Alibre Design User Guide
Copyrights
Contents
2.3.1 System Options ........................................................................... 11
3.1.1 Workspace Terms ....................................................................... 20 3.1.2 Opening a New Workspace ........................................................ 20 3.1.3 Model Terms ............................................................................... 22 3.1.4 Work Area Color Scheme ........................................................... 22 3.1.5 Multiple Views ............................................................................. 24 3.1.6 Named Views .............................................................................. 25 3.1.7 Design Explorer........................................................................... 25
4.2.1 Entering Sketch Mode ................................................................. 42 4.2.2 Exiting Sketch Mode ................................................................... 43
4.3.1 Customizing Colors of Items in Sketch Mode .............................. 43 4.3.2 Customizing the Size of Nodes ................................................... 44
4.4.1 Line ............................................................................................. 44 4.4.2 Circle ........................................................................................... 46 4.4.3 Circular Arcs................................................................................ 47 4.4.4 Rectangles .................................................................................. 49 4.4.5 Spline Curves .............................................................................. 50 4.4.6 Ellipses ........................................................................................ 54 4.4.7 Elliptical Arcs ............................................................................... 55 4.4.8 Polygons ..................................................................................... 56 4.4.9 Sketch Shapes ............................................................................ 57 4.4.10 Text Figures ................................................................................ 69
4.6.1 Extending Figures ....................................................................... 71 4.6.2 Trimming Figures ........................................................................ 72 4.6.3 Adding 2D Fillets to Sketch Figures ............................................ 72 4.6.4 Adding Chamfers to Sketch Figures ............................................ 73 4.6.5 Offsetting Figures ........................................................................ 74 4.6.6 Mirroring Figures ......................................................................... 77 4.6.7 Patterning Sketch Figures ........................................................... 78 4.6.8 Moving and Rotating Sketch Figures .......................................... 80
4.7.1 Dimensioning Sketch Figures ..................................................... 82 4.7.2 Real Time Dimensioning ............................................................. 85 4.7.3 Dimensioning with DOF Callouts ................................................. 88 4.7.4 Auto Dimensioning a Sketch ....................................................... 89 4.7.5 Working with Sketch Dimensions ................................................ 91 4.7.6 Equations in Dimensions ............................................................. 91 4.7.7 Sketch Dimension Settings ......................................................... 96
4.8.1 Constraint Types ......................................................................... 99 4.8.2 Manually Applying Sketch Constraints ...................................... 101 4.8.3 Sketch Constraint Inferencing ................................................... 102 4.8.4 Deleting Sketch Constraints ...................................................... 102 4.8.5 Sketch Status and Degrees of Freedom ................................... 103 4.8.6 Sketch Constraint Settings ........................................................ 106
4.9.1 Grid and Snap ........................................................................... 110 4.9.2 Snapping to the Working Plane ................................................. 113 4.9.3 Cursor Dimension Hints ............................................................ 113 4.9.4 Cursor Display........................................................................... 114
4.9.5 Inference Hints .......................................................................... 114 4.9.6 Direct Coordinate Entry ............................................................. 115 4.9.7 Right-click Menu ........................................................................ 116 4.9.8 Open and Closed Sketches ...................................................... 116 4.9.9 Checking Sketches for Errors.................................................... 117 4.9.10 Enclosed Figures ...................................................................... 118 4.9.11 Copying and Pasting Sketch Figures ........................................ 119
