NX 10 for Engineering Design

By
Ming C. Leu
Amir Ghazanfari
Krishna Kolan

Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

 Contents
FOREWORD...........................................................................................................1

CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION.........................................................................2

1.1 Product Realization Process..................................................................................................2

1.2 Brief History of CAD/CAM Development...........................................................................3
1.3 Definition of CAD/CAM/CAE.............................................................................................5
1.3.1 Computer Aided Design – CAD...................................................................................5
1.3.2 Computer Aided Manufacturing – CAM......................................................................5
1.3.3 Computer Aided Engineering – CAE...........................................................................5
1.4. Scope of This Tutorial..........................................................................................................6

CHAPTER 2 – GETTING STARTED..................................................................8

2.1 Starting an NX 10 Session and Opening Files......................................................................8

2.1.1 Start an NX 10 Session.................................................................................................8
2.1.2 Open a New File............................................................................................................9
2.1.3 Open a Part File...........................................................................................................11
2.2 Printing, Saving and Closing Files......................................................................................12
2.2.1 Print an NX 10 Image.................................................................................................12
2.2.2 Save Part Files.............................................................................................................12
2.2.3 Close Part Files...........................................................................................................13
2.2.4 Exit an NX 10 Session................................................................................................14
2.3 NX 10 Interface...................................................................................................................14
2.3.1 Mouse Functionality....................................................................................................14
2.3.2 NX 10 Gateway...........................................................................................................17
2.3.3 Geometry Selection.....................................................................................................21
2.3.4 User Preferences..........................................................................................................22
2.3.5 Applications................................................................................................................25
2.4 Layers..................................................................................................................................26
2.4.1 Layer Control..............................................................................................................26
 2.4.2 Commands in Layers..................................................................................................27
2.5 Coordinate Systems.............................................................................................................29
2.5.1 Absolute Coordinate System.......................................................................................29
2.5.2 Work Coordinate System............................................................................................29
2.5.3 Moving the WCS.........................................................................................................29
2.6 Toolbars..............................................................................................................................30

CHAPTER 3 – TWO DIMENSIONAL SKETCHING......................................33

3.1 Overview.............................................................................................................................33
3.2 Sketching Environment.......................................................................................................34
3.3 Sketch Curve Toolbar.........................................................................................................35
3.4 Constraints Toolbar.............................................................................................................37
3.5 Examples.............................................................................................................................40
3.5.1 Arbor Press Base.........................................................................................................40
3.5.2 Impeller Lower Casing................................................................................................44
3.5.3 Impeller.......................................................................................................................48

CHAPTER 4 – THREE DIMENSIONAL MODELING...................................50

4.1 Types of Features................................................................................................................50

4.1.1 Primitives....................................................................................................................51
4.1.2 Reference Features......................................................................................................51
4.1.3 Swept Features............................................................................................................52
4.1.4 Remove Features.........................................................................................................53
4.1.5 Extract Features...........................................................................................................53
4.1.6 User-Defined features.................................................................................................54
4.2 Primitives............................................................................................................................54
4.2.1 Model a Block.............................................................................................................54
4.2.2 Model a Shaft..............................................................................................................56
4.3 Reference Features..............................................................................................................58
4.3.1 Datum Plane................................................................................................................58
4.3.2 Datum Axis.................................................................................................................60
4.4 Swept Features....................................................................................................................61
 4.5 Remove Features.................................................................................................................65
4.5.1 General Hole...............................................................................................................66
4.5.2 Pocket..........................................................................................................................68
4.5.3 Slot..............................................................................................................................68
4.5.4 Groove.........................................................................................................................68
4.6 Feature Operations..............................................................................................................69
4.6.1 Edge Blend..................................................................................................................69
4.6.2 Chamfer.......................................................................................................................69
4.6.3 Thread.........................................................................................................................70
4.6.4 Trim Body...................................................................................................................71
4.6.5 Split Body....................................................................................................................71
4.6.6 Mirror..........................................................................................................................71
4.6.7 Pattern.........................................................................................................................72
4.6.8 Boolean Operations.....................................................................................................73
4.6.9 Move...........................................................................................................................73
4.7 Examples.............................................................................................................................75
4.7.1 Hexagonal Screw........................................................................................................75
4.7.2 Hexagonal Nut............................................................................................................78
4.7.3 L-Bar...........................................................................................................................81
4.7.4 Rack.............................................................................................................................85
4.7.5 Impeller.......................................................................................................................89
4.8 Standard Parts Library........................................................................................................92
4.9 Synchronous Technology....................................................................................................93
4.10 Exercises...........................................................................................................................96
4.10.1 Circular Base.............................................................................................................96
4.10.2 Impeller Upper Casing..............................................................................................96
4.10.3 Die-Cavity.................................................................................................................97

CHAPTER 5 – DRAFTING.................................................................................99

5.1 Overview.............................................................................................................................99
5.2 Creating a Drafting............................................................................................................100
5.3 Dimensioning....................................................................................................................105
 5.4 Sectional View..................................................................................................................108
5.5 Product and Manufacturing Information...........................................................................109
5.6 Example............................................................................................................................112
5.7 Exercise.............................................................................................................................116

CHAPTER 6 – ASSEMBLY MODELING.......................................................117

6.1 Terminology......................................................................................................................117
6.2 Assembling Approaches...................................................................................................118
6.2.1 Top-Down Approach................................................................................................118
6.2.2 Bottom-Up Approach................................................................................................118
6.2.3 Mixing and Matching................................................................................................119
6.3 Assembly Navigator..........................................................................................................119
6.4 Mating Constraints............................................................................................................120
6.5 Example............................................................................................................................120
6.5.1 Starting an Assembly................................................................................................121
6.5.2 Adding Components and Constraints........................................................................124
6.5.3 Exploded View..........................................................................................................132
6.6 Exercise.............................................................................................................................135

CHAPTER 7 – FREEFORMING......................................................................137

7.1 Overview...........................................................................................................................137
7.1.1 Creating Freeform Features from Points...................................................................138
7.1.2 Creating Freeform Features from Section Strings....................................................138
7.1.3 Creating Freeform Features from Faces....................................................................139
7.2 FreeForm Feature Modeling.............................................................................................139
7.2.1 Modeling with Points................................................................................................140
7.2.2 Modeling with a Point Cloud....................................................................................141
7.2.3 Modeling with Curves...............................................................................................143
7.2.4 Modeling with Curves and Faces..............................................................................144
7.3 Exercise.............................................................................................................................146

CHAPTER 8 – FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS.............................................147

