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Exploded View, View representations, drawing exploded view, presentation, tweak, tweak component

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Exploded views and presentations overview

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You can develop exploded views , animations, and other stylized views of an assembly to help document your design. Any static presentation view can be used in a drawing.

Presentation views are saved in a separate file called a presentation file (.ipn). Each presentation file can contain as many presentation views as needed for a specified assembly. When changes are made to an assembly, the presentation views are updated automatically.

How is the presentation environment different from the assembly environment?

Use presentations for documentation and visualization. Use assemblies to constrain parts to one another, create parts in place, and modify existing parts.

	Presentation environment	Assembly environment
Constraints	Assembly constraints are used for automatic explode and do not influence the parts in a presentation. See list for applicable assembly constraints.	Created and fully honored.
Modeling	No modeling commands are available. You cannot change the assembly model or its component parts.	Full part modeling capability.
Work Features	No access to work features.	Full access to work features.

What are some uses for a presentation?

You can use an assembly presentation to more clearly demonstrate how parts in an assembly interact and fit together. For example, you can use an animated exploded assembly view to illustrate assembly instructions. Enhance animations by making use of the different visual styles available to the scene.
You can use an exploded assembly view to expose parts that would otherwise be partially or fully obstructed. For instance, use a presentation to create a single axonometric exploded assembly view to expose all parts within an assembly. You can then add that view to a drawing and balloon each part in the assembly.

Developing exploded presentation views

Exploded drawing views are developed first as presentation views, then used to create exploded views in the drawing environment. Any view angle, line of sight or vantage point can be used to create a presentation view. You can also use exploded views to create animations of assemblies.

When you create a presentation view, you can choose to auto-explode it. All components are offset by the distance you specify. Assembly constraints mated to faces determine the direction the components move to create the view.

After placing a view, you can manually tweak individual components to create the optimum view.

NotePresentation views do not recognize assembly constraints for any purpose other than creating the first automatic explosion. You can manually tweak a component along any specified vector.

Using design view representations to create presentation views

You can develop design view representations in the assembly and use them to create presentation views. For example, you turn off the visibility of some parts in a complex assembly and save a design view representation that shows only certain components. In the presentation file, you can use that design view representation to set up an exploded view of the visible components.

Procedures

Use the Presentation browser

You can right-click any item in the browser and use the selections on the context menu to create and edit presentation views . In addition, the Presentation browser provides drag-and-drop and click functions.

To change the browser view

Use Browser Filters at the top of the browser to change the hierarchy of items in the browser.

Click Browser Filters to display the menu.
Select the desired hierarchy from the menu.

To change the active presentation view

When there are multiple presentation views in a presentation file, all views except the active view are shaded. Double-click a shaded view to make it the active view.

To rename an item in the browser

Presentation views, tweaks, and other items are automatically named as you add them. You can change the names in the browser.

Click to select the item to rename.
Click a second time on the name of the item to display a box around it.
Enter the new name for the item.

NoteYou cannot change file names of the assembly and its components.

To change the order of actions in an exploded view

When the browser view is in Sequence mode, you can change the order of tasks and sequences to produce the appropriate order when you animate the presentation.

To move a tweak from one sequence to another, select the tweak and drag it into the desired sequence.
To change the order of sequences, select a sequence and drag it to the desired location.
To combine two or more sequences, select the sequences, right-click, and select group sequences.
To hide a component for the duration of a sequence, select the component from the assembly hierarchy at the end of the browser and drag it to the Hidden folder in the desired sequence.
To change the distance of a tweak, select the tweak in the browser and change the value in the edit box at the bottom of the browser.

Show Me how to use the presentation browser

Create a presentation template

All new presentation files are created with a template. You can create your own templates and add them to the templates provided by Autodesk Inventor.

Create a presentation, using an existing template.
Set the properties for the file. Use Display Appearance Settings in the Document Settings dialog box to specify dataset specific scene elements such as shadows and lighting style.
Save the file in the Autodesk\Inventor [version]\Templates folder or a subfolder of Templates. A presentation file automatically becomes a template when it is saved to the Templates folder.

NoteThe file standard.ipn in the Templates folder is the default presentation template. To replace the default template, remove standard.ipn and replace it with a template that has the same name.

