Sketch a curve, and have toolpath follow

[rsalasidis]

In Pro/E skethed curves (2D or 3D) were used for defining a unique cut path for a tool. The tool could be made to follow it. In addition they could be used for engraving etc. Does a similar funtionality exist in Inventor HSM.

[Rob_Lockwood]

The 2D function 'Trace' will allow the tool tip to follow a 2D or 3D curve.

[rsalasidis]

Thanks. Will this work with imported DXF or DWG files, and can I select all the curves with a window?

[Laurens-3DTechDraw]

rsalasidis wrote:
Thanks. Will this work with imported DXF or DWG files, and can I select all the curves with a window?

Are you using HSMWorks or Inventor HSM?

[rsalasidis]

Using the Inventor HSM 2016 Trial

[Rob_Lockwood]

Not sure in inventor, i'm an HSMWorks user. In Solidworks/HSMWorks, you'd just bring your DXF/DWG in as a sketch/3d sketch and then directly select the sketch in the operation - even easier than selecting the sketches with a drag/select window..

[bobvdd]

We don't have window selection for selecting geometry in Inventor HSM, so you will have to select each separate sketch loop individually. For open sketch loops, you might need to select the loop twice to get control over the exact start and end segment of the open loop. Use the mini-toolbar to switch between open and closed loops if necessary.
Here is a picture of that mini-toolbar and the more granular selection process (dark blue segments are the segments that I selected as start and end, the cyan colored segments between start and end are automatically included in the selection set without having to click these).
Use the CTRL key to de-select previously selected line segments.

Bob

[jeff.walters]

If you want to select everything in the sketch when you’re on the geometry tab with the curve selection button heighted, all you have to do is change from the CAM to Model select the sketch you want to trace, go back to CAM and everything in the sketch will be selected. The order of selection is left up to how the sketch was done but for a lot of entities it’s a quick way of doing it.

[bobvdd]

Thanks Jeff. Forgot all about that. Much easier than selecting individual sketch elements.

Bob

[JoeBarnes4076]

Does that work for an assembly level sketch?

[bobvdd]

No. You would need to create an extra empty part that contains the sketches in order to be able to select them in CAM . If the DXF or the DWG contains 3D sketches, you would have to do this anyway because Inventor does not allow 3D sketches in an assembly to start with.

Bob

[scottmoyse]

JoeBarnes4076 wrote:
Does that work for an assembly level sketch?

Arggghhh. One day. Maybe. Inventor is the only HSM product you can't do that in.

[Anonymous]

In Fusion 360 I was able to preselect the sketch prior to going into the geometry selection of the trace toolpath and this worked to select all line segments and I probably have 1000 - 1500 line segments in a crazy pattern. Fusion did a great job of setting direction so that each longer segment made up of smaller segments was all going the same direction.