4.10.1 Editing Sketches ....................................................................... 120 4.10.2 Renaming Sketches .................................................................. 121 4.10.3 Deleting Sketches ..................................................................... 121
5.1.1 Offset Plane .............................................................................. 124 5.1.2 Tangent Plane ........................................................................... 125 5.1.3 Angled Plane ............................................................................. 125 5.1.4 Parallel Plane through a Point ................................................... 126 5.1.5 Plane at Line and Point ............................................................. 126 5.1.6 Three Point Plane ..................................................................... 127 5.1.7 Plane Normal to 3D Sketch or 3D Edge .................................... 127
5.2.1 Axis through Axis or Edge ......................................................... 128 5.2.2 Axis through Two Points ........................................................... 128 5.2.3 Axis Using Cylindrical Face ....................................................... 128 5.2.4 Axis through Two Planes .......................................................... 129 5.2.5 Axis Offset and Parallel to Axis or Edge .................................... 129
5.3.1 Point at Specified Coordinates .................................................. 130 5.3.2 Point at Plane and Axis/Edge .................................................... 130 5.3.3 Point at Axis/Edge and Axis/Edge ............................................. 130 5.3.4 Point at the Center of Circular Edge .......................................... 131 5.3.5 Point at Vertex........................................................................... 131 5.3.6 Point along Edge ....................................................................... 131 5.3.7 Point between Two Points ......................................................... 131
5.4.1 Inserting Reference Surfaces .................................................... 132 5.4.2 Positioning Reference Surfaces ................................................ 133 5.4.3 Thickening Reference Surfaces ................................................ 134 5.4.4 Trimming a Solid ....................................................................... 134 5.4.5 Extruding to Geometry .............................................................. 135
5.5.1 Hiding Individual Reference Geometry Items ............................ 135 5.5.2 Hiding Reference Geometry Groups ......................................... 136 5.5.3 Hiding All Reference Geometry Groups .................................... 136
6.5.1 Entering 3D Sketch Mode ......................................................... 146 6.5.2 Exiting 3D Sketch Mode ............................................................ 146
6.6.1 Line ........................................................................................... 146 6.6.2 Arc ............................................................................................. 147 6.6.3 Spline ........................................................................................ 148
6.7.1 Placing a Sketch Node .............................................................. 149 6.7.2 Inserting Sketch Nodes from a File ........................................... 150
6.9.1 Adding Fillets............................................................................. 151 6.9.2 Dimensioning 3D Sketch Figures .............................................. 152
6.10.1 Inferred Constraints ................................................................... 155 6.10.2 Explicit Constraints .................................................................... 155
7.2.1 Feature Types ........................................................................... 160
7.3.1 Extrude Boss and Extrude Cut Feature Creation ...................... 160 7.3.2 Thin Wall Extrude Boss and Cut Feature Creation .................... 164
7.4.1 Revolve Boss and Revolve Cut Features .................................. 167 7.4.2 Thin Wall Revolve Boss and Cut Features ................................ 168
7.6.1 Sweep Boss and Sweep Cut Features ...................................... 175 7.6.2 Thin Wall Boss Sweep and Cut Sweep Features ...................... 176
7.8.1 Constant Radius Fillets ............................................................. 182 7.8.2 Variable Radius Fillets .............................................................. 184
7.9.1 Edge Chamfers ......................................................................... 185 7.9.2 Vertex Chamfers ....................................................................... 186
7.14.1 Saving Catalog Features ........................................................... 193 7.14.2 Inserting Catalog Features ........................................................ 193
7.15.1 Mirroring Features ..................................................................... 194 7.15.2 Feature Patterns ....................................................................... 196 7.15.3 Topology Patterns ..................................................................... 200
7.16.1 Design Boolean Editor Environment ......................................... 210 7.16.2 Design Boolean Feature Creation ............................................. 210 7.16.3 Design Boolean Feature Editing................................................ 212
