe1a) is used to create the "weldment" and "as-machined" parts.

Note that the bottom-most sketch-part is either derived into the next level up weldment part, or it is "linked" inside a part's "Parameters" to embed some global values for "formulas" or simple size-numbers.

THAT is how I figured out how to make IV do what SW does (="configurations"), except I feel as though IV does it a bit better than SW, b/c it's easier (= use only base sketches and derived parts), and has less "overhead" involved compared to SW "configurations".

SW has a real problem with metadata managament between files, with formulas (they MUST be in a certain order, or else!), and with using base sketches more than 1 level deep.

This is what I call "true top-down AND bottom-up modeling", b/c I can do both with ONLY TWO functions in IV.
I have to compliment the programmers for making this program "simple and universal" for the many different areas of the "industry" I'm involved with. It may need improvement in some areas (like "frame generator" and "piping"), but it does okay for this kind of work-flow.

Cheers ... Chris

PS: I have to make 2 postings to send the files, due to size restrictions in this forum.

Incidentally, MBP's, iParts/iAssemblies, and LOD's don't work for many reasons, which is why I use the above work-flow.