Solidworks Keyway Feature

[Author Metcalfe]

I am having an issue with annotating the true diameter of a shaft section whenever there is a keyway present. The value the annotation provides is to the top corner of the keyway and not the true theoretical point of the diameter in question. I can change the value by overriding the dimension value but when I do this my dimension is no longer adaptive to the model.

In case there is no actual solution other than creating a section of the shaft and dimensioning the width in the newly created view, this would be a nice feature to add for manufacturing drawings for machinists and CNC operators. Also it would be nice for the designer in the case of revisions so that a "forced" dimension is not overlooked and can remain adaptive to changes in the model.

Note: Inventor will only allow you to retrieve model dimensions that were created on a sketch plane that is parallel to the drawing view plane. I don't think you can use this method to show the dimensions on a shaft created by extruding a cylinder.

Inventor has a limitation when retrieving model dimensions. It does not understand how to transform/rotate sketch dimensions from the model sketch plane to some other valid drawing view plane. Creo is much better about understanding these types of view direction transformations/rotations.

Inventor will only retrieve model dimensions from feature sketch planes that are parallel to the drawing view plane. I'm not sure why you can get the length dimensions to show up in your section view. In my opinion, Inventor should project the diameter dimensions too.

Reorient your base view so that the revolve sketch is perpendicular to the base view plane. Your section view plane will then be parallel to the revolve sketch plane. You should be able to retrieve the feature dimensions then.

This is something I encounter all the time when a diameter feature is cut by a slot or hole etc. I usually dimension it by selecting a centreline then the visible edge, Rclick >dimension type >linear diameter.

You could always use a work axis to include in the drawing to represent this surface Then just turn off the visibility of the line so it is not in the drawing. This way you can keep what you have without needing to remodel to get the dimension. Hope that helps.

This study shows how the global equations tool and general calculation formulas in the SolidWorks application can be used to update a model just by modifying the spur gear number of teeth to reproduce a new gear with equivalent mechanical characteristics in simulation.

For a spur gear as a mechanical element, the design and sketching of the involute guarantees optimum functionality. This paper shows the parametric design of the generation of the involute tooth flanks with driven curves for a spur gear using SolidWorks. The full parametric design of the gear using the SolidWorks global equations tool and general calculation formulas for spur gear dimensions is also presented here. This shows that the professional application in SolidWorks can be used in the development of the gear design so that the user can simply change the variable N (number of teeth) in the tables of global equations to build a new gear. If a different diametral pitch is necessary, this is also possible to adjust from the table of global equations.

For many years, gears have been one of the main components of many different kinds of rotating machinery, and they often work as a critical part in the total function of the machinery [1]. Gears dominate high-power mechanical transmissions, and involute spur gears are widely used to transmit motion and power between parallel shafts. The popularity of involute spur gears is their simplicity in design, ease of manufacture and maintenance, and relatively low sensitivity to errors [2]. In recent years, SolidWorks computer-aided design (CAD) brings together more than 5,000 engineers and designers from across the globe to network, learn, share, and discover the latest in SolidWorks 3D applications and engineering technologies that help millions of users make great designs happen [3]. With the help of this powerful tool for modeling, this paper presents a detailed parametric spur gear geometric modeling using the number of teeth (N) as the main variable for simulation.

The 3D solid modeling has been widely used because of its ease in visualization, generation of manufacturing drawing, and adaptability compared to traditional 2D drafting. However, the modeling process is time-consuming, and many designers do not have the skills to perform such tasks, especially part-by-part or element-by-element. Parametric modeling makes this generating task easy and less time-consuming because basic features and geometric relations are in constant fashion for a specific product [4]. Once the model is finished, one of the principal abilities will be, with a simple parameter change, all of the design adjusts in a way that reproduces a new part with the different shape as a new model with equivalent mechanical characteristics in simulation.

