Advanced Sheet Metal Design Using NX Cad Challenge_5_Odd Shaped Enclosure

DESIGN OF ODD SHAPED SHEET METAL PART USING NX SHEET METAL APPLICATION

Objective:

The objective is to develop a sheet metal part with odd shapes or angles from a solid object using various sheet metal tools like flange, bead, jog, hole, sheet metal from solid, unbend, rebend, flat pattern, etc, in NX sheet metal. Recommended workflow/design methodology is followed to achieve the final outcome.

Introduction:

Sheet metal is metal formed by an industrial process into thin, flat pieces. It is one of the fundamental forms used in metalworking, and we can obtain varieties of shapes using a wide range of processes, tools, etc. Sheet metals are available in flat pieces and coiled strips with thicknesses varying from 0.1mm to 10mm.

Extremely thin sheets (0.1mm) are considered foil or leaf, and metal sheets thicker than 6mm are considered plate steel or structural steel.

In this design challenge, rather than creating a sheet metal part using a standard approach (i.e creating a tab (base feature) and add different features to it), we will create a sheet metal object from a solid body and then add the required featured to form an odd shape enclosure.

Sheet metals are used for various applications such as automobile, aerospace, HVAC, daily utensils.

Design methodology:

Description:

1. Odd shape enclosure design

• To form such an odd shape object, first, create a solid body by extruding the fully defined sketch to a given thickness value using extrude modeling feature as shown in the image given below.

• This solid body becomes the interior of the final sheet metal enclosure.

• After creating the solid body, using sheet metal from solid command wrap the solid body with sheet metal. Parameters like bend radius, thickness are as per default settings. You can manipulate these values based on your requirement.

• After wrapping the sheet metal around the solid body we will add features like flange and jog on the faces with greater length.

• Draw a fully constrained sketch line on the other face and use the jog feature that lift-up the material on one side of the jog sketch. Input suitable values in the jog properties.

• Then unbend the formed sheet metal so as to add other features like bead and holes in the bend areas and planar surfaces.

• Select the middle face to create two fully constrained sketch lines that will be used to create beads. Use appropriate values in the bead properties.

• Then add sketch points that will specify the locations to create the holes. Use suitable values of hole diameter, form, etc.

• After adding all the features required, rebend the unbend features to their bend state along with the newly added features i.e holes and beads. If required you can also add more features using the same approach.

2. Drafting

• Create a flat pattern of the formed sheet metal. A flat pattern view will be created in the model view. This view consists of information like bend radius, bend angle, bend direction, hole size, etc. From sheet metal preferences we can change the color of the curves which will make it easy to understand.

Standard views of the sheet metal odd shape enclosure:

Front View

Side View

Top View

Isometric View

Feature tree:

Conclusion:

• After completing this challenge, I have learned and implemented this new feature called sheet metal from solid that helps us to create any sheet metal object from a solid model which is different from the standard approach of developing a sheet metal part.
• If a solid model is provided by the customer I will be able to create a sheet metal body using this feature and also other sheet metal features.
• Adjusting the colors of the curves in flat pattern display for better understanding. Hide/Unhide the information that will be displayed in the flat pattern view.