• Fusion

Interrogating the assembly

Explore options for understanding how an assembly is structured.


Tutorial resources

These downloadable resources will be used to complete this tutorial:


00:03

Fusion provides several ways to inspect an assembly to identify interferences and to better understand how it was created.

00:11

These include tools for measuring, showing references between components and joints, and finding the center of mass of an assembly.

00:19

As you use these options, you can also control the view by isolating components

00:24

and by adjusting the opacity and selectability of components.

00:28

On the Design workspace toolbar, Solid tab, click Inspect > Measure.

00:35

The Measure tool enables you to measure distances between faces to better understand the size of the components,

00:41

measure angles, and evaluate additional dimensions.

00:45

For example, in this design, you can find the overall height of the housing by selecting the top surface,

00:52

then rotating the view and selecting the bottom surface.

00:56

Close the Measure tool.

00:59

Click Inspect again and select Interference to check for complications in the assembly.

01:04

You can select individual components or use window selection options to group components.

01:10

Click Compute to calculate interferences and open the results in a new dialog.

01:16

While many of the interferences that come up will be simple issues,

01:20

such as bolt threads that do not quite align with the hole, in this example, there is one more significant interference.

01:27

Here, Spacer 2 interferes with Vane 1, resulting in a significant overlap of nearly 469 cubic millimeters.

01:36

Click OK to close the dialog.

01:39

Now that you have identified the interference, you can use the Section Analysis tool to locate it.

01:45

From the Inspect menu, select Section Analysis.

01:49

Select a face and then use the arrow manipulator to drag a section through the model.

01:54

As you drag the section plane, you can visually identify where the spacer and vane components overlap, enabling you to address this issue.

02:03

Click OK to save the section analysis to the Browser for later use.

02:08

From here, you can hide and restore its visibility as required.

02:13

To access another useful examination tool, select a component, then right-click and choose Select Referencing Joints.

02:21

This shows the joints connected to the component.

02:24

Expand the Joints folder to see which joints reference the selected component.

02:29

For example, you might see two or more different joints referencing a single component.

02:34

You can also work in reverse.

02:37

Select a joint, then right-click and choose Select Components.

02:43

This highlights the relevant components, both on the canvas and in the Browser, making it easy to identify connections.

02:51

While working in the assembly, there may be times when you want to see a component but prevent it from interfering with your selections.

02:58

For this, you have several options.

03:02

One option is to adjust the opacity of the component.

03:05

For example, select and then right-click the Housing, select Opacity Control, then change the level to 30%.

03:15

With reduced opacity, the component remains selectable, but you can click through it to select other items like faces, edges, or geometries.

03:24

If needed, you can change the selectability of a component by right-clicking it and selecting Selectable/Unselectable.

03:31

This enables you to select through the component to manipulate items or to actuate the assembly.

03:37

To make the component selectable again, right-click it and choose Selectable/Unselectable.

03:44

Another way to control the view is by isolating a component that you want to focus on.

03:49

Right-click the upper vane assembly component and select Isolate.

03:54

This hides the visibility of all other components.

03:58

To restore the view, right-click the same component and select Unisolate,

04:03

or right-click and select Unisolate All at the top level to show all components as they were before.

04:09

Finally, there is a tool for finding the center of mass for an assembly.

04:14

Expand the Inspect menu and select Center of Mass.

04:19

Select everything on the canvas, and then click OK.

04:23

Once the center of mass is calculated, it is shown in the model for visual reference,

04:28

enabling you to assess its position relative to the assembly.

04:32

The center of mass calculation is also saved in the Analysis folder and can be hidden or made visible as needed.

Video transcript

00:03

Fusion provides several ways to inspect an assembly to identify interferences and to better understand how it was created.

00:11

These include tools for measuring, showing references between components and joints, and finding the center of mass of an assembly.

00:19

As you use these options, you can also control the view by isolating components

00:24

and by adjusting the opacity and selectability of components.

00:28

On the Design workspace toolbar, Solid tab, click Inspect > Measure.

00:35

The Measure tool enables you to measure distances between faces to better understand the size of the components,

00:41

measure angles, and evaluate additional dimensions.

00:45

For example, in this design, you can find the overall height of the housing by selecting the top surface,

00:52

then rotating the view and selecting the bottom surface.

00:56

Close the Measure tool.

00:59

Click Inspect again and select Interference to check for complications in the assembly.

01:04

You can select individual components or use window selection options to group components.

01:10

Click Compute to calculate interferences and open the results in a new dialog.

01:16

While many of the interferences that come up will be simple issues,

01:20

such as bolt threads that do not quite align with the hole, in this example, there is one more significant interference.

01:27

Here, Spacer 2 interferes with Vane 1, resulting in a significant overlap of nearly 469 cubic millimeters.

01:36

Click OK to close the dialog.

01:39

Now that you have identified the interference, you can use the Section Analysis tool to locate it.

01:45

From the Inspect menu, select Section Analysis.

01:49

Select a face and then use the arrow manipulator to drag a section through the model.

01:54

As you drag the section plane, you can visually identify where the spacer and vane components overlap, enabling you to address this issue.

02:03

Click OK to save the section analysis to the Browser for later use.

02:08

From here, you can hide and restore its visibility as required.

02:13

To access another useful examination tool, select a component, then right-click and choose Select Referencing Joints.

02:21

This shows the joints connected to the component.

02:24

Expand the Joints folder to see which joints reference the selected component.

02:29

For example, you might see two or more different joints referencing a single component.

02:34

You can also work in reverse.

02:37

Select a joint, then right-click and choose Select Components.

02:43

This highlights the relevant components, both on the canvas and in the Browser, making it easy to identify connections.

02:51

While working in the assembly, there may be times when you want to see a component but prevent it from interfering with your selections.

02:58

For this, you have several options.

03:02

One option is to adjust the opacity of the component.

03:05

For example, select and then right-click the Housing, select Opacity Control, then change the level to 30%.

03:15

With reduced opacity, the component remains selectable, but you can click through it to select other items like faces, edges, or geometries.

03:24

If needed, you can change the selectability of a component by right-clicking it and selecting Selectable/Unselectable.

03:31

This enables you to select through the component to manipulate items or to actuate the assembly.

03:37

To make the component selectable again, right-click it and choose Selectable/Unselectable.

03:44

Another way to control the view is by isolating a component that you want to focus on.

03:49

Right-click the upper vane assembly component and select Isolate.

03:54

This hides the visibility of all other components.

03:58

To restore the view, right-click the same component and select Unisolate,

04:03

or right-click and select Unisolate All at the top level to show all components as they were before.

04:09

Finally, there is a tool for finding the center of mass for an assembly.

04:14

Expand the Inspect menu and select Center of Mass.

04:19

Select everything on the canvas, and then click OK.

04:23

Once the center of mass is calculated, it is shown in the model for visual reference,

04:28

enabling you to assess its position relative to the assembly.

04:32

The center of mass calculation is also saved in the Analysis folder and can be hidden or made visible as needed.

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