Solid Edge ST4 Event: Session 203 Assembly Design in Solid Edge - a Hands-on Experience by Mark Thompson

© Siemens AG 2011. All Rights Reserved.

Solid Edge ST4 Assembly Hands-On


Siemens PLM SoftwarePage 2

Solid Edge. Design better.

Speaker Bio: Mark Thompson

Background:

Started in the CAD/CAM business in 1987 with Intergraph after working 14

years in manufacturing as a machinist/tool maker. Have been working with

Solid Edge since its inception. Currently work in the SE Field Support

group, which I have been a part of for the last 24 years.

Areas of Expertise:

All areas of Solid Edge

Personal interests:

Cycling & Running




Executive Summary

Today’s Topics:

Assembly Shortcut keys

Assembly Relationships Options with the “Move/Copy” command

Top down design

Assemble the roller

Replace the wheel with the new roller assembly

New assembly relationships – Centering and Range

Working with foreign data in assembly – extrude form assembly faces

Creating Flow lines

Key Takeaways:

The user will walk away with a better understanding of Solid Edge ST4

Assembly environment.




Assembly Shortcut Keys

Ctrl – period to “Hide Previous Level” when in-place activated

Shift – Spacebar to start “Selection Manager”

Ctrl – Spacebar to switch between Part/Face select mode

Ctrl – Q to “Hide Previous Level” when in-place activated

Ctrl – Shift – D to suspend movement of parts during Copy/Move

Spacebar to turn on Add/Remove move

Shift – Spacebar to start “Selection Manager”

Ctrl – Spacebar to switch between Part/Face select mode

Ctrl – Q to “Hide Previous Level” when in-place activated

Ctrl – Shift – D to suspend movement of parts during Copy/Move

Spacebar to turn on Add/Remove move

A RMB click will get you to the

shortcut menu where you can




ST4 Assembly Hands-On 1

To get started with the Solid Edge ST4 Hands-On session, go ahead and start

Solid Edge ST4.

Click on “Open”

Turn off all overrides and “Save As Default”





1 - Assembly Relationships

Open Roller Table.asm

Select Swivel_Caster.asm

Move the steering wheel to the center of the lower

right hole as shown

Notice the relationships listed





Select the “Copy” option from QuickBar

Select the secondary axis and

begin to drag the sub-assembly

to the right

Here is where I like to use the

“Ctrl-Shift-D” keys to suspend movement.

Select the center hole key point on the far right side of the blue plate





When you select the center point the following

dialog will appear, giving you the option to not

repair unsatisfied relationships or to repair them.

New for ST4 is the ability to repair by offsetting

or creating new relationships.

For this exercise we can select the first option.

Click the OK button.

QuickBar will prompt you to select part(s)

for Solid Edge to locate new relationship

entities.





Select the blue plate, which tells Solid Edge

to search the plate for new entities to create

new relationships if needed, and then select

the green checkmark or RMB click to accept.

Review the relationships – the mate did not change, the

alignment was offset, and the hole align is new.

Now let’s copy both casters to the opposite

side of the plate – make sure to move the

steering wheel center to one of the holes.

Select the “Copy” button, then select the

primary axis and begin moving sub-assemblies to the right.





Use the Ctrl-Shift-D keys to suspend movement

and drag the cursor to the same hole on the

opposite side of the blue base plate.

In this example we will remove all external

relationships and add new ones.

Of course you need to identify what parts to

use to find new entities to create the new

relationships, so select the blue base plate

again and accept with green checkmark.

Notice the new relationships.





This becomes a great way to replicate parts in an assembly where you want

the parts to have assembly relationships created or maintained.

NOTE – If you find a particular way you

want to work, you can easily check the option

to be remembered and not show the dialog.

When finished, you should have 4 casters

with satisfied relationships.

Let’s finish this hands on by rolling the model

over and copying the other components.





To finish the exercise. we will copy the pillar to the

opposite side in the same way we copied the

casters.

Select the pillar and set the steering wheel to

the lower left corner as shown – select “Copy”

Now move to the opposite side using one of the options - for this we are going

to remove all and create new and turn off the dialog as described earlier.

When you select the option to create new relationships,

it will always ask what geometry you want to create the

new relationships against, so select the long base frame

as shown.





After the copy your assembly should look like this.

Now we need to copy the 3 components to

the opposite side of the cart.

Select all 3, set the steering wheel to the lower

front corner. and copy them to the opposite side.

When you get them copied, you will need to

select the new components to attach them to

create the new relationships.





With this copy you will need to select all

3 components: the 2 long pieces and

the blue plate.

Select the green check to accept.

The final operation is to copy all the bottom components from the bottom to the

top of the 4 pillars, not including the caster assemblies.

The best way to do this is to go to a front

view using the Ctrl-F keys and then use a

fence select – try not to include the caster

plates.





