Reduce Drawing Time with AutoCAD Mechanical Component Libraries

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[MUSIC PLAYING]

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Hello and welcome to this accelerator presentation

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where I will discuss how to reduce your drawing

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time with the use of AutoCAD Mechanical Component Libraries.

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So let's begin.

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This safe harbor statement is just a reminder

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that the Autodesk software changes regularly

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to continually improve the software

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and make it a better experience for you.

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If I happen to make any forward looking

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statements in this presentation, please

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do not make any buying decisions based on it.

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Let me introduce myself.

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My name is Elvis Sverko, and I'm a senior application engineer

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with IMAGINIT.

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I have 30 years experience with multiple Autodesk products,

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including AutoCAD and its various tool sets,

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Inventor solid modeling and Vault data management where

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I provide implementation solutions and training

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services of these products.

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After obtaining my master's degree,

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I worked in industry for a dozen years

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where I then brought that experience into my current role

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where I am also an Autodesk certified instructor

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and have presented at Autodesk University.

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The purpose of this accelerator is

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to inform a new AutoCAD Mechanical toolset

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user about the industry specific content libraries that

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are available out of the box.

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We will demonstrate how using these standard content

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libraries can improve drafting processes

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by reducing the time required to draw standard components

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and features.

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I will show you how to access these content libraries

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and insert their content.

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We will customize the interface by setting up favorites

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and adjusting preferences.

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We will create custom content libraries

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and add custom content to them.

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We will use Excel to import parameters for a custom content

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part.

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And finally, we will review the design calculators.

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The AutoCAD Mechanical toolset contains

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over 700,000 standard parts such as screws, nuts washers, pins,

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rivets, and bushings.

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It also includes many standard pre-drawn features,

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including undercuts, key ways, and a variety

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of holes such as through holes, countersunk holes, and others.

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When you need a standard part, you

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don't need to worry about drawing it,

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you'll just be able to pick a type, select the size,

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and insert it.

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The Content Library is also 100% customizable.

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You can modify the content by adding or removing

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sizes and adding company specific information,

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such as stock numbers, and can even

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add your own custom components into the same library.

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It's a great way to have all your content

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in a single location.

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To use Content Libraries, you simply

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open the Content Libraries palette

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and you'll have instant access to the many standard parts

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from industry standards such as ANSI, DIN, and ISO.

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The most commonly used standard parts in assemblies

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consist of screws, bolts, nuts, and washers.

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The ability to quickly insert those parts into your assembly

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enables you to benefit from using the tools to insert

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standard parts.

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You can also use the tools when you need standard parts

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that you do not use often.

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If they are not easily accessible for insert,

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you would have to research the available sizes of the parts

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and draw them individually and correctly in the drawing

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each time.

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You can access and insert the parts and features

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defined in an industry standard using the Content Libraries

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palette.

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To open this palette, you can type AMCONTENTLIB

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at the command line or click its icon

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in the Library panel of the Content tab on the ribbon.

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The Content Libraries palette can

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be positioned, docked, anchored, or automatically hidden

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wherever suits your needs.

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It's three panes, content, favorites,

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and details can also be resized.

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The standards that were installed

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with your instance of the AutoCAD Mechanical toolset

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will all be listed, such as ANSI, DIN, and ISO.

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The Content Libraries pallete lists the content

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first by the individual industry standards

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and then by the categories of parts within those standards.

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Some categories include fasteners, shafts, and springs,

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to name a few.

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You're able to navigate to the required content using a tree

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view or list view, and this process

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can be accomplished in any of the panes.

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Once a standard part or feature is selected,

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the Details pane will show the various views

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that you can insert.

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An ANSI hex flat nut might include just a front, side,

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and top view, while a DIN I-shape steel frame

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member might include the same front, side,

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and top views, along with additional views

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such as a bottom view or various section views.

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With the available views listed in the Details

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pane of the Content Library's palette,

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click the view you want to insert.

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Next, follow the prompts to insert the standard part

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or feature which might include specifying the insertion

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location and size information required for the selected

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content and view.

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Depending on the specific part you are inserting,

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some steps may vary so be sure to follow the prompts

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and/or the dialog boxes for that specific part until complete.

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To make it more efficient to access

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the same standard content from the Content Library's palette,

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you can add the standard parts and features

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that you use most often to the Favorites pane.

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Create folders in the Favorites pane

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by right-clicking and selecting New folder.

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To add the content to a folder, first

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have the folder selected in the Favorites

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pane then navigate to the standard part in the content

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pane, right-click on it and select Add to Favorites.

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Once a part is added to the Favorites pane,

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you can set the favorite entry to insert

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a specific view and even a set size,

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or they can be left as specified during insertion.

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You will need to change the Favorites pane to list view.

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Depending on the type of part, different options

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may be available.

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Parts can be dragged and dropped to different folders as needed.

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The configuration of your Favorites

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is stored in the file Favorites.gdb.

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You can share this file with others

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so that they will not need to configure

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the same list of favorites.

