Assembly Design 2019x

CATIA Assembly Design 3DEXPERIENCE® R2019x
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Assembly Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Assembly Design Workbench . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Specification Tree Symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Naming Convention & Saving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Deleting Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Managing Data in 3DEXPERIENCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Importing and Exporting Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
File Based Design Import . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Exporting V6 data to V5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Exporting and Importing Data using 3D XML Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Managing Large Assemblies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Visualization Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Open Advanced . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Selective Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Selective Open . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Assembly Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Inserting Documents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Creating a New Product . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Creating a New Part . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Creating a New Part from an Existing Part . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Save . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Replacing Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Reordering the Specification Tree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Manipulating Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Bounding Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Manipulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Robot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Snap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Engineering Connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Fix Constraint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Coincidence Constraint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Contact Constraint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Offset Constraint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Angle Constraint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Constraint Restrictions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Constraining and Manipulating Parts Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Constraint Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Fix Together Constraint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Smart Move . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Changing a Constraint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Modifying a Constraint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Multiple Instances . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
© Wichita State University Table of Contents, Page i

Defining a Multi Instantiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Fast Multi Instantiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Assembly Pattern . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Constraints and Instancing Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Kinematic Mechanisms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Engineering Connection Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Degree of Freedom Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
Mechanism Representation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170
Mechanism Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
Mechanism Player . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Dressup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Contextual Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
Creating Publications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
Creating Master Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Creating External References Using Publications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
Morphing a Part . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
Modifying Publications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
Changing Master Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Links & Relations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
Assembly Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
Assembly Hole* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
Assembly Added* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
Assembly Protected* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
Assembly Symmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241
Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
Degree(s) of Freedom Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
Interference Simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253
Measuring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Sectioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284
Calculating Weight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 289
Miscellaneous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307
Hide / Show . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307
Inheritance of Color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310
Product Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314
Graphic Properties Wizard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317
Flexible / Rigid* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321
Derived Representation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 333
Find . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 340
Design Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 345
Practice Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361

Problem #1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361
Problem #2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 362
Problem #3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363
Problem #4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 364
Problem #5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366
Problem #6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 372
Problem #7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373
Problem #8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375
Table of Contents, Page ii ©Wichita State University

Appendix A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 377
General - Display - Navigation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 377
General - Display - Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 378
General - Parameters and Measure - Measure Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 379
Infrastructure - Publication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 380
Infrastructure - 3D Shape Infrastructure - General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381
Infrastructure - 3D Shape Infrastructure - Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 382
Mechanical - Assembly Design - Update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383
Mechanical - Assembly Design - Engineering Connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384
Mechanical - Assembly Design - Symmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 386
Digital Mockup - Markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 387
Digital Mockup - Sectioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388
Digital Mockup - Text Marker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 389
Digital Mockup - Interference Check - Interference Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 390
© Wichita State University Table of Contents, Page iii

Introduction
CATIA Version 6 Assembly Design
Upon completion of this course the student should have a full understanding of the
following topics:
- Inserting models into an assembly
- Manipulating models in an assembly
- Constraining models in an assembly
- Using engineering connections to define kinematic joints
- Modeling within the context of the assembly
- Creating and using publications
- Analyzing assemblies for clashes and gaps
- Modifying assembly components and updating assemblies
© Wichita State University Assembly Design - Introduction, Page 1

Assembly Design
Very few finished designs are a single part. Usually a finished design consists of several to
millions of individual parts to define them. This is where CATIA V6 Assembly Design is
utilized. Assembly Design allows parts and small assemblies of parts to be inserted to make
larger, more complete products. In CATIA V6 Part Design and Sketcher, you learned how
to generate parts. The primary objective of this class is to utilize those parts to create a
complex assembly of those parts that can be later used in stress analysis, kinematics, fitting
simulations, and other areas.
It is important to understand some of the terminology that CATIA uses when working with
assemblies. There are basically three types of documents that are used in Assembly Design:
the overall assembly, sub-assemblies, and individual part models. CATIA uses the word
‘product’ to refer to an assembly, and ‘part’ to refer to an individual model. You can use
parts to create products and, in turn, use those products to produce other products. The
diagram shown below represents the concept of the overall structure.
The first product at the top is generally regarded as the assembly, whereas the two products
that are underneath are generally regarded as sub-assemblies of this assembly. This
assembly could in turn be used to create an even bigger assembly at some other time, or the
sub-assemblies could be used as sub-assemblies of a different assembly. With this concept
in mind be aware that an assembly could be a very complex document due to its ability to
have multiple levels of sub-assemblies and parts. Because of this complexity it is important
that you have a plan of attack when building assemblies. There are basically two
approaches that a user or company can take when building assemblies. One is to pre-
determine what sub-assemblies a particular assembly is going to need. The other is to
produce all of the parts and then determine what sub-assemblies are going to be created.
Assembly Design - Introduction, Page 2 ©Wichita State University

