Animation Guide
Animation Guide
0 ME170
The pin connection and slider connection are the two simplest and most common mechanism
connections. This document provides instructions for creating each connection. The ME 170
term project instructions state that you must have at least one motion axis in your final project.
Your motion axis does not have to be a pin-type or a slider-type. These two connection
instructions are provided solely as a reference.
The outline of this document is as follows:
• Pin Connection Definition
• Slider Connection Definition
• Animation with Snapshots
• Animation using a Servo Motor
Additional information on joint connections, Creo's mechanism capabilities, animations, and
motion analyses can be found in the "Joint Connection, Mechanism, & Animation Reference"
document on the ME 170 course website.
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3) Select the component you would like to assemble and click "Open."
4) Select a "Pin" connection from the motion connection drop-down menu.
5) Open the "Placement" tab in the assembly ribbon. This will help guide you through the
definition of the connection (image below).
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6) Notice that the connection definition is asking for "Axis alignment" references.
Consequently, we will first select the axes to align.
7) Select the rotation axis for the pin connection. Note that a cylindrical surface, the axis of a
coordinate system, and an actual axis can all be used to define a rotation axis. In the image
below, the inner cylindrical surfaces of the hinge have been selected.
8) After selecting the rotation axes, go back to the "Placement" tab in the assembly ribbon
(image below). Notice that Creo now requests that we select "Translation" constraints.
The pin connection in Creo does not permit translational motion. It only permits rotation
around one axis. It is a single degree-of-freedom (1 DOF) connection. The translation
constraint is used to align the rotating components along the rotation axis.
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9) Select two planes or surfaces normal to the motion axis to serve as translational alignment
constraints. Note that an offset or distance value can be specified for the translation
constraint, so the planes or surfaces do not need to be coincident. In the hinge example, two
mating surfaces have been selected to be coincident.
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10) Go back to the "Placement" tab on the assembly ribbon. Click on "Rotation Axis" to define
additional useful parameters for the hinge.
The parameters under the "Rotation Axis" heading govern the regeneration value and
minimum, and maximum limits of motion for the hinge. If these parameters are not defined,
Creo will permit unrealistic motion of the component such as that shown in the image below.
11) Select two planes to serve as angular references for the regen value and max and min limits
of motion. The two upper surfaces of the hinge have been selected as shown in the image
below.
12) Double click the angle in the model window and specify a regeneration value. Click the
middle mouse button to confirm the new value. An angle of "90.00" has be specified in the
image below. However, "90" was insufficient. The angle had to be adjusted to "-90" to yield
a physically-feasible orientation.
13) Click the ">>" button in the "Placement" tab to set the current position as the regeneration
position (image below).
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14) Click the "Enable regeneration value" checkbox to enable a regeneration value. If necessary
(if required by your design), specify minimum and maximum limits of motion and check the
checkboxes to enable these constraints.
16) Move your newly assembled component by holding CTRL+ALT and clicking and dragging
the component. Notice that the motion will stop at the defined minimum and maximum
limits. If you have defined a regeneration value, click regenerate or type CTRL+G to
regenerate the model to return the model to its base state.
17) NOTE: Pay particular attention to your assembly references when assembling components.
Additional components which are assembled with references to moving components, may
themselves become moving components.
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2) Select the component you would like to assemble and click "Open."
3) Open the "Placement" tab in the assembly ribbon. This will help guide you through the
definition of the connection.
Notice that the connection definition is asking for "Axis alignment" definition. Consequently,
we will first select the motion axes to align.
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4) Select the motion axis for the slider connection. This is the axis along which the two
components will slide. Note that a cylindrical surface, the axis of a coordinate system, and an
actual axis can all be used to define a motion axis. In the image below, the inner cylindrical
surface of the pneumatic cylinder and the outer cylindrical surface of the shaft have been
selected.
5) After selecting the rotation axes, go back to the "Placement" tab in the assembly ribbon.
Notice that Creo now requests that we select "Rotation" constraints.
The slider connection in Creo does not permit rotational motion. It only permits translation
along one axis. It is a single degree-of-freedom (1 DOF) connection. The rotation constraint
is used to align the translating components along the translation axis.