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The standard content libraries include a large array of parts.

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If there are certain parts you never use,

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you can limit the list to make it easier

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to select only those specific parts you do use.

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This preference can be set in the Content Manager.

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To open the Content Manager dialog box, click Content

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Manager in the Library panel of the Content tab on the ribbon,

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or you can type AMCONTENTMANAGER at the command line.

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In the content area, navigate to the category or part

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that you don't want to show in the Content Libraries palette.

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You can uncheck individual parts or a complete category

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that you don't want to appear.

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Now let's take a look at an in product demo that demonstrates

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how you can use the AutoCAD Mechanical Content Libraries,

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change preferences in the Content Manager,

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and insert a standard part into a drawing.

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The purpose of this video is to illustrate how the AutoCAD

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Mechanical toolset provides easy access to industry

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specific standard parts, saving you time

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as you can simply insert the part instead of drawing it.

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To insert a standard part from our content library,

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we need to open the Content Libraries palette.

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We do so by clicking on Content Libraries on the Content tab

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Library panel of the ribbon.

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Notice all the different industry standards

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we can choose from.

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And if we expand the different standards,

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note the different categories for each.

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If we continue to expand DIN, Shaft Parts, Roller Bearings,

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Axial, we see five different industry standard

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parts we can insert.

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Before we place a part, let's modify our preferences

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for which parts we can even have available to insert.

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We'll do this in the Content Manager found

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on the Content tab Library panel of the ribbon.

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Here let's expand to that same location.

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If our designs never include the DIN 700 series,

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we can remove them from our list so as

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to declutter our library by deselecting each one.

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And you'll notice as I deselect them,

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they immediately are removed from my Content Libraries.

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I can also remove a complete category.

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Let's accept our preference changes and return

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to the Content Libraries palette.

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We'll expand the Radial Roller Bearings--

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there are many more of these.

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If we select the DIN 617, we'll see

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there are two different views we can insert,

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either the front or the side.

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And for the DIN 615, we not only have a front or side

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view, but also a back view.

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We'll click to place the front view.

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Depending on the type of part selected to insert,

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the next few steps may vary as they are

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specific to that type of part.

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We need to specify an insertion point.

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So we'll select that, an intersection

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of the vertical line and the center line.

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Next, we are asked to select a point somewhere

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along the center line.

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So we'll click here.

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Specific to the DIN 615 part, we'll complete the settings

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in the dialog box.

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In the dropdown, we'll pick greater than equals

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for the inner diameter with a value of 17,

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and for the outer diameter, we'll pick less than

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or equal to with a value of 44.

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We'll click Next to get to the calculation values.

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Then Next again for the result.

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We'll select all three items in the result and click Finish.

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We can now dynamically place the part to the left or right,

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as well as adjust the vertical value from 20 to 22.

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And those are the only available sizes

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for this part based on what we chose.

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We'll choose 22.

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So we left click, and our industry standard part

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is inserted.

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Even though the AutoCAD Mechanical

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toolset ships with over half a million standard parts

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and features, a specific item that you might need

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may not exist.

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You may need to build your own content

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and store it in a custom content folder

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in the Content Library's palette.

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The AutoCAD Mechanical toolset also

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provides the ability to copy a standard part to a custom

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content library and modify it as required.

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If a simple change to an existing standard part

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is required, such as solely modifying its material,

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this variation can also be accomplished

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in its original location.

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Creation of these custom libraries or library parts

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is performed in the Content Manager which

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can be open from the Library panel of the Content tab

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on the ribbon.

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Before you author content, you must

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have a content library to store the content you create.

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Your content library is not a single file,

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it is a collection of many files that

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are stored in a single folder.

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To create a custom library while in the content manager,

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either right-click on Custom Content and select New Library,

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or click the New Library button at the top of the content area.

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In the New Library dialog box, enter a display name, library

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name and folder location.

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To create new folders within a custom library,

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right-click on a custom library and select New Folder.

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To create custom content, you must first create the geometry

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and add any required parameters to accommodate variations

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in your part.

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Then start the New Content command from either the ribbon

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or within the Content Manager by clicking New Content.

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In the New Content dialog box, click the Select objects button

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and select all the objects, including

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parameters then right-click to return to the dialog box.

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After you click OK, you will be brought into the Content Editor

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environment.

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And in the Family Table palette that appears,

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add required columns for the parameter values

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that will be made to vary by clicking the New column

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button at the top.

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Then click the New row button to add the variations

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and set the values per your requirements.

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Any custom renamed parameters will automatically

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be placed as a column in the Family Table.

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With the part and values all complete,

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click the Close Editor button on the Content Editor

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contextual tab on the ribbon in the Save content as dialog box,

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select the folder and the name for the part

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and any other settings then click Save content.

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Now let's take a look at an in product demo

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that demonstrates how to create custom content using

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the AutoCAD Mechanical toolset.

