Does anyone know how to make 3D patterns?

[chemicalboy]

I need to know how to make 3D patterns which are neither rectangular nor circular,provided that i have the sketch path of the pattern (e.g: put bolts or make holes on a belt),to do it i had to make 2 rectangular patterns and 2 circular ones!!what if the path was more complicated??

[JD Mather]

...to do it i had to make 2 rectangular patterns and 2 circular ones....

 

Too much work - this could have been done with one Rectangular Pattern.

 

The "Rectangular Pattern" tool is a misnomer - it should have been called Curve Driven Pattern (where often the pattern is rectangular).

 

See Tips 54-58

http://home.pct.edu/~jmather/AU2007/MA105-1L%20Mather.pdf

 

Hmmm, there might be a problem with my server at the moment. I'll post a link to a complex belt when it goes back up.

[chemicalboy]

how do i choose the path?can u explain more?

well the link u gave me isn't loading

 

p.s:I guess what you said works on feature patterns and not component pattern,and I need to make a component pattern.

[shift1313]

http://www.cadtutor.net/forum/showthread.php?t=47052

[chemicalboy]

thanks shift,the hole pattern along the helical path gave me an idea..i will make holes on the belt and then make an associative component pattern to go all the way above the holes,and i will use the holes later to place bolts to join the belt with the component,I will do it tonight and inform u with results.. thanks again

[JD Mather]

thanks shift,the hole pattern along the helical path gave me an idea..i will make holes on the belt and then make an associative component pattern to go all the way above the holes,and i will use the holes later to place bolts to join the belt with the component,I will do it tonight and inform u with results.. thanks again

 

 

Sounds like you got the idea. Check back to that link latter to see if the server is back up.

 

 

Check Tips 56-59 in this one as well (slightly different than previous link

http://home.pct.edu/~jmather/AU2006/MA13-3%20Mather.pdf

[chemicalboy]

hey guys i followed the feature pattern by making holes on the belt and it worked well along the belt sketch path,but the problem is when i tried to make the same pattern for the component that i want to put on the belt and I couldnt follow the sketch path..as I can see choosing curved paths work only for features not for components..I also tried using the associative pattern to make the component go all the way along with the holes but the problem was in the orientation of the component..here's an illustration of the problem..

[chemicalboy]

also when I made the hole pattern the holes were all vertical which is ok for the horizontal part of the belt but its a problem with the curved part..how can i make them always normal to the pulley curvature??

[JD Mather]

Attach your file here. For the purposes of this thread I am not intersted in the entire assembly - only the 3D pattern problem ipt. Drag the red End pf Part marker to the top of the browser. Save the file. Right click on the filename and select Send to Compressed (zipped) Folder. Attach the resulting *.zip file here.

[shift1313]

When you make a pattern of the hole, there are options for adjusting the feature. You need to have it follow your path and adjust itself.

[chemicalboy]

ok i adjusted the holes and they're normal now,what about the component pattern?

[JD Mather]

ok i adjusted the holes and they're normal now,what about the component pattern?

 

If you have the holes patterned correctly (you might need to pattern work axis as well) in the part and then use the correct assembly constraints with the seed part in the assembly the pattern-driven component pattern will be correct. Attach your files here if you can't figure it out.

[chemicalboy]

thanks dude that really worked!!

[JD Mather]

thanks dude that really worked!!

 

There is another little trick having something to do with setting the assembly browser to Modeling View but I can't remember exactly when that is needed. So much of this stuff I only recall as needed when needed so I usually have to have a problem in front of me to trigger the recall.

[chemicalboy]

excuse me but what's the difference if i set the assembly browser to a modeling view?

[JD Mather]

excuse me but what's the difference if i set the assembly browser to a modeling view?

 

At the top of the browser you will see a tab that says Assembly View. (default)

 

In the browser try to expand one of the parts to see the features that created the part - you will see there are no features listed.

 

Now toggle to Modeling View. You can now expand the history tree of individual parts in the assembly browser. Also, while in Modeling View there will be a folder at the top of the browser Called Constraints. All assembly constraints are collected in that folder (this can sometimes be very useful).

[chemicalboy]

yea it will be very useful indeed,thanks