I was in the Autodesk Discussion Groups, and read some questions that reminded me of Simulation topics that I should explain. “How do I get gears from Design Accelerator to run in Dynamic Simulation?”
One particular discussion was bevel gears, but this issue will crop up in different components at different instances. If you will be attending my class at AU, you might just see some of this information again.
Here are the things you should be looking for.
- Pitch Surfaces
- Mismatched Factors
- Selection Order
Pitch Surfaces
These are the surfaces that the Design Accelerators use while creating the respective gears. The most important thing about them is that these are the calculated mating surfaces. When Inventor is calculating how a gear meshes, this is where it looks.
You do not always need access to this surface to get a gear into the Simulation Environment, but it is the BEST thing to pick in EVERY case.
Turn the visibility on and leave it on !!!!.
After I create a gear in the Gear Generator, I edit the parts, and turn the surfaces on, and Save. Yes, I want the Pitch Surfaces visible until the design goes to render, or out the door in pretty boxes. I cannot stress enough how much easier it will be to adjust things in your design if these are left visible.
If you are going to spend any time in the Simulation Environment, you are going to make a change. Keeping these visible will make your life so much easier.