Sheet Metal Guy Blog

07 Jun 2007   02:16:34 pm
SolidWorks Solution Partner Status
It took a long time to get to this point, but it is finally here. Customizing SolidWorks For Greater Productivity has received the blessing of SolidWorks. Our other three books were already approved. But with each new book published, you have to go through the whole Solution Partner process again. Now it’s official! We were once again welcomed in to the SolidWorks Solution Partners group. Customizing SolidWorks For Greater Productivity is now included on the SolidPartners web catalog under Publications, which receives heavy traffic from SolidWorks customers and certified Value Added Resellers and Distributors worldwide. Hopefully, this will increase our visibility in the SolidWorks Community.
		Category : SolidWorks | By : SheetMetalGuy | Comments [78] | Trackbacks [3123]
02 Mar 2007   04:59:44 pm
Ductwork Transitions - Square to Round and Cones
The SheetMetalGuy website was created to help sheet metal CAD users. One of our goals is to provide tools nd calculators to make your job easier. This week we introduced two new calculators. These will compute and save in a DXF file your rectangle (square) to round transition or a true cone shape. It's a beginning. We have more tools like this in the works and plans to further enhance these for more complex parts. Check out these new tools: www.sheetmetalguy.com/ductwork.htm Also tell us what other shapes you create, elbows, rectangle to obround, pipe intersections, or whatever. We are always interested in your feedback.
		Category : Sheet Metal | By : SheetMetalGuy | Comments [67] | Trackbacks [2256]
30 Jan 2007   11:37:15 am
Windows Vista - Should I or Shouldn't I?
With the release of the new Windows Vista operating systems, I am getting calls from customers asking if they should upgrade. So here are some notes borrowed from other experts showing their views on the subject. From Angel Espinoza, KETIV Technologies, http://acecivil3d.blogspot.com/2007/01/civil-3d-2007-window-vista.html The answer is, No, NONE of Autodesk's 2007 family of products run on Windows Vista. From Ralph Grabowski, www.Upfrontezine.com Vista: Do Not Seek the Treasure . . . . . In the movie, "Oh Brother Where Art Thou?," Pete warns his two companions to not seek the treasure. Instead of the location hiding $1.1 million, it's hosting a renegade sheriff determined to hang all three. Now that Microsoft's MPAA-approved Vista operating system is available, and SolidWorks has the first CAD package available for it, it's time to ask the question: should your organization upgrade to Vista? No. According to those who have been working with Vista, you should consider thee strategies: * Resist installing Vista on existing computers, including those sold before Christmas as Vista-ready, due to driver delays and hardware upgrade costs. Many Vista features are available for XP and Server 2003, including IE 7, Avalon, WinFX, and the RSS platform. * Vista's harsh DRM allows Microsoft to disable your computers remotely. * The Vista license includes a clause that allows Microsoft to change the terms of the license. What you agree to upon installing the software is not what you'll be licensed for some time later. Industry observers wonder if Microsoft has crossed the line in creating an illegal license: You have to agree to terms not described at time of purchase. http://newsletter.infoworld.com/t?ctl=15CF424:C49220C15D44729E5AB57F74B2AFFA42EFF29049075316B4 * If you upgrade, you'll be alone. Almost 64 percent of CIOs surveyed don't plan to move to Office 2007 or Vista, but will spend their budgets on hardware, storage, and security instead. http://www.pcworld.com/article/128360-1/article.html?tk=nl_dnxnws * In any case, Microsoft has extended support for all flavors of XP to (until April 2009. http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2007/jan07/01-24ExtendedSupportWindowsMA.mspx In short, Microsoft has specified that Vista reduce the functionality of our personal computers and our legal rights. Think Zune*. References: Windows Vista Review by Paul Thorrot http://www.winsupersite.com/reviews/winvista.asp Cost Analysis of Windows Vista Content Protection by Peter Gutmann http://www.cs.auckland.ac.nz/~pgut001/pubs/vista_cost.txt CNET notes that if you pay US$400 for Vista Ultimate, your computer might end up running the equivalent of Home Basic ($199) if the installer decides your computer doesn't have the hardware needed. http://news.com.com/Buying+Vista+Get+a+guarantee/2100-1016_3-6154150.html?tag=nefd.top Gen Kanai describes a real-world Windows monoculture environment, and its inherent dangers: http://www.kanai.net/weblog/archive/2007/01/26/00h53m55s The 5 sins of Vista by IntelliAdmin: http://www.intelliadmin.com/blog/2007/01/5-sins-of-vista.html (*) Credit: http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=37091 From Jim Hopkins - USA Today - http://blogs.usatoday.com/smallbiz/2007/01/reader_burning_.html "Why do I need Vista? That is the burning question and one that Microsoft hasn't satisfactorily answered." Of the more than 400 people who replied, just 20% said yes -- a figure that's held steady for more than a week now. The vast majority of responses, about two-thirds, came from readers who work for companies with 200 or fewer employees -- small businesses, in other words. From Steve Wiseman - http://www.intelliadmin.com/blog/2007/01/5-sins-of-vista.html I want Vista to be great, but there are so many issues I have lost count. I will limit my rant to the top 5 user interface nit picks in Vista. This is my top 5 - yours may be different Number 1 - The new file browsing interface is broken Number 2 - The new start menu sucks (Kind of) Number 3 - Windows Networking is a mess Number 4 - Windows Search Is Broken Number 5 - Windows copying has not improved Enough! I still believe, "Don't be the first to try it. Let others work the bugs out first."
