WORKING WITH SPRINGS IN SOLIDWORKS SIMULATION

Spring being a Mechanical Elastic component, gives the engineers a relief when dealing with mechanism driven assemblies. The commonly used springs can be a compression, extension & torsion varieties.

Spring Design:

Modeling Springs within SOLIDWORKS 3D CAD environment has been a quite simple process for the Engineers. The usage of simple Circle, Helix/Spiral commands with produce a fully Swept Springs. Modifying the Dimensions, Pitch & Revolutions can produce the required variations among the Springs. The productive features available in SOLIDWORKS allows to Automate the existing Spring design with varying input data's like Diameter, Coil Length & Pitch based on revolutions.

Spring Animations:

The 3D CAD models can virtually be animated with respect to time. The Time based motion provides the information related to extension & compression operation occuring in Springs. The Users should set the time limit for the operations & provide the valid Force/Motor condition for the spring to translate in a particular direction. The Motion Simulation can take the output of reaction forces & Optimum Motor force for the necessary operating conditions. For simulating the spring compression forces, the designers can give the Spring input data for the load bearing faces in the assemblies instead of modelling the CAD Geometry. The spring constant is a varying parameter which can be decided by the designers by selecting the Spring type to be a Linear or Torsional Spring.

Spring Stiffness Validation:

The integrated Design validation tool provides the analysts in simulating the Spring tension force & Spring stiffness calculations. The spring loads can be applied to the CAD geometries directly by restraining the degrees of freedom. The material database available inside SOLIDWORKS Simulation helps the designers in deriving the Stress, Strain, Displacements & Fatigue Life cycle for the Springs. The SOLIDWORKS Simulation also enables the user to provide manual springs selections on the existing CAD Geometries.

Benefits:

1. Ease of Use in Modelling & Validating springs for its applications
2. CAD Integrated validation provides better results for spring stiffness
3, Less post processing time for Life prediction
4. Spring design reuse & Spring Automation

 

Comment in Feature Manager Design Tree

The existing ability to add Comment to models has been enhanced. It is easier to view and edit models based on the Comment over the life-cycle of a product's design.

Turning on Comment Indicators

You can turn on comment indicators in the Feature Manager design tree display
to locate the Comment more easily.

To turn on comment indicators:

1. In the Feature Manager design tree, right-click the top node.
2. Click Tree Display > Show Comment Indicator.

 

Visual indicators appear in the Feature Manager design tree to indicate if a
comment exists.

Adding Standalone Comment

You can add standalone Comment that are not attached to a feature or node in the Feature Manager design tree.
When you add a comment to a feature, a time-stamp is added automatically to
the comment.

To add standalone Comment:

1. Right-click Comment folder in Feature Manager design tree.

 

2. Click Add Comment.

3. In the Comment box, type the comment and click Save and Close.

Adding Images and Screen shots to Comment

You can add images and screen shots to Comment. When you add a comment to
a feature, a time-stamp is added automatically to the comment, In the Comment box,
click one or both of the following:

(i)Insert image - Lets you browse for an image and adds it in the comment with a
preview.
(ii)Insert screenshot - Adds an image of the graphics area in the comment with a
preview.

 

The standalone comment is added in the Comment folder in Feature Manager
design tree.

Viewing and Editing Comment in Property Managers

You can view and edit the Comment of a feature in Property Managers.

To view and edit Comment in Property Managers:

1. Click Tools > Options > System Options > Collaboration.

 

2. In the dialog box, select Show Comment in Property Manager.
3. In the graphics area, select a feature that has a comment attached to it and click Edit
Feature.
4. In the Property Manager, under Comment, click Edit.
5. Modify the comment and click Save and Close.
6. Click .

You can add Comment to almost all the following nodes in the Feature Manager
design tree as below mentioned.

• Mates (all types) • Mate folder or Mate group • Folders

• Sensors • Material • Annotation views

• Blocks • Solid bodies folder • Surface bodies folder

• Sheet metal nodes • Mate references

Viewing all Comment in one dialog:

You can view all Comment in one dialog box and export the Comment to a Microsoft
Word document.

 

Visibility of Comment in configuration manager:

The Configuration Manager also shows similar enhancements for Comment.

