AutoCAD Mechanical 2009 Getting Started Part No.
© 2008 Autodesk, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Except as otherwise permitted by Autodesk, Inc., this publication, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form, by any method, for any purpose. Certain materials included in this publication are reprinted with the permission of the copyright holder. Trademarks The following are registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., in the USA and other countries: 3DEC (design/logo), 3December, 3December.
Contents Chapter 1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Why You Should Use this Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Additional Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Before You Begin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Chapter 2 Get Familiar with the Work Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 AutoCAD Mechanical User Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Workspace Settings . . . . .
Power Commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Chapter 5 Generate Standard Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Standard Parts Content . . . . . . Parts Library Navigation . . Resize the Panels . . . . . . Insert Screw Components . . Insert Fasteners . . . . . . . Edit Standard Parts . . . . . . . . Projected Views of Standard Parts . Change Representations . . . . . . Chapter 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Introduction 1 AutoCAD® Mechanical software extends the capabilities of AutoCAD® so that you can quickly create and manage mechanical drawings. This Getting Started guide provides concepts and short exercises to help you get started with AutoCAD Mechanical. Why You Should Use this Guide As you make the transition from AutoCAD to AutoCAD Mechanical, this Getting Started Guide provides an introduction to the most commonly used features of AutoCAD Mechanical.
on the menu bar. You can also press F1 at the Command prompt, in a dialog box, or at a prompt within a command to display Help information. ■ Mechanical Feature Workshop demonstrates the top ten most important features in AutoCAD Mechanical. ■ Learning Resources link to additional resources about AutoCAD Mechanical. Before You Begin Before you begin, we recommend that you have a working knowledge of Microsoft® operation systems and how to use basic AutoCAD commands.
Get Familiar with the Work Area 2 This chapter shows how you can quickly get acquainted with the AutoCAD® Mechanical work area. It also shows you how to work with the AutoCAD Mechanical user interface, workspaces, and drawing file types. AutoCAD Mechanical User Interface When you launch AutoCAD Mechanical, the Classic workspace appears as the current work area. Use this workspace to learn to use AutoCAD Mechanical. Refer to the following image.
About the Work Area The work area consists of the following components: 1 Menu Browser button Click this button to access a complete list of commands in the menu bar, and to search for Help information. 2 Menu bar The menu bar contains menus and commands for performing tasks. It is a mix of AutoCAD® and AutoCAD Mechanical commands. The first four drop-down menus contain AutoCAD commands; the fifth menu through the last menu contain both AutoCAD and AutoCAD Mechanical commands.
This toolbar contains a set of design tools such as hatch, construction lines, contour, create/edit associative hide, user configuration, and detailing tools. 6 Mechanical Layer toolbar This toolbar contains the current layer state and a set of layer tools to help you work efficiently on your drawing. 7 Workspaces toolbar This toolbar shows the current selection of workspaces. You can also switch to other workspaces while working on your drawings.
■ AutoCAD Classic ■ Essential ■ Structure To set the current workspace, click and select your workspace from the drop-down list under My Workspace. You can then conveniently switch back to your workspace by clicking the My Workspace icon in the Workspaces toolbar.
NOTE AutoCAD Mechanical automatically launches the last workspace you used but not your workspace (My Workspace) the next time you launch the application. To use your workspace, click on the drawing Workspace toolbar. NOTE If you add or remove any toolbars on the predefined workspace, these changes do not appear in the active workspace the next time you use that workspace. The changes appear when you select Automatically save workspace changes in the Workspace Settings dialog box.
■ Essential Workspace The Essential workspace contains the most commonly used mechanical toolbars such as Mechanical Main, Draw, Modify, Design Tools, Mechanical Layer, Dimension, Standard Content, Symbols, and Bill of Materials for you to create, organize, edit, and annotate your drawings in AutoCAD Mechanical.
■ Structure Workspace Select the Structure workspace when you create structured objects in AutoCAD Mechanical. The program groups structured objects into parts, subassemblies, and assemblies for quick selection and modification. The mechanical browser in the left pane appears when you select the structure workspace. Other relevant toolbars for structured objects appear when you work on structured objects.
You can also save AutoCAD Mechanical drawings to formats from AutoCAD 2009 or earlier.