Assembly Design
The first section of this manual will involve inserting, creating, and replacing documents
and other components in the assembly design. Those documents can be a variety of things
including parts and other assemblies.
Note: All icons utilized on a less-frequent basis are denoted by a * throughout this manual.
Inserting Documents
All of the assemblies created in this first section will not need to have constraints added to
properly position them. The first assembly that will be built is a basic ratchet wrench.
Select the Add icon and select Physical Product. The Physical Product window
appears.
Change the Title to ASSY010 - Ratchet Wrench. Select OK when done. This will give
the assembly an unique name.
One of the most important ideas to keep in mind with assembly design is that all parts must
have an unique ID. The assembly should also have an unique ID, especially if it is going to
be used as a sub-assembly.
Be sure you are in the Assembly Design workbench. It should be listed along the top of the
window.
If you were not in the Assembly Design workbench, you could switch to it by using the
West quadrant of the compass in the upper left corner of the window.
© Wichita State University Assembly Basics, Page 39

Select the Insert Existing 3D Part icon. It is located in the Product

Edition section in the sub-toolbar of the Insert Existing Product icon. The
command is waiting for the user to select a product to insert the component into.
Select ASSY010 - Ratchet Wrench in the tree. This will define what product the
component will be placed into. A prompt appears.
Key in ASSY010 - Handle in the Search field as shown.
Select Enter to execute the search. The results should appear. In this case, the results are
being shown in Datagrid View. You may switch the view display using the 3
icons in the upper right corner of the window.
Select ASSY010 - Handle. This will specify the document to be inserted.
Assembly Basics, Page 40 ©Wichita State University

The handle is inserted into the product. Notice the robot is attached to the part, allowing
you to move it within the assembly. The Move To Origin icon is also available.
It is helpful if you move the part using the compass and then decide to move it back to the
origin.
Select in the display to set the part. The robot returns to the lower right hand corner of
the window.
Press the third mouse button on ASSY010 - Ratchet Wrench and select Insert, Existing
3D Part.
Turn on the Multiselection option in the query box as shown. This will allow you to
insert multiple parts at once.

Search for ASSY010. This will locate all parts with the ASSY010 prefix. There should be
10 results.
Select ASSY010 - Flex Head and ASSY010 - Handle Grip. The query window
should populate as shown.
Select the Accept All icon to insert them into the assembly. The parts are
inserted and pre-positioned as shown.
Sometimes components can be made into a sub-assembly. This can either be done
beforehand, as with the Ratcheting Mechanism that you are going to insert later, or the sub-
assemblies can be generated on-the-fly as you will do next.

Creating a New Product
When you create a new product within an existing product, also known as a sub-product, it
is important to understand that this product is a document that will eventually need to be
saved. A sub-product or sub-assembly is no different than a product other than the fact it is
used within a higher level product.
Right select on ASSY010 - Ratchet Wrench and select Insert, Product. The Physical
Product window appears.
Key in ASSY010 - Ratchet Assembly for the Title and select OK. This will insert a new
product into the assembly. It should appear as shown.
Now that you have a nested product assembly, a product within a product, you need to
make sure that you insert new and existing components into the proper product.
Right select on ASSY010 - Ratchet Assembly.1 and select Insert, Existing Product.
Turn off the Multiselection option in the query box.
Key in ASSY010 in the Search field and select Enter. Select ASSY010 - Ratcheting
Mechanism from the results and select in the display to set the location. This will
insert the subassembly into the product.

Expand the specification tree should appear as shown. You may want to rename the
instance of the Ratcheting Mechanism.
The Flex Head part should be part of the Ratchet Assembly. It will be added to the new
subassembly.

Drag the ASSY010 - Flex Head instance onto the ASSY010 - Ratchet Assembly.1
product in the specification tree and drop it. It should appear as shown.
This is just another way of inserting parts or products into a subassembly. Dragging and
dropping a component is the same as cutting the component and then pasting the
component.
Insert a new product into the ASSY010 - Ratchet Wrench and set the Title to be
ASSY010 - Handle Assembly. The component is created.
Drag both the ASSY010 - Handle and the ASSY010 - Handle Grip into the new product.
It should appear as shown.
Double select on the ASSY010 - Handle shape representation as shown. This will
activate the part and switch you into Part Design. The 3d shape representation should have
a blue box appear around it in the specification tree.
The blue box signifies the active component within the product structure. Since the Handle
is now the active component and it is a part document, you were put into a workbench for
parts.

