NX 9 for Beginners - Part 4 (Assemblies and Drawings)

By CADfolks

Assemblies
This chapter explains you to create assemblies using the bottom-up and top-down design approaches.
•    Starting an Assembly
•    Inserting Components
•    Adding Constraints
•    Move Component
•    Touch Constraint
•    Align Constraint
•    Infer Center /Axis
•    Align/Lock
•    Concentric Constraint
•    Angle Constraint
•    Parallel Constraint
•    Perpendicular Constraint
•    Distance Constraint
•    Center Constraint
•    Bond Constraint
•    Simple Interference
•    Remember Constraints
•    Editing and Updating Assemblies
•    Replace Component
•    Pattern Component
•    Mirror Assembly
•    Sub-assemblies
•    Assembly Cuts
•    Top Down Assembly Design
•    Creating a New Component
•    Exploding Assemblies

Drawings
This chapter covers how to create 2D drawings from 3D parts and assemblies.
•    Starting a Drawing
•    View Creation Wizard
•    Base View
•    Projected View
•    Auxiliary View
•    Section View
•    Half Section View
•    Revolved Section View
•    Detail View
•    Add Break Lines
•    Break-out Section View
•    Exploded View
•    Display Options
•    View Alignment
•    Parts List and Balloons
•    Dimensions
•    Adding Hole Callouts
•    Center Marks and Centerlines
•    Bolt Circle Centerline
•    Notes

• Language: English
• Publisher: Unitech Books
• Release date: Mar 14, 2015
• ISBN: 9781507023631

Book preview

Assemblies

After creating individual components, you can bring them together into an assembly. By doing so, it is possible to identify incorrect design problems that may not have been noticeable at the part level. In this chapter, you will learn how to bring components into the assembly environment and position them.

The topics covered in this chapter are:

Starting an assembly

Inserting Components

Adding Constraints

Moving components

Check Interference

Remember Constraints

Editing Assemblies

Replace Components

Pattern and Mirror Components

Create Subassemblies

Assembly Features

Top-down Assembly Design

Create Exploded Views

Starting an Assembly

To begin an assembly file, you can use the New icon and select the Assembly template.

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Now, you can insert components into the assembly by using the Add Components dialog. You can browse to the location of the components by using the Open icon available on the Add Components dialog.

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Another way to start an assembly is to create it while a part is open. On the NX File menu, click Application > Assemblies. This adds the Assemblies tab to the ribbon. Now, add components to the assembly using the Add command.

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Inserting Components

There are two different methods to insert an existing part into an assembly. The first one is to insert using the Add command. The second way is to drag it directly from Windows Explorer. In the second method, you are not required to open the components in NX. You can simply drag-and-drop them into the assembly.

Adding Constraints

After inserting components into an assembly, you have to define constraints between them. By applying constraints, you can make components to flush with each other or two cylindrical faces concentric with each other, and so on. As you add constraints between components, the degrees of freedom will be removed from them. By default, there are six degrees of freedom for a part (three linear and three rotational). Eliminating degrees of freedom will make components attached and interact with each other as in real life. Now, you will learn to add constraints between components

Activate the Add command (on the ribbon, click Assemblies > Component > Add) and click Open on the Add Component dialog. Go to the location of the first component and double-click on it. On the Add Component dialog, select Placement > Positioning > Absolute Origin and click OK to position the component at the origin. Although, the component is placed at the origin, it is free to move. You can check the degrees of freedom by using the Show Degrees of Freedom command. Activate this command and select the component to display the degrees of freedom.

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In order to remove the degrees of freedom, activate the Assembly Constraints command (on the ribbon, click Assemblies > Component Position > Assembly Constraints). On the Assembly Constraints dialog, select Type > Fix and click on the first component. Now, activate the Show Degrees of Freedom command and select the component. You can notice that the component is fully fixed at the origin.

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Now, activate the Add command, go to the location of the second component and select it. On the Add Component dialog, select Placement > Positioning > By Constraints and click OK. On the Assembly Constraints dialog, select Type > Touch Align and select Geometry to Constrain > Orientation > Prefer Touch. Select a face of the part in the Component Preview window. Click on a face of the fixed part to mate the faces with each other. On the Assembly Constraints dialog, select Preview > Preview Component in Main Window. This shows the position of the component.

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