 8.1 Overview...........................................................................................................................147
8.1.1 Element Shapes and Nodes.......................................................................................147
8.1.2 Solution Steps............................................................................................................149
8.1.3 Simulation Navigator................................................................................................150
8.2 Scenario Creation..............................................................................................................150
8.3 Material Properties............................................................................................................153
8.4 Meshing.............................................................................................................................155
8.5 Loads.................................................................................................................................156
8.6 Boundary Conditions........................................................................................................157
8.7 Result and Simulation.......................................................................................................158
8.7.1 Solving the Scenario.................................................................................................158
8.7.2 FEA Result................................................................................................................159
8.7.3 Simulation and Animation........................................................................................162
8.8 Exercise.............................................................................................................................164

CHAPTER 9 – MANUFACTURING................................................................165

9.1 Getting Started..................................................................................................................165

9.1.1 Creation of a Blank...................................................................................................165
9.1.2 Setting Machining Environment...............................................................................167
9.1.3 Operation Navigator..................................................................................................168
9.1.4 Machine Coordinate System (MCS).........................................................................169
9.1.5 Geometry Definition.................................................................................................169
9.2 Creating Operation............................................................................................................170
9.2.1 Creating a New Operation.........................................................................................170
9.2.2 Tool Creation and Selection......................................................................................171
9.2.3 Tool Path Settings.....................................................................................................174
9.2.4 Step Over and Scallop Height...................................................................................175
9.2.5 Depth Per Cut............................................................................................................176
9.2.6 Cutting Parameters....................................................................................................176
9.2.7 Avoidance.................................................................................................................177
9.2.8 Speeds and Feeds......................................................................................................178
9.3 Program Generation and Verification...............................................................................180
9.3.1 Generating Program..................................................................................................180
9.3.2 Tool Path Display......................................................................................................180
9.3.3 Tool Path Simulation.................................................................................................181
9.3.4 Gouge Check.............................................................................................................183
9.4 Operation Methods............................................................................................................184
9.4.1 Roughing...................................................................................................................184
9.4.2 Semi-Finishing..........................................................................................................184
9.4.3 Finishing Profile........................................................................................................187
9.4.4 Finishing Contour Surface........................................................................................191
9.4.5 Flooring.....................................................................................................................195
9.5 Post Processing.................................................................................................................197
9.5.1 Creating CLSF..........................................................................................................198
9.5.2 Post Processing..........................................................................................................199
 FOREWORD

NX is one of the world’s most advanced and tightly integrated CAD/CAM/CAE product
development solution. Spanning the entire range of product development, NX delivers immense
value to enterprises of all sizes. It simplifies complex product designs, thus speeding up the
process of introducing products to the market.

The NX software integrates knowledge-based principles, industrial design, geometric modeling,

advanced analysis, graphic simulation, and concurrent engineering. The software has powerful
hybrid modeling capabilities by integrating constraint-based feature modeling and explicit
geometric modeling. In addition to modeling standard geometry parts, it allows the user to design
complex free-form shapes such as airfoils and manifolds. It also merges solid and surface
modeling techniques into one powerful tool set.

This self-guiding tutorial provides a step-by-step approach for users to learn NX 10. It is
intended for those with no previous experience with NX. However, users of previous versions of
NX may also find this tutorial useful for them to learn the new user interfaces and functions. The
user will be guided from starting an NX 10 session to creating models and designs that have
various applications. Each chapter has components explained with the help of various dialog
boxes and screen images. These components are later used in the assembly modeling, machining
and finite element analysis. The files of components are also available online to download and
use. We first released the tutorial for Unigraphics 18 and later updated for NX 2 followed by the
updates for NX 3, NX 5, NX 7 and NX 9. This write-up further updates to NX 10.

Our previous efforts to prepare the NX self-guiding tutorial were funded by the National Science
Foundation’s Advanced Technological Education Program and by the Partners of the
Advancement of Collaborative Engineering Education (PACE) program.

If you have any questions or comments about this tutorial, please email Ming C. Leu at
[email protected] or Amir Ghazanfari at [email protected]. The models and all the versions of the
tutorial are available at http://web.mst.edu/~mleu.

NX 10 for Engineering Design 1 Missouri University of Science and Technology

 CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION

The modern manufacturing environment can be characterized by the paradigm of delivering

products of increasing variety, smaller batches and higher quality in the context of increasing
global competition. Industries cannot survive worldwide competition unless they introduce new
products with better quality, at lower costs and with shorter lead-time. There is intense
international competition and decreased availability of skilled labor. With dramatic changes in
computing power and wider availability of software tools for design and production, engineers
are now using Computer Aided Design (CAD), Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM) and
Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) systems to automate their design and production processes.
These technologies are now used every day for sorts of different engineering tasks. Below is a
brief description of how CAD, CAM, and CAE technologies are being used during the product
realization process.

1.1 PRODUCT REALIZATION PROCESS

The product realization process can be roughly divided into two phases; design and
manufacturing. The design process starts with identification of new customer needs and design
variables to be improved, which are identified by the marketing personnel after getting feedback
from the customers. Once the relevant design information is gathered, design specifications are
formulated. A feasibility study is conducted with relevant design information and detailed design
and analyses are performed. The detailed design includes design conceptualization, prospective
product drawings, sketches and geometric modeling. Analysis includes stress analysis,
interference checking, kinematics analysis, mass property calculations and tolerance analysis,
and design optimization. The quality of the results obtained from these activities is directly
related to the quality of the analysis and the tools used for conducting the analysis.

The manufacturing process starts with the shop-floor activities beginning from production
planning, which uses the design process drawings and ends with the actual product. Process
planning includes activities like production planning, material procurement, and machine
selection. There are varied tasks like procurement of new tools, NC programming and quality
checks at various stages during the production process. Process planning includes planning for
all
the processes used in manufacturing of the product. Parts that pass the quality control inspections
are assembled functionally tested, packaged, labeled, and shipped to customers.

A diagram representing the Product Realization Process (Mastering CAD/CAM, by Ibrahim Zeid,
McGraw Hill, 2005) is shown below.

1.2 BRIEF HISTORY OF CAD/CAM DEVELOPMENT

The roots of current CAD/CAM technologies go back to the beginning of civilization when
engineers in ancient Egypt recognized graphics communication. Orthographic projection
practiced today was invented around the 1800s. The real development of CAD/CAM systems
started in the 1950s. CAD/CAM went through four major phases of development in the last
century. The 1950s was known as the era of interactive computer graphics. MIT’s Servo
Mechanisms Laboratory demonstrated the concept of numerical control (NC) on a three-axis
milling machine. Development in this era was slowed down by the shortcomings of computers at
the time. During the late 1950s
the development of Automatically Programmed Tools (APT) began and General Motors
explored the potential of interactive graphics.

