Well, from last weeks poll on Zombie Co-workers it’s clear… most of you feel your jowl kickin’ skills are in fine form. Good for you, not so good for your undead coworkers.
This week, something to ravage your thought process and provoke the estranged feeling that you’ve forgotten something. We all probably have some sort of drawing check we are subjected to, but what about the 3D models you create? Do you have a check process for those or do you just let the drawing hash out the issues?
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Does 3D Require More Checks?
It would seem to me, the completeness and detail that often go along with 3D data creation, requires a little more work when it comes to checking the model for accuracy and/or errors. It’s something I don’t see talked about much, but something we spend MUCH time doing.
The future of checking
Talking about the future of tech is way more fun, but imagine what could be done to advance the future of check. It’s one aspect of coordination between manufacturing and engineering that has yet to be pursued. Imagine 3D model material and data verified in real-time against stock materials and lead-times. Not with tables of data, but with actual geometry. Cool stuff to think about.
SolidSmack is a very small behemoth of an online community about 3D CAD, technology, design, robots, and ninjas… Ok, maybe not ninjas so much, but those guys are COOL so there just might be something about some dang ninjas.
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Well, until I learned how to start automating all that type of info on drawings with Custom Properties, it was always an issue. Biggest was when something was changed on a drawing (a weight, length, add config) and the model wouldn't get updated. Drove me nuts. Maybe I should have taken jowl kicking lessons.
Linking all that stuff to Custom Properties has alleviated a lot of that, until a bug crops up. Then it's back to the hair pullin'.
What kind of “check” are you referring too? An actual design check, like a group of peers? A design review meeting where all involved parties get together (engineering thru production)? Talking about the overall design with a supplier? Or having a finance person question why the parts are so expensive?
It's me and one other guy, we bounce stuff off of each other, other than wrenches. Others times we don't “it's mine mine all mine”. Problem is everyone is a Mechanical Engineer just ask them, no one questions the PCB layout guy or the power engineer or the software guy but “its just aluminum plates and screws how hard can it be? I've put a desk together.”
We are currently looking to verify and validate our models such that any shop drawings from the model will not have to be gone over.
Switching from Autocad where every detail had to be reviewed for every drawing, every time we had a new project.
Well, depending on the project type you can go through the following:
- check the model and the drawing against the blueprint or best practice rules with SW design checker (the right start part, the right drawing format, fully defined sketches, interferences in assemblies, use of right symbols, etc),
- for those rules that cannot be checked with DC, check with a checklist,
- use draft check for molded/forged parts,
- use zebra stripes or other tools for surface analysis, if needed (better export to UG NX and made some surfaces analysis there),
- use Tolanalyst for tolerances, if needed (as a guidance),
- use DFM analysis for manufacturability, if needed (as a guidance),
- use COSMOS stress/thermal/flow/motion analysis for some design problems (or other FEA tools outside SW),
- use some add-ins for RapidPrototyping analysis, if needed,
- best of all: use a PDM/ERP/SAP system with automatic checking capabilities and put all involved guys (Tol, FEA, electrical, tehnol, production, etc) in the loop.
For Bruce – you can define drawing templates with all Custom Props embedded and start parts with those Custom Props embedded also. I think you can find on youtube some video about these.
My 2 pence.
No check – All models are fail.
I've been there. One reason my cubicle is stained with BLOOD. I kid. It's just ketchup, from some hashbrowns.
Great input SWP. There's a lot of ways to virtually analyze models. I think these lay a lot of the ground work for the type of checks we make against drawings. I'm very curious as to if people do any sort of checks at all or include these type of analysis in a checklist of sorts.
We have some automated tools that check materials against a database. While it's worked well, it' still prone to human error.
It's amazing to me the amount of different types of checks that may go into a model. Seems nearly impossible to capture them all within one program.
Yeah!
I don't think I've seen a program to capture all these stuff, I don't think is possible and I DON'T WANT TO! I mean, where's the fun if the computer made all these things without us?
These models are good too, for something – show the other guys how to do NOT. I have some, specially prepared for newbies and beginners.
automation of any sort definitely helps, especially if hte checks are happening against the drawing. Best aspect of using drawing against model checks is that the drawings serve and production checks as well. So there's a good link in there, even though I'd prefer the link to be directly between the model and production.
I'm refering to the basic practice of a check happening on a model. As SWPriest goes into there's a lot of different types of checks that can be done depending on the model/industry. But do people actually do model checks and if so, when do they take place?
In the 2D days, it was a check on format, callouts, and maybe fit to a certain extent. With 3D models there are a lot of other aspects that are now available to check. It's to the point where a significant portion of our bids including check time for models.
This use to not be as much of a concern as 'check' via production would produce redlines for engineering to incorporate. This still happen, even with 3D… because most are still producing 2D drawings and the coordination between engineering and manufacturing is lacking.
Ah, the switch. Well, depending on what you're manufacturing, you can start with a simple checklist that maintains general processes used by shops you use.
After that, you'll be able to see where some checks could be automated. Like a custom program that check the thickness of all your parts, or something that checks densities against a material database.
But starting with a simple checklist will allow engineers to 'pre-check' and give senior staff a way to determine what has been reviewed.
Thanks for the comment!
I guess most of this gets caught in our engineering proto types. Granted I spend a lot of time looking over my model, I don't use a checklist, I'm terrible at that, I'll use interference check in SW to help. We will build several first to find the major flaws and then do a pilot production run to see what the people on the floor have an issue with.
The; My boss starts yelling at me because it failed again, check is also very efficient.
don't use it but it is very efficient for you just abuse your supervisor.
The; My boss starts yelling at me because it failed again, check is also very efficient.
don't use it but it is very efficient for you just abuse your supervisor.
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