Drawing Commands in AutoCAD Mechanical 3 Mechanical drawings consist of commonly used parts connected to other parts or features in a design. AutoCAD® Mechanical drawing commands provide more flexibility for creating these parts. This chapter shows you how to create a part of an assembly efficiently using the primary AutoCAD commands together with the extended AutoCAD Mechanical drawing commands. Drawing Commands AutoCAD Mechanical provides several options for drawing commands.
This chapter shows you how to create a part (a gland) using AutoCAD Mechanical drawing commands. Use the measurements in the following image for the exercises. Draw Construction Lines AutoCAD Mechanical includes a full complement of construction lines for aligning drafting views.
Click to open the Construction Lines dialog box. Draw Construction Lines 1 Begin a New drawing based on the am_iso template. NOTE AutoCAD Mechanical includes eight drafting standard templates that control drafting elements such as layer settings, object properties, text heights and colors, and symbology formats. This lesson uses the ISO drafting standard. 2 Select the Essential workspace for this exercise. 3 Use the command Zoom ➤ All to show the entire page.
for the position of the side view using the AMCONSTVER command. See the following image. The program creates horizontal and vertical construction lines. Create Holes In AutoCAD, you create holes using Line, Circle, Trim, and Modify commands. In AutoCAD Mechanical, the hole is a Power Object or mechanical object with attributes or internal information. Use the AMTHOLE2D command to create the hole. Create Holes 1 From the Content menu, click Holes ➤ to create a through hole.
5 To create another, similar hole, from the Modify menu, click the Power Copy command. The Power Copy command remembers the attributes of the Power Object and creates another hole of the same size, symmetrical to the first hole. Use the Symmetry Power Snap selection in the Power Snap Settings dialog box to create a hole symmetrical to the first hole. Click to open the Power Snap Settings dialog box, and then select the Symmetry checkbox.
When inserting the hole, select the construction line at the center of the part for its symmetry point. 6 Use the Circle, Line, and Trim commands to draw the side view of the gland as shown in the following image. Draw the side view to full scale using the dimensions on the first page of this lesson. 7 From the Modify menu, click the Power View command to create a projected top view of the holes from the front view.
9 The program creates the top view of the holes. NOTE You can use Power View to create projected views of standard parts such as screws, bolts, and nuts. It quickly creates a top view from a side view, or a side view from a top view. Create Countersink Holes Countersink holes are Power Objects or mechanical objects. Use the AMCOUNTS2D command to create a countersink hole. You can quickly change the size of countersink holes by using the Power Edit command.
4 Enter 30 for the hole length and 180 degrees for the rotation angle. 5 Enter 26 for the nominal diameter, 35 for the countersink diameter, and 90 degrees for the angle, and then click Finish. 6 The program creates a countersink hole. 7 From the Modify menu, click the Power View command to create the projected top view of the countersink hole from the front view.
8 Click the AMERASEALLCL command to remove all construction lines. 9 The program creates the part (a gland). Create Hatch Patterns Hatches enable people using your mechanical drawings to distinguish between parts in the section or breakout views more easily. In AutoCAD Mechanical, there are three types of hatches: associative hatch, user-defined hatch, and predefined hatch. Predefined hatches are for manufacturing drawings with parts of different sizes and shapes in an assembly.
NOTE User-defined and predefined hatches are non-associative by default. To change both to be associative, select the Make Predefined Hatches Associative checkbox on the AM:Preferences tab of the Options dialog box. Create Hatch Patterns For many parts in an assembly, you can apply predefined hatches quickly by selecting the part and using a Hatch menu command. For this exercise, select the User-defined hatch command. 1 From the Draw toolbar, click Hatch ➤ User-defined hatch.
7 Press ENTER to repeat the command. Clear the Adapt hatch distance at less than five hatchlines checkbox in the Hatch dialog box. Doing so ensures consistent hatch spacing on the part. 8 Press ENTER to repeat the command. Continue to add hatch patterns to the parts. The program creates the hatch patterns. Draw a Rectangle You can create rectangles and squares with the Rectangle command in AutoCAD Mechanical.
Try It: Draw a Rectangle You can select the rectangle from the Rectangle toolbar or press ENTER at the Rectangle command options to open the Rectangles dialog box. For this exercise, attach a circular plate beside the gland you created. Select the rectangle with the height-middle insertion point. Locate its middle point, and specify its full base as 14 mm and its full height as 76 mm. The program creates the rectangle and places it at the specified location.