The 1960s was the most critical research period for interactive computer graphics. Ivan
Sutherland developed a sketchpad system, which demonstrated the possibility of creating
drawings and altercations of objects interactively on a cathode ray tube (CRT). The term CAD
started to appear with the word ‘design’ extending beyond basic drafting concepts. General
Motors announced their DAC-1 system and Bell Technologies introduced the GRAPHIC 1
remote display system.

During the 1970s, the research efforts of the previous decade in computer graphics had begun to
be fruitful, and potential of interactive computer graphics in improving productivity was realized
by industry, government and academia. The 1970s is characterized as the golden era for
computer drafting and the beginning of ad hoc instrumental design applications. National
Computer Graphics Association (NCGA) was formed and Initial Graphics Exchange
Specification (IGES) was initiated.

In the 1980s, new theories and algorithms evolved and integration of various elements of design
and manufacturing was developed. The major research and development focus was to expand
CAD/CAM systems beyond three-dimensional geometric designs and provide more engineering
applications.

The present day CAD/CAM development focuses on efficient and fast integration and
automation of various elements of design and manufacturing along with the development of new
algorithms. There are many commercial CAD/CAM packages available for direct usages that are
user-friendly and very proficient.

Below are some of the commercial packages in the present market.

 Solid Edge, AutoCAD and Mechanical Desktop are some low-end CAD software
systems, which are mainly used for 2D modeling and drawing.

 NX, Pro-E, CATIA and I-DEAS are high-end modeling and designing software systems
that are costlier but more powerful. These software systems also have computer aided
manufacturing and engineering analysis capabilities.

 ANSYS, ABAQUS, NASTRAN, and COMSOL are packages mainly used for analysis of
structures and fluids. Different software are used for different proposes.
  Geomagic and CollabCAD are some of the systems that focus on collaborative design,
enabling multiple users of the software to collaborate on computer-aided design over the
Internet.

1.3 DEFINITION OF CAD/CAM/CAE

Following are the definitions of some of the terms used in this tutorial.

1.3.1 Computer Aided Design – CAD

CAD is technology concerned with using computer systems to assist in the creation,
modification, analysis, and optimization of a design. Any computer program that embodies
computer graphics and an application program facilitating engineering functions in design
process can be classified as CAD software.

The most basic role of CAD is to define the geometry of design – a mechanical part, a product
assembly, an architectural structure, an electronic circuit, a building layout, etc. The greatest
benefits of CAD systems are that they can save considerable time and reduce errors caused by
otherwise having to redefine the geometry of the design from scratch every time it is needed.

1.3.2 Computer Aided Manufacturing – CAM

CAM technology involves computer systems that plan, manage, and control the manufacturing
operations through computer interface with the plant’s production resources.

One of the most important areas of CAM is numerical control (NC). This is the technique of
using programmed instructions to control a machine tool, which cuts, mills, grinds, punches or
turns raw stock into a finished part. Another significant CAM function is in the programming of
robots. Process planning is also a target of computer automation.

1.3.3 Computer Aided Engineering – CAE

CAE technology uses a computer system to analyze the functions of a CAD-created product,
allowing designers to simulate and study how the product will behave so that the design can be
refined and optimized.

CAE tools are available for a number of different types of analyses. For example, kinematic
analysis programs can be used to determine motion paths and linkage velocities in mechanisms.
Dynamic analysis programs can be used to determine loads and displacements in complex
assemblies such as automobiles. One of the most popular methods of analyses is using a Finite
Element Method (FEM). This approach can be used to determine stress, deformation, heat
transfer, magnetic field distribution, fluid flow, and other continuous field problems that are
often too tough to solve with any other approach.

1.4. SCOPE OF THIS TUTORIAL

This tutorial is written for students and engineers who are interested in learning how to use NX
10 for designing mechanical components and assemblies. Learning to use this software will also
be valuable for learning how to use other CAD systems such as PRO-E and CATIA.

This tutorial provides a step-by-step approach for learning NX 10.

Chapter 2 includes the NX 10 essentials from starting a session to getting familiar with the NX
10 layout by practicing basic functions such as Print, Save, and Exit. It also gives a brief
description of the Coordinate System, Layers, various toolboxes and other important commands,
which will be used in later chapters.

Chapter 3 presents the concept of sketching. It describes how to create sketches and to give
geometric and dimensional constraints. This chapter is very important since present-day
components are very complex in geometry and difficult to model with only basic features.

The actual designing and modeling of parts begins with chapter 4. It describes different features
such as reference features, swept features and primitive features and how these features are used
to create designs. Various kinds of feature operations are performed on features.

You will learn how to create a drawing from a part model in chapter 5. In this chapter, we
demonstrate how to create a drawing by adding views, dimensioning the part drawings, and
modifying various attributes in the drawing such as text size, arrow size and tolerance.

Chapter 6 teaches the concepts of Assembly Modeling and its terminologies. It describes Top-
Down modeling and Bottom-Up modeling. We will use Bottom-Up modeling to assemble
components into a product.

Chapter 7 introduces free-form modeling. The method of modeling curves and smooth surfaces
will be demonstrated.
Chapter 8 is capsulated into a brief introduction to Design Simulations available in NX 10 for
the Finite Element Analysis.

Chapter 9 will be a real-time experience of implementing a designed model into a

manufacturing environment for machining. This chapter deals with generation, verification and
simulation of Tool Path to create CNC (Computer Numerical Codes) to produce the designed
parts from multiple axes and even advanced CNC machines.

The examples and exercise problems used in each chapter are so designed that they will be
finally assembled in the chapter. Due to this distinctive feature, you should save all the models
that you have generated in each chapter.
 CHAPTER 2 – GETTING STARTED

We begin with starting of an NX 10 session. This chapter will provide the basics required to use
any CAD/CAM package. You will learn the preliminary steps to start, to understand and to use
the NX 10 package for modeling, drafting, etc. It contains five sub-sections a) Opening an NX 10
session, b) Printing, saving, and closing part files, c) getting acquainted with the NX 10 user
interface d) Using layers and e) Understanding important commands and dialogs.