6) Select two planes or surfaces parallel to the translation axis to serve as rotational alignment
constraints (image below). These two planes or surfaces will be constrained to be oriented
parallel to one another. An offset angle cannot be specified for this rotation constraint. In this
example, flat surfaces on the piston and the cylinder have been selected.
Note that this is not a particularly realistic constraint for a pneumatic cylinder. The piston of
a pneumatic cylinder is typically free to rotate about its translation axis. Consequently, Creo's
"Cylinder" motion connection would be more appropriate. However, for the purposes of this
example, the pneumatic cylinder will suffice.
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7) Go back to the "Placement" tab on the assembly ribbon. Click on "Translation Axis" to
define additional useful parameters for the slider connection.
The parameters under the "Translation Axis" heading govern the regeneration value and
minimum, and maximum limits of motion for the slider connection. If these parameters are
not defined, Creo will permit unrealistic motion of the component such as a piston that
moves beyond its mechanical stops in the pneumatic cylinder.
8) Select two planes or surfaces to serve as translation references for the regen value and max
and min limits of translational motion. These two planes or surfaces should be normal to the
axis of motion. The top surfaces of the piston and cylinder have been selected for this
example.
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9) Double click the distance in the model window and specify a regeneration value. Click the
middle mouse button to confirm the new value. An distance of "1.00" has be specified in the
image below.
10) Click the ">>" button in the "Placement" tab to set the current position as the regeneration
position.
11) Click the "Enable regeneration value" checkbox to enable a regeneration value. If necessary
(if required by your design), specify minimum and maximum limits of motion and check the
checkboxes to enable these constraints.
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13) Move your newly assembled component by holding CTRL+ALT and clicking and dragging
the component. Notice that the motion will stop at the defined minimum and maximum
limits. If you have defined a regeneration value, click regenerate or type CTRL+G to
regenerate the model to return the model to its base state.
NOTE: Pay particular attention to your assembly references when assembling components.
Additional components which are assembled with references to moving components, may
themselves become moving components.
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3) In the new window on the right side of the screen, click the arrow next to "Snapshots" to
expose the Snapshots window.
4) Click and drag your component to the first position of your animation. Note that you will
only be able to record 10 frames for your snapshot animation. It is possible to create multiple
animations if one does not adequately demonstrate the functionality of your part.
5) Once your component is in position, click the "Take a Snapshot" button in the "Drag"
window (image below).
6) Click and drag your assembly to a new orientation. Take multiple snapshots of your
component to use for your animation. You can delete snapshots by right clicking on them and
selecting "Delete" in the "Drag" window.
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7) Once you have enough snapshots (10 max for the particular animation), close the "Drag"
window.
8) To begin an animation, navigate to the "Applications" tab and click the "Animation" icon.
10) Specify a name for your animation and click "OK" (image below).
11) Click the "Key Frame Sequence" icon on the top ribbon to create a new frame sequence.
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12) Populate your animation with snapshots by selecting a snapshot, specifying the time, and
clicking the "+" button. Note that the time will increment automatically by 1 second each
time you add a snapshot to the animation. The one-second-per-snapshot baseline is good for
timing.
13) Change the interpolation buttons from "Linear" to "Smooth" to increase the production
quality of your animation (image below).
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19) Click "OK" to cloes the "Animation Time Domain" box. Click the "Generate" button to
rebuild your animation. Navigate back to the "Playback" controls to watch your animation.
20) To save the animation, first save your assembly in Creo (File > Save or CTRL+S). Click the
"Capture" buttons in the "Playback" controls area.
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21) Specify a name and parameters for your video file (image below).
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You will see that there are a lot of options to change when setting up a
mechanism. The Mechanism ribbon, shown below, is where all of the
setup and analysis is configured.
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Cams
Cam connections can be made by selecting the Cams button located on
the Mechanism ribbon. The Cam Follower Connection Definition
dialog box will pop up with the Cam 1 page selected.
Gears – Generic
Gear connections can be made by selecting the Gears button located on
the Mechanism ribbon. The Gear Pair Definition dialog box will pop
up with the Gear1 page selected.
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Gears – Spur
Gear connections can be made by selecting the Gears button located on
the Mechanism ribbon. The Gear Pair Definition dialog box will pop
up with the Gear1 page selected.
