Pro-Desktop Booklet

Tools
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Menus
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ProDESKTOP 1: Constructing 3D objects
This sheet will show you how to use the basic drawing tools in Pro/DESKTOP to construct 3D
objects.
1. Open Pro/DESKTOP and click on File then New. Select Design and click on OK.
2. Maximise the screen. You should have a green rectangle with two arrows in the centre.
3. Click on the rectangle tool from the right hand side icon menu. Draw another rectangle
on inside the green rectangle. This is the base of your object.
4. Click on Feature then Extrude Profile. A dialogue box appears. Type 100 in the
Distance box and click OK. You should have a solid block.
5. Click on Select then Faces. Highlight the top of the block.
6. Click on Workplane then New Sketch then OK.
7. Draw a circle on the top of the block. Make sure it does not get too close to the sides of
the block.
8. Click on Feature then Extrude Profile. In the dialogue box select Subtract Material
and Below Workplane. Type 100 in the Distance box and click OK. You should now
have a hole through the workpiece.
9. Click on Select then Edges. Highlight each of the top edges of the block by holding
down Shift and clicking on each edge. When all four are highlighted click on Feature
then Chamfer Edges. Type 15 in the Setback box. The edges should all be chamfered.
10. Click on Select then Edges. Highlight the circle. Click on Feature then Round Edges
and type 10 into the Radius box. The edge of the circle should round over.
11. Repeat steps 9 and 10 on the bottom of the block; this time rounding the edge of the
block and chamfering the circle.
12. Save your work as Block 1.
13. Click on File then New then Album then OK.
14. Click on Image then New Image. Select Block 1 in the list in the dialogue box then click
OK.
15. Click on Tools then Materials Browser. A list of materials will appear on the right of
the screen.
16. Open up the non-metal list by clicking on the "+" sign.
17. Click on brick and drag it onto the block. When the wire-frame of the block appears let
go of the mouse button.
18. Click on the green Update button on the menu bar. The block should be rendered as
brickwork.
19. Experiment with other materials until you are happy with one.
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ProDESKTOP 2: Using the Scissors Tool
Most of the objects we want to draw are not, unfortunately, simple rectangles or circles. This
sheet will show you how to make more complex shapes using the Delete Line Segment tool
(otherwise known as the scissors). We will use this tool to help draw the heart pendant below:
1. Open a new Design.
2. Draw a square 50 x 50mm.
3. Draw a circle of 50mm diameter centred on the mid-point of
one of the sides of the square. (Mid-points light up when you
hover over them.)
4. Repeat 2 for another adjacent side of the square.
Your drawing should end up something like:
5. Select the scissors tool and snip away the lines inside the heart
shape. You will know when you have finished as the heart will
shade in.
6. In the middle of the heart shape draw another one – this time
the square should be 25mm and each circle should have a
diameter of 25mm:
7. Select the scissors tool and snip away the lines inside the smaller heart shape. You will
know when you have finished as the heart will shade in around the heart-shaped hole you
have created.
8. Extrude the shape to 6mm.
9. Click on Select then Edge. Select all the edges – both top and bottom – and round them
to 2mm.
10. Click on Select then Face. Highlight top face. Click on Workplane then New sketch
then OK.
11. Draw a circle of 4mm diameter somewhere near one of the rounded areas of the heart.
12. Extrude this circle below the workplane to form a hole through the pendant.
13. Round the edges of the hole, top and bottom, to 1mm.
14. Save your work.
15. Put your work into Photo Album and render it.
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ProDESKTOP 3: Using the Revolve Command
In this exercise you will learn how to make circular or turned components:
To make the Doughnut:
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Open a new Design.
Draw a circle on the workplane.
Draw a line next to the circle, but not attached to it
Make sure you have selected the line you have just drawn, then click on Line then
Toggle Construction to turn it into a dotted construction line.
5. Click on Feature then Revolve Profile. Type 360 into the angle box. You should
produce a doughnut.
6. Try repeating the process with an angle smaller than 360 degrees. Try 270, 180 etc.
7. Try different shape – what happens?
To Make the Chess Piece:
1. Open a new Design and go to View/Go To/Onto Workplane
2. Draw half of a cross section of the chess piece (use the drawing tools to
make the desired shape and the cutting tool to nibble away the parts of
the drawing that you do not want).
3. Draw a vertical line through the point about which you want to rotate the
object.