7.17.1 Implications of Using Direct Editing ........................................... 212 7.17.2 Push Pull Face Sketch .............................................................. 214 7.17.3 Push Pull Pocket or Boss .......................................................... 216 7.17.4 Push Pull Radius ....................................................................... 218 7.17.5 Remove Faces .......................................................................... 220 7.17.6 Tips for Successful Direct Editing .............................................. 221
8.6.1 Sheet Metal Changes for Version 9.1 and Later ....................... 239
8.10.1 Rounding a Corner .................................................................... 242 8.10.2 Chamfering a corner ................................................................. 242
9.2.1 Editing Sketches and Features ................................................. 246 9.2.2 Suppressing Features in Parts .................................................. 246 9.2.3 Reordering Features ................................................................. 247 9.2.4 Rolling Back Features ............................................................... 248
9.9.1 Setting Up Excel to Drive Designs ............................................ 261 9.9.2 Driving Designs by Spreadsheet ............................................... 263 9.9.3 Modifying Spreadsheet Driven Parameters ............................... 265 9.9.4 Re-linking a Spreadsheet to a Part ........................................... 267
9.10.1 PDF File Creation ...................................................................... 270 9.10.2 Continuing with an Existing PDF ............................................... 276 9.10.3 PDF Publishing Templates ........................................................ 276 9.10.4 Viewing Published PDF Files .................................................... 279 9.10.5 Improving the Quality of Published PDF Files ........................... 280 9.10.6 Publishing a Model to HTML ..................................................... 280 9.10.7 Printing 3D Models .................................................................... 281 9.10.8 Annotations ............................................................................... 281 9.10.9 Troubleshooting Failed Features............................................... 281 9.10.10 Viewing Constituents ............................................................... 282 9.10.11 Display Optimization ................................................................ 282
10.1.1 Lock properties represented in the Design Explorer ................. 287 10.1.2 Editing Properties of Configurations .......................................... 287 10.1.3 Regeneration of Design Configurations .................................... 289
10.2.1 Helpful Notes on Design Configurations in Parts ...................... 293
10.3.1 Inserting Configurations of Parts or Subassemblies .................. 298 10.3.2 Missing Design Configurations .................................................. 301 10.3.3 Configurations in Assembly Patterns ........................................ 302 10.3.4 Helpful Notes on Design Configurations in Assemblies ............ 305
11.3.1 Opening a New Assembly and Inserting Existing Parts ............ 315 11.3.2 Anchored Parts ......................................................................... 316 11.3.3 Inserting an Existing Design Into an Open Assembly ................ 316 11.3.4 Selecting Parts in the Assembly ................................................ 317 11.3.5 Part Display Options ................................................................. 318 11.3.6 Inserting a Duplicate Design Into an Open Assembly ............... 319 11.3.7 Inserting a Pattern of Parts in an Assembly .............................. 319 11.3.8 Moving and Rotating Parts Freely ............................................. 322 11.3.9 Moving and Rotating Parts Precisely ........................................ 324 11.3.10 Moving Parts to Simulate Assembly Physical Motion .............. 325 11.3.11 Hiding a Part ............................................................................ 326 11.3.12 Suppressing a Part .................................................................. 326 11.3.13 Applying Color Properties to a Part.......................................... 327 11.3.14 Checking Measurements ......................................................... 327 11.3.15 Viewing Part Reference Geometry .......................................... 328
11.4.1 Assembly Constraint Types ...................................................... 328 11.4.2 Inserting Assembly Constraints - Quick Constraint Mode ......... 329 11.4.3 Inserting Assembly Constraints - Manual Method ..................... 334 11.4.4 Inter-Design Constraints ........................................................... 335 11.4.5 Managing Assembly Constraints ............................................... 335 11.4.6 Failed Assembly Constraints ..................................................... 337