Draw a Centerline Pattern Mechanical drawings often require centerlines and centerline crosses with or without holes, countersink holes, or counterbore holes. The Centerlines dialog box provides you with multiple ways to create centerlines and holes quickly. You can access centerlines command from the Draw menu, or click on the Draw toolbar, and then press ENTER to display the Centerlines dialog box. Try It: Draw a Centerline Cross Refer to the following image.
Draw Section Lines To draw section lines in AutoCAD Mechanical, use the AMSECTIONLINE command. The layer, color, linetype, and lineweight properties are predefined for the section line. Create Chamfers Create chamfers in AutoCAD Mechanical with the AMCHAM2D command. As with AutoCAD, you can choose to trim or not to trim the geometry when you chamfer. Unlike AutoCAD, you can include dimensions when you chamfer. You can also configure the list of chamfer sizes for your drawings.
Create Chamfers | 25
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4 Modify Drawings with Power Commands Power Objects or mechanical objects in AutoCAD® Mechanical are objects that contain attributes. They include standard parts, symbol libraries, Power Dimensions, holes, hole charts, title blocks, balloons, part lists, and all objects created with AutoCAD Mechanical commands. This chapter shows you how to create or modify Power Objects quickly with Power Commands. Power Commands In AutoCAD Mechanical, a Power Object is an object with attributes.
2 The User Through Holes - Nominal Diameter dialog box appears. 3 Change the diameter of the hole to 6 mm. NOTE Changing the hole size of the front view does not automatically update the hole size of its related side view. The geometry and its hole size change accordingly. Edit the Countersink Hole 1 Double-click the countersink hole. The User Countersinks - Parameter for Countersinks dialog box appears.
2 Change the countersink hole diameter to 30 and its nominal diameter to 20. Click OK to see the changes update automatically. 3 Undo the previous change. Edit the Chamfer 1 Double-click the chamfer. The Chamfer dialog box appears. 2 Change the chamfer length to 2 and click OK. Notice the chamfer and its dimension update to the new length. NOTE You can use the Power Recall command to create another hole with the same parameters as the existing hole.
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Generate Standard Parts 5 Manufacturing designs often include standard parts and features. These standard parts can include screws, nuts, washers, pins, rivets, bushings, and others. It is typically to find standard parts collected and published in libraries, and AutoCAD® Mechanical includes several such libraries. With AutoCAD Mechanical, you can insert standard parts from installed parts libraries directly into your drawings.
■ Use this Standard Part Library to search for your required standard parts. You can also move the commonly used standard parts to the Favorites pane for easy access. NOTE If you require standard parts from other manufacturers in your drawings, install the parts libraries from the installation CD or DVD. It is important to make all required selections during the initial installation of AutoCAD Mechanical.
Method 2: Right-click the part family node and select Add to Favorites from the context menu. View Favorites Lists When you have a long list of favorites, you can organize the list with the buttons marked 1 and 2 in the following image.
1 To show a list of available views in the Favorites panel. 2 To show the available views in a tree structure. Select a Projected View in Favorites From the View column, click the current view to open a drop-down list of available views for that part.
Resize the Panels You can resize the panels by dragging the left-right arrows between the panels. You can open and close the panels with the up and down arrows (chevrons) in the upper right corners of the panels. The following image shows selected standard parts in the Details panel.
Insert Screw Components You can create screw connection assemblies that consist of screws, nuts, washers, and holes with the Screw Connection wizard. When you insert screw connections, you indicate corresponding hole locations for the screws. Insert Screw Components 1 Open the gs_sealed_shaft_assy drawing in the Getting_Started folder. NOTE The path to the folder containing Getting_Started files is: ■ Windows Vista™: C:\Users\Public\Documents\Autodesk\ACADM 2009\Acadm\Getting_Started ■ Windows® XP: C:\D
3 Click the Back button to select a screw connection template. 4 Double-click SAMPLE #1 and select the M 8 screw from the list.
5 Click Next and specify the insertion point of first hole as shown in the following image. 6 Specify the endpoint of first hole as shown in the following image. 7 Specify the endpoint of second hole as shown in the following image. 8 Click Next on the Screw Assembly Location - Front View dialog box.
