Upon successful completion of this lesson, you will be able to:
I Pattern components.
I Create a configuration of an assembly.
I Use configure component to automate the creation of configurations.
I Create a custom PropertyManager for a part.
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Using
Configurations with
Assemblies
Configurations at the assembly level create variations of the assembly within the same assembly document.
Stages in the Process
The major stages in the process are listed below:
I Component Patterns
Create instances of components based on linear, circular, or part-level features/holes.
I Manual Configurations
Review existing configurations and modify the properties.
I Configuration Publisher
Create a PropertyManager for a part to facilitate easier configuration selection when inserting the part into an assembly.
Procedure Starting with an existing assembly, we create multiple configurations to represent several options in the design of the support leg of a gas grill.
We utilize existing part and sub-assembly configurations.
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Components and Sub-assemblies
The Plank component used in this lesson has two configurations. Each configuration assigns a different material to the part.
The Side_Table_Shelf_&_Burners
sub-assembly has left and right hand configurations representing the position of the burners. The Left configuration is shown.
1 Open an assembly file.
Open Support_Frame from the Lesson04\Case Study folder.
There is one instance of the Plank component. This instance uses the Wood configuration.
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Component Patterns
Component Patterns create instances of components based on an assembly-level pattern or existing part-level patterns.
Linear and Circular component patterns are defined using geometry in the assembly, similar to their counterparts in part models.
Feature Driven component patterns are defined using existing pattern and hole features selected from component parts in the assembly.
Where to Find It I CommandManager: Assembly > Linear Component Pattern
> Feature Driven Component Pattern
I Menu: Insert, Component Pattern, Feature Driven
Note Instances of the patterned components are added into pattern folders such as DerivedLPattern1.
Component Pattern Based on Part-level Feature or Hole
Linear None
Circular None
Feature Driven Sketch Driven Table Driven Curve Driven Fill
Hole Series Hole Wizard
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2 Component Pattern.
Click Feature Driven Component Pattern and select Plank. Click in the Driving Feature field, and select the pattern feature LPattern1 from Support_Leg <1> in the flyout
FeatureManager design tree or from a face of the geometry.
Note Select Seed Position allows you to choose a different position for the seed component. By default, it starts from its mated location.
3 Components.
The components generated by the pattern are stored beneath the DerivedPattern1 feature. They are created without mates; they are tied to the pattern positions.
Note The components can be broken from the pattern by right-clicking the pattern feature and clicking Dissolve Pattern. The components are added into the FeatureManager design tree without any mates. To create a “pattern” of fully defined component instances, see Using Copy with Mates on page 96.
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Creating
Configurations Manually
The most direct way to create a configuration is manually. See the Essentials manual for more information.
There are several reasons to create configurations manually, where no suppression or numeric changes are required. In these cases, just creating the configuration name is enough.
I Exploded Views - Each exploded view needs its own configuration.
I Alternate Position Views - Each alternate position view needs its own configuration. They are overlaid in the drawing view.
I Component Positioning - To create views that show the range of motion or multiple positions of a component. Move component can be set to store positions in configurations.
Where to Find It I ConfigurationManager: Right-click the top-level icon and click Add Configuration
I Shortcut Menu: Right-click the component and click Add Configuration
When you add a new configuration in this way, the settings of the active configuration are copied. Configurations can also be created by copying and pasting them in the ConfigurationManager.
Configuration Properties
Some of the assembly Configuration Properties options are the same as those for a part, but the Advanced Options differ.
I Suppress new features and mates means that if mates or assembly features are added to the assembly while another
configuration is active, the new mates or assembly features will be suppressed in this configuration.
I Suppress new components means that if components are added to the assembly while another configuration is active, the
components will be suppressed in this configuration.
I Hide new components means that if components are added to the assembly while another configuration is active, the components will be hidden in this configuration. This information is stored in the display state.
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4 Configuration properties.
Click the ConfigurationManager. Right-click the Default configuration and click Properties. In the Advanced Options group, click Suppress new features and mates and Suppress new components. Click OK.
5 Rename configuration.
Rename the Default configuration to Planks_Wood.
Tip By making these settings in this existing configuration, new configurations use these settings.
Using Configure Component
Use Configure Component on a component, assembly feature or mate to automate the process of creating configurations. The tabular
interface allows you to create new configurations and set options for the selection.
Entity Configure component
options
Top-level Part Component Current state: Suppress with checkbox and Configuration drop down list
Top-level Sub-assembly Component
Current state: Suppress with checkbox and Configuration drop down list
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Note Select multiple entities to configure more than one entity at a time.
Where to Find It I Shortcut Menu: Right-click an item and click Configure Component or Configure Feature
6 Configure component.
Right-click Plank<1> and click Configure component. Type Planks_Plastic over the
<Creates a new configuration>
text. Select the Plastic
configuration for the part in the
new assembly configuration. Click OK. 7 Resulting configurations.
The new configurations each use a different configuration of Plank. Assembly feature in the
FeatureManager design tree
Current state: Suppress with checkbox
Assembly feature dimension in the graphics area
Current value with number box
Mate in the FeatureManager design tree
Current state: Suppress with checkbox
Mate dimension in the graphics area
Current value with number box
Entity Configure component
options
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8 Add new configuration.
