helical curve

[mathfeel]

I need to make two spring for a clock model (really old one...mechanically run)

both of them spiral outward...one of them of spiral upward (like DNA except increasing radius)

I can imaging draw a crosssection then sweeping the profile along a sprial curve...but I do not know how to draw the 2D spiralling-out curve for one of the spring..let alone the 3D one for another (CAN YOU DRAW A CURVE IN 3D?? AT ALL???)

I am really newbie here...and I have an educational edition of the software which makes the file database here quite useless for me :-(((

so 1) can someone give me a cook-book guide how to do it?



2) I have seen some pose where people posts equation of curve...how does that come into Pro/E? How do I utilitize that???

 

[sherbert]

You can creat a sweep using a datum curve as your trajectory.

The datum curve is defined using a formula for a spirol.

As for the other 3d spirol, perhaps you can use the helical sweep for that.

 

[mathfeel]

I have just discovered how to create curve out of equation...that's great....

just wondering if it's possible to create some weird cirve by equaiton...



for example, if I would like to create a CLOSED semi-circle...

I would want to make a straight line for t=0 to t=1/2, and the create the semicircle for t=1/2 to t=1, I tried this code and it is not working:



if t<= 0.5

x=(t-1)*2

y=0

else

x=cos((t-0.5)*2*pi)

y=sin(t-0.5)*2*pi)

end



it is not working...

I guess the question is can I parametrize curve like I did for different value of t??

 

[Jules_1974]

try using swept blend or variable section sweep. A normal sweep won't work with some 3D curves.