9 Select the Normal representation in the Screw Assembly Grip Representation - Front View dialog box. Click Finish. The program adds a screw connection to fasten the two plates. Notice that AutoCAD Mechanical automatically removes and cleans up excess materials when you insert the screw components. NOTE If there are holes on both the bracket and plate, it is not necessary to select and create holes in the Screw Connection - Front View dialog box.
4 Specify the insertion point as shown in the following image. 5 Enter 270 degrees for its rotation angle. 6 Select 3 mm for its diameter. 7 Click Finish. 8 Drag its length to approximately 12 mm on the bushing. 9 Select the standard size - 3m6 x 12-A pin in the Select Part Size dialog box. The program inserts the cylindrical pin. Edit Standard Parts All standard parts and features in AutoCAD Mechanical are Power Objects. You can modify them using Power Commands.
4 Notice that the pin hole on the bushing cleans up automatically and the geometry heals itself. 5 Undo the previous step. NOTE Do not use the Erase command from AutoCAD® on any Power Object. Edit the Screw Components 1 Double-click the centerline of the screw components. 2 Select M 6 in the list. 3 Click Finish. Notice that all screw components change to the new size. 4 Select the other screw connection instances to change to size M 6. Both screw components change to size M 6.
to select a view (top, bottom, front, or side) of the standard part to draw as you generate the projected view. NOTE The projected views are associative. If there is any change to the parent or child view, the program updates associated views automatically. Generate the Projected View for Screw Components 1 From the Modify menu, click Power view. 2 Select the screw components (Front View) on the right. 3 Click Top in AutoCAD Mechanical dialog box.
Change Representations Your conceptual designs do not need full representations of standard parts. They can use draft representations: symbolic and simplified views. In AutoCAD Mechanical, you can change the representation type by using the Change Representation command. You can change the representation in the Options dialog box on the AM:Standard Parts tab.
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Organize Objects with Layers 6 With the predefined mechanical layers in AutoCAD® Mechanical, the program automatically organizes the layers for all mechanical parts. Automated organization helps to speed up and simplify your work. This chapter demonstrates how organizing objects with layers in AutoCAD Mechanical compares to AutoCAD®, and how to convert AutoCAD layers to AutoCAD Mechanical layers. Predefined Mechanical Layers Layers work differently in the AutoCAD Mechanical than they do in AutoCAD.
shafts, and mechanical standards for drafting geometries, annotations, and symbols. AutoCAD Mechanical manages these objects automatically with predefined layers based on the properties of the mechanical objects. Because of this functionality, you spend less time defining layers on your own. View the Predefined Layers All predefined layers begin with the prefix AM_. 1 Click 2 In the Mechanical Layer Manager dialog box, click predefined mechanical layers.
2 Click to review the existing layers on the new drawing. Only two layers appear in the Mechanical Layer Manager dialog box. 3 From the Content menu, click Fasteners ➤ Screws. 4 Click Hex Head Types ➤ ISO 4014 (Regular Thread) ➤ Front View. 5 Insert the screw, size M 30 x 110.
6 Click to review the automatically generated layers for the screw. Notice the Standard part - screw appears on Layer AM_0N. See other layers and associated objects used for the screw. 7 Save and close the drawing. Mechanical Layer Manager In AutoCAD Mechanical, you use Mechanical Layer Manager dialog box to organize and manage objects with layers. There are two methods to show this dialog box. ■ Method 1: At the Command prompt, enter AMLAYER.
The following table shows the tool buttons and descriptions in the Mechanical Layer Manager dialog box. Button Description Create new layers. New Layer Delete layers. Delete Set a layer to be current. Set Current Check layers from existing objects. Check Layer Move objects into a selected layer. Move Into Highlight the selected layers.
Button Description To show or hide layer definitions. Show\Hide Layer Definitions Can I use the AutoCAD Layer Properties Manager dialog box to manage all layers including the predefined mechanical layers instead of Mechanical Layer Manager dialog box? We do not recommend this approach, because no changes you make in the AutoCAD Layer Properties Manager dialog box carry over for mechanical object definitions.
