Everyone,

I would like to announce a new set of tutorials being created by SolidWorks, specific to the Formula SAE competition. The first video, which covers the process behind modeling a frame, can be found here:

Modeling a FSAE Frame

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nN_00HcEPls&fmt=22

We would also like to get some feedback from you on these videos. Please send me an email if you have comments or suggestions for topics you would like covered in future videos. My email is:

sfaulkner@solidworks.com

Also, feel free to leave any comments here. We hope that these videos can provide some valuable knowledge to FSAE teams and students. Let us know what you think!

This should be an excellent help to beginning teams. Very good information

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Dsenechal,

I needed this last fall, would have jump started the project instead of the slow start we had. Keep the tutorials coming, my new guys could really use them and save a lot of time in training them. Thanks!

Nice tutorials, tks.

Nice. That should definitely help the new teams. I like how you added the a-arms and offsets right at the beginning. I did it a little different but there's more than one way to skin that cat. I look forward to the one where you perform FE analysis on the chassis.

Awesome!!

FEA next!!

I've just posted a follow up video to the first frame modeling video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PD4jQIm6gMM&fmt=22

A lot of you sent in excellent questions and hopefully this will answer some of them. Again, please send me an email if you have comments or suggestions for topics you would like covered in future videos. My email is: sfaulkner@solidworks.com

Enjoy!

I would also like to remind everyone to enter the SolidWorks Design Contest. You can win $500!

http://www.youtube.com/group/EDUdesigncontest

Thanks for the follow up video. I wish I knew about the design journal about four months ago...

I've posted another video on how to create part molds using SolidWorks:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDSvucKXWNg&fmt=22

Also, as a reminder, enter your video in the SolidWorks Education contest and have an extremely good chance at winning $500:

http://www.youtube.com/group/EDUdesigncontest

Would it be possible to have some of these tutorials in the form of literature and get a PDF/eBook going?

Here is the latest video covering fatigue analysis on SolidWorks simulation:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUyIm-w9YAo&fmt=22

@BMH We are definitely looking at doing that. I can't say for sure what the final result will be, but something is in the works.

Is there a whitepaper detailing the fatigue solution methods so that this can be compared to other packages?

Chris, here is a start:

http://www.solidworks.com/sw/d...eAnalysis_WP_ENG.pdf

I'll contact the simulation team and see if they can provide any more information

I think one of the more challenging aspects of CAD in FSAE development is good exhaust design. Getting the right cylinder pairs, weaving the tubes through the chassis given standard bend radii and keeping close to constant lengths among the exhaust routes.

Would be interesting to see how the official SW crew go about that.

quote:

I think one of the more challenging aspects of CAD in FSAE development is good exhaust design. Getting the right cylinder pairs, weaving the tubes through the chassis given standard bend radii and keeping close to constant lengths among the exhaust routes.

Would be interesting to see how the official SW crew go about that.

+1

quote:

Originally posted by alumasteel:

quote:

I think one of the more challenging aspects of CAD in FSAE development is good exhaust design. Getting the right cylinder pairs, weaving the tubes through the chassis given standard bend radii and keeping close to constant lengths among the exhaust routes.

Would be interesting to see how the official SW crew go about that.

+1

+1000

Use a sweep. Just set up equations the control the lengths and use linked values for the radii to keep them all the same. From there it's just a matter of routing it through the chassis with 3D sketches.

quote:

Originally posted by billywight:
Use a sweep. Just set up equations the control the lengths and use linked values for the radii to keep them all the same. From there it's just a matter of routing it through the chassis with 3D sketches.

Easier said than done, though I've managed to get it to work like that.

At least the last time I tried it... the 3D sketches got very touchy at times.

"Allright.. now I just gotta make these two tangent... FUCK! It looped out to infinity and back on itself again!" After a significant amount of screwing around you could usually get it to work, but no matter what it took a fair amount of time.

I kinda think it would be nice if you could "move with triad" on sketch points or entities in 3D sketches. There are times when entering the X,Y,Z co-ordinates doesn't do anything.

quote:

I kinda think it would be nice if you could "move with triad" on sketch points or entities in 3D sketches.

Right click on the point and select "Show Sketcher Triad"