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Showing axis in assembly cuts?

bartn

New member
When I create holes in an assembly using extrude/remove material, I cannot get the axis to show in the drawing (view/showand erase). Is there a way to do this?
 
Bartn,

this may be a silly question, but why make assembly level cuts? They produce alot of dependencies and issues. I would rather make a datum curve feature or surface and use that to locate the feature in each affected part. You can then copy geometry or publish geometry or other means to transfer the information.

to answer your question...I think you would have difficulty selecting the right category in order to show the axis. can you see the axis in the 3d model? is the axis hidden in the drawing by being actually hidden, or on a layer already?

cheers,

M
 
Magneplaner


No argument from me - assembly cuts can be a real pain! How I typically use them: Create a part with holes for fasteners. Create a second part. Create an assembly and add first part and second part. Create assembly cut using concentric circles referencing holes on first part. Intersect only second part, back to part level. If first part changes design and/or position, which it always does, holes in second part of course change accordingly. Also, by using the concentric circle feature, there is little chance of making an error in the hole position. I suppose I could dosimilar withdatum curves and patterns, but could I transfer or copy the first pattern to ensure correct location?
 
Try using show/erase by feature then query select or pick from list if you use the pre-highlight feature, and pick your assembly cut. It should in theory show up and allow you to select it. But like magneplanar stated make sure your axis layer is turned on.


To all the assembly cut haters, it seems that the ways that you're describing, it seems that those would leave evven more dependencies. All you have to do is make sure when defining your assembly cut, just make sure the auto-update is unselected. Sometimes you have to use assembly cuts to make true-life models of how they would need to be created. Especially where weld warp is a concern.


Hope this helps.
 
ehorton,

the concern about assembly level features is when the parts are then broken up to be turned into actual parts. I can keep an association to a datum curve or surface and still have part functionality without the assembly. However, when I send my part to tooling and it has assembly level cuts they cannot modify the feature or work with it. Of course they can copy the surfaces and do more involved procedures to get around it. I still would not use it though, because I can use other features that do the same thing and allow the part to be out of the assembly and parametric. It is a choice of what you want to be parametrically connected and whether that is robust enough for the individual parts to stand on their own.

my comment: Use what you can manage and what gets the work done, keep learning to see other ways of doing things even if it is more difficult. I think 3d software allows a 3d mindset with more than one way to do a certain thing in a 3d sense. Sort of like 3d chess compared to just a flat board.

cheers,

M
 
I agree assembly cuts are bad to your "health". But if you really want to use them then you can show axis in drawings.


If the view is a assembly view thenthe axis are shown with show/erase. If they are not for whatever reason, try when you make the feature to insert a axis point in sketch mode from sketch /axis point.


If you's making the cuts in assembly then change the feature to show the cut in part level, and the view in drawing is a part view, then the axis are not shown because the feature in part is a asembly cut feature. But you can create a axis thru that hole in part level. insert / model datum / axis.


Again, assembly cuts are bad to your "health" but you can still show axis, everything is possible.
smiley2.gif
there is a guy here I don't remember his name that has a motto like everything you can imagine is real, something like that with PRO_E.
smiley2.gif
 
I called PTC on this one. You can make the axis show in a part drawing. You have to do things in a certain order when you intersect the parts.


1. uncheck automatic update


2. select and remove the intersected models


3. change default display to part level


4. check show feature in sub-models


5. select add intersected models


You can then use show/erase to show the axis in a part drawing. That said, i doubt if I will use assembly cuts again. The dependencies simply cause too much trouble.
 
bartn said:
How I typically use them: Create a part with holes for fasteners. Create a second part. Create an assembly and add first part and second part. Create assembly cut using concentric circles referencing holes on first part.


I think Assembly cuts are mis-used by bartn. For the case described above assembly cuts should not be used. Assembly cuts are typically used for the following scenario.


Imagine that you need to DOWEL two parts in assembly. Meaning, both the parts or either part will only have a pilot hole (Drawing of individual part will be with the pilot hole only). The assembly drawing of the two parts will be with the REAMED DOWEL HOLE.


Bartn, you can follow a different procedure. Let us say that you have already made the clear holes in part A and you need the tappings on part B. Activate part B andmodel the tapped hole taking reference of Axis available from part A.
 

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