CSWP Segment 3: Flow and Tips

So let's talk this time about the flow and some tips for Segment 3.  The good news is there is little modeling in this section.  The bad news is some of the material is not stuff that I knew off the top of my head.  Once I figured it out, they were some fairly simple concepts though.

We are going to start off this segment by modeling a part.  Nothing fancy, but be careful, when you have it completed, it asks the mass and is a fill in the blank question.  There is a check, but not until the next question...

You are going to then download a part and make an assembly of this part and the part you modeled for the previous question.  It will then ask you for the Center of Gravity (Center of Mass).  This question is Multiple Choice.  As long as you put the two parts together as they tell you and the origin is located in the place they tell you, then you should get an answer that exactly matches one on the test.  If you do, you can be reasonably assured that you properly modeled your part.  If not, I would suspect the part from question 1 is not quite right.

You are then going to download and add another part and answer the COG again.  The answer is Fill in the blank.

Next comes a technical move.  You are going to rotate one part until it hits another part.  Once it hits, you are going to measure the angle between two surfaces.  This is a Fill in the Blank question.

Download another part and tell what the mass is, again, fill in the blank.

Change gears for the next question.  Model up a part, download another part and make a subassembly out of these two parts.  This is a multiple choice question asking for the mass.

Download a third part, add it to the subassembly, then add the entire sub assembly to the first assembly.  You need to know how to make a subassembly flexible on this one.  They ask what the COG is and it is a fill in the blank question.

Download a part, add it to the assembly, what is the COG? (Multiple Choice)

Download a part, add it to the assembly, what is the mass? (Fill in the Blank)

Model a part, add it to the assembly, what is the COG? (Fill in the Blank)

That's a lot of assembly work...  Now, take your whole assembly and evaluate it for interference.  List all the parts that exhibit interference.  This is a multiple choice with multiple answers (check all that apply)

The final question is to take your original part and replace it with a downloaded part, than answer one last time, what is the COG?  (Fill in the Blank)

We will get into how to do the things above in a later post, but here are some tips to think about. 

• If question #2 is wrong, you most likely did something wrong in question #1.  If so, please don't forget to fix the answer on Question 1...
• I think on every test, it says that the part origin is arbitrary.  My advice is to treat it like it is not on every test.  On this one, it will bite you, because the COG is generated about the origin, right?  If your origin isn't in the same place as the origin on the test, there is no way you can get the question right...
• Know your mates.  Width, Parallel, Perpendicular, Dimensional and Angular are popular on the exam.
• In the how to section, we'll get into collision detection, flexible assemblies, interference detection and how to replace a part with another.

Stew on this for a bit.  Next time, we'll start with segment 1 showing you some of the skills you need.  As always, if you have any questions, let me know by posting them below.

Thanks,

Bryan

Of Mice and Navigators

I got my hands on their new CAD Mouse about a month or so ago and a couple people I know at work and outside have been trying them out.  That got me to thinking about mice and 3D mice as a tip for certifications.  I have a Space Pilot Pro and now a CAD Mouse, both from 3DConnexion.  




I'm a big fan of the new CAD Mouse.  Not only is it great in SOLIDWORKS, but it also has functionality in other programs.  The software that comes with it recognizes what application is active and you can program buttons based on the application, so I can click on Outlook, hit one of the programmed thumb buttons and a new email starts.  It even has a button that brings up a feature similar to the SOLIDWORKS wheel and has features programmed that are application relevant.  It is a three button mouse with a wheel and you have to hold it between your pinky and thumb, which takes some getting used to.  I found that it took me about 2 weeks to get comfortable with the new grip and using the ring finger to use the RMB.

You will note I’ve added a couple of banners to my blog post for 3DConnexion.  If you are interested in buying one, I’d like to ask that you use the banners to do so.  3DConnexion will send a portion of any sales the banner to help pay for the blog.

If you have any questions or comments on 3D mice or the new CAD Mouse, please post them below.  I’d like to hear what you think.

Best of Luck,
Bryan

CSWP Segment 2: Flow

I like to have fun with this section in my presentations, please read this post knowing that I am smiling and laughing with you.  They say that 72.8% of all statistics are made up on the spot.  Segment 2 is 93.478% about configurations.  There are some questions involving a shell at the end, but in my opinion, that section is mainly about design intent.  I'll touch on it at the end.

Let's talk about how this segment flows.  This segment starts of with one of the easiest questions I have ever had on a certification.  IMO, even easier than 'Are you ready to begin'...

You are going to load a part that they provide to you.  You are going to change to the configurations tab and tell them how many configurations there are.  And to make it even easier, it's going to be a multiple choice question.  I deal with configurations all day long, this one was so easy for me, it scared me.  Be calm though, it is not a trick question.  :-)





The second question will ask you to switch to another configuration and enter the mass as a fill in the blank question.  If configurations aren't your cup of tea, it's as simple as double clicking the configuration you want.  So far, it's been simple, right?  Let's start cranking up the heat.



Now let's add a new configuration.  The test will tell you to switch to a certain configuration.  It will then tell you to make a new configuration based on the active one.  You accomplish this by right clicking the part name at the top of the configuration tree and selecting 'add configuration'.  Give your new configuration a name and hit the check mark.  Now you are going to need to make a change to this configuration.  You will need to find the mass and report it on the test.  This is a multiple choice question.


So the next question is what I like to call suppression control.  It's going to ask you to suppress/unsuppress the new feature from the previous question in another configuration, change to that configuration and report the mass.  It is a fill in the blank question.  You can switch to the configuration and make the change or you can use the configure feature function in the design tree by right clicking the feature and selecting 'configure feature'.




The final question on the configurations portion involves design tables.  A lot of people freak out about this question.  Design tables are nothing to be scared of.  They are very easy to create and are an incredibly powerful tool for creating multiple configurations very quickly.  The test will ask you to create a design table, this is done by going to insert, table, design table.  The test will tell you what options to select and when you have, just click the check mark.  SW will find all the configurations present and automagically (that's Biz Markie reference, not a typo) populate all dimensions that are different in any two configurations into an Excel table in your UI.  To make a new configuration in a design table, just copy the entire row they designate and paste it at the end.  Change the configuration name to what they tell you and modify the dimension value the tell you to.  Then just click outside the Excel table window and SOLIDWORKS will start jumping through hoops (seriously, it starts jumping around) and a new configuration is born.  The only thing you have to do now is fill in the blank on the mass.

The last questions on this segment deal with design intent.  It's also the most difficult topic to explain to someone.  There are entire college courses on this topic.  The easiest question to explain this on is this one:  They give you a part that is shelled.  They then ask you to put an angular cut on the part.  If you put the cut at the end of the design tree, it cuts a large hole in the part.  This is obviously not what they want given the pictures.  You have to understand the design intent is for the shell to be a uniform thickness all the way around the handle.  The solution is to put the cut before the shell operation.  You have to understand how the part is built to accurately modify this part.

Before

After

I'll cover my tips on this section next time.

Have fun,

Bryan