CATIA V5 Best Practices in Part Design
CATIA V5 Best Practices in Part Design
CATIA V5 Best Practices in Part Design
To achieve easy understandability and comprehensibility of the design process To have sufficiently good quality and error free CAD models Enable easy changes and lower update times Ensure continuity and security in the design process
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Rule 1
Avoid using hybrid design
Working in hybrid design environment means that you can create wire frame and surface features within the same body Non-hybrid models are more flexible from a design/modification standpoint and usable in all workbenches
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Rule 2
If possible, all parts should be designed as Solid features in the Workbench Part Design
When surfaces have to be created, they have to be integrated in the tree structure in the solid With this, control/modification of the geometry becomes simpler
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Rule 3
Part Body should not be renamed Part Body should have only ONE Boolean operation Add
The properties of the CATPart (mass, volume etc.) are defined by geometry in the Part Body
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Rule 4
Always rename Bodies and Geometrical Sets appropriate to what they stand for Do not use special characters in the names. It is recommended to insert a _ between the words and not to leave any blank spaces
It is recommended to rename all important elements in the geometry (e.g. point, plane, line etc.) This will enable easy understanding of the tree and geometry
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Rule 5
Draft and Fillet should be positioned as early as possible in the structure tree Draft should come first and then the Fillet
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Rule 6
Do not use the colors red or orange for the geometry. These colors are system colors
Rule 7
Avoid using Ordered Geometrical Set. Use Geometrical Set with which management of points, curves, surfaces etc. becomes easier. It is also possible to transfer the Geometrical Set under a body which becomes necessary sometimes to avoid update cycles
Rule 8
Avoid using commands like MULTI-PAD, MULTI-POCKET, REMOVE FACE, REPLACE FACE, REMOVE LUMP. These functions access implicit elements which can cause update errors.
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Rule 9
Do not use the commands TRANSLATION, ROTATION in Part Design Problems
File size increases Not very easy to update
Solution
Use these commands from the GSD Workbench
Advantages
No abnormal change in file size Easy to update
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Rule 10.2
Only the result geometry should be in SHOW and all the other supporting geometry should be in HIDE. All unnecessary elements should be deleted and the file size should be as small as possible.
Rule 10.3
The View Projection type is set to Parallel and NOT Perspective
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Rule 1
Try to always use only Positioned Sketches Advantages
The position of the sketch is controllable and defined. The sketch position cannot be moved with the compass More stable The position of the sketch can be changed using Change Sketch Support
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Rule 2
Profiles in the Sketch should be defined completely Use Sketch Analysis and ensure that the profile is Iso-constrained Avoid using infinite lines in the sketch
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Rule 3
A sketch should contain only one profile. For multiple profiles, multiple sketches should be used
Advantages
More stable change behavior REPLACE for every profile separately and easily possible
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Rule 4
Create the profiles in the Sketch as simple as possible
Advantages
Easy changes possible (deleting, moving) More stable behavior Arrangement clear (dimensions, constraints etc.)
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Rule 5
Avoid filleting in the Sketch. FILLETS are features and should appear in the structure tree
Advantages
REORDER of fillets possible Easy to modify More stable behavior
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Rule 6
Sketches should not contain implicit elements
The user should project the reference manually in the Sketch, section it with the sketch plane or offset the sketch as required. Do not use the geometry reference as it is
Advantages
REPLACE of such elements is easier Even for hidden reference elements, the reference is visible in the tree as well as in the geometry
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Rule 7
Avoid using the command Infinite Line in the Workbench Sketcher
Even for the infinite lines, two end points are created These end points can cause problems when Fit in all is used The Sketch also always remains Under Constrained
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Rule 8
Never use the same Sketch multiple times, instead define a Master Sketch A Master Sketch is placed high up in the structure tree normally under a Geometrical Set. An associative copy of this Master Sketch is used multiple times wherever required
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Rule 8 (Continued)..
Advantages of Master Sketch
The structure is well organized and easy to understand Changes to the Sketch are only possible and necessary to the original If the associative copy is deleted, the original is retained Change Sketch Support is also possible independently for the associative copies REPLACE of the associative copy does not affect the original If the original is deleted, the associative copy gets isolated
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New position point (Zero point) and new reference planes created in place of default planes This position point and planes are used for further geometry creation
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Disadvantages
Rotation of geometry is difficult
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Rule a)
Only a Right handed Axis System and Axis System type Standard is to be used
Advantages
Sub structures can be replaced or copied easily (no mirroring by accident) Safety in the design process (all analyses are interpreted correctly)
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Rule b)
The origin point should always be an explicit 3D point No positioning of the axis with the contextual menu (using right mouse button click)
Advantages
Only with an explicit 3D point, associativity with the subsequent elements (e.g. sketches) is possible
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Rule c)
The rotation of the Axis system should be done from the Generative Shape Design (GSD) Workbench
Rotation of the axis system with the help of context menu (right mouse button click) is not permitted
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Rule d)
For every Sketch, the origin and orientation with respect to the Axis system has to be defined When working with Axis System, only Positioned sketches to be used Only with complete definition (as shown), the Sketches are fully associative to the Axis System New 3D points have to be explicitly related to the Axis system for associativity
Rule e)
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Disadvantages
The use should be done with caution as per the rules mentioned in the previous slides Inability to follow the rules can lead to erroneous results
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Free positioning in space (independent from other parts) Good reusability of the CATParts
Which of the procedures to be used depends on the Project. A combination of all the three procedures can also be used
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Rule 1
CATProducts with assembly constraints contain at least one fixed component
Rule 2
In the fix constraint, the option Fix in space should not be deactivated
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Rule 2
Use the following Analysis tools regularly to control the quality of data during the design process Sketch Analysis (Workbench Sketcher/Tools):
To analyze the problems within a Sketch
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