E5 Lab 2

Introduction to SolidWorks

This lab is to be done individually, though you should feel free to consult with others and with the wizards while you are working.  Each person should create a design.  You can find the SolidWorks program on computers in Hicks 213 and in the Trotter computer lab.

1. Familiarize yourself with SolidWorks by going through the tutorial from "Introduction to Solid Modeling Using SolidWorks 2012," by Howard and Musto.  There should be hard copies in the the lab, or you can get a pdf version online.  If you don't finish the lab today, copies of the tutorial will be in Hicks 213 (the computer lab).  You may skip the tutorial if you already know SolidWorks.
2. Create a design using SolidWorks to demonstrate that you you can use the program.  The design need not be elaborate, but must meet the following requirements:
• This is important!  The design must fit within a 1.75 x 1.75" square when viewed from the front.  When you create the new design, remember to set your units to inches (as in the tutorial). This is important! 
• The depth of the design must be no more than 0.5".
• The resolution available is about 0.01".  If you try to make finer details they won't appear.
3. Save your Solidwork design file (a file with extension ".SLDPRT") somewhere you can access it later.  Email it to yourself, or use SwatFiles.

A simple example (the yin-yang symbol I passed around in class), is shown below.

Going Further

• You can change the color of your object (or parts of it) in SolidWorks.  Your design will be printed in ABS, Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene, plastic (a common plastic used in everything from plumbing to legos) - probably white.  
• You might also consider adding text (while editing a sketch, go to Tools→Sketch Entity→Text).  Though be aware that text must be relatively large because of the limited resolution of fabrication. 
• You can make interesting shapes using sweeps or thin features.
• Go through some of the built-in SolidWorks tutorial (start the SolidWorks program and go to Help→Online Tutorial).
• We have copies of the "Introduction to Solid Modeling..." books in the lab in Hicks 213; please don't remove them.  Explore some of the other chapters if you want to know SolidWorks better.

To turn in

(via moodle)

To complete the first lab you need to do two things:

1. Go back to the moodle page and submit your Solidwork design file.
2. Add an image of the part you created to your wiki page.  From SolidWorks you can do File→Save As and save as a jpeg (.jpg) image files, or go to View→Screen Capture to save image to clipboard.