11.7.1 Inserting an Exploded View Using Auto Explode Mode ............ 342 11.7.2 Inserting an Exploded View Using Manual Explode .................. 344 11.7.3 Viewing and/or Editing an Exploded View ................................. 346 11.7.4 Exploded View Steps ................................................................ 347
11.10.1 Creating a New Part within an Assembly ................................. 349
11.10.2 Editing a Part in an Assembly .................................................. 350 11.10.3 Improving Assembly Performance when Editing Parts ............ 351
12.1.1 Opening a New Drawing ........................................................... 355 12.1.2 Selecting a Drawing Template .................................................. 355 12.1.3 Selecting the Model ................................................................... 356 12.1.4 Inserting Standard Views .......................................................... 357 12.1.5 Inserting Additional Standard Views .......................................... 359 12.1.6 Fast Views ................................................................................ 361
12.2.1 Drawing Mark-Up Mode ............................................................ 362 12.2.2 Renaming Sheets & Views ........................................................ 365 12.2.3 Changing the Drawing Template ............................................... 365 12.2.4 Deleting Views .......................................................................... 366 12.2.5 Hiding Views ............................................................................. 367 12.2.6 Drawing Selection Filters .......................................................... 367 12.2.7 Moving Views on the Sheet ....................................................... 368 12.2.8 Updating Drawing Views ........................................................... 369 12.2.9 View and Sheet Boundaries ...................................................... 369 12.2.10 Changing the View Scale ......................................................... 370 12.2.11 Line Display in Views ............................................................... 370 12.2.12 Centerlines and Centermarks .................................................. 371 12.2.13 Optimizing the Drawing Display ............................................... 373 12.2.14 Layers ...................................................................................... 374 12.2.15 Adding Sheets ......................................................................... 378 12.2.16 Reordering Sheets ................................................................... 379 12.2.17 Moving a View to Another Sheet ............................................. 379 12.2.18 Hiding Parts in a View (Assemblies Only) ................................ 379 12.2.19 Inserting Images in a Drawing ................................................. 380 12.2.20 Printing a Drawing ................................................................... 381
12.3.1 Placing Additional Dimensions on a View ................................. 382 12.3.2 Dimensioning Slots and Holes .................................................. 383 12.3.3 Placing Ordinate Dimensions on a View ................................... 384 12.3.4 Modifying Driving Dimension Values ......................................... 384 12.3.5 Dimension Properties ................................................................ 385 12.3.6 Dimension Styles ...................................................................... 386 12.3.7 Aligning Dimensions .................................................................. 389
12.4.1 Standard View ........................................................................... 389 12.4.2 Auxiliary View ............................................................................ 390 12.4.3 Detail View ................................................................................ 391
12.4.4 Section View ............................................................................. 393 12.4.5 Broken View .............................................................................. 397 12.4.6 Partial View ............................................................................... 399 12.4.7 Exploded View .......................................................................... 401 12.4.8 Flat Pattern View of a Sheet Metal Part .................................... 402
12.5.1 Creating a Custom Template .................................................... 402 12.5.2 Customizing an Existing Template ............................................ 403 12.5.3 Saving and Using a Custom Template as a Drawing ................ 404 12.5.4 Saving and Using a Custom Template as a Symbol ................. 405 12.5.5 Automatically Filling Title Block Information .............................. 406 12.5.6 Managing Design Property Value Fields ................................... 408
