Simulate magnifying lenses using Inventor?

[Anonymous]

Hi,

I am using Inventor to illustrate a guide for school students making telescopes. Does anyone know if the render option in Inventor will show the magnifying effect of lenses? 

The first image below is from Inventor 2017 Academic Edition and you can just see the glass lenses. The second image is what I am trying to achieve in another CAD program where the lenses are clearer so I know it should be possible.

Maybe I need to alter the render settings?
Many thanks

Tim

[blair]

I don't think so as I've never seen a refractive index for glass in it's properties listed in Inventor.

[I_Forge_KC]

Dielectrics/caustics are integrated into the Fusion 360 renderer if you'd like to give it a try there.

20ish iterations

[I_Forge_KC · Accepted solution]

Well, I forgot about this!

If you change your appearance library over to the Autodesk Appearance Library and then set the lens to polycarbonate - you get refraction options.

[blair · Accepted solution]

I'll have to remember that!

Just give the kids a large magnifying glass they can hold for the objective lens they can hold at arms length and a small magnifying glass they can hold close to their eye for the eye-piece.

A simple way to construct a simple refractor telescope.

[blair]

Too much time spent teaching astronomy at the observatory in my spare time.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the useful suggestions, I tried Autodesk materials and polycarbonate but no magnified effect. 🙁 I’m already getting pupils hands-on with lenses and making scopes with card tubes etc. Next they design and make improvements like tube rings, camera adapters, focussing mechanisms, etc. With CNC and 3D printers there are lots of possibilities. I’ll try Fusion 360 next as suggested and let you know how I get on.

[-niels- · Accepted solution]

It does work (thanks @I_Forge_KC, didn't know this either), but it requires the "realistic" visual style and even then it only works with Ray-tracing enabled:

[Anonymous]

Brilliant, it worked using Autodesk materials > Polycarbonate and enabling ray tracing. 

Thanks everyone for your suggestions and particularly I_Forge_KC and -niels- for their solutions.