& Construction
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Integrated BIM tools, including Revit, AutoCAD, and Civil 3D
& Manufacturing
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Professional CAD/CAM tools built on Inventor and AutoCAD
How to configure and customize Fusion’s interface so it works based on your own preferences and common workflows.
Transcript
00:03
When transitioning from SolidWorks to Fusion, the user interface is the first thing you need to become familiar with.
00:10
After opening Fusion, you can see some similarities, including a commands toolbar, a breakdown of your design, and control buttons.
00:20
However, Fusion has several features that help improve your design process over SolidWorks.
00:26
Click the first button in the top-left corner, which opens the Data Panel.
00:31
The Data Panel is essentially your file management system, like Windows Explorer or Finder on your Mac,
00:37
except all data is stored on the cloud and is accessible directly within Fusion.
00:43
Here, you can access your projects, cloud asset libraries, and the people involved in a project,
00:50
as well as view training and work with the sample models as provided by Autodesk.
00:55
For example, open the Hedge Trimmer project folder.
00:58
The data panel offers several benefits, including:
01:02
the ease with which you can insert existing data into your designs;
01:07
the ability to create a shared public web link for those outside the design or engineering team;
01:13
a complete version history and review for why there was an update;
01:18
where and how the part is referenced in other assemblies, which is also shown by the change symbol in the browser tree;
01:25
and access to drawings.
01:27
All without ever leaving the software, thereby helping to streamline your design and development process.
01:34
Another added benefit over SolidWorks is the simplicity of the user interface.
01:40
Within Fusion, workspaces help you to focus on the design, manufacture, simulation, or animation of your project.
01:50
These workspaces help to keep you organized,
01:53
so that you only have access to the relevant features or commands respective to the active workspace.
01:59
This means that you only have the tools you need to work with.
02:03
Fusion also makes it easier to work with multiple designs at the same time.
02:08
You can open a part in a new tab, rather than separate windows within the same design space like in SolidWorks.
02:15
This way, all your open designs are quickly and easily available right at the top of your toolbar.
02:22
Over to the top-right side of the UI, you can find your Autodesk account, preferences, teams, and your profile,
02:30
which gives you instant access to your Fusion portal.
02:34
Here, you can organize your files and folders, edit designs online directly in your web browser,
02:43
export to any number of file formats, or build a discussion or Wiki pages for your teams,
02:49
which can be invaluable when collaborating and sharing information.
02:53
Going back to Fusion, you can see under Help is the Learning Panel.
02:57
This is an intuitive tool that knows which workspace you are in and provides tips based on certain clickable actions.
03:05
For instance, with the left body open in the Design workspace,
03:09
the Learning Panel is showing essential tips and a checklist to help improve the design process within this workspace.
03:16
You can also see that when certain tasks are performed, a tooltip will pop up, providing useful information based around that action.
03:24
The Learning Panel is particularly useful if you are new to Fusion,
03:28
as it guides you through the necessary steps to complete a given task within a given workspace,
03:34
and it acts as a checklist to make sure you have covered the most fundamental features.
03:38
Next, take a look at the canvas, the bulk of your UI where all the magic happens, and see how it differs from the SolidWorks canvas.
03:47
The main features to be aware of here are the Browser tree, the ViewCube, and the Comments dialog box.
03:54
The Browser tree separates your design into bodies, canvases, sketches, and construction features, to name a few.
04:04
This helps both to organize your design and to provide quicker access to any parts and their underlying design features.
04:11
The ViewCube gives you an easier way to manage design views,
04:15
and since it is integrated into the canvas, it is always available yet remains unobtrusive.
04:21
You can also set your view between orthographic, or perspective, or even a mix between the two.
04:28
This, paired with your name views under the Browser tree, creates a powerful combination for controlling your design views.
04:35
Next, the Comments dialog box allows you to discuss objects or features,
04:40
or make general comments, which are then uploaded to the cloud
04:43
so they can be accessed both by those with access to Fusion and those via a shared link on a web browser.
04:50
This makes it easy to discuss features with key stakeholders quickly and effectively.
04:55
Finally, the timeline is similar to the Feature Manager tree in SolidWorks,
05:00
but instead of being on the left side of the screen, it is on the bottom.
05:04
It is similar in that features are captured in time.
05:08
They can be edited, reordered, and deleted, which will update downstream features parametrically.
05:15
One major difference is that you will notice that joints—or what are called mates from SolidWorks—
05:22
are also captured parametrically in time.
05:25
This is like combining your part and assembly environment into one design, which can create some very robust workflows.