If you do happen to get one of the plates

selected, use the Spacebar to set the

selection to so

you can deselect them.

Now move the steering wheel to the bottom

corner and copy the components to the top.

You can then select the 4 pillars for

the new relationships.





Great job!





2 – Top Down Design

Open ASM_01_00800.asm, which is a blank

assembly

In PathFinder select the “Parts Library” tab

Click in the white space of PathFinder and then

select the “Ctrl - Period” keys to set the folder

location to that of the assembly folder

Now click on the roller, which is PAR_01_00800.par





Once the roller has been dropped into

the assembly, we then want to continue the

top down design by dragging

PAR_01_00802.par into the assembly.

Notice that the bearing already has relationships

applied from the “Capture Fit” command, so we only

need to tell Solid Edge where to place

the part.

Select the inside face of the bearing

to satisfy the mate relationship.





The next relationship that Solid Edge

is looking for is the axial align, so select

any cylindrical face to finish placement.

The placed bearing

is shown at right.

To duplicate, we can either drag in the

bearing as we just did, or we can simply

select it and use the steering wheel

with the copy option to put it on the

other side.

We will choose the second option.





Select the bearing, then move the steering

wheel to the top hole as shown

Select the torus of the steering wheel and

and make sure the “Copy” option is selected

Rotate the bearing and key in the value

of 180 degrees

Because we still have our option to create new

relationships, Solid Edge prompts us to

identify the part for those relationships, so

we select the roller as shown and accept.





Next, we want to bring in the shaft

assembly ASM_01_00801.asm.

Again, capture fit was used for this

assembly, so we only need to

select where we need to place the parts.

The first relationship is a mate, so

we select the end face of the bearing.

The last relationship is an axial alignment,

so we select the outside diameter to finish

placement.





Your finished assembly should look like this!

Save the assembly and close.





Open ASM_01_00701.asm

The objective with this hands-on is to

replace the support wheel with a new

roller assembly.

Delete PAR_04_00095.par

Select PSM_01_820.psm and move the

steering wheel from the default location

to the top mounting hole as shown





Select the primary axis to move the bracket to the farthest right mounting hole

Use the “CTRL-Shift D” keys

to stop movement of the part,

as it is easier to select key

points

Make sure to get the center of the

hole and click to place

Use the Assembly Relationship

options as shown to place part

Click “OK”





Select the deck for assembly to locate

new faces to replace and then click

on the green checkmark to accept

From the parts library, drag in the roller assembly

we just put together called ASM_01_00800.asm

and place in the assembly





Apply an align between the 2 parts

Change the relationship type to “Center Plane”

and set to “Double” as we will define 2 initial faces

First, select the 2 end faces on the roller assembly, then select the 2 inside

faces of the brackets





Click “OK” to apply relationship

To give the roller more room, we now need to move the left bracket to the left

using face select (CTRL-Spacebar).

Select the left slot face and

move it to the left 12mm





We can now use the “Move-Copy”

option with the steering wheel to

copy the roller assembly.

Select all 3 parts from PathFinder

Move the steering wheel to top right hole on center

Click on the “Copy” option

Use “CTRL-Shift D” to stop the

roller assembly from moving and

locate the first hole to left of the

current roller.





After selecting the hole, set the Assembly

Relationships Options to “Find new

relationships”

Select the mower deck and click

the green checkmark to accept

Close the files






Here we will apply the range option to the

cylinder that controls the travel of the

mower steering arms

Select the cylinder push rod (PAR_04_00146.par)

Notice the rod has 2 assembly

relationships

Select the “Mate” relationship from

PathFinder





Notice it is a fixed relationship set to 20 mm

Click on the “Fixed” icon and change it to range

The “Range” toolbar will appear, showing first the

current position (20 mm) and then the range, which starts

at zero and ends at 20.

Change the 20 mm value to 50 mm and select “Enter”

You have to use the “Enter” key or it will not take the entry.





Now select the drag component command

and use the “Freeform Move” option

This allows the components to freely move between the range specified.





3 – Flow Lines


Rotate the model and zoom up on

the area shown below

This is the area we will be working

in for this hands-on.

Click on the “Open” command





Select 1ST_CASTING.dwg

On the bottom of the dialog

select “Options”

Make sure you are pointed to

“1seacad.ini”

Click “Next” after reviewing

options





On the 2nd dialog, make sure you

are pointing to the

“metric_draft.dft” template file

Step through all 8 steps

then then click “Finish” on

step 8 dialog

When you get back to the “Open”

dialog, select “Open”, which will

open the acad file into SE Draft





Once the information is open in

draft, we are ready to take this 2D

information into the part environment

where we can easily create the 3D

model from the 2D profiles.

On the left side of the screen click on the “Layers”

tab and select “Borders”, “Text”, and “Center”, and then

turn of those layers by selecting the “Hide Layer” button.