Show Geometrical Set.1 in the specification tree. You should see a point appear on the
handle as shown.
The point will be used to locate a new part.
Double select ASSY010 - Ratchet Wrench to make it the active product. A blue box
does not always appear around the high level product when it is the active component. A
blue box will always appear around an active component at a lower level.

Creating a New Part
When you create a new part within the product, it is really no different than when you
normally create a new part. It will be a separate document, and can be called up
independent of the main product. When you create a new part you will have the option of
defining the absolute origin of the part by specifying a location or it will establish its
absolute origin to coincide with the main product’s absolute origin.
Right select on ASSY010 - Ratchet Wrench and select Insert, 3D Part.
Change the Title to be ASSY010 - Connecting Pin. This will provide a unique name for
the part to be saved into the database.
Select the 3D Shape tab and change the Title to be ASSY010 - Connecting Pin. This
will ensure the 3d shape name matches the 3d part name.
Select OK. It should appear as shown in the tree.
Double select on the ASSY010 - Connecting Pin shape representation in the

specification tree. The part is activated and you are switched to Part Design.
Select the Positioned Sketch icon. The Sketch Positioning window appears.
Select the zx plane of the part to define the sketch plane. It may be easiest to select the
plane from the tree.

In the Origin area, change the drop-down menu to Projection Point and select the point
that was shown earlier. You may need to turn off the Smart Positioning of the
Support icon in order to use the drop-down menu.
Select OK. You are taken into sketcher.
Create a 0.25 diameter circle at the origin of the sketch. It should appear as shown.
Select the Exit Workbench icon. You are switched back to Part Design.
Be sure the sketch is selected and select the Pad icon. The Pad Definition window
appears.
Key in 0.5 for the Length of the pad, turn on the Mirrored extent option and select OK.
The pin is created.
Hide the reference planes of the part. This will clean up the model a little bit.

Double-select on ASSY010 - Ratchet Wrench to activate the product. The model should
appear as shown. The pin should be flush on both sides with the handle.
Press the third mouse button on ASSY010 - Ratchet Wrench in the specification tree
and select Insert, Existing 3D Part.
Search for the ASSY010 - Hex Socket Large. You will need to key in ASSY010 in the
search field.
Select the ASSY010 - Hex Socket Large from the results list and then select in the
display to set the location. The socket is inserted into the assembly.

Creating a New Part from an Existing Part
You will now create a new part from an existing part. You have to be careful when trying
to create a new part from an existing part. If you have instanced the part into the product
multiple times and then you try to change just one of them, they will all change. This
happens since all of the instances refer to the same 3d shape representation. If you do
create a new part from an existing part you will have to take special care in renaming the
part and instance to use the correct name and then make sure you save it with a different
name. Otherwise you will overwrite the original part.
Double select on the ASSY010 - Hex Socket Large shape representation to activate the
part.
Double select on Sketch.1 in the specification tree and change the diameter constraint
to be 0.75in. Exit the sketch. It is located in the PartBody under Pad.1.
Right select on ASSY010 - Hex Socket Large instance in the specification tree and
select Properties. The Properties window appears.
Change the Instance Title to be ASSY010 - Hex Socket Small.1 under the Instance tab
and the Title to be ASSY010 - Hex Socket Small under the Reference tab. Select OK.
Change the shape representation Title to be ASSY010 - Hex Socket Small as well. The
tree should appear as shown. Make sure you remember to change not only the part number
but also the instance name to avoid confusion. Now all you have to do is remember to save
it with a different name so that you do not overwrite the original document.
Double select on ASSY010 - Ratchet Wrench to activate the product.

Save
Save is used to save you work back to the database. This window gives you a graphical
representation of what will be saved and how it will be saved before actually performing the
save operation. The options are covered in detail in Appendix B.
Select the Share icon and select Save with Options. You will have to select the
expansion arrow next to the Save option to get to the additional save options. The Save with
Options window appears.
There are various symbols in the left-hand column. The blue circle with the + means a new
object to be saved to the database. A yellow circle represents a modified object to be saved.
An empty circle represents no change to be saved to the database.
Notice the ASSY010 - Connecting Pin shows it is a new part to be saved to the database.
This is because you created it from scratch.
Notice the ASSY010 - Hex Socket Small is shown as a modified part. This is because you
modified the Hex Socket Large to create it. You will need to specify you want to save it as
a new part and not save over the Hex Socket Large part.