The Object Property Settings dialog box appears, as shown in the following image. NOTE For information on how to configure AutoCAD Mechanical object properties, refer to the Configure Automatic Property Management section in the Configuration and Setup Guide in AutoCAD Mechanical.
Object Property Settings When you open AutoCAD drawings in AutoCAD Mechanical, all layers created in AutoCAD automatically appear in the AutoCAD Mechanical Layer dialog box. They remain AutoCAD layers until you change them to AutoCAD Mechanical layers in the Object Property Settings dialog box. Description Representative AutoCAD Layer Mechanical Layer Convert AutoCAD layers to Mechanical layers 1 Open the gs_acad_layers drawing from the Getting_Started folder.
3 To convert the AutoCAD layer - Centerline to a mechanical layer, change the layer for Centerline in the category Drafting to Layer - Centerline in the Object Property Settings dialog box. 4 Click the layer AM_7 on the object, Centerline. Object Property Settings - Select Layer dialog box displays. Scroll down to the bottom of the list to select the layer centerline.
5 The Mechanical Layer - Select dialog box appears, informing you that the program is converting an AutoCAD layer to an AutoCAD Mechanical layer. 6 Click OK three times to close all dialog boxes. 7 Next, click . Notice that the Centerline layer is now an AutoCAD Mechanical layer. 8 Next, change the layer for the object - Centerline, narrow in the Standard Features category on the Object Property Settings dialog box to centerline.
9 Click . Notice the Mechanical layer -centerline now associated to two mechanical objects: Centerline and Centerline, narrow. 10 From the Content menu, click Holes ➤ Through Holes. 11 Select the ISO 273 normal icon, and click Top View to insert an M 30 hole at the center of the plate. Notice the mechanical object, through hole now uses the Layer - centerline for its centerline.
12 Create the front view of the hole using the Powerview command. 13 Change the Hole - front view to hidden lines type. Tip ■ Use Mechanical Layer Manager dialog box to work with all layers in the drawing instead of the AutoCAD Layer Properties Manager dialog box. ■ To ensure layer consistency across all drawings, set up the layers in the Object Property Settings dialog box and save them as templates for reuse.
Create Hidden Lines 7 In assembly or conceptual drawings, it is common to hide background objects to show objects obscured behind connected front objects. AutoCAD® Mechanical represents background objects with hidden lines. This chapter shows you how to create associative hidden lines by specifying which objects lie in front of others. Any changes to the front or back objects automatically update the associated hidden lines.
NOTE The path to the folder containing Getting_Started files is: ■ Windows Vista™:C:\Users\Public\Documents\Autodesk\ACADM 2009\Acadm\Getting_Started ■ Windows® XP: C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Documents\Autodesk\ACADM 2009\Acadm\Getting_Started 2 From the Modify menu, click Associative Hide, then click Create Associative Hide Situations. 3 Select the shaft for the foreground object.
Try It: Associative Hidden Lines In this exercise, you move the shaft away from the assembly to see how hidden lines heal and change to solid lines. Move the shaft back into place to see the hidden lines return to the previous state. Any changes to the foreground or background objects update the resulting hidden lines automatically.
NOTE You can use AMSHIDE command on structured or non-structured drawings. For more information on mechanical structure, refer to Mechanical Help or the Learning Mechanical Structure tutorial. Tip ■ To revert all hidden lines to geometrical lines for reuse, use the AMSHIDEEDIT command to open the Hide Situation dialog box. Remove the elemental geometry from the levels. ■ You can also use the AMSHIDEEDIT command to modify or update the hide situations in the drawing.
Reusable Detailing Tools 8 In AutoCAD® Mechanical, the drafting tools have intelligence built-in that help you edit the features easily without having to remove and recreate the original features. This lesson demonstrates some reusable tools such as chamfers, title blocks, and associative detail views. Chamfers You can resize chamfers created in AutoCAD Mechanical using the Chamfer dialog box. Because the chamfer has built-in intelligence, you simply double-click the chamfer to make changes.
Title Block You can scale and center your drawing within the title block using the Title Block (AMTITLE) command. After you place the title block, you can make edits, such as changing the title block style, without erasing and reinserting the title block. Double-click the title block to change its size in the dialog box. Insert a Title Block In this lesson, you place the assembly in the layout, and then insert the title block. 1 Open the completed gs_hidden_lines drawing from the previous lesson.