05:32
Take some time to explore the Fusion user interface,
05:36
and discover for yourself the differences between Fusion and SolidWorks, and where Fusion adds value.
00:03
When transitioning from SolidWorks to Fusion, the user interface is the first thing you need to become familiar with.
00:10
After opening Fusion, you can see some similarities, including a commands toolbar, a breakdown of your design, and control buttons.
00:20
However, Fusion has several features that help improve your design process over SolidWorks.
00:26
Click the first button in the top-left corner, which opens the Data Panel.
00:31
The Data Panel is essentially your file management system, like Windows Explorer or Finder on your Mac,
00:37
except all data is stored on the cloud and is accessible directly within Fusion.
00:43
Here, you can access your projects, cloud asset libraries, and the people involved in a project,
00:50
as well as view training and work with the sample models as provided by Autodesk.
00:55
For example, open the Hedge Trimmer project folder.
00:58
The data panel offers several benefits, including:
01:02
the ease with which you can insert existing data into your designs;
01:07
the ability to create a shared public web link for those outside the design or engineering team;
01:13
a complete version history and review for why there was an update;
01:18
where and how the part is referenced in other assemblies, which is also shown by the change symbol in the browser tree;
01:25
and access to drawings.
01:27
All without ever leaving the software, thereby helping to streamline your design and development process.
01:34
Another added benefit over SolidWorks is the simplicity of the user interface.
01:40
Within Fusion, workspaces help you to focus on the design, manufacture, simulation, or animation of your project.
01:50
These workspaces help to keep you organized,
01:53
so that you only have access to the relevant features or commands respective to the active workspace.
01:59
This means that you only have the tools you need to work with.
02:03
Fusion also makes it easier to work with multiple designs at the same time.
02:08
You can open a part in a new tab, rather than separate windows within the same design space like in SolidWorks.
02:15
This way, all your open designs are quickly and easily available right at the top of your toolbar.
02:22
Over to the top-right side of the UI, you can find your Autodesk account, preferences, teams, and your profile,
02:30
which gives you instant access to your Fusion portal.
02:34
Here, you can organize your files and folders, edit designs online directly in your web browser,
02:43
export to any number of file formats, or build a discussion or Wiki pages for your teams,
02:49
which can be invaluable when collaborating and sharing information.
02:53
Going back to Fusion, you can see under Help is the Learning Panel.
02:57
This is an intuitive tool that knows which workspace you are in and provides tips based on certain clickable actions.
03:05
For instance, with the left body open in the Design workspace,
03:09
the Learning Panel is showing essential tips and a checklist to help improve the design process within this workspace.
03:16
You can also see that when certain tasks are performed, a tooltip will pop up, providing useful information based around that action.
03:24
The Learning Panel is particularly useful if you are new to Fusion,
03:28
as it guides you through the necessary steps to complete a given task within a given workspace,
03:34
and it acts as a checklist to make sure you have covered the most fundamental features.
03:38
Next, take a look at the canvas, the bulk of your UI where all the magic happens, and see how it differs from the SolidWorks canvas.
03:47
The main features to be aware of here are the Browser tree, the ViewCube, and the Comments dialog box.
03:54
The Browser tree separates your design into bodies, canvases, sketches, and construction features, to name a few.
04:04
This helps both to organize your design and to provide quicker access to any parts and their underlying design features.
04:11
The ViewCube gives you an easier way to manage design views,
04:15
and since it is integrated into the canvas, it is always available yet remains unobtrusive.
04:21
You can also set your view between orthographic, or perspective, or even a mix between the two.
04:28
This, paired with your name views under the Browser tree, creates a powerful combination for controlling your design views.
04:35
Next, the Comments dialog box allows you to discuss objects or features,
04:40
or make general comments, which are then uploaded to the cloud
04:43
so they can be accessed both by those with access to Fusion and those via a shared link on a web browser.
04:50
This makes it easy to discuss features with key stakeholders quickly and effectively.
04:55
Finally, the timeline is similar to the Feature Manager tree in SolidWorks,
05:00
but instead of being on the left side of the screen, it is on the bottom.
05:04
It is similar in that features are captured in time.
05:08
They can be edited, reordered, and deleted, which will update downstream features parametrically.
05:15
One major difference is that you will notice that joints—or what are called mates from SolidWorks—
05:22
are also captured parametrically in time.
05:25
This is like combining your part and assembly environment into one design, which can create some very robust workflows.
05:32
Take some time to explore the Fusion user interface,
05:36
and discover for yourself the differences between Fusion and SolidWorks, and where Fusion adds value.