Add a new presentation view

As you develop a presentation file, you can add as many presentation views as necessary for creating animations and specialized drawing views. On the Presentation tab, Create panel, click Create View.

On the ribbon, click Presentation tabCreate panel Create View.
In the dialog box, specify the model file. Click the drop-down arrow next to Explore. Select Explore to browse for a non-vaulted file. Select Open from Vault to browse for a file in the vault.
NoteThe model file is set for the first view that you add to a presentation file. All subsequent views are derived from the same model.
Specify the design view representation .
To create an exploded view automatically, select Automatic as the Explosion Method, and set the distance and trail options.

Only one view is visible and editable at a time. To access a particular view, double-click the view in the browser.

Each new view is added to the browser in succession as Explosion1, Explosion2, and so on. To change the view name, click and highlight the name in the browser and type a new name.

Show Me how to create a presentation view

Create a presentation

Use a presentation to develop exploded views, animations, and other stylized views of an assembly to help document your design.

You can create a presentation document using the default template or a custom template. Presentation templates set the file properties for assembly presentations.

Click New.
In the Open dialog box, select Standard.ipn or a customized presentation template.

NoteIf the template is not on the Default tab, open the appropriate tab to find the template.

Develop an exploded view

Exploded views are developed in a presentation file and then used to create exploded drawing views. You can automatically explode a presentation views when you create it, add an explosion distance to all the components in an existing presentation view, or manually tweak the components in a presentation view to create an exploded view.

To explode a new presentation view automatically

You can set a single tweak distance for all components when you create a presentation view. On the Presentation tab, Create panel, click Create View.

On the ribbon, click Presentation tabCreate panel Create View.
Specify the assembly file and design view representation to use.
Select Automatic as the explosion method.
Set the tweak distance.
Select Create Trails to create trails for each tweak in the view; remove the check mark, and trails are not created.

To add an explosion distance to selected components automatically

You can add a single explosion distance to the components in the selected assembly or subassembly.

Right-click the assembly name in the browser and select Auto Explode from the menu.
In the dialog box, enter the standard tweak distance.
To display the trails for the automatic tweaks, make sure that Display Trails is selected.
Click Preview to check the effect of your entries before clicking OK to accept them.

NoteThe specified distance is added to any existing tweaks in the view.

To add tweaks to a presentation view manually

You can add tweaks to a component or group of components in an existing view. On the Presentation tab, Create panel, click Tweak Components.

On the ribbon, click Presentation tabCreate panel Tweak Components.
In the graphics window, click a face, feature, or edge in the view to set the direction triad.
Select the components to tweak.
Click and drag an arrowhead on the direction vector to create a tweak in the direction of the arrow.
NoteYou can also enter the tweak distance and set the direction vector using the settings in the dialog box.
When the desired result is previewed in the graphics window, click Apply to implement the changes.
To add other tweaks, click Clear to reset the selections and repeat the previous steps.

Show Me how to create an exploded assembly

Animate an exploded view

You can develop, play, and record animations of exploded views to show the order and path of tweaks in a complex assembly.

Develop an animation

After setting up an exploded view, you can view, edit, and fine-tune it to develop the desired animation.

Set the browser view to Sequence.
Select a task or sequence in the active view, right-click, and select Edit to open the Edit Task and Sequences dialog box.
In the dialog box select a task or sequence, then:
- Click the corresponding play command to view its animation.
- Enter a description for it in the edit box.
- Set the Interval to control the playback speed for the animation.
- Use the view commands on the View tab to change the orientation of the view. Then click Set Camera save a camera view for the selected task.
  NoteTo save your changes, click Apply before you edit another task or sequence.
To change the order of the animation, close the dialog box, and reorder the sequences and tweaks in the browser.

Show Me how to animate a presentation view

Record an animation

After developing an animation, you can play it when the presentation file is open or record it to an external file and replay it later. On the Presentation tab, Create panel, click Animate.

On the ribbon, click Presentation tabCreate panel Animate.
Set the number of repetitions.
Click one of the play commands to view the animation in the graphics window.
To record the animation to a file, click the record command, then click one of the play commands start recording.

NoteTo change the number of Repetitions, click Reset on the dialog box, then enter the new value.