NOTE Use the Viewport/Scale Area command to control the length and text scaling when creating viewports. For more details, refer to the AutoCAD Mechanical Help. Associative Detail View Detail views show an enlarged area of geometry or a dimensioned part that is not clearly visible in the original view. Use the Detail command to create linked views at different scales and place them in model space or in the layout. The geometry in the detail view is associative to the original view.
Create a Detail View 1 From the Design toolbar, click . 2 Enclose the screw connection as shown in the following image. 3 Toggle to the viewport of the original layout in the Detail view list to place the detail in the layout tab.
4 Click the Settings button in the Detail ISO dialog box. Select the Show view border checkbox. 5 Click OK and place the enlarged detail view on the drawing. Try It: Edit a Detail View Double-click the centerline of the screw connection and change its size from M 8 to M 6. Notice that the associated detail view changes accordingly.
Try It: Dimension a Detail View Use the Power Dimension command (AMPOWERDIM) to add dimensions in the detail view.
Power Dimensions 9 Unlike AutoCAD®, AutoCAD® Mechanical does not use several dimension commands to create linear, angular, baseline, and chain dimensions. In AutoCAD Mechanical, the power dimension command, AMPOWERDIM, saves you time in creating multiple dimension types on your drawings. This lesson describes how to use the Power Dimensioning and automatic dimensioning tools to add dimensions on your drawings. It also shows you how to edit dimensions quickly with a set of editing tools.
1 Open the gs_dimensions drawing in the Getting_Started folder. NOTE The path to the folder containing Getting_Started files is; ■ Windows Vista™:C:\Users\Public\Documents\Autodesk\ACADM 2009\Acadm\Getting_Started ■ Windows® XP: C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Documents\Autodesk\ACADM 2009\Acadm\Getting_Started 2 From the Annotate menu, click Power Dimensioning. 3 Insert the 6 mm dimension for the flange of the part. 4 Locate the dimension line location.
5 The Power Dimensioning dialog box appears showing the dimension value. Click OK. 6 NOTE By default, the Power Dimensioning dialog box appears for the first set of dimensions and not for subsequent dimensions when working on the Power Dimension. To change this behavior, go to Options ➤ AM:Standards ➤ and double-click the Dimension in the Standard elements list. 7 Enter C (for Chain) in the command line. Insert the 24mm dimension. Notice you are still in the Power Dimensioning command.
8 Press Enter twice to reactivate the Power Dimensioning command to create the 26 mm dimension. 9 Type S to select the line for the 35 mm dimension. Type O to open the Power Dimensioning dialog box and create its tolerance. 10 If the 70 mm dimension overlaps the 52 mm dimension, a Dimension Overdrawn dialog box appears enabling you to move the overlapping dimension away from the other automatically. 11 Create all dimensions for the front view. 12 Continue to add the radial dimensions for the side view.
NOTE When placing dimensions, you can switch between radial dimensions and diameter dimensions. Multiple Dimensions It is often necessary to create ordinate dimensions on semiconductor or automation drawings. In AutoCAD Mechanical, you can create a group of parallel, ordinate, shaft, and symmetrical dimensions all at the same time by using the Multiple dimensioning command.
Filtering is enabled automatically to prevent you from dimensioning hidden lines, auxiliary lines, text, phantom lines, section lines, hatches, or other dimension lines. Multiple dimensioning commands use the current drawing standard and drawing scale. The program places them on layer AM_5. Try It: Create Multiple Dimensions In the following exercise, you specify the datum point at the lower left corner of the flange and create automatic dimensions along its x-y axis.
Edit Dimensions To open the Power Dimensioning or Automatic Dimensioning dialog boxes for editing, double-click the existing dimensions. Dimensions change instantly when you select new options or enter new parameters in these dialog boxes. You can break, rearrange, stretch, and join dimensions with dimension editing tools in AutoCAD Mechanical. Try It: Edit Dimensions Edit several dimensions at your own pace.