12.6.1 Note .......................................................................................... 410 12.6.2 Datums ...................................................................................... 412 12.6.3 Datum Targets .......................................................................... 413 12.6.4 Feature Control Frames ............................................................ 415 12.6.5 Surface Finish Symbol .............................................................. 418 12.6.6 Weld Symbol ............................................................................. 419 12.6.7 Balloon Callouts ........................................................................ 420 12.6.8 Thread and Hole Callouts ......................................................... 421 12.6.9 Tables ....................................................................................... 425 12.6.10 Working with Annotations ........................................................ 428
13.2.1 BOM Creation ........................................................................... 430 13.2.2 Custom BOM Templates ........................................................... 432
13.3.1 Inserting a BOM View into a Drawing ........................................ 433 13.3.2 Linking a BOM to a Drawing ..................................................... 435 13.3.3 Unlinking a BOM from a Drawing .............................................. 436 13.3.4 Editing a BOM ........................................................................... 436 13.3.5 Moving the BOM View on the Sheet ......................................... 436 13.3.6 Hiding the BOM View ................................................................ 437 13.3.7 Deleting the BOM View ............................................................. 438 13.3.8 Moving a BOM View to Another Sheet ...................................... 438 13.3.9 Splitting a BOM View ................................................................ 438 13.3.10 Adding Callout Balloons ........................................................... 439
13.4.1 Adding and Deleting Columns in a BOM ................................... 443 13.4.2 Adding and Deleting a Row in a BOM ....................................... 445 13.4.3 Hiding a Row ............................................................................. 445 13.4.4 Resizing Rows and Columns .................................................... 446
13.4.5 Adjusting Column Header and Data Alignment ......................... 447 13.4.6 Moving Rows and Columns in a Table ...................................... 448 13.4.7 Sorting Data in Ascending or Descending Order ...................... 449 13.4.8 Changing the Header Display Orientation ................................. 449 13.4.9 Customizing Header and Data Font Properties ......................... 450 13.4.10 Overriding Design Values ........................................................ 450 13.4.11 Modifying the BOM View Style ................................................ 451 13.4.12 Resequencing Data ................................................................. 451 13.4.13 Updating the Table .................................................................. 452 13.4.14 Exporting a BOM ..................................................................... 453 13.4.15 Printing a BOM ........................................................................ 453
14.1.1 Opening Files from the File System .......................................... 455 14.1.2 Opening Files from the Alibre Vault ........................................... 455
14.2.1 General Saving Principles ......................................................... 456 14.2.2 Single Item Save vs. Multi-Item Save ........................................ 457 14.2.3 Saving Files to the File System ................................................. 457 14.2.4 Saving Files to the Alibre Vault ................................................. 459
15.1.1 Supported File Types ................................................................ 463 15.1.2 Importing a File ......................................................................... 464 15.1.3 Import Settings and Import Advisor ........................................... 466
15.2.1 Supported File Types ................................................................ 469 15.2.2 Exporting a File ......................................................................... 470
16.3.1 Alibre Motion, Main Menu ......................................................... 476 16.3.2 Alibre Motion Explorer ............................................................... 477 16.3.3 Motion Explorer Groups ............................................................ 478 16.3.4 Motion Settings ......................................................................... 479 16.3.5 Playback Deck .......................................................................... 485
16.5.1 Adding Physical Elements (Motors and Actuators, Springs and Dampers) 489 16.5.2 Actuators (Motors and Linear Actuators) ................................... 490 16.5.3 Springs ...................................................................................... 497 16.5.4 Dampers ................................................................................... 498 16.5.5 Gravity ....................................................................................... 499
