Difference between revisions of "How to Guide Inventor"
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Note: There are many ways to get to the projects window. | Note: There are many ways to get to the projects window. | ||
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+ | Now you will have you new project listed in the project window. However when you start inventor you will not by default be working in it. To make this the default project just double click on your project in the list. Now when you start you will always be working with it. | ||
==Making a Part== | ==Making a Part== |
Revision as of 01:01, 3 September 2007
Inventor, produced by Autodesk, is the 3d solid modeling software currently used in the FIRST Robotics Competition (this guides target) and by our RoboCup Small Size team. The software can be downloaded for free at http://students.autodesk.com (you need a valid email address from a college ie. your @gatech.edu address). The most recent release is Inventor 2008 (which is what this guide will use).
Contents
Setting Up Inventor
In order to do anything you need to setup your project file. By creating this you can more easily keep track of just project X or project Y and have them on the same machine.
To Do This:
- Go to File
- Projects
- Click the new button
- Fill in the requested info
Note: There are many ways to get to the projects window.
Now you will have you new project listed in the project window. However when you start inventor you will not by default be working in it. To make this the default project just double click on your project in the list. Now when you start you will always be working with it.
Making a Part
First we need to create a part file. To do this...
Making a Sketch
Like AutoCAD (also made by Autodesk) Inventor has many shortcut keys (some of them are the same).
Lines
To do a line you can hit l and then ...
Circles
There is more than one way to make a circle. To specify a center point ... To make tangent... To...
Extrusions
In order to make your 2-dimensional sketch into something more tangible you will need to utilize various extrusions depending on your situation. Overtime you will figure out what your situation is and what to do.
Normal
Revolved
Swept
Holes
It is better to you the hole tool when placing holes instead of drawing the into you sketch initially. This will allow you to edit them with out going back in to the sketch later and there for save you some time. It will also allow to specify the thread, the depth, if its counter sunk and so on.
Putting the Parts Together
Now that you have your parts lets put them together to make some sort of subsystem, product, etc. To do this you will need to create an assembly. Note: Assemblies can be composed of parts and other assemblies.
Ideally your robot's assembly structure could look like this:
- Main Robot Assem
- Drive Train Assem
- Gearbox Assem
- Gears (Parts)
- Plates (Parts)
- Shaft (Parts)
- Gearbox Assem
- Frame Assem
- Tubes / Angle (parts)
- Bolts (parts)
- Manipulators
- Bumpers
- Drive Train Assem