Discover the process of incorporating lampshade fastener assemblies - from a data panel and the McMaster CAR library - into a model in Fusion 360. Learn how to accurately adjust and place these components for an optimal fit, as well as how to group your components for efficient workflow management.
Key Insights
- The process begins by activating the fastener assemblies and incorporating them into the model. Utilizing the joint function, the fastener can be linked to the model through selecting appropriate edges.
- Components can be located and reinserted in the model by inputting exact product numbers such as 95211A150 and 91239A233. By doing so, the exact washer and product needed for the model are found.
- Effective model management includes grouping all the features into a larger group in the file. This is executed through the right-click function, selecting 'Delete', followed by 'Delete Group and Expand Contents', before finally choosing 'Create Group'.
In this video, we will bring in our lampshade fastener assemblies from our data panel and also from the McMaster-Carr library. I will scroll down and open up Step 9. When your file is open, scroll back up to the top of your data panel.
I will activate my Fastener Assemblies component, and I will bring in one of my lampshade fastener components. Again, I will place it up here and press ENTER.
We will see that I brought in a linked file, so I can now join it into my model. I will go to Joint, select this edge of my washer, and holding CTRL, select the inside of this circle.
My joint looks correct, so I’ll click OK. We can see the component placed into the model. I can check if the fastener is too long or too short by zooming in—and it looks to be about the right length.
If I unroll the component in the browser, I can see exactly what parts I’ve brought in. If I go to Insert > McMaster-Carr Component and hide my data panel, I can type in exact part numbers and find those products again.
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The first part number is 95211A150. When I press ENTER, we will see exactly the washer that we want. Here it is.
I will click Product Detail, scroll down, find the STEP file format, and click Save. Remember, saving through Fusion 360 will insert the part directly into your file.
I will move it up into space and press ENTER. Note that because my default material is currently set to wood, this imported washer will appear as wood. We will edit that in the next video.
Again, I will go to Insert > McMaster-Carr Component. This time, I will type in 91239A233 and press ENTER. Again, it will find the exact product we are looking for.
I will click Product Detail, scroll down, make sure the format is set to 3D STEP, and click Save. Again, I will move this up into space and press ENTER. You will notice that the Capture Position and Revert options are available.
So I will capture the position before placing my joints. The first joint I would like to place is between the bolt and the washer. I will go to Joint,
Select the outer edge here, then select the outer edge of the washer—this selects the center of both circles. We can see a rigid joint being applied between the two objects.
That looks good to me, so I will click OK. Now, I will orbit around and place a joint between the washer and the edge of my model.
I will go to Joint, select this edge, and holding CTRL, select the center of this circle.
We can see that this joint might be flipped, so I will click the Flip button and then click OK. Our fastener has been created, but note that these are still separate components in the Fastener Assemblies folder. I will right-click > New Component, name it Lampshade Fastener, and drag the two components into it.
We now have one fastener assembly imported from our data panel and one from the McMaster-Carr library. I will activate my top component and save the file. Before doing anything else, let’s make sure to group our components in the timeline.
However, I would like to point out a few key details. When we brought in the McMaster-Carr components, the process created a new component and a base feature. These were automatically grouped in the timeline, so we cannot group them again using right-click > Create Group.
If I want to place all of these features into a larger group, I may need to right-click > Delete > Delete Group and Expand Contents. I’ll do that twice—Delete > Delete Group and Expand Contents.
Because these were only Create Component and Base Feature entries, they won’t create extra clutter in the timeline. I like to explode these small groups and then place them into a single, organized group. I will right-click > Create Group and save the file one more time.
In the next video, we will look at physical materials and visual materials for our model. I’ll see you in the next video.