Select the ASSY010 - Hex Socket Small part from the window and select the Save As
New icon. The Save as New window appears. This part needs to be saved as
ASSY010 - Hex Socket Small. This will make it a unique new part in the database, so the
original Hex Socket Large is not overwritten.
Since you already renamed this part when you modified it, change the Duplication
string to XXX_ and select OK. The XXX should be your initials. You are returned to the
Save with Options window. Notice the part is now designated as a new part.
Select the ASSY010 - Handle from the list. Notice it says it was modified since you unhid
the geometrical set within it. This isn’t your part, so you do not want to save over it.
Select the Exclude icon. It will now be excluded from the save.
Notice the summary on the right side of the window shows what is going to be saved.
Select OK. All the models are saved and a Save successful message appears.

Replacing Parts
In many instances it is necessary to change a part of an assembly due to alternative designs.
This exercise will cover how to replace components with other components without having
to recreate the entire assembly.
Press the third mouse button on ASSY010 - Hex Socket Small.1 and select Replace,
Replace By Existing. ASSY010 - Hex Socket Small will be replaced with ASSY010 - Torx
Bit Socket B.
Search for ASSY010 - Torx Bit Socket B and select it and select in the display to set
the location. The torx bit replaces the hex socket. Notice the torx bit does not come into
the assembly at the correct location. This is because the part was built at the local axis
system instead of in assembly coordinates.
Notice the ASSY010 - Torx Bit Socket B still has an instance name of ASSY010 - Hex Socket
Small.1.
Using the same method, replace ASSY010 - Torx Bit Socket B with ASSY010 -
Torx Bit Socket A. The new torx bit is located correctly because it was built in assembly
coordinates.

Either one of the torx bit sockets would have worked for this assembly, but you would need
to know how to use assembly constraints to move the first torx bit socket into the correct
location.
There is still one problem. Notice the instance name of ASSY010 - Torx Bit Socket A is still
ASSY010 - Hex Socket Small.1. This should be changed.
Right select on ASSY010 - Hex Socket Small.1 in the specification tree and select
Properties. The Properties window appears.
Change the Instance Title to be ASSY010 - Torx Bit Socket.1. The specification tree
should now appear as shown.

You are going to take a moment to investigate a few things about the assembly. Looking at
the tree you have two different icons next to the various components in the tree. As you
work with assemblies, you will notice there are many different icons that appear next to the
components, each one tells you something about the component. Sometimes the icons only
differ by the color so you need to pay close attention to the specification tree. The two
icons you currently have represent a part and a product.
Part Product
As you go through this course, you will be studying the specification tree from time to time.
The tree holds a lot of information about your assembly so you need to be very familiar
with it.
The other important aspect of an assembly you need to understand is the links that exist
between the assembly and its components. When an assembly is stored it only contains
pointers to the particular files and does not contain the data itself. This changes a little bit
when other options are introduced.

Reordering the Specification Tree
With the assembly complete, you will look at two other options for assembly management.
Select the Tree Reordering icon. It is located in the Product Edition section.
This will allow you to reorder the tree. Since the components are not related to each other
in terms of order of creation, as in part design, they can be reordered at will.
Select ASSY010 - Ratchet Wrench. The Tree Reordering window should appear. Notice
only the parts and sub-assemblies appear that are under the ASSY010 - Ratchet Wrench
assembly and not the parts that make up the sub-assemblies. If you want to reorder the
components of the sub-assemblies, you can either reorder them while having the particular
sub-assembly opened or you can select that sub-assembly instead of selecting ASSY010 -
Ratchet Wrench.
The up and down arrows allow the highlighted part to be moved higher or lower in the tree
respectively. The third icon moves the selected part to another selected location. This
could be useful to help organize a large assembly by reordering components to be listed
together in the specification tree. It is nice to know you do not have to insert all of your
components in a specific order, you can always reorder them later.
Move the ASSY010 - Handle Assembly to the top of the tree and select Apply when
done. This can be done by selecting the ASSY010 - Handle Assembly and then selecting the
up arrow until it is on the top of the list. The tree will be reordered when Apply is selected.
As you can see, it is fairly simple to reorder components of the assembly. If you have a
large number of components, it may be better to use the third icon to position the
component at a particular location without having to select the up or down arrows multiple
times.