4. Because you do not want a hole through the piece, you do not need to
Toggle Construction.
5. Make sure the line you want to revolve aroundis selected, then click on
Feature then Revolve Profile. Type 360 into the angle box. You should
end up with a chess piece.
Experimenting with Revolve:
Try out different shapes using this feature. Remember to use Toggle Sketch Filled to check that
your design will revolve. Some things to try:
• Football, Rugby ball, Discus, Cotton reel, Pulley wheel, Washer.
• Turned table leg, Door knob, Drinks bottle, drawing pin, panel pin, carpet tack.
Render your drawings using the Album procedure.
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ProDESKTOP 4: Using the Sweep Feature
The Sweep Feature can be used to make springs or screw threads and to add pattern detail to an
object. It is one of the procedures that is practically guaranteed to produce error messages patience is required!
Drawing a Spring
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Open a new Design.
Draw a circle of 5mm diameter.
Double click on the circle and change the drawing name to Profile. Click on OK.
Draw a vertical line about 20mm to the left of the circle. Make this line 150mm long.
Make sure the line is selected then go to Line then Toggle Construction.
Click on Feature then Sweep Profile then Along Helix.
Make sure that Profile appears in the profile box and Path in the Axis box. Enter 15 in
the Pitch box. Click on OK. You should see a spring appear.
8. Save your work.
9. Experiment with different profiles and pitches. Be warned! - some of the pitches you
choose might cause the form to intersect itself and so it will not extrude.
Drawing a Ridge on an object
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Open a new Design.
Draw a rectangle and extrude it to 50mm.
Select Edges and round each upright edge with a radius of 10mm.
Click on Workplane then New Workplane. Type 25 into the Offset box and call the
workplane Middle. Click on OK.
5. Select Lines then hold down Shift and highlight the four original lines that formed the
outline of the rectangle. Click on Edit then Copy.
6. Click on Workplane then New Sketch. Call it Path and make sure it is on the Middle
workplane. Click on OK.
7. Click on Edit then Paste. The rectangle’s outline should appear halfway up the block.
8. Select Faces and Highlight one end of the rectangle. Click on Workplane then New
Sketch. Call the sketch Profile.
9. Draw an ellipse overlapping the edge of the rectangle.
10. Click on Feature then Sweep then Along Sketch Path. Make sure that Profile and Path
are selected in the correct boxes. Click on OK. A ridge should be drawn around the
block.
11. Round over the top of the box.
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ProDESKTOP 5: Duplicating Design Components
In this exercise you will learn how to repeat shapes in a pattern across your workpiece. You will
also learn how to use Dimension Constraints to position objects accurately. We will construct a
patterned ring and a lattice box. Again they are complex processes and you are likely to
encounter error messages - persevere!
To draw the Ring:
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Open a new Design.
Go onto the Workplane and draw a circle 180mm in diameter.
Go to Trimetric view and extrude this circle to 10mm.
Select the top face of the disc. Click on Workplane then New Sketch. Click on OK.
Draw a circle of 20mm diameter near the top of the disc.
We are going to position the circle 10mm away from the edge of the disc. Click on
Constraint then Dimension.
7. Click on the circle then hold down Shift and click on the edge of the disc so that both are
highlighted. Drag away. Arrows and a number should appear showing the distance of the
circle from the edge of the disc. Double click on this number and change it to 10mm.
8. Click on Select then Lines. Select the circle.
9. Click on Edit then Duplicate. Choose the Circular tag.
10. Enter 16 into the Number box and click OK. 16 circles should appear arranged around
the outside of the disc.
11. Select the circles (they are all the same sketch) and extrude to 10mm.
12. Click on Select then Edges. Highlight the top edge of each of the small circle (You will
need to hold down Shift - warning this is a fiddly operation.)
13. Click on Feature then Round Edges. Round these over using 10 as a radius for the
round.
14. Click on Select then Faces. Highlight the top face of the disc.
15. Draw a circle on the disc inside the line of the roundels.
16. Extrude this circle Below the Workplane and Subtract Material - the disc should
become a ring.
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To draw the Latticed Cube:
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Open a new Design.
Draw and extrude a 100mm cube.
Select the top face of the cube.
Click on Workplane then New Sketch. Click on OK.
Draw a square 20mm by 20mm in the bottom left hand corner of the face.
Click on Constraint then Dimension.
