We're going to start by dragging and dropping the appropriate base plate from the catalogue
Next, I'm going to import the part that we're going to fixture
As you can see, it looks a bit like a large phone case
So the part isn't quite where we want it
To move it, I'm going to activate the TriBall
I do this by clicking on the TriBall icon on the part
I want to rotate the part, so I select the axis that I want to rotate around, then drag
I know I want to rotate the part by about 90 degrees, so I'm just going to type that in
I want the window at the other end, so I'm just going to right click, and select "Reverse"
By selecting the plane on the TriBall
I'm going to move the part to approximately the centre of the plate
Whilst maintaining the same Z height
OK, I'm happy with that position
I'm just going to make the model transparent,
as I know it will be easier to construct the fixture if I can see the components under the part
Let's look in the catalogue to find the right fixturing components
First, I'm going to need some stand-offs to support the part
As you can see, when you drag and drop components from the catalogue
they automatically snap to the base plate
I'm just going to raise the part a bit, using the TriBall again
So that I can see what's going on
I can move the part only in Z by selecting the Z-axis, highlighted in yellow
Now I need to add some tips to the stand-offs,
so my workpiece doesn't get marked when it's fixtured
Again, these snap to the stand-offs automatically
Now I'm going to constrain the part to the fixturing
To do this, I first select the part and then select Positioning Constraints from the menu
I'm going to use a parallel constraint to start with
as I want my part to be parallel to the base plate
Make sure this box is ticked so the part moves towards the fixture, not the fixture towards the part
I select the part and then the face of the base plate
and then confirm the constraint
Next, I want to make sure the part is resting on the stand-offs
For this I'm going to need a tangent constraint
So I select the underside of the part
then the stand-off
which snaps the part to the top of the fixture
In order to constrain the part further, we need to add more fixturing
I've added two stand-offs on one side and one on the other
I'm going to use some more tangent constraints to position the part in X and Y
To secure the part, we need to add some clamps
Browsing the catalogue, this one looks about right
I'll add another one of those on the other side
Let's just change the transparency of the part, so we can position the clamps correctly
We need to move the clamps to the correct position
To do this, we select Mechanism Mode from the menu
This allows you to move components as you would in real life
I can click and drag the clamp to the correct location
The red flash you just saw with the software detecting a collision
Mechanism Mode allows you to use Collision Detection
So in this case you can see when the clamps make contact with the part
OK, I'm happy with that fixture
I'm going to generate some build instructions so I know how to put it together in real life
To do this, I'm going to select Build It from the menu
As you can see, the software has generated some assembly instructions
So I know where to put the fixturing components on the plate
Images and a bill of materials are also included in the assembly instructions
Finally, I might want to use my fixtured part assembly when I'm programming in my measurement software
I'm going to export the assembly by selecting Export to Measurement
And that's it!
A complete fixture ready to use in measurement software