Select the ASSY010 - Torx Bit Socket and select the Selection icon in the window.
Select the ASSY010 - Handle Assembly. Notice the ASSY010 - Torx Bit Socket appears
before ASSY010 - Handle Assembly now. This is a quicker way to move elements further
up or down in the tree.
Move the ASSY010 - Torx Bit Socket back to the bottom of the tree.
Turn on the Automatic reordering by criterion option and select Display Name from the
drop down menu. This will order the tree by name.
Select the Ascending option and select Apply. The tree instances are reordered to be
alphabetical as shown.
Select OK.

Select the Tree Reordering by Drag and Drop icon. The icon is active.
Select the ASSY010 - Connecting Pin, drag it below the ASSY010 - Handle Assembly in
the tree and release it. The tree is reordered as shown.
Select the Tree Reordering by Drag and Drop icon again. It is

deactivated.
This provides and easy way to reorder straight from the specification tree.

Select the Share icon and select Save with Options. You will have to select the
expansion arrow next to the Save option to get to the additional save options. The Save with
Options window appears.
Notice the Handle again is flagged as being modified since you had unhid the geometrical
set. You will receive an error if you try to save this part.
Select OK. An Incident Report window appears. This is because you don’t have access to
save over the ASSY010 - Handle.
Select Close. You are returned to the Propagate window.
Select the ASSY010 - Handle in the list and select the Exclude icon. It will now
be excluded from the save.

Select OK. The models are saved.
Close the model. A Close window appears.
This is only because the Handle is modified, but cannot be saved.
Select No. The model is closed. If you were to reopen it, you would find the geometrical
set in the ASSY010 - Handle model will be hidden again, since you could not save over it.

Constraining and Manipulating Parts Review
This exercise will review the use of the various assembly constraints while introducing
some additional options to improve efficiency.
The first assem
For any parts that are connected together and will not be moving independently, such as the
hand grip and the handle, it is usually a good idea to put them into a sub-assembly. The two
jaws of the head will move independently of each other, so it is not advisable to put them
into a sub assembly.
Start a new product called ASSY040 - Handle Assembly. You should close all other
documents and then start a new product. Make sure you are in the assembly workbench
before continuing.
© Wichita State University Constraints and Manipulation Review, Page 105

Insert the ASSY040 - Handle document into the assembly and select in the display to
set the position of the part. This can be done the same way you did it in the previous
section.
Insert the ASSY040 - Hand Grip into the assembly. Notice the hand grip and the
handle do not insert into the correct location. This is common unless you build your parts
where they would appear in the assembly.
Create a fix in space constraint on the Handle. The part will not be allowed to move.
Create a coincidence constraint between the center lines of the Handle and the Grip.
Set the orientation Preference to be Undefined. You may have to select the inside
cylindrical surface of the handle in order to select the center line. The center lines are
snapped together. The grip may be in the wrong orientation.
Constraints and Manipulation Review, Page 106 ©Wichita State University

Select the Engineering Connection icon and select the two faces as shown.
You may want to manipulate the models around in order to select the faces.
The Engineering Connection Selection window appears.
Select New connection and select OK. The Engineering Connection Definition window
reappears.
Be sure the Preference is set to be Opposite and select OK.

The parts are snapped together as shown.
This completes the assembly.
Save and close your assembly. You will reuse your ASSY040 - Handle Assembly to
complete the ASSY040 - Bolt Cutters assembly.

Start a new product called ASSY040 - Bolt Cutters. Remember, it is always a good idea
to give the new part or product a unique, descriptive name right away. Don’t forget to save
your assembly now and throughout the exercise so if something happens you will not have
to start all over.
Insert your ASSY040 - Handle Assembly twice. Both handle assemblies will be
inserted in the same place, so there will only appear to be one inserted. However, if you
look in the specification tree you will see there are two. Note: You may need to wait a
couple minutes for the server to update before your Handle Assembly will appear in the
search.
Move the second instance of the handle assembly so both are visible. This can be done
by either selecting it in the tree, and dragging one of the box lines of the manipulation
bounding box or by using the Manipulation icon.
Select the Engineering Connection icon and select the first instance of the
handle assembly in the tree. The Engineering Connection Definition window
appears.
Change the Type to be Fix in space and select OK. This will fix the assembly in space.
Before continuing, a setting will be changed in order to facilitate better updating of the
connections.
Go to Me , Preferences, Legacy Preferences, Mechanical, Assembly Design and the

Engineering Connection tab. Turn on the By default, automatically position
components option as shown.
Select OK. When creating connections, this will allow CATIA to decide which part will be
moved into position. When multiple connections are created, this allows more flexibility in
updating the connections to satisfy all of the constraints.