16.6.1 Simulation Types ....................................................................... 502 16.6.2 Producing Efficient and Useful Simulations ............................... 502 16.6.3 Automatic Constraint Mapping (ACM) in Alibre Motion ............. 504 16.6.4 Moving and Fixed Parts ............................................................ 504 16.6.5 Creating Simulations ................................................................. 505 16.6.6 Renaming Simulations .............................................................. 505 16.6.7 Running Simulations ................................................................. 506 16.6.8 Simulation Warnings ................................................................. 507 16.6.9 Maintaining Multiple Simulations ............................................... 507 16.6.10 Deleting Simulations ................................................................ 508 16.6.11 Activating a Different Simulation .............................................. 508
16.7.1 Traces - Visualizing Paths and Vectors ..................................... 509 16.7.2 Video Generation with Alibre Motion ......................................... 513 16.7.3 Generating X-Y Plots from Simulation Data .............................. 516
16.8.1 Interferences Dialog .................................................................. 519
17.6.1 Searching .................................................................................. 526 17.6.2 Views ........................................................................................ 529
17.11.1 Versioning Concepts ................................................................ 534 17.11.2 Viewing Version History ........................................................... 535 17.11.3 Version Label Creation ............................................................ 536 17.11.4 Rolling Back to Previous Versions ........................................... 537
Installation
1.1 System Requirements
1.2 On the DVD
1.3 Installing Alibre Design
1.4 Uninstalling Alibre Design
Getting Started With Alibre Design
2.1 Initial Launch of Alibre Design
2.2 Tutorials
2.3 Home Window
2.3.1 System Options
2.4 Workspaces
2.5 Common Terms
2.6 Toolbars
Introduction to the Design Interface
3.1 Workspaces
3.1.1 Workspace Terms
3.1.2 Opening a New Workspace
3.1.3 Model Terms
3.1.4 Work Area Color Scheme
3.1.5 Multiple Views
3.1.6 Named Views
3.1.7 Design Explorer
3.2 Selection Methods
3.3 Standard Toolbars
3.4 Custom Toolbars
3.5 View Manipulation
3.6 Getting Help
3.7 Keyboard Hot-Key Descriptions
Sketching
4.1 Sketching Interface
4.2 Sketch Mode
4.2.1 Entering Sketch Mode
4.2.2 Exiting Sketch Mode
4.3 Customizing the Look of Sketch Figures
4.3.1 Customizing Colors of Items in Sketch Mode
4.3.2 Customizing the Size of Nodes
4.4 Sketch Figures
4.4.1 Line
4.4.2 Circle
4.4.3 Circular Arcs
4.4.4 Rectangles
4.4.5 Spline Curves
4.4.6 Ellipses
4.4.7 Elliptical Arcs
4.4.8 Polygons
4.4.9 Sketch Shapes
4.4.10 Text Figures
4.5 Reference Figures and Sketch Nodes
4.6 Working with Existing Sketch Figures
4.6.1 Extending Figures
4.6.2 Trimming Figures
4.6.3 Adding 2D Fillets to Sketch Figures
4.6.4 Adding Chamfers to Sketch Figures
4.6.5 Offsetting Figures
4.6.6 Mirroring Figures
4.6.7 Patterning Sketch Figures
4.6.8 Moving and Rotating Sketch Figures
4.7 Sketch Dimensions
4.7.1 Dimensioning Sketch Figures
4.7.2 Real Time Dimensioning
4.7.3 Dimensioning with DOF Callouts
4.7.4 Auto Dimensioning a Sketch
4.7.5 Working with Sketch Dimensions
4.7.6 Equations in Dimensions
4.7.7 Sketch Dimension Settings
4.8 Sketch Constraints
4.8.1 Constraint Types
4.8.2 Manually Applying Sketch Constraints
4.8.3 Sketch Constraint Inferencing
4.8.4 Deleting Sketch Constraints
4.8.5 Sketch Status and Degrees of Freedom
4.8.6 Sketch Constraint Settings
4.9 Working in a Sketch
4.9.1 Grid and Snap
4.9.2 Snapping to the Working Plane
4.9.3 Cursor Dimension Hints
4.9.4 Cursor Display
4.9.5 Inference Hints
4.9.6 Direct Coordinate Entry
4.9.7 Right-click Menu
4.9.8 Open and Closed Sketches
4.9.9 Checking Sketches for Errors
4.9.10 Enclosed Figures
4.9.11 Copying and Pasting Sketch Figures
4.10 Sketches and the Design Explorer
4.10.1 Editing Sketches
4.10.2 Renaming Sketches
4.10.3 Deleting Sketches
Reference Geometry
5.1 Reference Planes
5.1.1 Offset Plane
5.1.2 Tangent Plane
5.1.3 Angled Plane
5.1.4 Parallel Plane through a Point
5.1.5 Plane at Line and Point
5.1.6 Three Point Plane
5.1.7 Plane Normal to 3D Sketch or 3D Edge
5.2 Axes
5.2.1 Axis through Axis or Edge
5.2.2 Axis through Two Points
5.2.3 Axis Using Cylindrical Face
5.2.4 Axis through Two Planes
5.2.5 Axis Offset and Parallel to Axis or Edge
5.3 Points
5.3.1 Point at Specified Coordinates
5.3.2 Point at Plane and Axis/Edge
5.3.3 Point at Axis/Edge and Axis/Edge
5.3.4 Point at the Center of Circular Edge
5.3.5 Point at Vertex
5.3.6 Point along Edge
5.3.7 Point between Two Points
5.4 Reference Surfaces
5.4.1 Inserting Reference Surfaces
5.4.2 Positioning Reference Surfaces
5.4.3 Thickening Reference Surfaces
5.4.4 Trimming a Solid
5.4.5 Extruding to Geometry
5.5 Reference Geometry Visibility
5.5.1 Hiding Individual Reference Geometry Items
5.5.2 Hiding Reference Geometry Groups
5.5.3 Hiding All Reference Geometry Groups
5.6 Renaming Reference Geometry
5.7 Deleting Reference Geometry
5.8 Editing Reference Geometry Properties
3D Sketching
6.1 3D Sketching Interface
6.2 3D Sketching Context
6.3 Current Coordinate System
6.4 Sketch Plane, Guide Lines, and Elevation
6.5 Entering and Exiting 3D Sketch Mode
6.5.1 Entering 3D Sketch Mode
6.5.2 Exiting 3D Sketch Mode
6.6 3D Sketch Figures
6.6.1 Line
6.6.2 Arc