Right-click Plank<1> and click Configure component. Type Single_Tray over the <Creates a new configuration> text. Click Suppress for the newest configuration. Click OK. 9 Manual suppress.
Make the Single_Tray configuration active. Right-click the DerivedPattern1 feature and click Suppress .
10 Mate component.
Insert side_table_shelf and mate it to the assembly as shown using coincident and concentric mates. The component contains a mate reference. For more information, see Adding Mate References on page 68.
Mate Reference
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11 Mates by configuration.
Due to the settings used in the Configuration Properties (step 4 on page 123), side_table_shelf and its mates are automatically suppessed in all configurations except the currently active one (Single_Tray).
12 Add new configuration.
Right-click side_table_shelf and click Configure component. Type LH_Burners over the
<Creates a new configuration>
text. Click Suppress for the newest configuration. Click OK.
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13 Insert sub-assembly.
Activate the LH_Burners configuration.
Insert side_table_shelf_&_burners with the Left configuration. Mate it similar to side_table_shelf from step 10 on page 125. This assembly has several sub-assemblies nested within it.
14 Add new configuration.
Right-click the
side_table_shelf_&_burners sub-assembly in the FeatureManager design tree and click Configure component. Type RH_Burners over
the <Creates a new configuration> text. Select the Right configuration of the sub-assembly for the newest configuration of the main assembly.
Click OK.
Note You right-click the sub-assembly in the FeatureManager design tree to ensure that you are configuring the sub-assembly and not one of its components.
15 Activate configuration.
Activate the RH_Burners configuration to see the new arrangement of the burners.
16 Save the files.
Save but do not close the assembly.
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Configuration Publisher
The Configuration Publisher tool creates a custom dialog with parameters for components that are inserted into assemblies. If configurations exist in the component, then the parameters are taken from the configuration data in the part. If configurations do not exist in the component, they can be created using specified criteria as you insert the component into an assembly.
When using Configuration Publisher with existing configurations, only configured features and dimensions are used. Other features and dimensions are not available.
Where to Find It I Shortcut Menu: Right-click the top level component in the FeatureManager design tree and click Configuration Publisher Tip This lesson exhibits a fairly simple use of this functionality. It is most
useful for a component with many configured features and dimensions.
For example, it could greatly simplify inserting an air filter with many length, width, and material combinations into an assembly.
17 Open a part file.
Open Wheel.
There are six configurations in this part. There are three diameters and two different representations of a hubcap.
18 Set parameters.
Right-click the top level component in the
FeatureManager design tree and click Configuration Publisher. Drag the controls from the left onto the Edit tab in the order shown.
Only two controls are available because these are the only configured features or dimensions.
19 Names.
Type the labels shown into the Name box for each control.
with hubcap without hubcap
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20 Preview.
A preview of the PropertyManager appears on the SW Preview tab. Return to the Edit tab, click Apply, then click Close.
21 Location.
The PropertyManager feature is stored in the ConfigurationManager. You can right-click the icon and click Edit Feature to edit it.
22 Save and close the files.
Using the
PropertyManager
The PropertyManager appears each time the component is inserted into an assembly. You can use the controls to insert the component by its parameters or by a specific configuration name. As you change selections in the PropertyManager, the preview of the component changes in the graphics area.
23 Insert component.
Click Insert Components and add the Wheel component to the assembly.
24 Configure component.
The Configure Component PropertyManager appears. Under
Parameters, select 200 for Diameter and select the Hubcap check box. Click OK. 25 Copy component.
Hold down Ctrl and drag the wheel into the graphics area to create another instance.
Choose the same size for this instance.
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26 Mate.
Hold down Alt and drag the circular edge of Wheel to the circular edge of Support_Leg to add concentric and coincident mates. Watch for the
pointer to indicate the proper mate relationships.
Repeat for the other Wheel.
27 Configure components.
Hold down Ctrl and select both Wheel components.
Right-click and click Configure component to configure both wheels at the same time. Clear the Suppress check boxes for all
configurations of both wheels. Click OK. 28 Test configurations.
Activate each configuration in turn. Make sure the wheels appear in all configurations and that the proper plank or side table configurations appear.
29 Save the files.
Save but do not close the assembly.
Information from an Assembly
Information can be extracted from an assembly to determine some of its parameters such as size, depth and references.
Introducing:
AssemblyXpert
For statistics on the quantities of certain types of part components and sub-assemblies, AssemblyXpert can be used. It can also diagnose errors.
The report lists information about the:
I Number of components
I Type of components
I Components status
I Structure of the assembly
I Rebuild time for the total assembly
Where to Find It I CommandManager: Evaluate > AssemblyXpert
I Menu: Tools, AssemblyXpert
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30 AssemblyXpert.
Activate the RH_Burners configuration. Click AssemblyXpert to see information about this configuration of Support_Frame. Click OK.
What is the Maximum Depth?
The Maximum Depth is the number of levels of sub-assemblies within the
assembly starting with the top level assembly.
31 Save and close the files.
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