At the top of the handle, there is a pivot point that is split in half as shown below. These two
faces are going to be constrained together.
Select the Engineering Connection icon. The Engineering Connection

Definition window appears.
Select the two faces as shown above. The two handle assemblies move to get the two
faces in position where they can be in coincidence with one another. You should note the
two handle assemblies did not align themselves with the centers of the hole. Next, the
orientation needs changed so the two faces will be facing each other.
Change the Type to be Coincidence and the orientation Preference to Opposite. This
will make the two faces face each other. You can also change the orientation by selecting
one of the green arrows on the faces.
Select OK when finished. This may disorientate the two handles dramatically. Not to
worry.
You may be wondering why a contact constraint was not used. It would make sense,
especially when the two faces are contacting each other. The difference is, a contact
constraint means that the two faces are locked together in the physical world, such as glued,
welded, or bolted. That is not the case in this scenario. The two handles need to be free to
rotate. It does not mean that a contact constraint will not work. Other applications within
CATIA V6 will use the constraints that are applied to perform other analysis and
simulations, and a contact constraint may be confusing. By defining the constraints
correctly here, the downstream users will not have to re-define them later.


Select the centerline at the inside of the pivot hole as shown below. Moving the mouse
cursor to the inside of the pivot hole will bring up the centerline. Either pivot hole can be
selected. It can be difficult to select the centerlines at times, but if there is a curved surface
available to select that is associated with the centerline, you can select on the curved surface
and it will select the centerline. In this case you may find it easy to select on the curved
surface of the hole and you will see the centerline appear as you select.
Select the other centerline to align the two pivot holes. The Engineering Connection
Selection window appears.
Select New connection and select OK. The two handles will snap together. It is very
likely that they are rotated in a way which is invalid for the actual operation of the bolt
cutters. There are no constraints prohibiting the two handle assemblies from rotating
around the centerline.
Change the orientation Preference to be Undefined and select OK.
Update the engineering connections. Now it is time to move the two handles with respect
to their constraints.
Select the Manipulation icon. This time the two handles are going to be rotated
about an arbitrary axis.
Select the Drag Around any Axis icon. Now a centerline needs to be selected.
Select the centerline of the two pivots. This will be the same centerline you selected
when creating the coincidence constraint.

Rotate one of the handles around to appear as the picture below. Select OK when
done. This will keep things oriented in a manner that will make it easier to finish building
the bolt cutters. You will only be able to rotate ASSY040 - Handle Assembly.2 since
ASSY040 - Handle Assembly.1 is fixed.
This would be a good point to save your document before continuing.
Insert the ASSY040 - Head document into the assembly. Go ahead and move the head
to a more suitable location at the top of the handles. You may have to zoom out in order to
see the head.


Apply a coincidence constraint between the center lines of the hole in the Head and the
hole in the Handle as shown. This will make sure that the two center lines will always
remain aligned with each another.
Set the orientation Preference to Undefined and select OK. It is rare that you will want
centerline constraints to have an orientation.

Apply a coincidence constraint between the two faces that will move the head into the
proper location. You will want to create a new connection and make sure the orientation
Preference is defined correctly. The end product should appear similar to the one shown
below.
Update the connections.
Manipulate the head using the manipulation icon to look similar to the diagram shown
below. This will be the same process as investigated earlier. Make sure you use the rotate
about any axis, and then select the pivot hole for the head.
Insert another ASSY040 - Head into the model.

Add coincidence constraints to the new head and manipulate it so it looks similar to
the diagram shown below. Remember, it is imperative the head be in the right direction.
You will want the constraint between the faces to control the orientation with the centerline
constraint having its orientation undefined.

Create a coincidence constraint between the two centerlines shown below.

Set the orientation Preference to be Undefined and select OK.
Update the connections. The assembly should appear as shown.
Select the Manipulation icon, then select the Drag Around Any Axis option in
the Manipulation Parameters window and ensure the With respect to constraints option
is selected. This will allow the parts to rotate about any given axis that is selected
with respect to any constraints placed on the assembly.
Select the inside of the pivot between the two handles and then select and drag one of
the handles. You will have to select the handle that is not fixed. Notice the whole
assembly moves. Note, this is not kinematics because the assembly can be moved beyond
the physical limits but this is a good way to test the model to insure the entire assembly is
constrained correctly.
Select OK when finished. This exits the manipulation window.
Next, bolts will be added to complete the assembly.
Insert the ASSY040 - 1.25 Bolt document into the assembly and move it close to the
pivot location. This bolt will go in the pivot between the handles.