2.1 STARTING AN NX 10 SESSION AND OPENING FILES

2.1.1 Start an NX 10 Session

 From the Windows desktop screen, click on Start →All Programs →Siemens NX 10 →
NX 10
The main NX 10 Screen will open. This is the Gateway for the NX 10 software. The NX 10
blank screen looks like the figure shown below. There will be several tips displayed on the
screen about the special features of the current version. The Gateway also has the Standard
Toolbar that will allow you to create a new file or open an existing file. On the left side of the
Gateway screen, there is a toolbar called the Resource Bar that has menus related to different
modules and the ability to define and change the Role of the software, view History of the
software use and so on. This will be explained in detail later in this chapter.

2.1.2 Open a New File

Let’s begin by learning how to open a new part file in NX 10. To create a new file there are three
options.

 Click on the New button on top of the screen

OR
  Go through the File drop-down menu at the top-left of the screen and click New

OR

 Press <Ctrl> + N
This will open a new session, asking for the type, name and location of the new file to be created.

There are numerous types of files in NX 10 to select from the Templates dialogue box located at
the center of the window. The properties of the selected file are displayed below the Preview on
the right side. Since we want to work in the modeling environment and create new parts, only
specify the units (inches or millimeters) of the working environment and the name and location
of the file. The default unit is millimeters.

 Enter an appropriate name and location for the file and click OK
2.1.3 Open a Part File
There are several ways to open an existing file.

 Click on the Open or Open a Recent Part button on top of the screen

OR

 Go through the File drop-down menu at the top-left of the screen and click Open

OR

 Press <Ctrl> + O

The Open Part File dialog will appear. You can see the preview of the files on the right side of
the window. You can disable the Preview by un-clicking the box in front of the Preview button.

 Click Cancel to exit the window

2.2 PRINTING, SAVING AND CLOSING FILES

2.2.1 Print an NX 10 Image

To print an image from the current display,

 Click File →Print

The following figure shows the Print dialog box. Here,

you can choose the printer to use or specify the
number of copies to be printed, size of the paper and
so on.
You can also select the scale for all the three
dimensions. You can also choose the method of
printing, i.e. wireframe, solid model by clicking on the
Output drop down-menu as shown in the Figure on
right side
 Click Cancel to exit the window

2.2.2 Save Part Files

It is imperative that you save your work frequently. If
for some reasons, NX 10 shuts down and the part is
not saved, all the work will be lost. To save the part
files,

 Click File →Save

There are five options to save a file:
Save: This option will save the part on screen with the
same name as given before while creating the part file.

Save Work Part Only: This option will only save the
active part on the screen.

Save As: This option allows you to save the part on screen using a different name and/or type.
The default type is .prt. However, you can save your file as IGES (.igs), STEP 203 (.stp), STEP
214 (.step), AutoCAD DXF (.dxf), AutoCAD DWG (.dwg), CATIA Model (.model) and CATIA
V5 (.catpart).
Save All: This option will save all the opened part files with their existing names.
Save Bookmark: This option will save a screenshot and context of the present model on the
screen as a .JPEG file and bookmarks.

2.2.3 Close Part Files

You can choose to close the parts that are
visible on screen by

 Click File →Close

If you close a file, the file will be cleared
from the working memory and any changes
that are not saved will be lost. Therefore,
remember to select Save and Close, Save As
and Close, Save All and Close or Save All
and Exit. In case of the first three options,
the parts that are selected or all parts will be
closed but the NX 10 session keeps on
running.
2.2.4 Exit an NX 10 Session
 Click File →Exit

If you have files open and have made changes to them without saving, the message will ask you
if you really want to exit.

 Select No, save the files and then Exit

2.3 NX 10 INTERFACE

The user interface of NX 10 is made very simple through the use of different icons. Most of the
commands can be executed by navigating the mouse around the screen and clicking on the icons.
The keyboard entries are mostly limited to entering values and naming files.

2.3.1 Mouse Functionality

2.3.1.1 Left Mouse Button (MB1)
The left mouse button, named Mouse Button 1 (MB1) in NX, is used for Selection of icons,
menus, and other entities on the graphic screen. Double clicking MB1 on any feature will
automatically open the Edit Dialog box. Clicking MB1 on an object enables the user to have
quick access to several options shown below. These options will be discussed in next chapters.
2.3.1.2 Middle Mouse Button (MB2)
The middle mouse button (MB2) or the scroll button is used to Rotate the object by pressing,
holding and dragging. The model can also be rotated about a single axis. To rotate about the axis
horizontal to the screen, place the mouse pointer near the right edge of the graphic screen and
rotate. Similarly, for the vertical axis and the axis perpendicular to the screen, click at the bottom
edge and top edge of the screen respectively and rotate. If you keep pressing the MB2 at the
same position for a couple of seconds, it will fix the point of rotation (an orange circle symbol
appears) and you can drag around the object to view.

If it is a scroll button, the object can be zoomed in and out by scrolling. Clicking the MB2 will
also execute the OK command if any pop-up window or dialog box is open.

2.3.1.3 Right Mouse Button (MB3)

MB3 or Right Mouse Button is used
to access the user
interface pop-up menus.
You can access the subsequent
options that pop up depending on the
selection mode and Application. The
figure shown below is in Sketch
Application. Clicking on MB3 when
a feature is selected will give the
options related to that feature
(Object/Action Menu).
Clicking MB3 and holding the button will display a set of icons around the feature.
These icons feature the possible commands that can be applied to the feature.

2.3.1.4 Combination of Buttons

Zoom In /Out:

 Press and hold both MB1 and MB2 simultaneously and drag

OR

 Press and hold <Ctrl> button on the keyboard and then press and drag the MB2

OR

Pan:

 Press and hold both the MB2 and MB3 simultaneously and drag

OR

 Press and hold <Shift> button on the keyboard and press and drag the MB2

Shortcut to menus:

 Press and hold <Ctrl> + <Shift> and MB1, MB2 and MB3 to see shortcuts to Feature,
Direct Sketch, and Synchronous Modeling groups, respectively
2.3.2 NX 10 Gateway
The following figure shows the typical layout of the NX 10 window when a file is opened. This
is the Gateway of NX 10 from where you can select any module to work on such as modeling,
manufacturing, etc. It has to be noted that these toolbars may not be exactly on the same position
of the screen as shown below. The toolbars can be placed at any location or position on the
screen. Look out for the same set of icons.

Quick Access Toolbar

Ribbon Bar

Top-border
Groups
Tabs Command Finder

Resource Bar
Graphic Window

Cue Line

2.3.2.1 Ribbon Bar

The ribbon bar interface gives the user the ability to access the different commands easily
without reducing the graphics window area. Commands are organized in ribbon bars under
different tabs and groups for easy recognition and accessibility.
For example in the ribbon bar shown in the figure above, we have home, curve, etc. tabs. In the
home tab, we have direct sketch, feature, synchronous modeling and surface groups. And in each
group, we have a set of featured commands.