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Add Part Lists and Balloons 10 Adding part lists and balloons in AutoCAD® Mechanical is easier than the manual method in AutoCAD®. You can also ensure an accurate count of item quantities as you add or remove objects in an assembly drawing. This lesson describes the role of part references for objects and how they relate to a bill of materials (BOM) in an assembly drawing. It also shows you how to create and edit a bill of materials (BOM), and to add a part list and balloons to a drawing.
following illustration. Notice the representation of nodes used for standard parts is different from the designed components as shown previously. The part reference contains component properties such as material, note, vendor, measurement, and units. You can also add and include the component properties from the bill of materials. Click the Settings button on the Part Reference dialog box. The program captures component properties to the bill of materials (BOM) for use in part lists and balloons.
NOTE If you add or remove part references, the quantity value for the changed component updates automatically in the bill of materials. Try It: Create a part reference Create a part reference for a component on your own. From the Annotate menu, click Part Reference, and then click the component to locate the node and open the Part Reference dialog box. Enter the component properties and click OK.
BOM Settings To manage the BOM settings, open the Options dialog box. Right-click an empty place on the drawing area to show the context menu ➤ Options ➤ AM:Standards tab ➤ double-click BOM in the Standard elements list in the right pane. BOM settings for the active standard dialog box appears. In the BOM Settings dialog box, you can add component properties from the available component properties list to the four tabs: Component Properties, BOM, Parts List, and Balloon.
Create Balloons You use balloons in mechanical drawing to itemize the parts in an assembly. Create Balloons 1 Open the gs_balloons drawing from the Getting_Started folder. NOTE The path to the folder containing Getting_Started files is: ■ Windows Vista™:C:\Users\Public\Documents\Autodesk\ACADM 2009\Acadm\Getting_Started ■ Windows® XP: C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Documents\Autodesk\ACADM 2009\Acadm\Getting_Started 2 From the Annotate menu, click Balloons.
Create a Parts List You create a part list to show a list of detail information for parts used in an assembly drawing. Create a Parts List 1 Continue from the previous exercise. 2 From the Annotate menu, click Parts List. 3 Press ENTER to create a parts list from the main BOM. 4 Click OK and place the parts list at the bottom right of the title block.
International Drafting Standards 11 Setting a standard based on industry standards or a custom company standard helps to maintain a common form of communication for consistent productions results. AutoCAD Mechanical supports ANSI, BSI, CSN, DIN, GB, GOST, ISO, and JIS industry standards. You can also create a custom standard based on one of the industry standards and change some or all of the settings according to your company standard.
Create a Custom Standard In the Options dialog box, double-click the active standard and type a new standard name, for example “Company Standard.” Press ENTER. The Selection dialog box appears, enabling you to select a base standard. Select a base standard from the drop-down list and Click OK. The program creates a custom standard, Company Standard.
Best Practice Set up a default template file with your selected standard to start every new drawings and make it available to everyone in the project team. By doing so, you save time configuring your requirements and ensure consistency with all team members using the company standards.
Save your default standards template in DWT format. To use this template for non-AutoCAD Mechanical drawings, import this template into the drawings when you open them. Scale for Text and Symbols For many large components or assemblies, it is necessary to scale down text and symbols to fit them on standard paper sizes (A4, A3, A2, A1, or A0 size). Annotations, including dimensions, symbols, and notes, can become illegible when you view them in the model space.
To set the size of symbols and text to the required sizes for viewing and printing purposes, set the scale factor in the Model scale list in the Options dialog box. NOTE When you change the model scale factor to 1:2, the annotations are automatically two times larger than they are at scale factor 1:1.
Standard-based Annotations In the following exercise, you create the symbols for the front view of a shaft used in a sealed shaft assembly based on the ISO standard with metric measurements. The following image shows a detailed shaft with the annotations. Try It: Standard-based Annotations Open the gs_shaft drawing in the Getting_Started folder. NOTE The path to the folder containing Getting_Started files is: ■ Windows Vista™:C:\Users\Public\Documents\Autodesk\ACADM 2009\Acadm\Getting_Started ■ Windows
Index A additional resources 1 associative hatch 19 associative hidden lines 57 automatic dimensioning 71 mechanical dimensions 67 modify dimensions 73 O B balloons 79 bill of materials bom 77 object properties 77 C center line 23 center line pattern 23 chamfer 61 construction line 12 Convert AutoCAD Layers to Mechanical Layers 52 countersink hole 17 custom standard 82 D 50 P part list 80 part reference 75 power commands 27 predefined layers 45 projected view 41 R rectangle 21 resources 1 additiona
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