Does NX 8.5 have "Physical Motion"?

[asrura1]

Hi everyone,

This is my first time posting on Eng-Tips. I have a question about simulated motion in assembly in NX 8.5. I have a few parts that are constrained (not fully). I want to move Component A and when it makes contact with Component B, Component A pushes Component B forward...like real life situation.

All I can find in NX 8.5 in the Move Component command is stop on collision.

I have used Solidworks for 4 years and Solid Edge for 1.5 years. In Solidwork assembly, you can use Move command with the option to do physical simulation so that component contacts are simulated. In Solid Edge assembly, the Drag command also has the option to do "Physical Motion". I use this feature a lot to see how each component interact with each other when I move one component.

NX has Motion Simulation (I have yet to learn it). It seems that you can set up various conditions and let it run...almost like an animation.

My questions is, is there a command in NX 8.5 (or NX 8) that can do physical motion simulation as I move a component as in Solidwork and Solid Edge? Or, it is possible to do this in NX Motion?

Thank you in advance!


Sam

 

[JohnRBaker]

What you're looking for is Assembly Sequencing. It can be found at...

Assemblies -> Sequence...

This will allow you to apply a motion, rotation or translation to a Component and then the rest of the model will articulate based on the assigned constraints as long as there are sufficient degrees-of-freedom so that the assembled Component can actually move. Once a sequence is defined it can be replayed, forward or backwards, or even one step at a time. There will also be an option to capture a Sequence as an .avi video clip. And there are options to enable/disable collision detection.

As for simply dragging one component and seeing how the rest of the network of constrained components articulate, you can do that by using the...

Assemblies -> Component Position -> Move Component...

...and selecting a componet and then use the displayed handles to drag the Component. Note that the same caveat applies as I indicated when creating a Sequence that there needs to be sufficient degrees-of-freedom so that the Components can actually move.

John R. Baker, P.E.
Product 'Evangelist'
Product Engineering Software
Siemens PLM Software Inc.
Industry Sector
Cypress, CA
Siemens PLM:
UG/NX Museum:

To an Engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.

 

[kapmnit123]

Hi Sam,
Off-course Motion Simulation is one of the option you can explore.It gives a real world scenario (where all the 3-D contact parameters like damping coefficients and friction are taken into account) .So it is not a black-box where you have no idea what is determing the rebound intensity.You can very well access and control all the valid engineering parameters yourself as per your design requirements.
Apart from this if you get some time then try to explore MECHATRONICS CONCEPT DESIGNER also.
Best Regards
Kapil Sharma

 

[asrura1]

Hi John,

Thank you for your input. I tried Assembly Sequence this morning and used Move Component before. Both still does not simulate physical motion.

I have three simple components. Component A is fixed and Component B and C are concentric to Component A so that Component B and C are only able to move along X axis.

Component A, B, and C are positioned as follows: A <-- B <-- C

When I move Component C toward Component B, I would like Component C to make solid contact with Component B and push Component B toward Component A. So, Component B and C are both moving together toward Component A. When Component B makes contact with Component A, everything stops. So, the components are now arranged like this: ABC

When I tried "Move Component" command, Component C simply passes through Component B (highlighted red). If I turn on "Stop Before Collision" in the "Move Component" command, Component C simply stops right before Component B but does not make contact, and Component B does not move.

The same thing with "Assembly Sequence" command.

Is what I want possible to do in NX 8.5? It was simple to do in Solidwork and Solid Edge.

Thank you in advance!

Sam

 

[JohnRBaker]

Could you upload your 'simple' Assembly? If so, I'll look at what you're trying to do.

John R. Baker, P.E.
Product 'Evangelist'
Product Engineering Software
Siemens PLM Software Inc.
Industry Sector
Cypress, CA
Siemens PLM:
UG/NX Museum:

To an Engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.

 

[asrura1]

Hi John,

I cannot upload the actual file that I need to do "Physical Motion" on because of company policy. So, I created a simple assembly to test different commands. Please see attached file.

If the upload to ENGINGEERING.COM is not successful, you can download it from my Dropbox.

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/64885412/Test.zip

Basically, when I move/drag the component on the right side and it touches the component in the middle, it "bumps/pushes" the middle component toward the component on the left side and both components are moving together toward the component on the left.

NX Motion is not really what I am looking for...it is similar to Solidworks Motion. I would like to drag something and move it back and forth to see how it affects the other part that is related to it.

I just started using NX and I like it better than Solidwork and Solid Edge. NX's work UI/workflow is very different from those two so it is taking my quite a bit of time to get used to NX. For the "Physical Motion" feature, I suspect it is somewhere in NX. It is just not where I expected it to be, or in the form I am used to.

I really appreciate you taking time to help me. This is driving me a bit nut because I keep thinking "NX is a high end CAD package! How can it not have this feature?!".

Sam