stevecrofts Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 Hi, I am currently working at a company that has solidworks and have been asked to produce a 3d drawing of a new product they wish to have created, this product is a suet feeder for birds. I haven't used solidworks before and have gone through the tutorials but seem to be hitting lots of issues which are basically down to my lack of knowledge. The first thing I am trying to draw is the cage which is basically a rectangle with an open top see the attachments, I have based this on the tutorial included with SW on creating the grill tray but each of the corners need to be curved and this is where I am struggling as when I 3D sketch a rectangle and then filet the 4 corners when I apply the sweep it all goes wrong. Any advice on where I should start and the basic steps I need to take to create the cage part (not even looking at the curved top yet!) would be gratefully received. (for example would I do the cage as one part or mulitple, would I created the rounded cornered rectangle as a1/2 and mirror it) See attachments for an example of what I am trying to achieve. Many Thanks Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdharvey Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 do you want it like the top image or bottom image? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevecrofts Posted October 13, 2011 Author Share Posted October 13, 2011 Hi RD, The final thing basically will be a combination of the square cage on the first picture with the curved top of the second picture. BTW I'm based in Nottingham and see you are around this area. Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdharvey Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 I am also in Nottingham, where abouts are you? Have you used any CAD before? Do you have any hand sketches of what sort of thing you want for your final product? What version of SW are you using? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevecrofts Posted October 13, 2011 Author Share Posted October 13, 2011 I work at a place near castle retail park using solid works 2011, not had any real experience of CAD i'm a designer (web and graphics). I haven't got any sketches but could work one up over the next couple of days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdharvey Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 I have 2011 at the moment at work and 2010 at home. Once you get some sketches up i'll try make a quick tutorial up or something for you. Does your company do a lot of design work? As i am open for freelance work too. I live in Gedling & currently work for a company in Southwell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdharvey Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 E-mail me a screen shot of your sketch on SW and where you think your problem is and i'll take a look for you if you like? r.d.harvey1 AT gmail.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdharvey Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 Here is a quick example. This was done using sweeps and patterns. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shift1313 Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 one thing you guys need to keep in mind since this seems like a company that will fabricate this, how you draw it matters. Each rod will be manually bent and then spot welded in place. For this reason alone i would probably start by creating a weldment and a 3d sketch keeping in mind what bend radius you need. You will most likely need to make a custom profile and use Structural Tubing inside a weldment. I just created a few vids on weldments and i plan to do a few more about making a custom profile soon. http://www.mymlcservices.com/index.php?option=com_hwdvideoshare&task=viewcategory&cat_id=16&Itemid=306 Robert, your screen shot looks nice. I dont see any problems with how you modeled it. My reason for the weldments is to get a cut list and have easy control over changes to the design without using a pattern. By creating equations in a 3d sketch you can figure out average spacing over a total length and use an iif statement to determine the appropriate number of "bars" and so on. Hopefully ill get some videos up next week of these topics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdharvey Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 Yes i understand your point matt. & it is a good one. Although it depends how far you want to take your design.... Just having a drawing with the sizes on is usually enough for wireformers... So either you work it out at design stage or let the manufacturer work it out ... Depends which approach is cheaper i suppose. I know as I am currently working at a company called advanex who produce wireforms/springs/threaded inserts. I agree on your approach with weldments for the cutting list non the less. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdharvey Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 I'd really love SW & IV to have a bend function! so flats can be created like in sheet metal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shift1313 Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 Yes i understand your point matt. & it is a good one. Although it depends how far you want to take your design.... Just having a drawing with the sizes on is usually enough for wireformers... So either you work it out at design stage or let the manufacturer work it out ... Depends which approach is cheaper i suppose. I know as I am currently working at a company called advanex who produce wireforms/springs/threaded inserts. I agree on your approach with weldments for the cutting list non the less. Good points robert. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevecrofts Posted November 3, 2011 Author Share Posted November 3, 2011 Hi, sorry I haven't been on for a while, have been bogged down with other work, the visual above looks like just the thing I need, I have a few more photos of what I need to do including the lid, is the offer of producing a tutorial for me is available. The client wants to try me out on this and I would like the challenge, but I have mentioned that you are local and if you can give me an idea of your freelance rates there might be future work. Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdharvey Posted November 3, 2011 Share Posted November 3, 2011 Hi,sorry I haven't been on for a while, have been bogged down with other work, the visual above looks like just the thing I need, I have a few more photos of what I need to do including the lid, is the offer of producing a tutorial for me is available. The client wants to try me out on this and I would like the challenge, but I have mentioned that you are local and if you can give me an idea of your freelance rates there might be future work. Steve Hi Steve! No worries about the late reply i have had loads on too! As for freelance rates we can discuss this over e-mail if you like? r.d.harvey1ATgmail.com What sort of tutorial are you looking for? Regards, Rob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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