2.3.2.2 Quick Access Toolbar

The quick access toolbar has most commonly used buttons (save, undo, redo, cut, copy, paste
and recent commands) to expedite the modeling process. You may easily customize these
buttons as shown in the figure below.

2.3.2.3 Command Finder

If you do not know where to find a command, use Command Finder. Let’s say we have forgotten
where the Styled Sweep is.

 Type sweep in the Command Finder

 Hover the mouse over Styled Sweep

 NX will show you the path to the command: Menu →Insert →Sweep →Styled Sweep

OR
  Type sweep in the Command Finder

 Click on Styled Sweep in the Command Finder window

2.3.2.4 Top-border
The most important button in the top-border is the menu button. Most of the features and
functions of the software are available in the menu. The Selection Bar displays the selection
options. These options include the Filters, Components/Assembly, and Snap Points for selecting
features. Most common buttons in the View tab are also displayed in the Top-border.

2.3.2.5 Resource Bar

The Resource Bar features icons for a number of pages in one place using very little user
interface space. NX 10 places all navigator windows (Assembly, Constraint and Part) in the
Resource Bar, as well as the Reuse Library, HD3D Tools, Web Browser, History Palette,
Process Studio,
Manufacturing Wizards, Roles and System Scenes. Two of the most important widows are
explained below.

Part Navigator

 Click on the Part Navigator icon, the third

icon from the top on the Resource bar

The Part Navigator provides a visual

representation of the parent-child relationships of
features in the work part in a separate window in a
tree type format. It shows all the primitives, entities
used during modeling. It allows you to perform
various editing actions on those features. For
example, you can use the Part Navigator to
Suppress or Unsuppress the features or change their
parameters or positioning dimensions. Removing
the green tick mark will ‘Suppress’ the feature. The
software will give a warning if the parent child
relationship is broken by suppressing any particular
feature.

The Part Navigator is available for all NX

applications and not just for modeling. However, you can only perform feature-editing
operations when you are in the Modeling module. Editing a feature in the Part Navigator will
automatically update the model. Feature editing will be discussed later.

History

 Click on the History icon, the seventh from the top on the Resource bar

The History Palette provides fast access to recently opened files or other palette entries. It can be
used to reload parts that have been recently worked on or to repeatedly add a small set of palette
items to a model.

The History Palette remembers the last palette options that were used and the state of the session
when it was closed. NX stores the palettes that were loaded into a session and restores them in
the next session. The system does not clean up the History Palette when parts are moved.
To re-use a part, drag and drop it from the History
Palette to the Graphics Window. To reload a part,
click on a saved session bookmark.

2.3.2.6 Cue Line

The Cue Line displays prompt messages that
indicate the next action that needs to be taken. To
the right of the Cue line, the Status Line is located
which displays messages about the current options
or the most recently completed function.

The Progress Meter is displayed in the Cue Line

when the system performs a time-consuming
operation such as loading a large assembly. The
meter shows the percentage of the operation that
has been completed. When the operation is finished,
the system displays the next appropriate cue.

2.3.3 Geometry Selection

You can filter the selection method, which
facilitates easy selection of the geometry in a close
cluster. In addition, you can perform any of the
feature operation options that NX 10 intelligently
provides
depending on the selected entity. Selection of items can be based on the degree of the entity like,
selection of Geometric entities, Features and Components. The selection method can be opted by
choosing one of the icons in the Selection Toolbar.

2.3.3.1 Feature Selection

Clicking on any of the icons lets you select the features in the part file. It will not select the basic
entities like edges, faces etc. The features selected can also be applied to a part or an entire
assembly depending upon the requirement.
Besides that, the filtering of the features can be further narrowed down by
selecting one of the desired options in the drop-down menu as shown in
the figure. For example, selecting Curve will highlight only the curves in
the screen. The default is No Selection Filter.

2.3.3.2 General Object Selection

Navigate the mouse cursor closer to the entity until it is highlighted with a
magenta color and click the left mouse button to select any geometric
entity, feature, or component.

If you want to select an entity that is hidden behind the displayed

geometry, place the mouse cursor roughly close to that area on the screen
such that the cursor ball occupies a portion of the hidden geometry
projected on the screen. After a couple of seconds, the ball cursor turns
into a plus symbol as shown in the figure. Click the left mouse button
(MB1) to get a Selection Confirmation dialog box as shown in the
following figure below. This QuickPick
menu consists of the list of entities
captured within the ball of the cursor.
The entities are arranged in ascending
order of the degree of the entity. For
example, edges and vertices are assigned
lower numbers while solid faces are
given higher numbers. By moving the
cursor on the numbers displayed, NX
10 will
highlight the corresponding entity on the screen in a magenta color.

2.3.4 User Preferences

 Choose Preferences on the Menu button (located to top left of the main window) to find
the various options available
User Preferences are used to define the display parameters of
new objects, names, layouts, and views. You can set the
layer, color, font, and width of created objects. You can also
design layouts and views, control the display of object and
view names and borders, change the size of the selection
ball, specify the selection rectangle method, set chaining
tolerance and method, and design and activate a grid.
Changes that you make using the Preferences menu override
any counterpart customer defaults for the same functions.

2.3.4.1 User Interface

 Choose Preferences →User Interface to find the
options in the dialog box

The User Interface option customizes how NX works and

interacts to specifications you set. You can control the
location, size and visibility status of the main window,
graphics display, and information window. You can set the
number of decimal places (precision) that the system uses for
both input text fields and data displayed in the information
window. You can also specify a full or small dialog for file
selection. You can also set macro options and enable a
confirmation dialog for Undo operations.

 The Layout tab allows you to select the User Interface Environment

 The Touch tab lets you use touch screens

 The Options tab allows you, among others, to set the precision level (in the Information
Window)

 The Journal tab in the Tools allows you to use several programming languages

 The Macro tab in the Tools allows you to set the pause while displaying animation
2.3.4.2 Visualization
 Choose Preferences →Visualization to find the
options in the dialog box

This dialog box controls attributes that affect the display

in the graphics window. Some attributes are associated
with the part or with particular Views of the part. The
settings for these attributes are saved in the part file. For
many of these attributes, when a new part or a view is
created, the setting is initialized to the value specified in
the Customer Defaults file. Other attributes are associated
with the session and apply to all parts in the session. The
settings of some of these attributes are saved from session
to session in the registry. For some session attributes, the
setting can be initialized to the value specified by
customer default, an environment variable.

