Hole ? - which is a better way to add the feature?
Hole ? - which is a better way to add the feature?
(OP)
[color #FCE94F]So, I'm sure anyone that knows Inventor will be able to tell, but I am new to it. Many years of CAD but about a week in Inventor.
I've been trying all morning to add holes to a part. My idea was to make a sketch, extrude it and then add a hole and pattern as needed. The linear option was no good to place the holes b/c my sides are not square with each other, so I when back and edited the sketch to place a pair of construction lines crossing at my intended hole center. I place a Center Point at the spot, but when I went to add a Hole feature later, (trying From Sketch and By Point), Inventor didn't pick up the Center Point. I finally googled enough to find that I could click on Sketch1 (which Extrusion1 is based on and through which Hole1 will go), click Share Sketch and now I can add a Hole feature using the From Sketch option. Questions are as follows
1) Why can I not use the endpoint or intersection of the construction lines to place a Hole using the On Point option?
2) Do I even want to do this? Is it better to make a Sketch1 and a subsequent Extrusion1 and THEN create a new sketch on the face of Extrusion1 and then base my Hole feature on that? I guess I'm asking should my reference marks be contained in that most base sketch or is there a compelling reason to separate a sketch that will only define a feature from the sketch that defines the base object?
I've been trying all morning to add holes to a part. My idea was to make a sketch, extrude it and then add a hole and pattern as needed. The linear option was no good to place the holes b/c my sides are not square with each other, so I when back and edited the sketch to place a pair of construction lines crossing at my intended hole center. I place a Center Point at the spot, but when I went to add a Hole feature later, (trying From Sketch and By Point), Inventor didn't pick up the Center Point. I finally googled enough to find that I could click on Sketch1 (which Extrusion1 is based on and through which Hole1 will go), click Share Sketch and now I can add a Hole feature using the From Sketch option. Questions are as follows
1) Why can I not use the endpoint or intersection of the construction lines to place a Hole using the On Point option?
2) Do I even want to do this? Is it better to make a Sketch1 and a subsequent Extrusion1 and THEN create a new sketch on the face of Extrusion1 and then base my Hole feature on that? I guess I'm asking should my reference marks be contained in that most base sketch or is there a compelling reason to separate a sketch that will only define a feature from the sketch that defines the base object?





RE: Hole ? - which is a better way to add the feature?
2)No don't do that.. In general.. Its always best to make the shape a sketch/extrude.. then another sketch for each hole size,etc... In general each feature gets its own sketch..
And until you know any better thats how you should continue.. There are times when you can share sketches.. But in general don't..
If you can provide a the details (2d drawing or whatever) I'd be happy to model it up as I would (as an expert in Inventor) so you can see how it should/could be done..
RE: Hole ? - which is a better way to add the feature?
RE: Hole ? - which is a better way to add the feature?
What you did is OK and similar to what I do often as a user of Inventor for 3 years. One modification though...
If the holes in the face are intrinsic to the function of the face of the part, and can share the same sketch plane, then I would do this:
- Draw the sketch of the face and use construction geometry to locate the holes as points.
- The first feature to use the sketch is the Extrude feature, and then by sharing the sketch and making it visible the Hole command can use it too.
- If there are points on the sketch, the Hole will automatically place holes at all the points, which saves time.
I find that one "master" sketch that generates numerous features (instead of transferring geometry between multiple sketches) is much more resilient to changes you make to the part models later, and keeps more of the design features in one place and in context. This is not what my Autodesk training taught me. There's a lot of talk about design intent and proper parametric design procedure, but neither I nor my coworkers worship that stuff, and yet all our parts line up.STF
RE: Hole ? - which is a better way to add the feature?
RE: Hole ? - which is a better way to add the feature?
Of course, don't sketch EVERYTHING on one primordial sketch, but if for example two different fastener rows must be placed in relation to each other, then model them on the same sketch, and that way you can design the locations of all of the fasteners together, and in their proper relationships before creating multiple hole features.
STF
RE: Hole ? - which is a better way to add the feature?
RE: Hole ? - which is a better way to add the feature?
So drawing change strategies and revision control were the subject of the tutoring that day.
STF