Lesson 4 – Advanced Design II

This lesson consists of modeling two parts:

 Frame
 Suspension Mount

Objectives
After completing this lesson, you will be able to:
 Create unconsumed sketches and geometry to define a frame skeleton.
 Use the Frame Generator panel and use its Insert tool to define frame
members.
 Use the Miter, Trim-Extend, and Notch tools to refine frame member
intersections.
 Create a part within an assembly.
 Use the Isolate tool.
 Create an adaptive part.

About the Frame Generator

The Frame Generator is accessible within Autodesk Inventor assembly files in its
own panel of tools. Frames are based upon unconsumed 2D and 3D sketches
and edges of model geometry. Together the sketches and edges make up what
is termed the frame skeleton. Each segment of the skeleton is used to define a
frame member. Tools such as Miter, Trim-Extend, and Notch are used to refine
the intersections of the frame members. The Frame Generator offers a more
productive method for creating frames, as compared to basic methods such as
Sweep and Extrude.

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Exercise: Create a Frame
In this exercise, you do the following:
 Create a base sketch.
 Make a solid for the upper frame.
 Create the front hoop sketch.
 Open the Frame Generator panel.
 Create the base frame members.
 Miter the corners.
 Create and trim the cross members.
 Trim the central cross member.
 Trim the front cross member.
 Create the front hoop.
 Create the upper frame section.
 Extend the upper frame members.
 Notch the diagonal members.

Completed Exercise

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Create a Base Sketch
1. Open a new Standard (mm).ipt file.
2. Create the following sketch on the XY plane.

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 3. Mirror geometry about the longitudinal axis.

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 4. Create six lines representing the ends of the frame and the cross
members.

5. Finish the sketch.

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Make a Solid for the Upper Frame
1. Create a work plane parallel to the YZ plane and containing the first cross
member.

2. Create the following sketch. Note that the two angled lines have an equal
constraint applied.

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 3. Extrude the sketch 670 mm toward the front of the frame.

Create a Front Hoop Sketch

1. Create the following sketch on the YZ plane.

2. Save the file as Frame.ipt.

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Open the Frame Generator Panel
1. Open a new Standard (mm) .iam assembly file.
2. Use the Place Component tool to bring Frame.ipt into the assembly.
3. Open the Frame Generator panel.

The Frame Generator panel contains tools for creating and refining frame
members.

Create the Base Frame Members

To help visibility when creating the frame base, the solid portion of the skeleton
will be suppressed.

1. Edit Frame.ipt and suppress the extrusion.

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 2. Finish the edit and return to the assembly.
3. Save the file as Frame Assembly.iam
4. Click Insert on the Frame Generator panel.
5. Select ISO Standard 4019 Square Tubing with a size of 25x25x2.
6. Select each of the sketch segments around the frame perimeter.

7. Leave the Merge option unselected. Click OK to create the frame.

Note the files being created in the Create New Frame dialog box. The
frame itself is saved into Frame 0001.iam. The frame skeleton is placed in
a part file called Skeleton00001.ipt.

8. Click OK to accept the file naming scheme.

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The Frame Member Naming dialog box is displayed showing the name of the
frame members.

Note: Had the Merge option been selected, only one part file would have been
created. The Merge option has the advantage of automatically applying miters;
however, the frame would exist as one part file rather than ten. Having distinct
part files can be useful when it comes to creating drawings for each member.

Miter the Corners

 Click the Miter tool and select each pair of connecting members in turn.

Create and Trim the Cross Members

1. Click Insert to start the Frame Generator.
2. Select the four cross member sketch lines. Click OK.

Four more frame member part files are generated.

3. Look closely at the intersections between the cross braces and the base
frame. The cross members extend into the outer frame members.

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 4. Click the Trim-Extend To Face tool.
5. Select both of the rear cross braces.
6. Click the trim face.

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 7. Use the Trim-Extend To Face tool to trim the other side.

Trim the Central Cross Member

The central cross member needs to be trimmed back to two faces. To do this,
use the Trim-Extend To Face tool twice at each end.

1. Click the Trim-Extend To Face tool.

2. Select the cross member.
3. Select one of the faces.
4. Click Apply.

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 5. Use the Trim-Extend To Face tool again and select the other face.

Trim the Front Cross Member

Like the central cross member, the front cross member intersects two outer
frame members. However, in this case, it is trimmed using Extrude with Cut
option. This step illustrates that each of the frame members are defined using
regular part files, and all conventional modeling tools are available.

1. Open the front cross member for editing.

Note: To identify the frame member, drag the mouse over the members in
the part browser until the required one is highlighted in the viewport.

2. Create a new sketch on the XY plane.

3. Press F7 to activate Slice Graphics.
4. Project the edges of the outer frame members.

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 5. Create a sketch that encompasses the end of the cross member.

6. Apply a colinear constraint between the sketch edges and the projected
edges.

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 7. Extrude the sketch with the Cut and Midplane options.

Create the Front Hoop

1. Click the Insert tool.
2. Select 25 x 2 Round Tubing.
3. Select the five sketch components defining the front hoop.

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 4. Click the Trim-Extend To Face tool. Trim the vertical members to the top
of the base frame members.

Create the Upper Frame Section

1. Edit the frame sketch and unsuppress the extrusion.
2. Click the Insert tool. Select 25x25x2 Section Square Tubing.

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 3. Select the three edges of the solid on the top face.

4. Miter the corners.

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 5. Click the Insert tool. Select the two edges on the left side.

6. Repeat for the two edges on the car’s right side.

Extend the Upper Frame Members

1. Turn off the visibility of Frame.ipt.

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 2. Click the Trim-Extend To Face tool and extend the upper frame members
to make them flush with the diagonal members.

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Notch the Diagonal Members
1. Use the Notch tool to notch the diagonal frame members where they meet
the other frame members.

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 2. Note that the notch on the rear diagonals must be repeated for each of the
intersecting tubes.

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 3. Repeat the Notch operation for the rear diagonals where they meet the
upper members.

4. Trim the diagonal tubes where they meet the upper frame members.

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About Adaptive Parts
Frequently, it is helpful to create a new part in the context of one or more existing
parts. In this exercise, a bellcrank mount is created using geometry projected
from the existing frame. A part based on projected geometry is adaptive. If the
underlying geometry changes, the part updates accordingly.

Exercise: Create a Bellcrank Mount

In this exercise, you do the following:
 Create the base sketch.
 Extrude and shell the part.
 Add the holes.

Completed Exercise

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Create the Base Sketch
1. Open Frame Assembly.iam.
2. Create a work plane offset from the indicated surface by 213 mm.

3. Click the Create Component tool.

4. For New Component Name, enter Bellcrank Mount. Click OK.
5. Select the work plane you just created as the new sketch plane.

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 6. Project the front edges of the frame members to the sketch plane.

Note: Projecting geometry initiates the adaptive relationship between the

frame and the bellcrank mount. An adaptive part is identified by the
Recirculate icon in the Model browser.

7. Create a sketch connecting the points.

8. Finish the sketch.

Completed Sketch

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Extrude and Shell the Part
1. Extrude the sketch 40 mm toward the rear of the frame.

2. Return to the top level assembly.

3. Turn off the visibility of the work plane you created earlier.
4. Right-click the bellcrank in the part browser. Click Isolate.
5. Edit the bellcrank.
6. Shell the part with a thickness of 2 mm. Remove the indicated faces.

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Add the Holes
1. Use the Hole tool with the Linear Placement option to place a 15 mm
diameter through hole on the indicated face.

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 2. Use Mirror to create a second hole on the other side of the bellcrank
mount.

Completed Bellcrank Mount

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