Fusion 360 workflow organisation

[Kev T]

I'm drawing a small loco in F360. I've started a project and in that I've made a drawing for the smokebox. Within that drawing I've drawn a component for the smokebox door.
I'm wondering if this is the best way of using the programme. Should I have the whole loco in one drawing with lots of different components, or should I have several sub-assemblies each in its own drawing. Say, footplate and associated bits, cab, boiler each with separate components, e.g. footplate with components for sandboxes, toolboxes, splashers. Cab with components for doors, roof etc.
I'll be printing this off at some stage and when I need to re-draw some of the components in the light of what I learn, I won't want to impact on a lot of other parts.

What's the best way of organising so that when I make a mistake it impacts as little as possible, while making it easy to see it all together.

Kev

 

[david bigcheeseplant]

I tend to create things that are going to repeat or move are best as components brought in to the main assembly.

I would draw most of the loco starting from the frames.

I would also draw one wheel, then import this into another assembly of two wheels and axle, then this assembly in to the main design.

 

[Kev T]

I tend to create things that are going to repeat or move are best as components brought in to the main assembly.

I would draw most of the loco starting from the frames.

I would also draw one wheel, then import this into another assembly of two wheels and axle, then this assembly in to the main design.

If I've understood this correctly, you only have one drawing with multiple components associated with it

 

[Paul_H]

I'm still a novice at Fusion, but all the tutorials I've watched have said best practice is to keep everything in one file. With different parts drawn as individual 'assemblies'.
This allows you to reference other part's dimensions in new assemblies. That also means (when done correctly) that if you change one part's dimensions that are referenced in other assemblies the dimensions will follow. You can also assemble the assemblies and make joints etc.

No doubt that this can make big complex files with many parts that can be daunting to work with initially, but is regarded as best practice and once you've understood it can make the process more productive.

 

[NickB]

If I've understood this correctly, you only have one drawing with multiple components associated with it

My strategy is to keep everything in a single file. At the top level I have a set of components which are containers for the major parts of the engine. So, underframe, wheels, footplate, smokebox, boiler and firebox, cab would be typical for your average British steam loco, but it could vary depending on prototype. Then individual components for frames, stretchers, boiler fittings, cab fittings, etc go in the relevant container. And so on down. A chimney, for example, would have separate sub-components if the base, stem and cap were identifiably different.

That makes it easy to work on one part of the design by turning off the visibility of other parts, and also makes it easy to ensure that holes in one component line up with holes in other components, and such like.

Also, I only draw those bits I know I'm going to need. I don't make a nice picture of the whole engine. If using stock parts or commercial castings for some parts, I see no point in drawing them.

Nick

 

[Kev T]

Thanks all.
I've placed the smokebox centre on the origin and will work from there.
Kev

 

[Kev T]

I've made a bit of a mess with the way I started this project. I started with the smokebox as the parent and then added the components of the smokebox and linked them together with parametric dimensions.
The problem, as is obvious now, is that I can't add the loco as the parent and use the smokebox as a sub component, to be able to continue with parametric drawings and create an assembly.
As an aside I've only just got to grips with the relationships between bodies, components, sketches etc.
So has anyone a cunning plan to re-create the project with the smokebox as a sub-component and the loco as parent?

Kev

 

[simond]

No experience with Fusion, but in Solidworks, you can save a part or an assembly, and then incorporate it in a higher level assembly - think cars - the car will be top level, the engine(s), gearbox(es), front and rear suspension assemblies, etc will be a level down, and below that might be eg a brake caliper assembly, and below that the machining, castings, etc, right down to the bleed nipple, or the bolts that hold the caliper together, which would be base level “library parts”.

I‘d be surprised if Fusion isn’t similar.

 

[John K]

You may already be aware of Learn It! channel on YouTube.
Starts very simple and then gets deep into what Fusion 360 can do.
He has some sensible observations on labelling versioning and storage,
Don't be put of by it being American - he is softly spoken and a rather good teacher.

Learn It!

