Laurel Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 Hi I've mentioned before that I am training on Inventor and am therefore relatively new to Feature Based Modelling. Part of a recent assignment expects me to find out answers to questions, but I seem unable to find anything online to help with one particular question. The question is "List the three feature types used in feature based modelling, and give a brief explanation of their use." I can't find anything that tells me what the three feature types are. I have my guesses, but these are completely unsupported by evindence. Please can someone list the types, or perhaps point me to a resource that explains all? Thanks in anticipation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkFlayler Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 Where you given a text that supports this training? To spitball here, I would say two of them are Pick and Place Features and Sketch Features, not sure about the third. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReMark Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 Wouldn't the third have to be Extrude? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkFlayler Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 Extrude is a Sketch Based Feature. So is Sweep, Revolve, etc A Pick and Place feature is a Fillet, Chamfer, Face Draft, etc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReMark Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 Could it be Sketch, Place and Work? See this: http://www.g-w.com/PDF/SampChap/60525_0045_CH01.pdf I know I'm going to catch heck for this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkFlayler Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 I think you have it. I guess I don't consider Work a Feature so much as I do it a Reference item. But you can look at it that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurel Posted July 15, 2009 Author Share Posted July 15, 2009 Thanks everyone for your replies - They give me a lot to go on. Mark - I was not given any supporting texts to this module. The module itself is very much a step by step 'how to' intruction manual. It has taught me a lot, and I suppose that this assignment is supposed to encourage me to research into FBM. There isn't any specific reading material that has been suggested. The course I am following is a little unusual in that it is a distance (correspondance) course that I am trying to get a headstart in during the college vacation, without tuition. I guess you guys are all the support I need! Thank you! I'll get back to you all if I have any questions when I have read your material. Thanks very much again!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReMark Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 I would seriously consider picking up a good after-market book about Inventor. JD Mather or Mark Flayer could probably provide you with a couple of solid recommendations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkFlayler Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 Thom Tremblay from Autodesk wrote a nice one: http://www.amazon.com/Introducing-Autodesk-Inventor-2009-LT/dp/0470375523/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1247697958&sr=1-1 My sister company makes the books we train with as a Reseller: http://www.ascented.com (These usually require an instructor though as they are part of our training program) This one isn't bad, but it is not very in depth: http://www.amazon.com/Engineering-Graphics-Autodesk-Inventor-Institute/dp/0135157625/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1247698044&sr=1-1 Last but not least the Mastering book from a cumulative group of Autodesk authors and Autodesk experts: http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Autodesk-Inventor-Curtis-Waguespack/dp/0470478306/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1247698114&sr=1-2 The last one you should not try until you have a little stick time first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReMark Posted July 16, 2009 Share Posted July 16, 2009 Well there you go Laurel. Start building your Inventor library and stocking the shelfs. You might also want to check out JD Mather's tutorials as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurel Posted July 16, 2009 Author Share Posted July 16, 2009 This is the best forum I've been on. Look at all the help I've received - Thanks very much! Whilst you are all being so helpful, I wonder if any of you could make some suggestions to me: I'll start by explaining my background. I'm a 39 year old draughtsman of 19 years experience, most of them paper based. Up until several years ago, I'd used simple PC graphical software where necessary, but not CAD. I then decided that CAD was my way forward, and learnt the basics from 'AutoCAD for Dummies' (Don't laugh! I found it very helpful). I then sat a local qualification to help me go that little bit further. In recent years, I have become determined to emigrate to Canada (Western), and to that effect, decided to obtain an HNC qualification, which I have nearly completed. It is this qualification that has introduced me to Inventor. Now, I must say that if this hadn't been the case, I would probably not have bothered with Inventor. Solidworks seems much more widely used in the UK, and I would probably have pursued that. Now for the question. Which is the most popular of the two in North America? Inventor