Chapter 13: Building Efficient Assemblies
IN THIS CHAPTER
Setting apart the elements of an assembly
Increasing performance by using SpeedPaks
Organizing assemblies by using subassemblies
Grouping parts and mates by using folders
Showing names and descriptions with tree display options
Employing helpful assembly tools
This chapter introduces you to techniques you can use to manage performance issues as well as general-use issues, efficiency, browse-worthiness, and searchability in assemblies.
Understanding the Purpose of Assemblies
In the physical world, assemblies exist for several reasons:
• Separating materials
• Allowing relative motion
• Reducing material
• Allowing for different manufacturing techniques
• Allowing for disassembly or repair
In a CAD model, you need to follow these physical-world reasons for making individual parts and putting them together in assemblies, but CAD models can have additional requirements. Independent of the reasons stemming from physical-world requirements, CAD assemblies might have some unique reasons for existing:
• Depicting an assembly process such as order of operations
• Specifying dimensional assembly relationships and tolerances
• Establishing clearances and limits of motion
• Visualizing motion and spatial relationships between parts
• Designing parts in-context
• Creating a parts list for assembly (Bill of Materials, or BOM)
• Creating a parts list for purchasing
• Automating data entry through product data management (PDM)
• Staging ...