		Category : Sheet Metal | By : SheetMetalGuy | Comments [295] | Trackbacks [3720]
07 Nov 2006   06:18:25 pm
SolidWorks for the Sheet Metal Guy
When we started to write the series of books, SolidWorks for the Sheet Metal Guy, we weren't sure what the feedback would be like. But now with the third book starting to ship, we are overwelmed with compliments. The number of people out there that struggle to model their parts is unbelievable. Sometimes it is the lack of knowedge of the commands, but mostly, it seems to be getting the dimensions and relations correct. Creating the flanges is the easy part, but getting the corners right and the overlap where you want it. This is what most of the questions are about. If you haven't seen the books, I ask that you do take a look. The real life examples show you step by step how to get the correct model. Ask our readers, they have been very pleased and asking for more.
		Category : SolidWorks | By : SheetMetalGuy | Comments [59] | Trackbacks [2890]
03 Oct 2006   11:25:55 am
Inventor Bend Table Formulas
The question was asked in our forum (www.SheetMetalGuy.com/forum), if any one could translate or figure out what the formula is in the Inventor Bend Table. I don’t know who created these formulas, but I will do my best. First the formula in the Inventor Bend Table: =IF($B135>165,0,(IF($B135>90,(2*(E$118+$B$115)*TAN(((180-$B135)*PI()/180)/2)-PI()*((180-$B135)/180)*(E$118+($B$115/2)*(0.65+0.5*LOG(E$118/$B$115)))),(2*(E$118+$B$115)-PI()*((180-$B135)/180)*(E$118+($B$115/2)*(0.65+0.5*LOG(E$118/$B$115))))))) Quite a mess isn’t it? Well the first step is to break down the three parts of the ‘IF’ statement. This shows that it is handling the bends three different ways based on the angle of bend. I did some renaming of the variables and it looks like this: =IF(angle>165 0 ELSE,(IF(angle >90, (2*( radius+thick)*TAN(((180-angle)*PI()/180)/2)-PI()*((180- angle)/180)*( radius +( thick /2)*(0.65+0.5*LOG(radius / thick)))), ELSE (2*(radius+ thick)-PI()*((180- angle)/180)*( radius +( thick/2)*(0.65+0.5*LOG(radius / thick))))))) But then I question why the author did some of it and is it incorrect or not? It starts by saying any bend with an angle greater than 165 degrees will use a value of zero. I agree most bends in this range are things like hems. But specifying a zero will give incorrect results. For the other two parts, angles greater than 90 and angles less than 90, the math is more complex than it needs to be and I am not certain about the resultant value. While many parts of the formula look familiar, they don’t add up. What is especially unique is the log function being used to calculate the k-factor. I have not seen this before and plan to do more testing to see just how good it is. I made a test to compare the standard bend formula results to the table results. There is a statement in the table (The correction value X is applied as follows: L = A + B – x) which implies they are calculating the Outside Bend Compensation. However to get their value I had to use a k-factor of 2.03. Since a k-factor is a percentage of the material thickness, this is way out of range. My best comments about these formulas are: A) The note at the top of the file says - ; This is supplied as a sample only. Edit with your own data and formulas as required. B) Try our standard formulas using the quick rule of thumb k-factor. That is when the inside radius is more than two times or more the material thickness, k-factor is .42. When the inside radius is equal to thickness, the k-factor is .3333. And when the inside radius is less than the thickness, the k-factor is .25 Again I don’t know where the formula in the Bend Table came from, but don’t use it.
		Category : Sheet Metal | By : SheetMetalGuy | Comments [82] | Trackbacks [6932]
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