 Choose Preferences →Color Pallet to find the

options in the dialog box
  Click on Preferences →Background to get
another pop up Dialog box. You can change
your background color whatever you want

The background color refers to the color of the

background of the graphics window. NX supports
graduated backgrounds for all display modes. You
can select background colors for Shaded or
Wireframe displays. The background can be Plain or
Graduated. Valid options for all background colors
are 0 to 255.

You can change and observe the Color and

Translucency of objects.

 Click Preferences →Object

This will pop up a dialog window Object

Preferences. You can also apply this setting to
individual entities of the solid. For example, you can
click on any particular surface of the solid and apply
the Display settings.

2.3.5 Applications
Applications can be opened using the File option
located at the top left corner of the main window OR
the Applications tab above the Ribbon bar. You can
select the type of application you want to run. For
example, you can select Modeling, Drafting,
Assembly, and so on as shown in the figure. The default Application that starts when you open a
file or start a new file is Modeling. We will introduce some of these Application in the next
chapters.
2.4 LAYERS

Layers are used to store objects in a file, and work like containers to collect the objects in a
structured and consistent manner. Unlike simple visual tools like Show and Hide, Layers provide
a permanent way to organize and manage the visibility and selectability of objects in your file.

2.4.1 Layer Control

With NX 10, you can control whether objects are visible or selectable by using Layers. A Layer
is a system-defined attribute such as color, font, and width that all objects in NX 10 must have.
There are 256 usable layers in NX 10, one of which is always the Work Layer. Any of the 256
layers can be assigned to one of four classifications of status.

 Work
 Selectable
 Visible Only
 Invisible
The Work Layer is the layer that objects are created ON and is
always visible and selectable while it remains the Work Layer.
Layer 1 is the default Work Layer when starting a new part file.
When the Work Layer is changed to another type of layer, the
previous Work Layer automatically becomes Selectable and can
then be assigned a status of Visible Only or Invisible.

The number of objects that can be on one layer is not limited.

You have the freedom to choose whichever layer you want to
create the object on and the status of that layer.

To assign a status to a layer or layers,

 Choose View →Layer Settings

However, it should be noted that the use of company standards

in regards to layers would be advantageous to maintain a
consistency between files.
2.4.2 Commands in Layers
We will follow simple steps to practice the commands in Layers. First, we will create two objects
(Solids) by the method as follows. The details of Solid Modeling will be discussed in the next
chapter. The solids that we draw here are only for practice in this chapter.

 Choose File →New

Name the file and choose a folder in which to save it.

Make sure you select the units to be millimeters in the
drop-down menu. Choose the file type as Model

 Choose Menu →Insert →Design Feature

→Cone
 Choose Diameter and Height under Type

 Click OK

 Right-click on the screen and choose Orient View

→Trimetric

 Right-click on the screen and choose Rendering

Style →Shaded

You will be able to see a solid cone similar to the picture

on right.

Now let us practice some Layer Commands.

 Choose View →Move to Layer

You will be asked to select an object

 Move the cursor on to the Cone and click on it so that it becomes highlighted

 Click OK
  In the Destination Layer or Category space at the top of the window, type 25 and Click
OK

The Cone has now gone to the 25th layer. It can no longer be
seen in Layer 1.

 To see the Cone, click View →Layer Settings

 You can see that Layer 25 has the object whereas the
default Work Layer 1 has no objects.

The Cone will again be seen on the screen. Save the file as we
will be using it later in the tutorial.
2.5 COORDINATE SYSTEMS

There are different coordinate systems in NX. A three-axis symbol is used to identify the
coordinate system.

2.5.1 Absolute Coordinate System

The Absolute Coordinate System is the coordinate system from which
all objects are referenced. This is a fixed coordinate system and the
locations and orientations of every object in NX 10 modeling space
are related back to this system. The Absolute Coordinate System (or
Absolute CSYS) also provides a common frame of reference between
part files. An absolute position at X=1, Y=1, and Z=1 in one part file
is the same location in any other part file.

The View Triad on the bottom-left of the Graphics window is ONLY a visual
indicator that represents the ORIENTATION of the Absolute Coordinate
System of the model.

2.5.2 Work Coordinate System

The Work Coordinate System (WCS) is what you will use for construction when you want to
determine orientations and angles of features. The axes of the WCS are denoted XC, YC, and
ZC. (The “C” stands for “current”). It is
possible to have multiple coordinate
systems in a part file, but only one of
them can be the work coordinate system.

2.5.3 Moving the WCS

Here, you will learn how to translate and
rotate the WCS.

 Choose Menu →Format →WCS

2.5.3.1 Translate the WCS

This procedure will move the WCS origin
to any point you specify, but the
orientation (direction of the axes) of the WCS will remain the same.

 Choose Menu →Format →WCS →Origin

The Point Constructor dialog is displayed. You either can

specify a point from the drop down menu at the top of the
dialog box or enter the X-Y-Z coordinates in the XC, YC,
and ZC fields.

The majority of the work will be in relation to the Work

Coordinate System rather than the Absolute Coordinate
System. The default is the WCS.

2.5.3.2 Rotate the WCS

You can also rotate the WCS around one of its axes.

 Choose Menu → Format →WCS →Rotate

The dialog shows six different ways to rotate the WCS

around an axis. These rotation procedures follow the
right-
hand rule of rotation. You can also specify the angle to which the
WCS be rotated.

You can save the current location and orientation of the WCS to
use as a permanent coordinate system.

 Choose Menu →Format →WCS →Save

2.6 TOOLBARS

Toolbars contain icons, which serve as shortcuts for many

functions. The figure on the right shows the main Toolbar items
normally displayed. However, you can find many more icons for
different feature commands, based on the module selected and how
the module is customized.
  Right-Clicking anywhere on the existing toolbars gives a list of other Toolbars. You can
add any of the toolbars by checking them.

Normally, the default setting should be sufficient for most operations but during certain
operations, you might need additional toolbars. If you want to add buttons pertaining to the
commands and toolbars,

 Click on the pull-down arrow on any of the Toolbars and choose Customize.

This will pop up a Customize dialog window with all the Toolbars and commands pertaining to
each Toolbar under Commands tab. To add a command,

 Choose a category and drag the command from the Commands list to the desired location.
You can customize the settings of your NX 10 interface
by clicking on the Roles tab on the Resource Bar.

