To constrain parts in an Inventor assembly, place them with Place, then click Constrain on the Assemble tab, pick a type (Mate, Angle, Tangent, Insert), click a face or edge on each part and click OK. Add constraints until each part sits where it should. In this lesson we’ll do that with five parts, then edit, color and animate them.
Lesson 7 of my Autodesk Inventor series. In lesson 6 we made five parts, A through E. Now we put them together. You’ll bring the parts into an assembly, lock them to each other with constraints, change part sizes without leaving the assembly, give them colors, and finally make the assembly move and record a video of it.
- Bring the parts into an assembly
- Constrain the parts
- Edit parts inside the assembly
- Assign colors
- Animate
- Record a video
Start a new Standard assembly and click Create.
How do I bring parts into an assembly?
- Go to Assemble tab > Component panel > Place.
- In the Place Component dialog, find Part C from lesson 6 and click Open.
- Click anywhere to place it, then right-click and choose OK.
- Place parts A, B, D and E the same way.
- Right-click Part C and choose Grounded. Inventor locks it in place, and the other parts will be positioned relative to it.
How do I add assembly constraints in Inventor?
Part A into Part C
- Start Constrain: Assemble tab > Relationships panel > Constrain.
- Click the centerline of Part A.
- Click the centerline of Part C.
The two centerlines line up:
If the part is facing the wrong way:
…flip it with the reverse direction option and click OK.
Now you can drag the inner part in and out along the centerline. Your screen should look like this:
Part B into Part A
Do the same to put Part B into Part A:
The model should look like this now:
Hold Part E 0.25″ from Part A
Part E needs to sit 0.25″ from the inside face of Part A.
- Start Constrain, select the first face and enter 0.25 as the offset.
- Select the second face, choose the Mate solution, and click OK.
Part E is now exactly 0.25″ from the face of Part A.
Center the pin (Part B) in Part A
- Press F6 for the home view, and set the visual style to Shaded with Edges on the View tab.
- Drag the pin so you can see its end sticking out of Part A.
- Start Constrain. Click the first face, then the second, set the offset to -0.7825 with the Flush solution, and click OK.
Part D
- Start Constrain, align the two centerlines, and click OK.
- Start Constrain again and click the first face…
- …then the second face. Make sure Flush is selected, and click OK.
The assembly so far:
- Align the centerline of Part D with the centerline of the hole in Part C: start Constrain and select both centerlines.
The holes are now aligned:
How do I edit a part inside the assembly?
Make Part E longer
- Double-click Part E. Everything else turns gray, so you know which part you’re editing.
The browser shows the same thing:
- Click the “+” next to Extrusion1.
- Right-click Sketch1 and choose Edit Sketch. Double-click the 2.250 dimension and change it to 4.75.
- Click OK. The part gets longer.
- Click Update, then Return.
Inventor updates the assembly:
Change the length of Part D
- Double-click Part D.
- Right-click Extrusion3 and choose Edit Feature.
- Enter 2 and click OK.
The length updates:
- Click Update, then Return.
How do I change part colors?
- Click Part C, and from the appearance drop-down on the ribbon choose Polycarbonate, Clear.
- Give Part A Stainless Brushed.
- Give parts D and E Clear Yellow.
How do I animate an assembly?
- On the Assemble tab, click Constrain in the Relationships panel.
- Choose the Angle constraint with the Directed Angle option.
- Click face 1, then face 2.
Inventor rotates Part D so it’s at 0° to the side of Part C:
- In the browser, expand Part D, right-click Angle1 and choose Drive.
- The Drive dialog opens. Use Play and Stop to run the animation.
Which constraint should I use?
| Constraint | Use it for |
|---|---|
| Mate | Face to face, or lining up axes |
| Flush | Faces side by side, pointing the same way |
| Insert | A pin or bolt into a hole in one step |
| Angle | Holding an angle between two faces |
| Tangent | A round face touching a flat or round face |
Why won’t my parts constrain?
- The part is grounded. The first part placed is grounded and won’t move. That’s usually what you want.
- Conflicting constraints. Inventor warns you. Delete the last constraint and try a different one.
- Wrong face picked. Use the selection filter or zoom in before you pick.
Record a video
- In the Drive dialog, click Record, and choose where to save the WMV file.
- The WMV Export Properties dialog opens. Click OK.
- Click Play. Inventor runs the animation and records it at the same time. After about 30 seconds, stop it in the Drive dialog. You’ll find the dialog in the lower left corner of the screen.
The video is saved to your drive:
It plays in regular Windows Media Player. Don’t forget to save the assembly.
Next up: Lesson 8: The presentation panel.