Work with tweaks and trails

Trails in an exploded presentation view show the paths along which the components are moved to create the view. When you automatically explode a view or add manual tweaks for individual components, you can choose whether to show the trails or hide them.

After creating tweaks, you can set the visibility of the trails. You can also change the distance of tweak segments, or add trails to existing tweaks to clarify relationships between components.

To show or hide existing trails

You can set the visibility of trails in an exploded view.

To hide the trails for a component, select the component in the graphics window or browser, right-click, and select Hide Trails.
To turn off the visibility of a trail segment, select the tweak in the graphics window or browser, right-click, and select Visibility to clear the check mark.
To turn on the visibility of a hidden trail segment, select it in the browser, right-click, and select Visibility.

To edit existing tweaks

You can edit a tweak in several ways:

Select a tweak in the browser and change the distance or angle in the edit box at the bottom of the browser.
Select a trail in the graphics window, right-click, and select Edit from the menu. Specify the changes in the Tweak Component dialog box.
Drag the endpoint of a trail in the graphics window. If you drag an endpoint to a zero length it is deleted.

NoteWhen you change the length of a tweak, all associated components and tweaks move appropriately.

To add a trail to a tweaked component

You can add a trail to an existing tweak to clarify relationships between components. For example, you may want to add trails between corresponding features on the components.

Select the component in the browser or the graphics window.
Right-click and select Add Trail from the menu.
Click in the graphics window to set the start point of the trail.
Right-click and select Done to place the trail.

Show Me how to work with tweaks and trails

References

Animate Explosion

Adjusts the animation of an assembly presentation and records it to a file that you can replay. Use the options in the Presentation browser and the Task and Sequences dialog box to set up the animation.

Access:

Ribbon: Presentation tab

Create panel

Animate

Parameter

Specifies number of repetitions and intervals for the animation.
Repetitions	Sets the number of times to repeat the playback. Enter the desired number of repetitions or use the up or down arrow to select the number.
Intervals	Sets the number of intervals in a tweak. Enter the desired number of intervals or use the up or down arrow to select the number.

Motion

Plays the specified animation of the active exploded view.
	Steps the animation forward one tweak at a time.
	Steps the animation forward one interval at a time. Click the command to move forward one interval.
	Steps the animation in reverse one interval at a time. Click the command to move back one interval.
	Steps the animation in reverse one tweak at a time.
	Plays the animation forward for the specified number of repetitions. Before each repetition the view is set back to its starting position.
	Plays the animation for the specified number of repetitions. Each repetition plays start to finish, then in reverse.
	Plays the animation in reverse for the specified number of repetitions. Before each repetition the view is set back to its ending position.
	Pauses the animation playback. TipYou can pause the animation, stop the record, and save it. Then start a new recording from the pause point.
	Records the specified animation to a file so that you can play it back later.
Minimize during record	Minimizes the dialog box while the animation is being recorded. Select the box to minimize the dialog box. Clear the check box to leave the dialog box active.

Animation Sequence

Changes the animation sequence of tweaks . Select the tweak, then click the command for the desired operation. While animating, each sequence is highlighted in the list as it is being played in the graphics window.
Move Up	Moves the selected tweak up one place in the list.
Move Down	Moves the selected tweak down on place in the list.
Group	Groups the selected tweaks to keep them together as you change the sequence. When tweaks are grouped, the group assumes the sequence order of the lowest tweak number.
Ungroup	Ungroups the selected tweaks so that they can be moved individually in the list. The first tweak in the group assumes a number one higher than the group. The remaining tweaks are numbered sequentially following the first.

Select Assembly

Selects an assembly file and design view representation to use when creating a presentation view . You can also set a single tweak distance to create an exploded view automatically.

Access:

Ribbon: Presentation tab

Create panel

Create View

Assembly

Selects the assembly file and design view representation to use when creating a presentation view.
File	Specifies the assembly file to use for the presentation. Available only when placing the first view in the presentation. Specify the file name in one of the following ways: Enter a file name in the box. Click the arrow to select from the list of open files. Click the drop-down arrow next to Explore. Select Explore to browse for a non-vaulted file. Select Open from Vault to browse for a file in the vault.
Options	Opens the File Open Options dialog box. Specifies a public or private design view representation or a positional representation.
See File Open Options for more information.