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The purpose of this video is to illustrate

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how you can use content manager in the AutoCAD Mechanical

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toolset to create your own custom content libraries

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and custom parts.

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To create custom content and to add it

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to the content libraries, the first step is to draw the part

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and include the required parameters

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for how the part will vary.

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The part we are adding has three linear parameters, D1, D2,

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and D3, one radial parameter, rad 1,

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and one angled parameter that has already been renamed

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to a custom name ClampAngle.

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To add this part to the content libraries,

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we have to open the Content Manager found

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on the Content tab Library panel of the ribbon.

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We'll first create a new custom library

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by right-clicking on Custom Content

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and selecting New Library.

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We'll enter Custom Clamps for both the display and library

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names.

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Then we'll click OK.

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Our new Custom Library is created.

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To create new custom content to add to the library,

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well right-click on the new library and select New Content.

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In the New Content dialog box, we'll

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click these Select objects button then draw

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a window selection around all our geometry

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then right-click to return to the New Content dialog box

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and click OK.

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We are now in the Content Editor environment.

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In the Family Table palette, notice the renamed parameter

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ClampAngle was automatically added as a column.

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Our part will have another parameter that will vary--

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D1.

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So to manually add it as a column in the Family Table

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palette, we'll click the add column button.

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The default name for this column is column1 and is not

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associated to any parameter.

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So we will click the Lookup button,

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select D1, and click OK.

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D1 is now the new name of the column,

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and it is associated with the vertical constraint parameter.

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We'll keep the rest as default and click OK,

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and we now have a second column.

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We're going to add 6 rows to the Family Table

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because we will have six variations for our part.

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So we'll click the add rows button six times.

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D1 will be either a value of 1 or 1.5,

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so the last three rows will change its values to 1.5.

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As for ClampAngle we'll choose 120, 135, and 150

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for the first three and the last three rows.

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Note the six different variations we now have.

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Now we'll click Close Editor on the Content Editor contextual

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tab on the ribbon then click Save in the dialog box.

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In the Save content as dialog box,

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we'll select New custom library.

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For the new part name, we'll enter Entry Clamp Angle.

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We'll keep the other defaults and click Save content.

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Notice our new custom library and custom part

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are now listed in the Content Library's palette.

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To add it to the Favorites, expand Favorites, right click

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on it and select New folder.

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We'll rename it Clamps.

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With the Clamps folder still selected,

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we'll right click on Entry Clamp Angle in the Content pane

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and click Add to Favorites.

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Finally, we'll enter Entry Clamp Angle or its name in Favorites.

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When you are creating custom content

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to be added to a custom library in the Content Libraries

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palette, you may have many possible variations

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with many parameters that need to change.

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Adding each column and row one at a time may be time consuming

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and you may have a spreadsheet with all the rows,

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columns, and values already defined in it.

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If so, you can easily import that Excel spreadsheet

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directly into the Family Table palette of the part

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while you are creating it.

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While creating the custom content part in the Content

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Editor environment, click the Import Table button

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at the top of the Family Table palette.

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After you navigate and select the Excel file,

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the Family Table Excel Import Options dialog box opens.

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Identify which worksheet to use, and the starting header row

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cell, and the last value row cell,

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along with a type of import--

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either append or overwrite-- depending on your needs.

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After you click OK, the entire spreadsheet table

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will be listed in the Family Table palette.

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If the header cell of the spreadsheet

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matches the name of a parameter, they will automatically

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be associated.

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If these names do not match, you will

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need to right-click on the column name in the Family Table

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palette and open its properties to look up

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and associate a parameter to it.

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When finished, click Close Editor

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and save your custom content part.

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When creating parameters, there are some best practices

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to consider.

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First and foremost is to create a naming convention

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to use for all parts and then be consistent.

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Naming conventions vary, but some typical ones

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include using underscore to separate words

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or using CamelCase which only uses

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uppercase characters for the first letter of each word.

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When it comes to naming parameters,

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you should try to be descriptive with the name, because it makes

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it clearer to understand that later

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and clearer for other users too.

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You may create many parameters to help define your part

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but it's only necessary to rename

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the important ones or the ones that will likely change.

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If you create equations within a parameter,

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be sure to test each one immediately

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after you create it.

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When creating a design, you might not

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be sure which size of standard content should be used

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or you might simply need to calculate and report

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the results of different scenarios for your design.

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This finding can be accomplished using design calculators.

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For instance, to ensure that you have selected a fastener that

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meets specific requirements, you can calculate various factors

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using screw calculations, such as stresses induced and apart

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or factors of safety for the screw and plates.

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Another example might be to determine

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the fatigue life of a bearing.

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There are a variety of design calculations that can be used.

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Depending on the specific calculator,

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its dialog box will have specific criteria to define.

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These calculators can be found on the Calculation panel

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of the Content tab on the ribbon.

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Thank you for joining me today for this accelerator

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presentation about reducing your drawing

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time with the use of AutoCAD Mechanical Component Libraries,

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and I hope you found the information useful.