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Gears – Bevel
Gear connections can be made by selecting the Gears button located on
the Mechanism ribbon. The Gear Pair Definition dialog box will pop
up with the Gear1 page selected.
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Gears – Worm
Gear connections can be made by selecting the Gears button located on
the Mechanism ribbon. The Gear Pair Definition dialog box will pop
up with the Gear1 page selected.
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Springs – Extension/Compression
Spring can be added by selecting the Springs button located on the
Mechanism ribbon.
I. To add a spring, click on the Springs button on the Insert tab.
Make sure you turn on Point Display to show datum points. A
spring requires a top and bottom datum point or a translational
axis to constrain it.
II. For the point method, select the point corresponding to the top of
the spring and then hold CTRL and select the bottom point of the
spring to complete it
III. When creating a spring along a translation axis, the spring length
must be set using the references tab.
a. Points or vertices can be used to set the spring length by
selecting the Custom option in references.
b. The spring length can also be constrained to start at the
initial, or zero, position of the translational axis by selecting
the Use motion axis zero option
IV. The spring definition ribbon allows the user to change the spring
stiffness, the stiffness units and the free length.
V. The visual diameter of the spring can be changed by using the
Adjust Icon Diameter under the options tab in the spring
definition ribbon. This has no physical effects.
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Springs – Torsion
Springs can be added by selecting the Springs button located on the
Mechanism ribbon.
I. To add a torsion spring, click on the Springs icon on the Insert
tab. Then click on the Torsion Spring button to the left of the
green reference box. A torsion spring requires a rotation axis to
constrain it.
II. When creating a spring along a rotational axis, the spring angle
must be set using the references tab.
a. Planar surfaces can be used to set the spring angle by
selecting the Custom option in references.
b. The spring angle can also be constrained to start at the
initial, or zero, position of the rotational axis by selecting
the Use motion axis zero option
III. The spring definition ribbon allows the user to change the spring
stiffness and the stiffness units.
IV. The visual diameter of the spring can be changed by using the
Adjust Icon Diameter under the options tab in the spring
definition ribbon. This has no physical effects.
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Damper – Torsion
Dampers can be added by selecting the Dampers button located on the
Mechanism ribbon.
I. To add a torsion damper, click on the Damper icon on the Insert
tab. Then click on the Torsion Damper button to the left of the
green reference box. A torsion damper requires a rotation axis to
constrain it.
II. The damper definition ribbon allows the user to change the
damping rate and the damping rate units.
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Servo Motors
Servo motors move the mechanism according to a user specified profile.
Servo motors do not take friction, mass or other parameters into account,
they just move the model.
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Force Motors
Force motors move the mechanism according to a user specified profile.
Force motors take mass into account. A dynamic or force analysis will
only run if mass properties are defined for every part in the mechanism.
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Mechanism Tree
Similar to the Model Tree, the Mechanism Tree is used to edit the
mechanism’s features. Motors, connections, spring and other parameters
can be accessed and modified from this tree.
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Mass Properties
Mass properties are important for applications that require a dynamic or
static analysis. For these analyses to work, all bodies need to have a
mass associated with them. The user can set the mass properties in
multiple ways when using the mechanism application.
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Gravity
Gravity can be setup for use in dynamic and static analyses.
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Snapshot
Snapshots of the mechanism can be taken and used as the initial
configuration for an analysis. This is a useful tool to start at the same
initial position for multiple analyses.
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Mechanism Analysis
The actual animation of the mechanism is done through a Mechanism
Analysis.
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Mechanism Analysis
To create a basic animation, a position or kinematic analysis is
recommended. Static, dynamic and force balance analysis require mass
properties to run, while a position or kinematic analysis will run without
those setup.
Once the type of analysis is selected, the motors to move the model must
be setup.
I. The Motors tab is used to specify which motors will run the
analysis. For the position and kinematic analysis, only the servo
motor will be listed.
II. Dynamic, Static and Force Balance analysis can also use force
motors. When running these analyses, both force and servo motors
will be listed in the motors tab. It is important to remove motors if
they are not required as they can “fight” each other if setup
incorrectly.
III. Use the buttons to the right of the motors to add or delete motors.
IV. The External Load tab can be used to setup external user defined
loads and can also be used to turn on friction and gravity.
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Playback
The Playback button can be used to playback the animation of any
analysis and also export it as a video.
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