Explosion Method

Sets the tweak distance and other options to create an exploded view automatically from the presentation view.
Manual	Creates the presentation view without creating an exploded view. You can manually add tweaks to create an exploded view later.
Automatic	Creates the presentation view as an exploded view. Select Automatic and then set the tweak distance and the trail visibility.
Distance	Specifies the tweak distance for each component when creating an exploded view. Enter the desired distance. Available only when Automatic is selected.
Create Trails	Displays the trails for each tweaked component when creating an exploded view. Available only when Automatic is selected.

Auto Explode

Uses a specified tweak distance to explode mated components in an assembly or subassembly. The tweak direction is based upon assembly mate constraints.

Access:

Right-click an assembly or subassembly in the presentation browser and select Auto Explode.

Distance	Sets a tweak distance for the selected assembly components.
Create Trails	Displays the trails for each tweak in the exploded view. Select the check box to display the trails. Clear the check box to hide the trails.

Assembly constraints for auto explode

When you auto-explode a presentation view, the direction the components move to create the view is determined by the assembly constraints placed on model geometry.

This table lists the possible combinations of geometry you can use to mate constraints and the movement that results when performing an auto explode.

NoteNot all geometry combinations result in movement.

Geometry for mate	Result of auto-explode
Face to face	Explodes normal to face
Face to plane	Explodes normal to face
Face to edge	Explodes normal to face
Face to point	Explodes normal to face
Face to axis	Explodes normal to face
Plane to plane	Explodes normal to plane
Plane to edge	Explodes normal to plane
Plane to point	Explodes normal to plane
Plane to axis	Explodes normal to plane
Point to point	No action
Point to axis	No action
Axis to axis	No action
Edge to edge	No action
Edge to point	No action
Edge to axis	No action
Insert (axis and face mate)	Explodes normal to face along axis
iMate - insert	Explodes normal to face along axis
Tangent	Explodes normal to planar face
iMate - tangent	Explodes normal to planar face
Angle	No action
iMate - angle	No action
iMate to face	Explodes normal to face
iMate - plane	No action

Presentation browser

Lists the presentation view in the active presentation file. It also provides commands to create and edit exploded views , set camera angles, and create animations for each view.

Access:

Available when a Presentation file (.ipn) is open and active.

Browser view

Browsers Filters at the top of the browser sets the view displayed in the browser.

Tweak View sets tweaks as the top the detail hierarchy for each presentation view. Components included in each tweak are listed under it. The assembly file used for the presentation is shown at the end of the list for the view.

Sequence View sets tasks as the top of the detail hierarchy for each view. The tweak sequences that make up a task are listed under it. The assembly file used for the presentation is shown at the end of the list for the view.

Assembly View sets the assembly and its components as the top of the detail hierarchy for each view. The tweaks that affect each component are listed under it.

Context menus

You can right-click any item in the browser to display a context menu of options available for it. The options change, depending on the browser mode and type of item selected.
Menu option	What it does
Activate	Activates the selected presentation view and displays it in the graphics window. Available when the selected presentation view is not active.
Add Trail	Adds a trail to tweaks for the selected component. Click in the graphics window to indicate the points for the new trails. When you finish indicating the points, right-click and select Done to place them. Available when a tweaked component is selected.
Auto Explode	Opens the Auto Explode dialog box so that you can set a standard distance for all the components to create or change an exploded view. Available when an assembly or subassembly is selected.
Collapse All children	Collapses all browser folders nested under the selected item so that the contents are not displayed. Available when items are nested under the selected item.
Copy	Copies the selected presentation view into memory so that it can be pasted into the presentation as a new presentation view. Available when a presentation view is selected.
Delete	Deletes the selected item from the presentation. Available when a presentation view or tweak is selected.
Edit	Opens the Edit Task & Sequences dialog box so that you can add descriptions, test the animation, or set a camera view for the task. Available when a task or sequence is selected.
Expand All Children	Expands all browser folders nested under the selected item. Available when items are nested under the selected item.
Find in window	Highlights the selected item and zooms the view to center it in the graphics window. Available when a component or tweak is selected.
Group Sequences	Combines the selected sequences into a single sequence. Available when two or more sequences are selected.
Hide Trails	Hides the trails for the selected component in the active presentation view. Available when a component is selected.
How to	Activates the reference Help for the presentation browser. Available on every context menu.
New Sequence	Creates a sequence and moves the selected tweak from its existing location to the new sequence. Available when a tweak within a sequence is selected.
Paste	Pastes the presentation view in memory into the active file as a new presentation view. Available after a copy operation on a presentation view.
Properties	Opens the properties dialog box so you can view or set the design properties for the presentation. Available when the presentation file name at the top of the browser is selected.
Restore Camera	Restores the last saved camera view. Available after you save a camera view and then change the view.
Save Camera	Sets the current view (vector and zoom) of the active presentation as the default view.
Tweak Component	Opens the Tweak Component dialog box so that you can tweak individual components in the active presentation view. Available when an assembly or component is selected.
Visibility	Sets the visibility of the selected item. Available when an assembly, component, or trail segment is selected. NoteIf trails for a component are hidden, you cannot display a trail segment by turning on its visibility. Show the trails for the component, then set the visibility of the trail segments.