Click on the horizontal edge of the square square then hold down Shift and click on the
edge of the cube so that both are highlighted. Drag away. Arrows and a number should
appear showing the distance of the square from the edge of the cube. Double click on this
number and change it to 10mm.
8. Repeat step 7 for the vertical edge of the square. The square should be place exactly
10mm from the edges of the cube.
9. Click on Edit then Duplicate. In the X Direction boxes type 3 under Number and 30
under Spacing. Repeat for the Y Direction boxes. Click on OK. A pattern of 9 squares
should appear.
10. Select these squares and click on Feature then Extrude Profile. Extrude the squares
Below the Workplane and Subtract Material. Make sure the go all the way through the
cube.
11. Repeat steps 4 to 10 for the front and side faces of the cube to complete the lattice.
12. Save your work.
Further work - Rendering:
Experiment with rendering these forms. In Album mode if
you click on Select then Faces you can render parts of your
drawing differently from others even though it has not been
assembled from a series of files.
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Make sure you have saved your drawing.
Click on New then Album then OK.
Click on Image then New Image.
Select Save your work as Pro5a-Duplicate or Save your
work as Pro5b-Duplicate and click on OK.
Click on Tools then Materials Browser.
Select Non-metal then drag the wood, plain icon onto
your stool top. Repeat for each part.
Click on the green “Traffic light” button at the top.
Your drawing will be rendered.
Experiment with other materials. Try making the legs and top out of different materials.
Save as Save your work as Pro5a-Rendered or as Pro5b-Rendered.
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ProDESKTOP 6: Using Text
This worksheet will show you how to include text in your designs and how to extrude that text
to form 3D lettering. You should end up with something like this:
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Open a new design.
Hold down Shift and press W to go onto the workplane.
Draw a rectangle 350mm by 140mm.
Draw four circles, each of 50mm diameter, centred on each corner of the rectangle.
Use the Delete Line Segment (Scissors) tool to snip away the corner of the rectangle and
the major arcs of the circles. You should be left with a rectangular shape that has a curve
at each corner.
6. Hold down Shift and press T to go onto the trimetric view.
7. Extrude the shape to 20mm.
8. Click on Select then Edges. Hold down Shift and select all the top edges of the block.
9. Click on Feature then Chamfer Edges. Chamfer the edges to 8mm.
10. Hold down Shift and press W to go onto the workplane.
11. Click on Select then Faces. Highlight the top face of the block.
12. Click on Workplane then New Sketch. Call the sketch Screwholes then click OK.
13. Draw two circles of 5mm diameter 20mm in from the short sides of the block and
centrally placed between the long sides.
14. Highlight both the circles. Click on Feature then Insert Hole.
15. Select Countersunk and Through entire part. Type in 10 for the Countersink
diameter and 5 for the Hole diameter. Click OK.
16. Click on Select then Faces. Highlight the top face of the block.
17. Click on Workplane then New Sketch. Call the sketch Text then click OK.
18. Click on Line then Add Text Outline. A dialogue box will appear.
19. Select Arial, Bold and type in 40 in the Height box. Type your text into the space
provided. Click on OK.
20. Drag the text into position, ensuring that it is centrally placed. You may need to go onto
the workplane to do this.
21. Click on Select then Lines. Highlight all the text but be careful not to highlight anything
else.
22. Click on Feature then Extrude Profile. Choose Subtract Material and Below
Workplane. Enter 8 into the Distance box. Click on OK. The letters should indent
themselves into the workpiece.
23. Open an new album and render the door sign.
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ProDESKTOP 7: Shelling: Using Pro/DESKTOP to
design a Circuit Box
This sheet will show you how to design a vacuum-formed box for an electronic circuit. Draw
the design below before going on to develop your own shape.
1. Open a new Design.
2. Draw a rectangle.
3. Click on the dimension tool (bottom icon of the toolbar on the right). Click on the edge of
your rectangle and drag away. A dimension should appear. Double click on this until you
get a dialogue box. Enter 140 into the box and click OK.
4. Repeat this operation for the other side, this time entering 120. You should end up with a
rectangle 140 by 120 mm.
5. Click on Feature, then Extrude Profile. Choose Add Material then Above Workplane.
Enter 6 into the Distance box. Click OK.
6. Click on Select then Edges. Select the small vertical edges of your rectangle. To select
all four at once hold down the Shift key while you select each one in turn.
