2D sketches coincident on 3D sketch points

[robertf]

This seems like something really basic that I should have learned in the first week of using this program, but I haven't encountered a need for this until now.

 

I'm drawing some 3D sketches to do sweeps on. The shape of the sweep is a circle to represent some tube chassis designs.

 

I draw the 3d sketch of the path, then I go create a new sketch on the XY plane and cannot make the center coincident on the end points of the lines of the 3D sketch. I've tried using work points too. The endpoints of the 3D sketch are coincident on the axis. It just won't snap to them.

 

I've made it work by dimensioning the circle in the right place, but there has to be an easier way.

[shift1313]

does it need to be for the sweep operation? i cant remember. there is a pipe run feature that may make this easier for you.

[robertf]

it would be built with a manual draw bender, so I need to control the radius and number of bending planes so I figure this would be the easiest.

[Lazer]

does it need to be for the sweep operation? i cant remember. there is a pipe run feature that may make this easier for you.

 

Yes in Inventor Pro you have the tube & pipe that makes it easy, for tube bending I work out the xyz i require then type them out in excel ythen in Inventor I use the IMPORT POINTS (make sure your in 3d sketch) this will bring in all the 3d points, then join the lines (or have the computer do it for you) select the radii and sweep the tube through.

[robertf]

I tried this approach, how do you specify a radius in the sweep command?

 

I can manually do the bend feature to all of the lines, but automating this would be nice. How do you get the computer to add the lines to the imported points automatically?

 

Is this typically the way people translate CMM or CMA data to Inventor?

[robertf]

well I found what I was looking for. project geometry. Been a while since I had to use it. Its called sketch references in Pro-E and I kept looking for that command in inventor. Switching back and forth is getting to be frustrating.