Inventor top ten playlist

Synergis60
Inventor’s Top Ten Playlist
My Favorite Tips/Tricks
Presented by: Mark Lancaster

TIPS & TRICKS: ALWAYS IN THE MIDDLE
• Synergis60 – Inventor’s Top Ten Playlist (TIPS & TRICKS)2
Here’s a simple little trick to keep a hole feature in
the middle of a part without creating any parameters,
(sketching) constraints or formulas
Step #1
Create a (work) center point
based on a loop of edges
Step #2
Pick one of the edges
that outline the face
where the hole will go
Step #3
Now create a hole using the work
point as the placement

TIPS & TRICKS: BROWSER DISPLAY NAME
When an Inventor file is first
saved (including Save As) the
display (occurrence) name in
the browser window is set to
the name of the file
Use this display name feature to create a descriptive (or BOM)
name in the Inventor browser window.
Makes it easier to locate and manage your parts or sub-
assemblies in large assemblies.

Method #1
Slow Double Click Method in Browser
@ Part: Where Used
@ Assy: That assembly only
Method #2
Change Occurrence Name in an Assembly

Method #3
Rename Browser Nodes in an Assembly
Method #4
The iLogic way

Method #6a
Using method #1
Highlight, delete, and hit return
@ Part: Where Used
@ Assy: Returns to part browser name
Method #6b
Using method #2
Clear occurrence name in dialog
Method #6c
Using method #3
Rename using Default browser node

Understanding Inventor’s Organization
What if you wanted to make a copy of a
component in your assembly, making changes to
it (copied version), and then overwrite the original
component in your assembly with it.
Here’s a simple workflow to accomplish that…
Step #1
Select Save and Replace
Component
Step #2
Select your component you
want to copy in your
assembly
Step #3
Define its name and
location
Step #4
Original component is
removed and replaced with
the copied component.
Existing constraints are
maintained

TIPS & TRICKS: MOVE & ROATE BODY
Have you ever imported a part into Inventor and
its away from your origin work planes?
Use the move (or
rotate) body
function to relocate
(or reorient) the
part to the origin
planes
Step #1
Expand 3D Model/Modify Step #2
Select Move
Bodies
Prior to Inventor 2015, the Move
Body function appears on the 3D
Model/Modify ribbon section

Step #3
Select body or bodies and
enter require offset

Additional Information
“Click to add” additional move
or rotate body steps or start a
new move body step
Free move
Along an axis
Rotate about a
line
Feature can be
suppressed, used in an
iPart table or controlled
under iLogic

Have you ever started a sketch and then realize
you forgot to first create the offset workplane
from the face/plane?
Don’t worry about it….
Step #1
Hover over the face
or plane you are
going to offset sketch
from
Step #2
Left mouse click on the
face (or plane), hold, and
drag (offset) your
sketching plane

Here’s a tip to measure between hole centers
(axis) without creating additional work features
Step #1
Start the measurement
command, hover over first
hole and right mouse click
and pick Select Other…
Step #2
Select Axis as the
“Select Other”
object
Step #3
Select the edge of the
other hole and Inventor will
automatically select the
center point of the 2nd hole

Step #1a
Right mouse click on edge
of first hole and pick Select
Other…
Step #2
Select Center Point as the
“Select Other” object
Step #3
Select the edge of the
other hole and Inventor will
automatically select the
center point of the 2nd hole
Here’s another way to measure between hole
centers (axis) without creating additional work
features

Do you need a note (w/o leader) to always follow
a drawing view?
Here’s a tip to accomplish that…
Step #1
Create a standard
leader text
Step #2
Right mouse click on
text or leader and
select Delete Leader
Step #3
Note is still attached
to drawing view and
will continue to follow
it

Are you required to show customer items
in your model and not on your BOM?
Do you wish you could make sub-
assemblies in your model that are not
true sub-assemblies in your BOM?
If you can answer YES, then you need to use
Phantom and Reference BOM structures in
your model…
What is a PHANTOM Assembly?
Is a method in which to create an assembly in your
model but have its components promoted and report
at the next level in the BOM Structure. Phantom
assemblies are not reported anywhere on the BOM.
Though a part could be designated as “Phantom”
typically this BOM structure is only assigned to
assemblies
What is a REFERENCE Assembly?
Is a method in which to create an assembly
(or part) that is shown in the model, but not
reported in any BOM.

Method #1
Open the assembly (or part) and
select Tools/Document Settings.
Select Bill of Materials tab and
change the Default BOM Structure
Alternative method: Change
through the Bill of Materials editor

Method #2
Locate the assembly or part in the
browser tree, right mouse click and
select BOM Structure to change its
type to Reference or back to the
default value.
The BOM structure of the selected
item is changed only in this
assembly and its default structure
is left intact.

When you create a section view, by
default the section view is always aligned
with the view it is projected from.
Override Mode
By holding down the <CTRL> key prior
to view placement, the automatic
alignment is disabled.

When you save your assembly, Inventor
may prompt you “Do you want to save
changes to <….>.iam and its dependent.
Do you ever wonder why Inventor is
asking for this even though you
might’ve not changed a dependent?
Well there’s a way to
check…

Step #1
Open or activate the
dependent that you
are wondering about
Step #2
Select Help/About
Autodesk Inventor
Step #3
When the About Inventor
dialog appears, select
CTRL+D to bring up the
Inventor diagnostic window
In this example, the diagnostic is
simply stating the assembly needs
updating because of an update,
rebuild all and a migration process

Undocumented Utility – Inventor 2015 Only

Analyzes for geometry errors
[bad geometry, boolean features, constraints, performance, mass]

The requirements:
• CTRL + F7 to launch the utility and checking process.
• Check assemblies and parts
• Must have a C:Temp directory prior to use
• Must have read/write privileges to C:Temp
• Creates a file called debug.txt file in the C:Temp folder
• Common offenders
• Unsuccessfully migrated legacy parts
• Feature failures in native parts
• Bad geometry in imported components
The issues:
• Depending on your Windows and Inventor profile, the Body Integrity Check
utility may fail to work in Inventor 2015.
• Must run the Inventor Reset Utility to correct issue.
• http://knowledge.autodesk.com/support/inventor-
products/troubleshooting/caas/sfdcarticles/sfdcarticles/How-to-use-Inventor-Reset-Utility-to-
reset-the-local-environment-for-a-Windows-User-Account-Inventor.html

INVENTOR’S TOP TEN PLAYLIST – Q & A SESSION
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Inventor top ten playlist

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