6.6.3 Spline
6.7 3D Sketch Nodes
6.7.1 Placing a Sketch Node
6.7.2 Inserting Sketch Nodes from a File
6.8 Project to 3D Sketch
6.9 Working with Existing 3D Sketch Figures
6.9.1 Adding Fillets
6.9.2 Dimensioning 3D Sketch Figures
6.10 3D Sketch Constraints
6.10.1 Inferred Constraints
6.10.2 Explicit Constraints
6.11 Other 3D Sketch Functions
Feature Creation
7.1 Part Modeling Interface
7.2 Feature Terminology
7.2.1 Feature Types
7.3 Extrude Boss and Extrude Cut
7.3.1 Extrude Boss and Extrude Cut Feature Creation
7.3.2 Thin Wall Extrude Boss and Cut Feature Creation
7.4 Revolve Boss and Revolve Cut
7.4.1 Revolve Boss and Revolve Cut Features
7.4.2 Thin Wall Revolve Boss and Cut Features
7.5 Loft Boss and Loft Cut
7.6 Sweep Boss and Sweep Cut
7.6.1 Sweep Boss and Sweep Cut Features
7.6.2 Thin Wall Boss Sweep and Cut Sweep Features
7.7 Helical Boss and Helical Cut
7.8 Fillet
7.8.1 Constant Radius Fillets
7.8.2 Variable Radius Fillets
7.9 Chamfers
7.9.1 Edge Chamfers
7.9.2 Vertex Chamfers
7.10 Shells
7.11 Draft Faces
7.12 External Cosmetic Threads
7.13 Holes
7.14 Catalog Features
7.14.1 Saving Catalog Features
7.14.2 Inserting Catalog Features
7.15 Copying Existing Features
7.15.1 Mirroring Features
7.15.2 Feature Patterns
7.15.3 Topology Patterns
7.16 Design Boolean Features
7.16.1 Design Boolean Editor Environment
7.16.2 Design Boolean Feature Creation
7.16.3 Design Boolean Feature Editing
7.17 Direct Editing
7.17.1 Implications of Using Direct Editing
7.17.2 Push Pull Face Sketch
7.17.3 Push Pull Pocket or Boss
7.17.4 Push Pull Radius
7.17.5 Remove Faces
7.17.6 Tips for Successful Direct Editing
7.18 Scaling Parts
7.19 Managing Features in the Design Explorer
Sheet Metal Feature Creation
8.1 Sheet Metal Part Modeling Interface
8.2 Sheet Metal Part Parameters
8.3 Tab
8.4 Contour Base Flange
8.5 Lofted Flange
8.6 Flange
8.6.1 Sheet Metal Changes for Version 9.1 and Later
8.7 Closed Corner
8.8 Dimple
8.9 Cut
8.10 Corner Rounds and Chamfers
8.10.1 Rounding a Corner
8.10.2 Chamfering a corner
8.11 Holes
8.12 Unbend and Rebend
8.13 Catalog Feature
8.14 Copying Existing Features
8.15 Managing Features in the Design Explorer
Working with Parts
9.1 Design Explorer
9.2 Modifying a Part
9.2.1 Editing Sketches and Features
9.2.2 Suppressing Features in Parts
9.2.3 Reordering Features
9.2.4 Rolling Back Features
9.3 Measurement Tool
9.4 Part Display Options
9.5 3D Section Views
9.6 Part Physical Properties
9.7 Color Properties
9.8 Project to Sketch
9.9 Spreadsheet Driven Designs
9.9.1 Setting Up Excel to Drive Designs
9.9.2 Driving Designs by Spreadsheet
9.9.3 Modifying Spreadsheet Driven Parameters
9.9.4 Re-linking a Spreadsheet to a Part
9.10 3D PDF Publishing
9.10.1 PDF File Creation
9.10.2 Continuing with an Existing PDF
9.10.3 PDF Publishing Templates
9.10.4 Viewing Published PDF Files
9.10.5 Improving the Quality of Published PDF Files
9.10.6 Publishing a Model to HTML
9.10.7 Printing 3D Models
9.10.8 Annotations
9.10.9 Troubleshooting Failed Features
9.10.10 Viewing Constituents
9.10.11 Display Optimization
Design Configurations
10.1 Design Configurations Overview
10.1.1 Lock properties represented in the Design Explorer
10.1.2 Editing Properties of Configurations
10.1.3 Regeneration of Design Configurations
10.2 Configuration Creation for Parts and Sheet Metal Parts
10.2.1 Helpful Notes on Design Configurations in Parts
10.3 Assembly Configurations
10.3.1 Inserting Configurations of Parts or Subassemblies
10.3.2 Missing Design Configurations
10.3.3 Configurations in Assembly Patterns
10.3.4 Helpful Notes on Design Configurations in Assemblies
10.4 Configurations in Drawings
10.5 Configurations in a BOM
10.6 Configurations and the Equation Editor
Assembly Design
11.1 Assembly Design Methodology
11.2 Assembly Design Interface
11.3 Assembly Basics
11.3.1 Opening a New Assembly and Inserting Existing Parts
11.3.2 Anchored Parts
11.3.3 Inserting an Existing Design Into an Open Assembly
11.3.4 Selecting Parts in the Assembly
11.3.5 Part Display Options
11.3.6 Inserting a Duplicate Design Into an Open Assembly
11.3.7 Inserting a Pattern of Parts in an Assembly
11.3.8 Moving and Rotating Parts Freely
11.3.9 Moving and Rotating Parts Precisely
11.3.10 Moving Parts to Simulate Assembly Physical Motion
11.3.11 Hiding a Part
11.3.12 Suppressing a Part
11.3.13 Applying Color Properties to a Part
11.3.14 Checking Measurements
11.3.15 Viewing Part Reference Geometry
11.4 Assembly Constraints
11.4.1 Assembly Constraint Types
11.4.2 Inserting Assembly Constraints - Quick Constraint Mode
11.4.3 Inserting Assembly Constraints - Manual Method
11.4.4 Inter-Design Constraints
11.4.5 Managing Assembly Constraints
11.4.6 Failed Assembly Constraints
11.5 Flexible Subassemblies
11.6 Checking for Interferences
11.7 Inserting an Exploded View
11.7.1 Inserting an Exploded View Using Auto Explode Mode
11.7.2 Inserting an Exploded View Using Manual Explode
11.7.3 Viewing and/or Editing an Exploded View
11.7.4 Exploded View Steps
11.8 Deleting an Exploded View
11.9 Duplicating an Exploded View
11.10 Editing and Designing Parts in the Assembly
11.10.1 Creating a New Part within an Assembly
11.10.2 Editing a Part in an Assembly
11.10.3 Improving Assembly Performance when Editing Parts
11.11 Importing Parts into an Assembly
11.12 Joining Parts & Removing Material in an Assembly
Drawings
