2.1.4 Adding Features to Geometry

You can add features to the solid geometry that you create, including chamfering the edges of the geometry, adding holes and bosses, and hollowing out solids.

Chamfering and Filleting Objects

You can create different types of edges and corners on your solids. These include beveled (chamfered) edges and corners and rounded (filleted) edges and corners. You can think of creating filleted edges as rolling a ball over the edges or corners of the geometry to round them.

When chamfering an edge or corner, you can set the width of the beveling. When filleting an edge or corner, you can specify a start and an end radius for the fillet to create a variable fillet.

Adding Holes and Bosses to Objects

You can create circular holes in solid objects and create circular protrusions or bosses on the face of solid objects. Examples of a hole and boss on a link are shown below.

As you create a hole, you can specify its radius and depth. As you create a boss, you can specify its radius and height.

Hollowing Out a Solid

You can hollow out one or more faces of a solid object to create a shell. As you hollow an object, you can specify the thickness of the remaining shell and the faces to be hollowed.

2.1.5 Working with Point Masses

Point masses are points that have mass but no inertia properties or angular velocities. They are computationally more efficient when rotational effects are not important.

To create or modify a point mass:

1) From the Build menu, point to Point Mass, and then select either New or Modify.

2) If you selected Modify, the Database Navigator appears. Select a point mass to modify.

The Create or Modify Point Mass dialog box appears. Both dialog boxes contain the same options.

3) If you are creating a point mass, enter a name for the point mass.

4) Set the mass of the point mass in the dialog box and adjust its location as desired. By default, ADAMS/View places the point mass in the center of the main window with a mass of 1 in current units.

5) Select the Comments tool on the dialog box and enter any comments you want associated with the point mass.

6) Select OK.

2.2 Modifying Parts

Parts define the objects in your model that can have mass and inertia properties and can move. All forces and constraints that you define in your model act on these parts during a simulation. This chapter explains how to create and modify parts. It contains: modifying rigid body geometry, modifying part properties, setting up materials.

2.2.1 Modifying Rigid Body Geometry

You can modify the geometry of a rigid body using: using hotpoints to graphically modify geometry, using dialog boxes to precisely modify geometry, editing locations using the location table.

Using Hotpoints to Graphically Modify Geometry

You can use hotpoints to resize and reshape the geometry of a rigid body. The hotpoints appear at various locations on the geometry depending on the type of geometry.

Using Dialog Boxes to Precisely Modify Geometry

You can precisely control the size, location, and shape of rigid body geometry using modify dialog boxes. In addition, you can change the name of the geometry as you modify it.

Editing Locations Using the Location Table

To specify the location of points in lines, polylines, splines, extrusions, and revolutions, you can use the Location Table. The Location Table lets you view the points in the geometry and edit them. You can also save the location information to a file or read in location information from a file.