or Solidworks? Once I have completed my qualification, I hope to look for employment in Canada, but it is my intention to further my knowledge of FBM software in the meantime with the aid of a good book, as I did when I first started with AutoCad. Which one I concentrate on depends on your suggestions here really. If you have any other suggestions regarding anything I have written here, please feel free to say. Thanks again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReMark Posted July 16, 2009 Share Posted July 16, 2009 I'm not sure which program, Inventor or Solidworks, is more widely used in North America. You would need to know the number of installed seats and their geographical location. This data would be known to the software companies but I am unsure if it is made available to the general public. After all, does company "A" want company "B" (and vice-versa) to be privy to this type of information? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurel Posted July 16, 2009 Author Share Posted July 16, 2009 I appreciate that this sort of information is not going to be accurately known, but out of any of the companies with which you liase, which would you say is the most popular? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReMark Posted July 16, 2009 Share Posted July 16, 2009 Laurel: I tried searching on using such criteria as "solidworks vs inventor", "autodesk inventor"+"installed seats", "solidworks"+"installed seats", etc. and the more I read the more confused I became. It's a numbers game and the companies involved, AutoDesk and Dessault(?), are "gaming" us every step of the way. No one wants to admit up front what the real numbers are. Some numbers bandied about in past years have included educational seats right along with the commercial seats. Some numbers do not include educational seats. The best source of information regarding trends, analysis and forecasts comes from the firm Wohlers Associates and their publication Wohlers Report 2009. Unfortunately this 250 page report will set you back a whopping $475! You got that kind of money to sink into this quest for knowledge? I certainly don't. My advice is not to trust any numbers you come across no matter which company is tossing them about. If I had to make a gut level guess on who has the lead I'd say it was AutoDesk. But it's just a guess. Don't trust it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eribiste Posted July 16, 2009 Share Posted July 16, 2009 Speaking of books, I got on well with "Autodesk Inventor 2008 for Designers" from CADCIM Technologies, ISBN 978-1-932709-23-0. A good sprinkling of tutorials and exercises, and a useful website too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkFlayler Posted July 16, 2009 Share Posted July 16, 2009 Yes, it is true that seat counts do not matter IMOP. For instance, Solidworks recently claimed 1 Million seats. What they didn't tell you though was how many of those users lost their jobs and the fact (yes I checked) that 600,000 of those are educational licenses! In regards to Canada, since we have about 5 or 6 offices there and we are the number one reseller in Canada, I can say that Inventor does have a larger install base in Canada and is more widely used. I feel a little more confidant about Canadian seat numbers since the population is easier to get a read on. Another thing to keep in mind is that with Inventor you get AutoCAD too. With Solidworks you get a DWG emulator that is not Autodesk certified to work on machines that require very accurate 2D data (some CNC machines, waterjets, etc). I run into users of AutoCAD that have to translate (redraw basically) the Solidworks print because in inaccuracies and translation purposes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurel Posted July 16, 2009 Author Share Posted July 16, 2009 Thanks very much all. Thats a lot of info, and a very interesting read. I guess at this stage, it would be better if I were to continue my Inventor education, which is pleasing as it is a great piece of software. I'll still probably give SolidWorks a good look though. Watch this space for the guaranteed questions on both! Thanks again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shift1313 Posted July 16, 2009 Share Posted July 16, 2009 I would say both Solidworks and Inventor(inventor probably has more legitament company seats) or both more utilized in smaller companies rather than large industries. Unigraphics and Catia would encompass more in my mind. Auto Industries, aero/ship industries etc dont use solidworks or inventor. They use unigraphics and Catia. I think a solid base with SW or Inventor will give you a step in the right direction. There really isnt a point to spending lots of time learning the ins/outs of every software out there. Work on basic modeling and making strong useful designs that are properly dimenssioned and constrained and you will be better off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurel Posted July 19, 2009 Author Share Posted July 19, 2009 Thanks shifty. Thats pretty much what I'd decided. I just want to take my knowledge a little beyond what my course will introduce me to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JD Mather Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 http://home.pct.edu/~jmather/AU2007/MA105-1L%20Mather.pdf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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