12.1 Drawing Creation
12.1.1 Opening a New Drawing
12.1.2 Selecting a Drawing Template
12.1.3 Selecting the Model
12.1.4 Inserting Standard Views
12.1.5 Inserting Additional Standard Views
12.1.6 Fast Views
12.2 Working in a Drawing
12.2.1 Drawing Mark-Up Mode
12.2.2 Renaming Sheets & Views
12.2.3 Changing the Drawing Template
12.2.4 Deleting Views
12.2.5 Hiding Views
12.2.6 Drawing Selection Filters
12.2.7 Moving Views on the Sheet
12.2.8 Updating Drawing Views
12.2.9 View and Sheet Boundaries
12.2.10 Changing the View Scale
12.2.11 Line Display in Views
12.2.12 Centerlines and Centermarks
12.2.13 Optimizing the Drawing Display
12.2.14 Layers
12.2.15 Adding Sheets
12.2.16 Reordering Sheets
12.2.17 Moving a View to Another Sheet
12.2.18 Hiding Parts in a View (Assemblies Only)
12.2.19 Inserting Images in a Drawing
12.2.20 Printing a Drawing
12.3 Dimensioning
12.3.1 Placing Additional Dimensions on a View
12.3.2 Dimensioning Slots and Holes
12.3.3 Placing Ordinate Dimensions on a View
12.3.4 Modifying Driving Dimension Values
12.3.5 Dimension Properties
12.3.6 Dimension Styles
12.3.7 Aligning Dimensions
12.4 Inserting Additional Views
12.4.1 Standard View
12.4.2 Auxiliary View
12.4.3 Detail View
12.4.4 Section View
12.4.5 Broken View
12.4.6 Partial View
12.4.7 Exploded View
12.4.8 Flat Pattern View of a Sheet Metal Part
12.5 Custom Templates
12.5.1 Creating a Custom Template
12.5.2 Customizing an Existing Template
12.5.3 Saving and Using a Custom Template as a Drawing
12.5.4 Saving and Using a Custom Template as a Symbol
12.5.5 Automatically Filling Title Block Information
12.5.6 Managing Design Property Value Fields
12.6 Annotations
12.6.1 Note
12.6.2 Datums
12.6.3 Datum Targets
12.6.4 Feature Control Frames
12.6.5 Surface Finish Symbol
12.6.6 Weld Symbol
12.6.7 Balloon Callouts
12.6.8 Thread and Hole Callouts
12.6.9 Tables
12.6.10 Working with Annotations
Bills of Material
13.1 Specifying BOM Data
13.2 Bills of Material Generation
13.2.1 BOM Creation
13.2.2 Custom BOM Templates
13.3 BOMs within 2D Drawings
13.3.1 Inserting a BOM View into a Drawing
13.3.2 Linking a BOM to a Drawing
13.3.3 Unlinking a BOM from a Drawing
13.3.4 Editing a BOM
13.3.5 Moving the BOM View on the Sheet
13.3.6 Hiding the BOM View
13.3.7 Deleting the BOM View
13.3.8 Moving a BOM View to Another Sheet
13.3.9 Splitting a BOM View
13.3.10 Adding Callout Balloons
13.4 BOM Workspace Interface
13.4.1 Adding and Deleting Columns in a BOM
13.4.2 Adding and Deleting a Row in a BOM
13.4.3 Hiding a Row
13.4.4 Resizing Rows and Columns
13.4.5 Adjusting Column Header and Data Alignment
13.4.6 Moving Rows and Columns in a Table
13.4.7 Sorting Data in Ascending or Descending Order
13.4.8 Changing the Header Display Orientation
13.4.9 Customizing Header and Data Font Properties
13.4.10 Overriding Design Values
13.4.11 Modifying the BOM View Style
13.4.12 Resequencing Data
13.4.13 Updating the Table
13.4.14 Exporting a BOM
13.4.15 Printing a BOM
Opening and Saving
14.1 Opening Files
14.1.1 Opening Files from the File System
14.1.2 Opening Files from the Alibre Vault
14.2 Saving Files
14.2.1 General Saving Principles
14.2.2 Single Item Save vs. Multi-Item Save
14.2.3 Saving Files to the File System
14.2.4 Saving Files to the Alibre Vault
Importing and Exporting Data
15.1 Importing Data
15.1.1 Supported File Types
15.1.2 Importing a File
15.1.3 Import Settings and Import Advisor
15.2 Exporting Data
15.2.1 Supported File Types
15.2.2 Exporting a File
15.3 Special Options for IGES and STL Files
Alibre Motion
16.1 An Overview of Simulation
16.2 Installing and Enabling Alibre Motion
16.3 Alibre Motion User Interface
16.3.1 Alibre Motion, Main Menu
16.3.2 Alibre Motion Explorer
16.3.3 Motion Explorer Groups
16.3.4 Motion Settings
16.3.5 Playback Deck
16.4 Overview of Simulating and Playing
16.5 Forces and Torques in Simulations
16.5.1 Adding Physical Elements (Motors and Actuators, Springs and Dampers)
16.5.2 Actuators (Motors and Linear Actuators)
16.5.3 Springs
16.5.4 Dampers
16.5.5 Gravity
16.6 Simulation Types and Parameters:
16.6.1 Simulation Types
16.6.2 Producing Efficient and Useful Simulations
16.6.3 Automatic Constraint Mapping (ACM) in Alibre Motion
16.6.4 Moving and Fixed Parts
16.6.5 Creating Simulations
16.6.6 Renaming Simulations
16.6.7 Running Simulations
16.6.8 Simulation Warnings
16.6.9 Maintaining Multiple Simulations
16.6.10 Deleting Simulations
16.6.11 Activating a Different Simulation
16.7 Results and Feedback from Alibre Motion Simulations
16.7.1 Traces - Visualizing Paths and Vectors
16.7.2 Video Generation with Alibre Motion
16.7.3 Generating X-Y Plots from Simulation Data
16.8 Detecting Interferences
16.8.1 Interferences Dialog
16.9 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Alibre Vault, by M-Files
17.1 Critical Notes for Installation or Modification of the Vault
17.2 Description of Metadata
17.3 Differences Between the Vault and the File System
17.4 Enabling or Disabling the Alibre Vault
17.5 Checking Items In and Out of the Alibre Vault
17.6 Finding Items in the Alibre Vault
17.6.1 Searching
17.6.2 Views
17.7 Renaming Files
17.8 Copying Items
17.9 Permissions
17.10 Setting Up Notifications
17.11 Versioning
17.11.1 Versioning Concepts
17.11.2 Viewing Version History
17.11.3 Version Label Creation
17.11.4 Rolling Back to Previous Versions
17.12 Relationships
17.13 Getting Help
Index