The Roles tab has different settings of the toolbar menus

that are displayed on the NX 10 interface. It allows you to
customize the toolbars you desire to be displayed in the
Interface.
 CHAPTER 3 – TWO DIMENSIONAL SKETCHING

In this chapter, you will learn how to create and edit sketches in NX 10. You can directly create a
sketch on a Plane in Modeling application. In most cases, Modeling starts from a 2D sketch and
then Extrude, Revolve or Sweep the sketch to create solids. Many complex shapes that are
otherwise very difficult to model can easily be drawn by sketching. In this chapter, we will see
some concepts of sketching and then proceed to sketch and model some parts.

3.1 OVERVIEW

An NX 10 sketch is a named set of curves joined in a string that when swept, form a solid. The
sketch represents the outer boundary of that part. The curves are created on a plane in the
sketcher. In the beginning, these curves are drawn without any exact dimensions. Then,
Dimensional Constraints as well as Geometric Constraints are applied to fully constrain the
sketch. These will be discussed in detail later in this chapter.

After sketching is completed, there are different ways to use them to generate 3D parts:

 A sketch can be revolved

 A sketch can be extruded

 A sketch can be swept along a guide (line):

Features created from a sketch are associated with it; i.e., if

the sketch changes so do the features.
The advantages of using sketching to create parts are:

 The curves used to create the profile outline are very flexible and can be used to model
unusual shapes.

 The curves are parametric, hence associative and they can easily be changed or removed.

 If the plane in which the sketch is drawn is changed, the sketch will be changed
accordingly.

 Sketches are useful when you want to control an outline of a feature, especially if it may
need to be changed in the future. Sketches can be edited very quickly and easily.

3.2 SKETCHING ENVIRONMENT

In NX 10 you can create sketch using two ways. The

first method creates the Sketch in the current
environment and application. For this,

 Choose Menu →Insert →Sketch

In the other method you can create Sketch using

 Choose Sketch in Home toolbar

In either case, a dialog box pop-ups asking you to

define the Sketch Plane. The screen will display the
sketch options. You can choose the Sketch Plane,
direction of sketching and type of plane for
sketching.
When you create a sketch using the Create Sketch dialog box, you can choose the plane on which
the sketch can be created by clicking on the coordinate frame as shown. This will highlight the
plane you have selected. The default plane selected is XC-YC. However,
you can choose to sketch on another plane. If there are any solid features
created in the model beforehand, any of the flat surfaces can also be used
as a sketching plane.

 Choose the XC-YC plane and click OK

The sketch plane will appear and the X-Y directions will be marked.
The main screen will change to the Sketching Environment. The XY plane is highlighted as the
default plane for sketching. This is the basic sketch window. There is also a special Sketch Task
Environment in NX 10 which displays all sketch tools in the main window. For accessing the
Sketch Task Environment,

 Click the More option in the direct sketch tool bar area

 Click on Open in Sketch Task Environment as shown below

There are three useful options next to the Finish Flag. You can
change the name of the sketch in the box. The next one is Orient to
Sketch which orients the view to the plane of the sketch. If the model
file is rotated during the process of sketching, click on this icon to
view the
sketch on a plane parallel to the screen Reattach attaches the sketch to a different planar face,
datum plane, or path, or changes the sketch orientation. It allows you to reattach the sketch to the
desired plane without recreating all the curves, dimensions, and constraints.

3.3 SKETCH CURVE TOOLBAR

This toolbar contains icons for creating the common types

of curves and spline curves, editing, extending, trimming,
filleting etc. Each type of curve has different methods of
selection and methods of creation. Let us discuss the most
frequently used options.
 Profile

This option creates both straight lines as well as arcs depending on the icon you select in the pop-
up toolbar. You can pick the points by using the coordinate system or by entering the length and
angle of the line as shown in the following figures.

Line

This option will selectively create only straight lines.

Arc

This option creates arcs by either of two methods. The first option creates arc with three
sequential points as shown below.

The second option creates the arc with a center point, radius and sweep angle or by center point
with a start point and end point. The illustration is shown below.

Circle

Creating a circle is similar to creating an arc, except that circle is closed.

 Quick Trim

This trims the extending curves from the points of intersection of the curves. This option reads
every entity by splitting them if they are intersected by another entity and erases the portion
selected.

Studio Spline

You can create basic spline curves (B-spline and Bezier) with poles or through points with the
desired degree of the curve. The spline will be discussed in detail in the seventh chapter
(Freeform Features).

3.4 CONSTRAINTS TOOLBAR

All the curves are created by picking points. For example, a straight line is created with two
points. In a 2D environment, any point has two degrees of freedom, one along X and another
along Y axis. The number of points depends on the type of curve being created. Therefore, a
curve entity has twice the number of degrees of freedom than the number of points it comprises.
These degrees of freedom can be removed by creating a constraint with a fixed entity. In fact, it
is recommended that you remove all these degrees of freedom (making the sketch Fully
Constrained) by relating the entities directly or indirectly to the fixed entities. It can be done by
giving dimensional or geometric properties like Parallelity, Perpendicularity, etc.
In NX 10 smart constraints are applied automatically, i.e. automatic dimensions or geometrical
constraints are interpreted by NX 10. You can turn this option off by clicking on Continuous
Auto Dimensioning as shown below. The following paragraphs show how to manually apply

constraints.

Dimensional Constraints

The degrees of freedom can be eliminated by giving dimensions with fixed entities like axes,
planes, the coordinate system or any existing solid geometries created in the model. These
dimensions can be linear, radial, angular etc. You can edit the dimensional values at any time
during sketching by double-clicking on the dimension.
 Geometric Constraints

Besides the dimensional constraints, some geometric constraints can be given to eliminate the
degrees of freedom. They include parallel, perpendicular, collinear, concentric, horizontal,
vertical, equal length, etc. The software has the capability to find the set of possible constraints
for the selected entities. As an example, a constraint is applied on the line in the below picture to
be parallel to the left side of the rectangle (the line was originally at an angle with the rectangle).

Display Sketch Constraints

Clicking this icon will show all the options pertaining to the entities in that particular sketch in
white.

Show/Remove Constraints

This window lists all the constraints and types of constraints pertaining to any entity selected.
You can delete any of the listed constraints or change the sequence of the constraints.

The number of degrees of freedom that are not constrained are displayed in the Status Line. All
these should be removed by applying the constraints to follow a disciplined modeling.
3.5 EXAMPLES

3.5.1 Arbor Press Base

 Create a new file and save it as Arborpress_base.prt

 Click on the Sketch button and click OK

 Choose Menu →Insert →Sketch Curve →

Profile or click on the Profile icon in the Direct
Sketch group (remember to deactivate
Continuous Dimensioning)

 Draw a figure similar to the one shown on right.

