NX Filleting - Best Practices
NX Filleting - Best Practices
(OP)
This is a bit of a generic question, but I'm wondering if anyone has developed some best practices for putting in edge blends in NX. I'm using NX 8.5.
I'm asking because it seems that putting in blends is the most finnicky part of creating a model. For example, in creating a complicated casting model, it can take as long or longer to add the fillets in as it did to create the solid model. It seems to depend a lot on the order you put fillets in, or selection filters (single curve, tangent curves, etc.), and probably other factors I'm not aware of. I'm hoping someone might have come up with some general tips on adding edge blends in NX that they might be able to share.
Again, this is also a very generic question because I don't necessarily want a solution to one particular issue, but something to help our modeling practices going forward.
Thanks in advance for any help.
I'm asking because it seems that putting in blends is the most finnicky part of creating a model. For example, in creating a complicated casting model, it can take as long or longer to add the fillets in as it did to create the solid model. It seems to depend a lot on the order you put fillets in, or selection filters (single curve, tangent curves, etc.), and probably other factors I'm not aware of. I'm hoping someone might have come up with some general tips on adding edge blends in NX that they might be able to share.
Again, this is also a very generic question because I don't necessarily want a solution to one particular issue, but something to help our modeling practices going forward.
Thanks in advance for any help.





RE: NX Filleting - Best Practices
RE: NX Filleting - Best Practices
Do not make 1 complex sketch when multiple simple ones can be used.
Add holes after the model 'block' is constructed.
Add draft and blends at the end of the model tree.
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RE: NX Filleting - Best Practices
One other thing, while it is true that using Face Blands will provide you with some additional options and flexibility, generally speaking, start with Edge Blends whenever possible as they are much easier to understand and use. The only exception to this is when you need a true Three-Face Blend as your only practical solution is creating a Face Blend using the new (starting with NX 7.5) blend Type, 'Three Defining Face Chains'.
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RE: NX Filleting - Best Practices
RE: NX Filleting - Best Practices
The old rule still applies, largest blends first give a better result.
www.jcb.com
NX 7.5 with TC 8.3
RE: NX Filleting - Best Practices
no detail fillets in sketches, prefer edge blend feature
blending at the end of feature tree after holes and drafts,
start with the material adding blends then the material removing blend from large to small
collect blend features with the same size, versus new sets in same feature - feature groups also well arranged
avoid conic and variable blends
... this order will not cover all situations - but the most
RE: NX Filleting - Best Practices
start with the centers of the Y blending situation, at second with path of blends
replace face can help in some situations, remove face/blend not cover
RE: NX Filleting - Best Practices
If you switch on the features in the first feature group one-by-one, you can see the order I've applied blends, and the subsequent move face (in XC direction) with three faces selected.
If you then switch off the first group and switch on the second, you can see (my version of) the original part, with blends in the "wrong" order. The result isn't visually as nice, but also in this case a move will not work.
As an aside...
Would anyone know a way to achieve the move in the first feature group without carrying out the split body first?
www.jcb.com
NX 7.5 with TC 8.3
RE: NX Filleting - Best Practices
Khimani Mohiki
Design Engineer - Aston Martin
NX8.5
RE: NX Filleting - Best Practices
Hope you're well. You're correct, thicken first and away it goes! Thanks Carl.
www.jcb.com
NX 7.5 with TC 8.3
RE: NX Filleting - Best Practices
- note that blend 10 has adapted around the pocket area, select the 3 transition faces of the blend along with the other selected faces
- change blend 10's "overflow resolution" options to get the same result in the first feature group: turn off the "roll on edges (smooth or sharp)" option and turn on "maintain blend and move sharp edges". The move face command will now work selecting the same faces as in the previous group.
In the screenshot below, the extra blend faces have been selected for the move face command:www.nxjournaling.com
RE: NX Filleting - Best Practices
In the un-modified version, I selected the three transition faces as per your description and the move also now works (note I didn't need to select the back face below them). Am not sure if I tried that with the real model, so I will send an image to the engineer.
Thanks, Carl
www.jcb.com
NX 7.5 with TC 8.3