Add a coincidence constraint between the centerline of the bolt and the centerline of
the pivot between the handles without any orientation. Remember, this will align the
bolt with the hole. Be sure to select OK when you are done.
Add a contact constraint, as a new connection, to put the bolt into the pivot hole. This
can be accomplished by adding a contact constraint between the outside of the handle and
the bottom of the bolt head. Your assembly should appear similar to the diagram shown
below. This time a contact constraint was wanted due to the bolt being tight against one of
the handles.
The bolt sticks out too far. You need to modify the bolt to be 0.75 inches instead of 1.25
inches long, then save it as a separate part. You will do that next.
Expand the 1.25 Bolt branch until you see the PartBody. This will allow you to enter the
Part Design workbench through the assembly.
Double select PartBody with the first mouse button. This takes you to the Part Design
workbench allowing you to perform part design tasks. This is similar to what you did when
you created a new part in the assembly. This time you are going to modify a part.

Change Pad.1 to have a Length of 0.75 inches. Notice the bolt becomes shorter but the
head of the bolt moves instead of the end of the bolt, this is determined by the original
design of the bolt.
Right click on the 1.25 Bolt 3d part branch in the tree as shown below. Since you do
not want this new bolt to be referred to as a 1.25 Bolt, you are going to change its name
before you save the modified part.

Select the Properties option. A Properties window appears similar to the one shown
below.
Change the Title to be ASSY040 - 0.75 Bolt. On the Instance tab, change the Instance
Title to be ASSY040 - 0.75 Bolt.1. Select OK when finished.
Change the name of the 3d shape to be ASSY040 - 0.75 Bolt as well. It should appear as
shown.
Double select on ASSY040 - Bolt Cutters. This will return you to the main assembly.
Update the connections. The constraints are updated positioning the bolt in the correct
location. Remember, you used a contact constraint between the bottom face of the bolt
head and the outside face of the handles. You can collapse the ASSY040 - 0.75 Bolt branch
if you want.

Select the Share icon and select Save with Options. The Save with Options
window appears.
Notice the ASSY040 - 0.75 Bolt one of the Class Models which is read only. This is
because you created it from the 1.25 Bolt. If you wish to save the modified part, you will
have to save it as a new part.
Select the ASSY040 - 0.75 Bolt and select the Save as New icon. The symbol
next to the part changes to show it will be saved as a new part.
Select OK. The assembly is saved.
Insert the 1.25 Bolt and constrain it to the pivot between the two heads. This is done
the same way as you constrained the previous bolt.
Add two more bolts and constrain them into the proper locations. This will finish the
assembly.
Save and close the document.

Assembly Pattern
The assembly pattern option allows you to use an existing pattern within a part to help
position and constrain components. This is very useful for constraining fasteners to
patterns.
Open the ASSY090 - Assembly Pattern product. You should see a couple of casings
attached with a bolt and nut. You will place the rest of the fasteners in the assembly.
Expand the ASSY090 - Casing.1 branch to the PartBody level in order to see the
patterns available. The CircPattern.2 is the one you are going to reuse.
Multiple Instances, Page 142 ©Wichita State University

Select the Assembly Pattern icon. The Assembly Pattern pane appears on the
right side of the display. You may have to expand it. This icon will allow the user to reuse
any pattern used in a part design.
Mode Specifies whether the pattern will be linked or if existing

engineering connections will be copied to each instance
Component Specifies what will be patterned
Specification or Ref... Defines the pattern to be used
Reuse selected instance The original component is used and others are added
Keep link with spec... Updates the number of instances as the pattern is modified
and creates a link back to the pattern
Select the ASSY090 - Casing Bolt.1 in the tree to define the Component.
Select CircPattern.2 from the specification tree to define the Specification.
© Wichita State University Multiple Instances, Page 143

The selections appear in the display along with a couple of icons.
Make sure the Reuse selected instance and Keep link with specification options are on
and select in the display to finalize the pattern. Four more instance of the bolt appear in
the tree along with Assembly Pattern.1.

The bolts should appear in the display as shown.
You should note that the original bolt was used and then four more instances were created.
Double select on the PartBody of Casing.1. This makes that part the active component.
Double select on CircPattern.2 and remove the two instances shown below and select
OK. Just select on the two dots as shown to deactivate the two locations. This will modify
the pattern to have only three holes. You want to select the two locations on either side of
the original hole.

