What is the tube and pipe feature in Autodesk Inventor?
Autodesk Inventor has a tube and pipe tool or feature. Pipes & Tubes has a sub-feature of 3D sketch conversion to Pipes & Tubes with different styles, sizes (JIS, DIN, ASME, ISO…etc.), material properties and other related properties of each specification in an editable way. Although one can manually model 3D piping for any standard in any 3D CAD software, this requires all the necessary information regarding the dimensions of each style and other properties of fittings, pipes, elbows, tees and other associated pipe parts. Autodesk inventors solved this problem with the tube and pipe feature, which provides easy 3D modeling, greater flexibility, associated piping styles, and other design information.
Why do industries need this feature?
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Different types of industries and their needs
There are different types of industries that produce different types of products around the world. Every industry has its own specific piping requirements depending on product, safety, environmental concerns and many other technical and non-technical factors. This tool is very useful in the design of process equipment, tube bundles for various types of heat exchangers, machine piping, automotive piping and many other applications. For example; Aircraft piping standards are a far cry from automotive piping.
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Different technical approach and style
Another important thing is; each country’s own style of technology and way of thinking. Sometimes different piping standards can be successfully applied to the same industrial process. Sometimes a country’s institutes have developed their own standards to meet their needs and facilitate manufacturing.
necessary things; when creating a sketch
To create a 3D sketch for 3D piping, the following conditions should be met. Lines should be tangent or at right angles. The correct constraint should be applied to all sections of 3D lines in the drawing in the inventor’s part (ipt). The length of each line segment should be chosen according to the rule and appropriate measurements of each standard style and associated sizes. Fittings should have the correct bend radius, with adequate length available at the corners.
How to draw a sketch for piping
Sketch can be drawn in two ways.
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Separate inventor part (.ipt)
Open new part in Inventor (ipt). Go to 3D sketch tab, select line, draw the line according to your requirement only in x, y or z direction at right angle. Line segment length should be selected based on your pipe size, standard design, and process design. You should apply constraints manually or automatically, enable auto tab, and check again after drawing. Click the Finished Sketch tab. Save the file and open a new assembly part in Inventor and insert it into the assembly as a part file (.ipt) and proceed according to the given procedure. Creating a Part in an Assembly (.iam)
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Open a new assembly file in Inventor.
Create a new part (ipt) in an assembly file (iam). Draw the sketch as above, complete the sketch, save the file and return to assembly mode. Now you can proceed with the piping.
Steps for conversion
After drawing and completing the 3D sketch, do the following.
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Create a new run
In assembly mode, go to the Environment, Tube & Pipe tab. Click Tube & Pipe tab, a new page will open, enter the name for the new tube & pipe run, select the file location where you want to save it.
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Insert a new route
Now in the next step add a new route, a small page asks you to enter the name for a new route, ask for the location, save the file.
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Activation of the desired style
Now click on the “Tube & Pipe Styles or Pipe Specs” tab, a page with many style options will open, click on the option you want, right click on it and click on “Activate”. The desired style is activated.
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Changing the dimensions and related properties of the style
Now right-click again on the selected default style and click Edit. Now change size, inner and outer diameter, construction material and schedule no. You can also change the fitting type and associated properties.
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Change adjustment size and properties
Click on the selected arc in the top box, a page will open, click browse, another list will open with many options for each component. Here you can choose any one.
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Modification regulation for the implementation of standard piping
Rule values are selected automatically, but can also be changed. To change these values, click the Rule tab to change the sketch population rule. Choose suitable values according to your selected standard and pipe dimension. If one doesn’t work and the error changes those values again, it will work.
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Derive route
Save your changes and continue to the next step. In the next step, click on the derived route and select the sketch, right click on the sketch and click Done. Route points should be generated as shown in the image, otherwise no routing will be performed. Click End Routing, Fill Route is highlighted.
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population route
Click on the route filling tab. The route assignment starts in your sketch. Populated standard-related details are displayed in the window on the right. When filling the route, the sketch is converted to the selected default style
Change an existing style to a different default style
One style can be changed to another by following these steps. Click the Back tab in the top corner, create the new route with a different name, e.g. B. Route 03. Choose another style as above and follow all the steps carefully. Derive route for the same 3D sketch, routing points don’t change because we don’t change the sketch. Fill in the route, it will ask for all the routes you have inserted. Select new, route 03 and enter, it will fill pipe for a new style, this way we can fill for another.
The most common mistakes
Minimum length violation is the most common error encountered when converting a 3D sketch to a pipe. These errors can be divided into two parts.
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Sketch related issues
When constraints are not applied correctly to the sketch, one or all of the line segments are not at right angles, or the length of the line segments is incompatible for a selected size and style.
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Incorrect rule selection of a style
Rules of a specific standard style are not applied correctly according to the dimensions of fittings and parts. At corners, there is not enough length available for the fittings (elbow, tee…etc.) at the corner or bend of line segments for the population. The image below shows the error message, all of these causes show the same error message.
Thanks to Usman Zafar | #Autodesk #Inventor #tube #pipe #sketch #standard #styles
