Setting Default Standards and Units in Inventor 2013

In all previous versions of Inventor you needed to customise the installation to change the default Standards and Units for Inventor from ANSI and Inches to ISO and mm.

However in the new release (2013) this option is NOT included in the installation customisation, you set this upon starting the software. To change these settings in 2013, start the software for the first time and you will see the splash screen below, select Configure Default Template.

Start Sketch on Part Creation in Inventor 2013

By default, in previous versions of Inventor, whenever you started a new Part file you would be taken straight into a new Sketch.

In Inventor 2013 this default behaviour has been changed to not automatically create a Sketch, instead you have the option of starting a new Sketch on your chosen Origin Workplane.

If you prefer to start a new Part and go straight into a Sketch, then you can turn this behaviour back on in Tools TAB on Ribbon > Application Options > Part TAB > change the Sketch on new part creation setting. The old default was Sketch on x-y plane!

Using Text Fields

Field text allows you to Insert a multiline text Field that can be updated automatically as the Field value changes. This could be the Creation Date, Author, Size of the file, File Name or Save Date for instance.

To place a Field on its own simply type Field at the command line, this will bring up the Field dialogue box, where you can choose the relevant settings you require.

Autodesk Suites 2013: Deployment path can easily exceed 256 [260] characters

When creating a deployment for your Suite, please try to keep the deployment path as short as possible or you may get an Error 2350 - FDI server error.

The number of characters in the a sub-component of the Suite past the AdminImage can be quite long and you may not notice this problem until you create the deployment. Here is a sample path of a file in Autodesk

Infrastructure Modeler 2012 Premium:

\\fl1\shared\Apps\Programs\Autodesk Infrastructure Modeler 2013\AdminImage\x64\Components\ESM\Program Files 64\Autodesk\Essential_Skills_Movies\3dsMax_Design_2013\de-DE\html\essential_skills_movies\design\resources\images\esm_design_2_create_objects_36x36.png

The number of characters starting at AdminImage is 196 characters and the Windows character limit is 260 characters. About 75% of the path is taken up by the Suite.

This is an extract from the Up and Ready, Manufacturing Community Blog

Fade External References

To help identify which parts of a drawing are external references you can adjust the Fade control to make these stand out against your design work. To access these controls go to the Insert TAB on the Ribbon > click on the Reference panel name to expand the options.

This value is always preset, by default AutoCAD 2011 introduced a fading of 70%, AutoCAD 2013 introduces a default fading of 50%.

How to get Hold of Vault Basic (Server) 2013

For Subscription Customers, if Autodesk Vault is included in your Subscription then Autodesk Vault Basic 2013 (Server) can be downloaded from the Autodesk Subscription Center.

Simply log on to the Autodesk Subscription Center, then under Downloads, click Product Enhancements.

Vault Upgrade Information

Many of you will have started receiving your Autodesk 2013 media, or perhaps you have already downloaded it via the Autodesk Subscription website. If you normally complete your own upgrades/installations then Autodesk have released a useful document for Vault upgrades, to help navigate you around the pit falls.

If this is something that would be useful to you, then please visit the website below, which contains some useful information plus a link to the mentioned document.

http://wikihelp.autodesk.com/Vault/enu/Help/Help/0206-Autodesk206/0261-Upgradin261

Change Light and Decal Grip Size in Showcase 2013

Depending on the size of your dataset the Light and/or Decal Grips can be an inappropriate size. Either obscuring the dataset, making it difficult to work with or too small to grab hold of.

You could and still can change the Light Grips by modifying their Scale in Edit menu > Transform > Transform Properties. However in Showcase 2013 you can change both the Light and Decal Grip sizes much easier, go to File menu > Settings > User Settings.

Simply grab the slider to adjust the size of either the Light and/or Decal Grips.

LABS - Material Profiler for Inventor

This plugin is a design tool that allows users to visualise information concerning the various materials used inside an assembly. The materials from top level assembly to all of its sub-assemblies and their components are listed by the plug-in interface.

Visit the Material Profiler for Inventor website to find out more, or download to try for yourself.

LABS - Inventor Simplification

Inventor Simplification is a free technology preview of a new and easy way to simplify parts and assemblies for downstream consumption. The Shrinkwrap feature was added to Autodesk Inventor software several releases ago. Since that time we’ve collected feedback on various ways to improve the workflow. We think we have a much better way to simplify models and wanted to share it with you as soon as possible.

Whether you need to simplify a fully detailed model to import into Revit or remove intellectual property (IP), Inventor Simplification can help. Inventor Simplification is intended to be very interactive with greater flexibility than current tools.

• Visual selection of components to keep/remove
• Replace fully detailed components with resizable primitive shapes
• Fill holes with greater control

Visit the Inventor Simplification website to find out more, or download to try for yourself.

Availability:

 

This new Inventor Simplification Technology Preview is now available as a free download and trial so please download it and let us know what you think. The technology preview will operate until July 1, 2014.