Spur gears have teeth parallel to the axis of rotation used in the transmission of motion between parallel shafts. Considered the simplest gear, it is used to develop the primary kinematic relationships of the tooth form. The pitch circle is a theoretical circle upon which all calculations are usually based [5].

The diametral pitch P is the ratio of the number of teeth on the gear to the pitch diameter. Thus, it is the reciprocal of the module in the metric system (ISO). Since diametral pitch is used only with U.S. units, it is expressed as teeth per inch. In general uses:

Next, to write the equation, include the circles as addendum, dedendum, and pitch, and relate the equation with every sketch in the initial draw. Begin with the addendum circle, and make the extrusion to get the initial 3D body. Give the width of the gear a value of 1 inch to get an arbitrary and standard value (see Figure 2).

Then, proceed to make the extrusion of the addendum circle at mid plane, considering 1 inch as a reference for the thickness of the gear (see Figure 3). Managing the extrude in mid plane helps to solve problems during motion, assembly, and finite elements studies, among others.

The next complete sketch includes almost all of the key parametric design. Carefully take each equation in relation to each sketch. Sketch the base circle, dedendum circle, and pitch circle related to its corresponding equation. To make the construction of the base and pitch circle, draw a construction line coincident at the center of the gear and the last point of the addendum circle, as shown in Figure 5.

Draw two lines from the centerpoint of the circles and end at the beginning at each involute curve. Make the dimension relation as the measure of half beta angle to ensure uniform changes. Trim the rest of the dedendum circle and centerlines to define the bottom of the teeth. Finally, sketch the bottom radius, which must be 1/3 or 2/3 of the clearance value (see Figure 9).

As a result of the parametric design, models can be obtained with number of teeth (N) with the same geometric characteristics and mathematical adaptation according to the global equations. In addition, the regression is included in the design tree to generate a chamfer at 45 degrees, and a bore and keyway to represent the shaft mounting can also be parameterized by shaft standards. Finally, the material steel AISI 1020 can be selected according to the needs of the designer. Figure 12, Figure 13, and Figure 14 show three gears: N = 16, N = 21, and N = 35.

A generic model has been developed with the help of SolidWorks, parametrizing the mathematical size equations. The user can update the model just by modifying the spur gear number of teeth (N). This present study demonstrates the parametric modeling technique for the spur gear. The parametric modeling can automate the way designers perform tasks, especially part-by-part or element-by-element, in the mechanical elements design.

Design for Manufacturability, or DFM, is an industry keyword. Add DFM to your resume and it usually brings your resume higher up on the pile to be selected for an interview. But what is DFM, and are there any tools in SOLIDWORKS that can help make it easier to implement?

Here we are presented with three different versions of the same design. Design 1 has the highest part count and design 3 has the lowest part count. Additionally, Design 3 has the easiest/fastest assembly method.

SOLIDWORKS includes the entire catalog of PEM captive fasteners (both Imperial and metric) in the Toolbox library. If you have the toolbox installed, you have access to these parts to make it easy for you to incorporate them into your designs.

This is a standard 4U chassis enclosure. I have designed several of these during my career. There are a lot of ways this design can be improved using DFM. One thing I have always done is meet with my preferred machine/sheet metal shop and get a list of their punch tools. That way I can design using the existing tools that are available. I normally design these using punch-outs for the different ports on the front and rear panels. Then, depending on what configuration has been ordered, the assembler punches out the desired ports. An adhesive label is then put on top of the panel which hides the unused ports. This meets DFM guidelines by:

Because SOLIDWORKS allows you to customize your library features, you can create features for the various punch tools used by your vendors and add them to your SOLIDWORKS design library. This is especially helpful with forming tools, which create dimples or vents.

One company where I worked, the Operations Director insisted that any hardware used in a design be #6-32 size. By standardizing on a single fastener size, they only needed to keep tools for that size of fastener and it also made inventory control easier.

SOLIDWORKS comes with a free tool called DFMXpress that allows you to set rules for your designs to check that none of your designers has gone rogue and specified the wrong hardware or incorrect material for your parts.

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