While making continuous sketch, click on the
Line icon on the Profile dialog box to create
straight lines and the Arc icon to make the
semicircle. (Look at the size of the XY plane in
the figure. Use that perspective for the
approximate zooming).

Once the sketch is complete, we constrain the sketch. It is

better to apply the geometric constraints before giving the
dimensional constraints.

 Choose Insert →Geometric Constraints or click

on the Constraints icon in the side toolbar

Now we start by constraining between an entity in the sketch and a datum or a fixed reference.
First, place the center of the arc at the origin. This creates a reference for the entire figure. We
can use the two default X and Y axes as a datum reference.

 Select Point on Curve constraint

 Select the Y-axis and then the center of the arc

 Repeat the same procedure to place the center of the arc on the X-axis
Do not worry in case the figure gets crooked. The figure will come back to proper shape once all
the constraints are applied. However, it is better to take into consideration the final shape of the
object when you initially draw the unconstrained figure.

 Select the two slanted lines and make them Equal Length

 Similarly select the two long vertical lines and make them Equal Length

 Select the bottom two horizontal lines and make them Collinear and then click on the
same lines and make them Equal Length

If you DO NOT find the two Blue circles (Tangent Constraints) near
the semicircle as shown in the figure, follow the below steps.
Otherwise, you can ignore this.

 Select the circular arc and one of the two vertical lines connected to its endpoints

 Select the Tangent icon

If the arc and line is already tangent to each other, the icon will be grayed out. If that is the case

 Click on Edit →Selection →Deselect All. Repeat the same procedure for the arc and the
other vertical line.
  Select the two vertical lines and make them Equal

 Similarly select the two small horizontal lines at the top of the profile and make them
Collinear and Equal

 Similarly select the two vertical lines and make them Equal

Note: At times after applying a constraint, the geometric

continuity of the sketch may be lost like shown. In such
conditions, click the exact end points of the two line and
click the Coincident constraint as shown.

So far, we have created all the Geometric constraints. Now we have to create the Dimensional
constraints. If there is any conflict between the Dimensional and Geometric constraints, those
entities will be highlighted in yellow.

 Choose the Rapid Dimension icon in the Constraints toolbar

 Add on all the dimensions as shown in the following figure without specifying the values
For example, to create a dimension for the top two corners,

 Click somewhere near the top of the two diagonal lines to select them

While dimensioning, if you find the dimensions illegible, but do not worry about editing the
dimensions now.

Now we edit all the dimension values one by one. It is highly recommended to start editing from
the biggest dimension first and move to the smaller dimensions. Once enough number of
dimensions are provided, sketch color changes indicating it is fully defined.

 Edit the values as shown in the figure below. Double click on each dimension to change
the values to the values as shown in figure below

 Click on the Finish Flag on the top left corner or bottom right of the screen when
you are finished

 Click on the sketch and select Extrude (this Feature is explained in details in the next
sections)
  Extrude this sketch in the Z-direction by 60 mm

 Save and close the file

3.5.2 Impeller Lower Casing

 Create a new file in inches and save it as Impeller_lower_casing.prt

 Click Menu →Insert →Sketch In Task Environment or click Sketch In Task

Environment icon from the ribbon bar

 Set the sketching plane as the XC-YC plane

 Make sure the Profile window is showing and draw the following curve
 Line 2
Curve 1
Line 1

Curve 2

 Create a point at the origin (0, 0, 0) by clicking the plus sign in the Direct Sketch

group Next, we will constrain the curve

 Click on the Geometric Constraints icon

 Select the point at the origin and click on the Fixed

constraint icon (if you cannot see this icon, click

on Settings and check it as shown on the right)

 Make all of the curve-lines and curve-curve joints

Tangent

 Apply the dimensional constraints as shown in the

figure below
  Select all the dimensions.

 Right click and Hide the dimensions

 Choose Menu →Edit →Move Object or choose

Move Curve from the ribbon bar

 Select all the curves. You should see 4 objects being

selected in Select Object

 Specify the Motion to be Distance

 Choose YC-Direction in the Specify Vector

 Enter the Distance to be 0.5 inch

 In the Result dialog box make sure you the click on

the Copy Original radio button

 Click OK

 Then join the end-points at the two ends using the

basic curves to complete the sketch

The sketch is ready.

 Choose Edit →Move Object or choose Move Curve from the ribbon bar

 Select the outer curve. Be sure to select all the four parts of the curve

 Move the lower curve in the Y-direction by -1.5 inches. This is the same as translating it
in the negative YC-direction by 1.5 inches

This will form a curve outside the casing.

  Using straight lines join this curve with the inside curve of the casing

It will form a closed chain curve as shown.

Now we will create the curve required for outside of the casing on the smaller side which will
form the flange portion.

 Choose Edit → Move Object

 Select the outer line as shown in the figure below

 Move the lower curve in the XC-direction by -0.5 inches. This is the same as translating
it in the negative XC-direction by 0.5 inches
  Using straight lines join the two lines as shown in the figure on right side

 Click on the Finish Flag

 Save and Close the file

We will use this sketching in the next chapter to model the Impeller Lower
Casing.

3.5.3 Impeller
 Create a new file in inches and save it as Impeller_impeller.prt

 Click on Sketch

 Set the sketching plane as the XC-YC plane and click OK

 Click on Menu →Insert →Datum/Point →Point or

click Point from Direct Sketch group in the ribbon
bar

 Create two Points, one at the origin (0, 0, 0) and one at

(11.75, 6, 0)

 Click on the Arc icon on the side toolbar and click on the Arc by Center and Endpoints

icon in the pop-up toolbar

 Click on the point at the origin and create an arc with a radius of 1.5 similar to the one
shown in the figure below

 Click on the point at (11.75, 6, 0) and create an arc

with a radius of 0.5

 Click on the Arc by 3 Points icon in the pop-up

toolbar

 Select the top endpoints of the two arcs you just created
and click somewhere in between to create another arc that connects them. Do the same for
the bottom endpoints
  Click on the Constraints icon in the side toolbar
and make sure that all the arcs are Tangent to one
another at their endpoints

 Click on the point at the origin and click on the Fixed

icon

 Then click on the Rapid Dimension icon

 Give the Radius dimensions for each arc. Edit dimensions so that the two arcs on the
end are 1.5 and 0.5 inches and the two middle arcs are 18 and 15 inches as shown in
the figure below

 Click on the Finish Flag

 Save and Close the file.

We will use this sketching in the next

chapter to model the Impeller.