7. Click on Features then Round Edges. Enter 10 in the Radius box. Click OK. You
should end up with a 6mm thick base with rounded corners.
8. Click on Select then Faces. Highlight the top face of the rectangle. Click on Workplane
then New Sketch. Click on OK.
9. Draw a rectangle 100 by 120 in the centre of the base rectangle.
10. Click on Feature, then Extrude Profile. Choose Add Material then Above Workplane.
Enter 45 into the Distance box. Pick up the green square on the drawing and taper the top.
Click OK.
11. Round the edges of the mould top. (Repeat steps 6 and 7.) The radius of the uprights
should be 6mm and the radius of the top should be 3mm.
12. Scroll the mould around until you can see the bottom.
13. Click on Select then Faces. Highlight the bottom face of the mould.
14. Click on Feature then Shell Solids. Enter 2 into the Offset box. The mould should
become a shell structure.
15. Click on Select then Faces. Highlight the top face of the mould.
16. Click on Workplane then New Sketch. Click on OK.
17. Draw a circle of 5mm diameter on the top of the mould.
18. Click on Feature, then Extrude Profile. Choose Remove Material then Below
Workplane. Type in 3 into the Distance box. A hole should appear.
19. Repeat steps 15 to 18 to draw another hole – this time of 4mm diameter – and a small
rectangle. Remember to make each a New Sketch.
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ProDESKTOP 8: Simple Assembly Procedures
1. Open a new design. Save it as Stool Leg.
2. Draw a circle near the top of the workspace.
3. Click on the Sketch Dimension icon and determine the diameter of your circle by
clicking on the edge of it and dragging away.
4. Double click on the number that appears until a dialogue box appears. Type in 40mm for
the diameter of the circle. Click OK.
5. Click on Select then Lines. Highlight the circle.
6. Click on Feature then Extrude Profile. Drag the yellow square below the circle. Check
that in the dialogue box you have chosen Below the Workplane and set the length to
300mm.
7. Drag the green square in to the centre of the circle to taper the leg.
8. Click on OK.
9. Save the drawing.
10. Start a new design. Save it as Stool Top.
11. Draw a circle of 250mm diameter.
12. Extrude the circle 20mm above the workplane.
13. Round the edges of the circle.
14. Save the drawing.
15. Start a new design. Save it as Stool Assembled.
16. Click on Assembly then Add Component.
17. Select Stool Leg and click on OK. The stool leg will appear on your page. Highlight it
and move it to one side.
18. Repeat 16 and 17 twice more to get three legs.
19. Click on Assembly then Add Component. Select Stool Top and click on OK.
20. Select View then Go To then Onto Workplane.
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21. Click on each leg in turn and move it into position under the stool top.
22. Select View then Go To then Front Elevation.
23. Move the legs up or down so that they meet the stool top.
24. Save your drawing.
25. Click on New then Album then OK.
26. Click on Image then New Image.
27. Select Stool Assembled and click on OK.
28. Click on Tools then Materials Browser.
29. Select Non-metal then drag the wood, plain icon onto your stool top. Repeat for each
leg.
30. Click on the green “Traffic light” button at the top. Your drawing will be rendered.
31. Experiment with other materials. Try making the legs and top out of different materials.
32. Save as Stool Rendered.
Extension task:
If you’re feeling confident, try constructing a table – when you draw it make sure the
dimensions are the right size!
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ProDESKTOP 9: Accurate Assembly
Earlier we looked at "eyeballing" objects together (Worksheet 4. Simple Assemblies); this
process is fine for basic drawings but most of the time we need to be much more accurate.
Pro/DESKTOP allows us to place an object precisely in relation to another and this worksheet
is aimed at showing you how this is done.
We will make this simple assembly:
1. Open a new design.
2. Draw a block 150 x 100 x 50mm.
3. Click on Select then Faces. Select one of the long sides of the block.
4. Click on Workplane, New Sketch, then OK.
5. Draw a circle of 20mm diameter on the long side that you have selected.
6. Extrude this circle through the block to create a hole.
7. Open a new design. Save it as Top Block.
8. Draw a block 50 x 50 x 50mm.
9. Open a new design. Save it as Rod.
10. Click on Workplane, New Sketch, then select the Frontal Workplane before clicking
OK.