Benefits of comment:

1. Help to communicate information about model.
2. Now we can get the detailed information about revision control in 3d model.
3. Reduce search time without going through cycles of drawings.
4. Increasing productivity.
5. Accelerating time-to-market.

 

Use of Advance Hole For Die Designing Process

SOLIDWORKS provides the Engineers with a Valuable development for mold

designing, with a feature called Advance Hole. This best feature is been brought as an

enhancement in the 2017 version of SOLIDWORKS for creating complex multi diameter holes.

Previously, many features were used in the design interface for making a Single callouts. The

designers had to define the exact callouts in Drawings for manufacturing operation.

The advance hole feature offers designers in customizing holes

within SOLIDWORKS while creating Manifolds & Holes.This feature allows the user to

define hole types with combination of counter bore ,countersink,straight and

tapered selections.

Designers can also indicate Advanced Hole Position using

dimensions, sketch tools, sketch snaps and inference lines. Also, the Advanced Hole

tool provides options to add, update, save, delete or load holes from the Favorites

toolbar.

Benefits

• Creating Multiple hole in a single operation
• Provide more consistency between hole designs is a huge time and money
• saver.
• Customizing Advance Hole call outs also helps during the manufacturing process.

 

SOLIDWORKS 2017 – Feature Delighters

SOLIDWORKS 2017 introduces some great new capabilities that make the design process even more productive. Even the simplest looking design can be visually complex and hard to interpret, due to high amounts of internal detail. SOLIDWORKS 2017 delivers a great new capability for increasing visual clarity, when working in a section view. Now the sectioned geometry of any component or body can be displayed transparent, enabling you to maintain complete visualisation of geometry hidden by the section plane. Using the new property manager option, simply select the components, and set the level of transparency, now it’s even easier to interpret complex designs.

It’s often necessary to have to model the physical Threads on holes and shafts, for applications such as digital simulation and 3D Printing. SOLIDWORKS Thread feature is a great time saver for modelling Threads in one quick and easy to use command. New for SOLIDWORKS 2017, the Thread Feature now provides the option to automatically trim the start and end faces. Plus a new multi start option removes the need for any additional feature patterns, now detailed threads can be created in seconds.

And that’s not all. Now when creating swept features in SOLIDWORKS 2017, in addition to sketch geometry, faces, edges, and curves can now all be used to define the sweep profile. In this example selecting the end face of the thread completely eliminates the extra step of creating a profile sketch for each run out. With SOLIDWORKS 2017 creating swept geometry is now easier than ever. Patterning features has been core part of the SOLIDWORKS modelling toolset from day 1, and is an essential technique for reducing time and effort when creating geometry.

In SOLIDWORKS 2017 creating patterned geometry has got even quicker. Now when creating a Circular Pattern you have the option to pattern in not just one but both directions at the same time. Controlling the second direction is simple using the already familiar spacing options, or just select Symmetric to create a mirrored pattern. Now you can create all the circular pattern geometry you need with far less effort.

With all these great new capabilities, SOLIDWORKS 2017 helps you to reduce your design cycle time without compromising productivity.

 

MAKE GREAT DESIGN HAPPEN WITH EASE OF USE TOOLS

SOLIDWORKS will help Engineers to Design and Validate your product as per the industrial standards and applications. There are some considerations to be done for conducting the best design approach, as follows:

• Purpose of Design
• Material of Products
• Less Weight
• Should not fail
• Should not be too costly
• Following some standards
• Market survey

Properties to be incorporated for Design Challenges:

Material Library – Applying the mechanical properties for your Design by using a single click Material Library Tab.
Evaluate – Measuring the exact product weight before the manufacturing process for VAVE Optimization.

Material Library

Mass Properties

Static & Nonlinear Analysis – Finding the visual product validation for better performance & quality. Perform a spell check on your designs to ensure the product meets the requirements.

Fatigue Analysis – Predicting the exact design life estimation before the production.

Stress Result

Displacement Result

Costing – By clicking on the Costing feature, provide the estimated cost before proceeding the manufacturing process. The estimated cost can be a comparison for Gain/Loss challenges in giving a better design comparisons.

Visualize – Make your designs to be viewed as a real time product before the manufacturing stage. The realistic images can provide the designers to give the detailed information for the aesthetic looks.