On the top ribbon bar, select the “Tools” tab,

then select the “Create 3D” command

Make sure you are pointing to the

metric_part.par as shown

Click “Next”





Fence select the

top left view so

all the elements

and dimensions

highlight

Click “Next”

Fence select the top

right view so all the

elements and

dimensions highlight

Click “Next”





Fence select the

bottom left view

Click “Finish”

The 2D is then read into

the Part environment

automatically.





We now want to rotate the view about the large hole.

Using the middle mouse button, select the

large hole in the center of the part.

When the circle turns red, click the middle

mouse button to select, then move your cursor

off the graphics, then click and hold the middle

mouse button down and move your cursor to

rotate about that center point of the circle.





Press and hold the RMB (right mouse button) to bring

up the radial menu and then select the “Extrude”

command or use a gesture to execute the command

When Quickbar appears, select “Chain” from the pull down menu

Now select the outside chained edge to

extrude





If the key points are set as shown,

you should be able to select the

end point from the profile.

A glyph will appear showing the

end point.

This will set the depth.

Now select the “region”

Move the cursor off the graphics and

press the spacebar to enter the

“Add/Remove” mode – Notice the cursor





Select all 5 regions

Now select the steering wheel

arrow to extrude

As you move your cursor back

and forth notice it will either

subtract or add material to the model.

Notice the PromptBar – use the space bar to go into “Add” mode





Once you are in the add mode, drag the

cursor out and let the cursor pick up the

end point on the sketch and click to place

Using the same selection options select

the 5 holes as shown, select the steering

wheel. and drag the holes through the

model or use the “Through All” option from

QuickBar





Rotate the view so you can see the 4 bottom holes

After you get the part rotated, use a fence select

to quickly grab all 4 holes

NOTE: Do not fence other lines or arcs, so keep

your fence in the area circled in red

When you select them they will appear in

green.

Select the steering wheel arrow, drag up,

press the spacebar to get in the remove mode

and create the holes





Select the round option from the ribbon bar

Select the 5 edges shown and round at 3 mm

RMB to accept and round

Press the “ESC” key to clear the command and

then RMB in space to bring up the menu

Select “Hide All”

Select “Sketches”





Notice all the dimensions are now driving PMI dimensions

Select the 10 mm value and change it to 12.5 mm

To change, press the Ctrl key

down and scroll the mouse

wheel to the 12.5 value or just

key it in and accept





Rotate the model so that you can see the 60 mm

hole dimension

Select the “Switch Windows” command

from the ribbon bar

Then select ASM_01_00002.asm

In the assembly, select the “Inspect” tab, then select “Smart Measure”

b





Using “Smart Measure”, run a quick measure

between the 2 holes

Notice it shows the spread at 57 mm

If you recall, our part holes are 60 mm.

Use “Switch Windows” to go back to the part file

Select the 60 mm dimension

and change the value to 57 mm





Save the file

When the dialog appears, give it the name 2dto3d

Switch Windows back to the

assembly document





Once you are back in the assembly, on the left

side of the window open up the “Parts Library”

as shown and from the pull down menu, select

“Open Documents”

Here you will find the document that

we just saved (2dto3d.par).

Drag this document from the Parts Library

into the assembly

Once you drag the part into assembly, you are

automatically put in the assemble command

Select the hole first, then the shaft to place 1st

relationship





Using QuickPick, select the back face

of the part

Finally select the hole shown in the part,

then select the hole in the frame

Then select the top face of the brown frame





Key in Ctrl-B for bottom view, then zoom area

as shown and notice that the top row of holes line

up OK, but the bottom row of holes is still off

Since these are synchronous parts we can

make the change in the assembly.

Change the view to “Wireframe”

Use the “Ctrl-Spacebar”

to go into “Face Select”

mode





Using “Fence” select, place a fence around the

bottom side of the part which includes the holes

and the end of the part (we are grabbing faces)

Click the center knob on the steering wheel

Move the cursor to the hole center on

the part

Notice the faces that highlight after the

fence select





Now select the primary axis in

this case and move the top hole

to be on center of the hole below it

It should look like the image to the right

when complete, with the holes aligned.

Solid Edge will show a center glyph if you

put the cursor on the hole edge.





After the holes are aligned you can go back

to the “shaded with visible edges” view mode.

Click on the “Open”

Now we will bring in an “Inventor” part into our assembly and we can use a

direct translator that is built into Solid Edge.

Select INV_00670.ipt

Select metric_part.par

and then “OK” to start the

translation





Once the file is translated into the part

environment, select the “View” tab on

the ribbon bar, then select “Color

Manager”

In the dialog change the “Part” color to

“Blue”





Save the file in the working folder and just

use the default name

Once saved, use the “Switch Windows”

option and select the assembly





Notice that in the Parts Library the Inventor file

has been saved, so we need to drag this

document into the assembly.