11. Draw a circle of 20mm diameter.
12. Extrude this circle to create a rod 120mm long. You should end up with three files like
this:
13. Open a dew design. Save it as Assembly 1.
14. Click on Assembly then Add Component. Find the Base Block file and double click on
it. It should appear in your design.
15. Repeat for the Top Block and the Rod files until all three are in your design. They will
probably have "merged" with each other - don't worry about this.
16. Click on View then Half Frame.
17. Click on each part in turn to select it then move it away from the others so that you get
something like this:
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18. Select the base block - do this by clicking on Select then Parts then selecting the base
block.
19. Click on Assembly then Fix Components - this will fix the block in place. You will find
that, while you can select and move the other parts around the page, the base block is
immovable.
20. Click on Select then Faces. Select the outside face of the rod. Hold down Shift and
select the inside face of the hole through the base block. Both should be highlighted.
21. Click on Assembly then Centre Axes. The rod should align itself with the hole. If you
click on Select then Parts then select the rod you will find that you can only move it in
relation to the hole. This process is really useful for circular components.
22. Click on Select then Faces. Select the top face of the base block. Hold down Shift and
select the bottom face of the top block.
23. Click on Assembly then Mate. The top block can now only move so that its base is
always on the same plane as the top face of the base block. Confused? Roll the drawing
so you are looking at it from the side and try moving the top block.
24. Click on Select then Faces. Select the long edge of the base block. Hold down Shift and
select the nearest vertical face on the top block.
25. Click on Assembly then Align - the top block can now only be moved along one edge of
the base block.
26. Click on Select then Faces. Select the short edge of the base block. Hold down Shift and
select the corresponding vertical face on the top block.
27. Click on Assembly then Align - the top block is now fixed in position in the corner of the
base block.
What next?
Experiment with these tools. They are worth getting to know well as they form the basis of
being able to create animations in Pro/DESKTOP.
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ProDESKTOP 10: Putting It Together
You are going to design a mobile phone:
But not this mobile phone!
First of all design your mobile phone including sizes and detail.
All phones start off being drawn in a similar way;
1. Open a new Design. Save it as Phone1.
2. Dimensions are important! Check that your drawing is sized correctly. To do this you
need to start with a good idea of how big you want your phone to be.
3. Use the drawing tools and the scissors tools to design a shape for your phone. Try to
avoid just "seeing what turns up" - try sketching what you want first and manipulating the
tools to get this.
4. Having created a shape for your phone extrude it. You may wish to use the taper facility
when doing so.
5. Round or chamfer the edges of your phone.
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6. BIG TIP: after each successful phase Save a Copy of Your Work! In the event of
something going terrible wrong you will always have a decent version to go back to.
7. Add the detail to the top of the phone - buttons, screen etc. To do this you need to select
the top face and create a new sketch. Remember: You will need to do this every time
you want to add a new feature.
8. TIP: If you are doing a flip or sliding phone, do the top in one drawing and the bottom in
another, then assemble them in a 3rd drawing (like the table tutorial)
9. Buttons: You will need to create an array of components.
10. Round over or chamfer those components that require it.
11. Add text to your phone - either on the front or back. For example: manufacturer's name;
model; where it is made; serial numbers; etc.
12. Save your work.
13. Open a new Album.
14. Import your phone design.
15. Select Tools then Materials Browser.
16. Click on Select then Faces. This will allow you to render the phone component by
component. Be warned - this can be a fiddly process!
17. BIG TIP no. 2: If you use Select then Parts first to render all the phone you may find it
an easier way to get at the smaller components.
18. Click on Image then Image Properties. Adjust the image quality, background and
lighting to enhance the overall presentation.
19. Save your work.
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Items to note:
Problems Updating Features
If you ever see this error message you
must click on UNDO and correct what can
not be extruded, rounded, chamfered etc.
Errors
Watch out for errors in the left hand bar:
When there is a cross next to a feature you must right click and delete it – there is something on
you drawing that can not be extruded and you must correct it.
Update
Be aware of the update button and check it regularly
When it turns from this:
to this
you must click it to update it.
New Sketch
Whenever you create a new object, make sure you create a new sketch.
New Workplane
You need a new workplane whenever you want to draw at a different angle / tangent or on top
or below an object. Remember; whenever you create a new workplane, you must have a new
sketch to go with it.
Helpful hints
Name your features; whenever you extrude, round, chamfer etc, name it – it will help you in the
long run if you encounter any errors or want to change anything.
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