sheet metal cut sheet layout
sheet metal cut sheet layout
(OP)
I am fairly new to inventor, but have used Pro E (creo)
What I am trying find a way to do is to take a variety of sheet metal parts and layout the flat patterns for the parts in a way that can be exported to .dxf and fed into our plasma table. Currently I am creating an Inventor drawing (.idw) and adding flat pattern views of the parts I want and exporting that to AutoCAD and then positioning the parts. I don't like doing it this way because I am not very fast with AutoCAD, but more importantly every time something changes in Inventor I have to redo the AutoCAD layout. Ideally I would wait to do the AutoCAD layout until the design was finalized, but our office never seems to function like that. What I am hoping to find is a way to parametrically organize the flat pattern parts, either in a drawing file or a 3D assembly. I want to force the parts to be separated by .500" and then export that to AutoCAD where I will have to do minimal work to get it into the correct format for the plasma table.
Please let me know if there is a way to do this or a better method for setting up flat pattern cut sheets in Inventor
Thanks
What I am trying find a way to do is to take a variety of sheet metal parts and layout the flat patterns for the parts in a way that can be exported to .dxf and fed into our plasma table. Currently I am creating an Inventor drawing (.idw) and adding flat pattern views of the parts I want and exporting that to AutoCAD and then positioning the parts. I don't like doing it this way because I am not very fast with AutoCAD, but more importantly every time something changes in Inventor I have to redo the AutoCAD layout. Ideally I would wait to do the AutoCAD layout until the design was finalized, but our office never seems to function like that. What I am hoping to find is a way to parametrically organize the flat pattern parts, either in a drawing file or a 3D assembly. I want to force the parts to be separated by .500" and then export that to AutoCAD where I will have to do minimal work to get it into the correct format for the plasma table.
Please let me know if there is a way to do this or a better method for setting up flat pattern cut sheets in Inventor
Thanks





RE: sheet metal cut sheet layout
Other than that.. Learn Autocad better.. Its a VERY simple program to do what you need out of it.. But if you do nesting quite often stop messing around and get a proper program..
Some are under 100 bucks.
Here are a few..
http://forums.autodesk.com/t5/Autodesk-Inventor/Lo...
RE: sheet metal cut sheet layout
In your browser window (the one with your work features and work planes, origins ect by default on left side of screen). There should be a "folded model tree" and a "flat pattern" tree. If there's not you didn't create a sheet metal part and your method is how you have to do it. If it was created as a sheet metal part. Right click on the flat pattern icon in your browser. you can then "save as" DXF or other format. Saves a couple steps anyway.