The part is placed, but it is sitting in the

assembly with the wrong orientation –

press the “Tab” key or the “Flip” button.

Using the assemble command which

is automatically activated, select the

hole in the Inventor part and then

select the shaft.





Zoom area and select the back face of the

groove using QuickPick, then select the top

face of the groove on the shaft for placement.

Use the “Drag Component”, set it to a

linear move, select the Inventor part.

and select the top edge and move to

the right – just get it close.

This is how it should appear when finished.





The last part we will add to this assembly is a

SolidWorks part, so select the “Open” command

from the application pull down menu.

From the working folder, select the SolidWorks part file (sw_00650.SLDPRT).

Select the metric_part.par template and it will begin the translation.





After the part has been translated into Solid Edge

part, change the color to green using the “View-Color

Manager” command

Save the file in the “Working” folder and use the

default name (sw_00650.par)

Close the file

From the parts library drag and drop

the SolidWorks file into the assembly





Using the assemble command, begin to place

assembly relationships to position the part into

the assembly

Select the inside cylinder on the part, and then

select the shaft

Second, place a mating relationship between

the 2 faces





When you place the mate. it will more than

likely place as an alignment, so use the

“Flip” option to rotate the part.

The final relationship should be a hole

alignment between the holes in each of

the parts.





Select the SolidWorks Part and In-Place

activate into it. as we need to modify how it

connects to the Inventor part

RMB to get the radial menu and select the

“Extrude” command





Then select the face on the Inventor part

as shown to the right

RMB to accept face and drag away from part

Then let the cursor pick up the center of the round edge of the

green SolidWorks part and click to create the extrusion





Select the dimension and change the

value to 10 mm

Close and Return to the top level assembly





Select the “Create Inter-Part Relationships” command

from the “relate” group on the ribbon bar

Select the “green” SolidWorks” part

Then select the 2dto3d part

We can now let Solid Edge create inter-part

relationships for us automatically, so click on the “Save”

button at the bottom of the dialog.





Use the “Ctrl-Spacebar” keys to go into

“face” select mode and select the top face

of the green part.

Using the steering wheel, lift up the face 10 mm.

Notice with inter-part relationships created,

the inventor part also updates to the change.





Select the “Save As” option

From the Save As type, select the

“3D Adobe Acrobat Documents (PDF)

option and save it into the working folder

using the default name





Open Windows Explorer and then double click to

open the PDF document

Notice that we can easily use

view manipulation as well as view

the assembly tree, where we can

turn parts on and off





4 – Flow Lines

Open ASM_04_00010.asm”

The objective of this hands-on is to create

new flow lines with the new options in ERA.

Select the “Tools” tab,

then select “ERA”

Change assembly configuration to “custom explode”

Zoom up on the top section





Select the “Draw” command from the ribbon bar

From QuickBar click on “Change Orientation”

Select the front face of the square bar as shown

This sets the orientation of the flow line.

Pick the end points shown to create flow line





Select the 2 components shown,

then select and set the

triad orientation as shown so that

we can move these components in

the same orientation as the angled

square tubes

Move the components upward above

the other parts and then to the right

Now click on the “Modify” command





Select the vertical line , then

select the horizontal white

arrow and move the line

to the left

Adjust the line to a desired location





Select the “Modify” command

Select the “Delete” option from QuickBar

Delete the flow line shown





Select the “Change orientation” option from QuickBar

Select the face shown

Then select the flow line





RMB click to reset out of the “Change Orientation” option and then select the

“Split” button

We want to split the straight flow line in 2 places.





RMB click to reset out of the “Split” option

Select both center lines by pressing the Ctrl key

Notice the arrows are shown at the correct orientation matching the angle of

the square bar





Click on the up/down arrow

Move your cursor up and pick up the hole in the blue part

Click to place





Click the opposite arrow to move the

flow line back to the same hole

Select the same hole again

Click to place





Once the flow line is placed, simply select

both flow line segments shown and adjust

as necessary

Repeat the same steps to do the

opposite side or draw a totally

new set of flow lines





We need to draw one more flow line, so select

the “Draw” command

Area up on the u-bolt and frame

Set the orientation using the square tube

Draw a flow line between the 2 parts





Select the “Modify” command

Select the “Split” option from QuickBar

Split the new flow line in 2 places as

RMB click to reset out of the “Split” option

Now select the center flow line section





Drag the center flow line outward

away from the square bar

This hands-on is complete.




Conclusions

Great Job!

If you have any questions feel free

to ask, or come by one of the hands-on

machines at your convenience.

Technology

Solid Edge ST4 Event: Session 203 Assembly Design in Solid Edge - a Hands-on Experience by Mark Thompson