Double select on the ASSY090 - Assembly Pattern product. This makes the top level
assembly the active component.
Update the assembly. The number of instances of the bolt changes. This is due to the link
to the pattern. The diagram shown below has the product rotated.
Select the Assembly Pattern icon. The Assembly Pattern window appears.
Select the ASSY090 - Casing Nut.1 in the tree to define the Component.
Turn off the Keep link with specification option and select OK. Two more instances of
the nut appear in the tree, but no assembly pattern operation is created.

Modify the CircPattern.2 to turn on the two holes you had deactivated earlier.
Activate the top level product and update the assembly. Notice the assembly pattern for
the bolts updated to add in two additional bolts. However, since the link was not kept for
the nuts, they remain unchanged.
Delete the two nut instances that were added previously and delete the assembly
pattern in the specification tree. Notice the patterned bolts are automatically removed as
well.
Now the pattern will be created with copied engineering connections.
Select the Assembly Pattern icon. The Assembly Pattern window appears.
Change the Mode to Copy Constraints.
Select the ASSY090 - Casing Bolt.1 in the tree to define the Component.

The window should expand as shown.
Notice the Keep link with specification option is automatically greyed out and the
engineering connections for the bolt appear. In this case, only the Revolute.5 is between the
Casing and the Casing Bolt.
Turn off the check box next to the cylindrical engineering connection and select OK.
The bolts appear along with new engineering connections in the tree.

Update the assembly. Notice there is no assembly pattern in the tree. The bolts are
positioned by the engineering connections.
Save and close the document.

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CATIA Assembly Design 3DEXPERIENCE® R2019x

Managing Data in 3DEXPERIENCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Managing Large Assemblies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

© Wichita State University Table of Contents, Page i

Practice Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361

Table of Contents, Page ii ©Wichita State University

© Wichita State University Table of Contents, Page iii

- Inserting models into an assembly

- Manipulating models in an assembly

- Constraining models in an assembly

- Using engineering connections to define kinematic joints

- Modeling within the context of the assembly

- Creating and using publications

- Analyzing assemblies for clashes and gaps

- Modifying assembly components and updating assemblies

© Wichita State University Assembly Design - Introduction, Page 1

Assembly Design - Introduction, Page 2 ©Wichita State University

© Wichita State University Assembly Basics, Page 39

Select the Insert Existing 3D Part icon. It is located in the Product

Key in ASSY010 - Handle in the Search field as shown.

Select ASSY010 - Handle. This will specify the document to be inserted.

Assembly Basics, Page 40 ©Wichita State University

© Wichita State University Assembly Basics, Page 41

Assembly Basics, Page 42 ©Wichita State University

Turn off the Multiselection option in the query box.

© Wichita State University Assembly Basics, Page 43

Assembly Basics, Page 44 ©Wichita State University

© Wichita State University Assembly Basics, Page 45

The point will be used to locate a new part.

Assembly Basics, Page 46 ©Wichita State University

Right select on ASSY010 - Ratchet Wrench and select Insert, 3D Part.

Select OK. It should appear as shown in the tree.

Double select on the ASSY010 - Connecting Pin shape representation in the

© Wichita State University Assembly Basics, Page 47

Select OK. You are taken into sketcher.

Assembly Basics, Page 48 ©Wichita State University

© Wichita State University Assembly Basics, Page 49

Double select on ASSY010 - Ratchet Wrench to activate the product.

Assembly Basics, Page 50 ©Wichita State University

© Wichita State University Assembly Basics, Page 51

Assembly Basics, Page 52 ©Wichita State University

© Wichita State University Assembly Basics, Page 53

Assembly Basics, Page 54 ©Wichita State University

© Wichita State University Assembly Basics, Page 55

Assembly Basics, Page 56 ©Wichita State University

© Wichita State University Assembly Basics, Page 57

Select the Tree Reordering by Drag and Drop icon again. It is

Assembly Basics, Page 58 ©Wichita State University

Select Close. You are returned to the Propagate window.

© Wichita State University Assembly Basics, Page 59

Close the model. A Close window appears.

This is only because the Handle is modified, but cannot be saved.

Assembly Basics, Page 60 ©Wichita State University

The first assem

© Wichita State University Constraints and Manipulation Review, Page 105

Constraints and Manipulation Review, Page 106 ©Wichita State University

The Engineering Connection Selection window appears.

Be sure the Preference is set to be Opposite and select OK.