Stop clicking, stop scrolling, stop wasting time and start learning already! Learn Autodesk Fusion on the Learn It! channel.

www.youtube.com

Hope it helps someone
Best,
John K

 

[Paul_H]

To my, non-expert, eye it looks like you've got sketches at a higher level than is desirable. I'm also not sure that nesting assemblies is best practice either.
It's rather too easy to crack on whilst drawing and put sketches into the wrong place that cause complications later (been there done that).
We have to slow down and make sure that everything we do is where it should be before starting new bits of work.

I'd suggest to work through some of the tutorials that deal with how to structure projects and then maybe start from scratch again with better knowledge of how to collate everything. Copying and pasting might help, but from what I've read that can also trip up the unwary.

 

[simond]

In best Valerie Singleton tradition, here's one I made earlier. I hope that it may be helpful



The axles and wheels are sub-assemblies like this



the wheels themselves are assemblies, of the (Slater's) wheel, and the 10BA crankpin. I made the balance weights in situ so I didn't draw them as a sub part.



Actually, I cheated, the crankpin is part of the wheel model in this case.

Same approach, different loco - chassis for a Springside 45xx. The story's in my Workbench thread. In this case, the speaker, and its box, the motor and gearbox, the wheels, axleboxes and axles, the pony trucks, are all separate sub assemblies or sub components, as are the frames and the frame spacers.




hope that this is of some help.
Simon

 

[Kev T]

I learned Fusion from a set of 16 videos by an Aussie, listed as Future Engineering. In hindsight I learned the basics but either mis-understood or he didn't cover the importance of organising the project correctly. Nesting assemblies is something I've done unintentionally and I know I misunderstood bodies/compopnents. Basically if there are two ways of doing something, I pick the wrong one, always.

I've got into a right mess trying to sort it out, so I'll take the advice and scrap what I've done and look at the videos recommended.
I drew the thing in a shorter time than I've spent buggering about with the organisation.

Kev

 

[simond]

Kev,

Don’t “scrap” it, simply put it to one side.

I’d start with the frames, spacers and buffer beams. By the time you’ve done them (make each model as you intend to make the part), and assembled them, you might find you’ll be able to add your smokebox into the assembly.

 

[Paul_H]

Try Kevin Kennedy's series, it's often recommended as a great introduction to Fusion. I've kept on getting more out of series after multiple views;

Learn Autodesk Fusion 360 in 30 Days for Complete Beginners! 2023-23 EDITION

Learn Autodesk Fusion 360 in 30 Days for Complete Beginners! This is a 2022 completely brand new and REVAMPED version of the original 2019 course.In this tut...

www.youtube.com

 

[NickB]

A feature I find very helpful is the timeline at the bottom of the screen. Walking back up the timeline undoes each operation in turn, walking down redoes them. So if you decide you made a boo-boo earlier, go back to where it happened. If you cannot immediately identify that point, go step by step until you can see it. Fix it there, and with any luck all subsequent operations fall into place. If not. walk back down the timeline addressing each one as you come to it.

In a complex project, the implications of something we do may not be easily foreseen and I have often rescued a project in that way.

Nick

 

[Paul_H]

The Timeline can be a drawing saver, but needs understanding. It's very annoying that it doesn't cover what happens in sketches.
The other potentially confusing aspect is that it's per-assembly, so the timeline content varies as you switch between assemblies.

I still find the most difficult aspect of Fusion is project management, how parts inter-relate and how to control visibility.

 

[NickB]

I actually find it helpful that the timeline content changes, so that when you activate a component you only see the actions relevant to that component. In a complex project with many components, the full timeline can be very extensive and if I am trying to fix one component, it contains lots of stuff I don't need. But, as always, YMMV.

Nick

 

[Bill Bedford]

I've made a bit of a mess with the way I started this project. I started with the smokebox as the parent and then added the components of the smokebox and linked them together with parametric dimensions.
The problem, as is obvious now, is that I can't add the loco as the parent and use the smokebox as a sub component, to be able to continue with parametric drawings and create an assembly.

Yep, you have the chimney as a sub-component of the smokebox door and the time line has a lot of yellow mrkers in it that need to be fixed before you get too far into the modelling.

As an aside I've only just got to grips with the relationships between bodies, components, sketches etc.
So has anyone a cunning plan to re-create the project with the smokebox as a sub-component and the loco as parent?

Start a new drawing, say for the boiler, and insert the smokebox as a component into it.