Edit Task and Sequences

Sets the animation speed and camera angle for animation sequences, and adds descriptions for animation tasks and sequences in a presentation view .

Access:

Set the Presentation browser to Sequence view, select a task or sequence, right-click, and select Edit from the menu.

Task

Selects a task and adds a description for it.
Task list	Selects a task to edit. Click the arrow and select from the tasks in the active presentation view.
Description	Adds a description for the selected task. Enter the description.
	Plays the animation of all sequences in the selected task. After playing the animation, click Reset to set the animation back to the beginning.

Sequences

Selects a sequence and defines its animation.
Sequence list	Selects a sequence to edit. Click the arrow and select from the sequences in the selected task view.
Description	Adds a description for the selected sequence. Enter the description.
Interval	Sets the playback speed for the animation. The higher the number, the greater the time delay between frames. Enter the desired playback speed.
Set Camera	Sets the current view (vector and zoom) as the camera angle for the selected sequence. Use the view commands on the View tab to orient the view, then click Set Camera to save the view. You can set a different camera angle for each sequence in a task.
TipUse the Save Camera option, accessed by right-clicking on a sequence, to set a common camera setting for all sequences. Use the Set Camera option to define a unique camera setting for a sequence.
	Plays the animation of the selected sequence. After playing the animation, click Reset to set the animation back to the beginning.

Reset

Sets an animation back to the start after you play it. Reset the animation before making further edits or playing other animations.

Apply

Applies changes to the selected task or sequence. Apply changes before you can make more changes.

Tweak Component

Specifies distance, direction, and other settings for a selected component or group of components when adding tweaks to an exploded presentation view .

Access:

Ribbon: Presentation tab

Create panel

Tweak Components

Create Tweak

Selects components to tweak and sets the direction and origin of the tweak.
Direction	Specifies the direction or axis of rotation for the tweak. Click Direction, then select an edge, face, or feature of any component in the graphics window to set the direction triad for the tweak.
Components	Selects the components to tweak. Click Components, then select the components in the graphics window or browser. NoteIf a component was selected when you opened the dialog box, it is automatically included in the components. To remove a component from the group, press and hold the Ctrl key as you select.
Trail Origin	Sets the origin for the trail. Click Trail Origin, then click in the graphics window to set the origin point. If you do not specify the trail origin, it is placed at the center of mass for the part.
Display Trails	Sets the display of trails . Select the box to display the tweak trails for the selected components. Clear the check box to hide the trails.

Transformations

Sets the distance and type of tweak for the selected components. After specifying the settings, click Apply to add the tweak to the view.
	Sets the type of tweak to Linear. Click to select Linear, select the axis, enter the distance, and click Apply.
	Sets the type of tweak to Rotational. Click to select Rotational, select the rotation axis, enter the degrees of rotation, and click Apply.
	Specifies the direction for a linear tweak or the axis for a rotational tweak. Select the desired coordinate, then enter the distance or rotation angle.
	Creates a tweak, using the current settings in the dialog box. Click to create the tweak.
Edit Existing Trail	Initiates edit mode for existing tweaks. Click to initiate the edit, select the tweak in the graphics window, then change the desired settings.
Triad Only	Rotates the direction triad without rotating selected components. Select the option, enter the angle of rotation, and then click Apply. After the triad is rotated, you can use it to define tweaks.