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Table of contents
No headersAs you move forward in your design, you can assess the impact that changing certain parameters can have on the design. The parameters can include dimensional parameters. Parametric studies allow you to nominate parameters for evaluation, define the parameter range, specify the design constraints, and analyze the results of each parameter variation.
A parametric study requires the following:
- Design Objective is set to Parametric Dimensions
- Parameters nominated for use in the simulation
- Parameter ranges identified
- Design criteria specified
- Various configurations generated
When you have the configurations generated you can then evaluate your simulation. You can further refine the parameters or design constraints until satisfied with the results.
Once you determine that a configuration satisfies your design needs, you are able to promote that configuration back to the model as a CAD edit. You are prompted whether to make changes.
Each part feature has parameters associated with it. The parameters describe the feature. These parameters are accessible for use in evaluating the response of a design to operating conditions as defined by your simulation input. Generally, there are only a few parameters you want to evaluate in a simulation. Thus, you can maintain a geometrically predictable result.
One approach to working with parameters is to create user-defined parameters for specific areas of interest that you want to drive parametrically. For example, if you want to evaluate the effect various material thicknesses, creating a parameter called matl_thickness. Later you can identify that parameter for use in a simulation exploring the effect of thickness changes. Parameter names cannot have spaces.
Parameters are not automatically displayed in the browser. To display and nominate model parameters for evaluation, you access the Show Parameters command from a browser node context menu. The command is available for assembly, part, and feature nodes. The following briefly explains how the parameters are filtered.
| Assembly node | Exposes only assembly parameters at the node level. If the assembly is a subassembly, it will expose only parameters for that assembly and not its child parts. |
| Part node | Displays parameters for all features making up the part. All part occurrences will experience changes to part parameters. |
| Feature node | Displays all parameters making up the part feature. |
Use a feature parameter:
- Expand the model nodes in the browser to reveal the features in a part.
Right-click the feature you want to evaluate parametrically and click Show Parameters. The Select Parameters dialog box displays.
- In the dialog box, click the check box in the left column for each parameter to include in the simulation.
- When parameter selection is completed, click OK. The parameter is listed in the Parametric table, in the Parameters section.
- In an assembly, repeat steps 1-4 on each part that you want to analyze in the simulation.
To access the Parametric Table, click 
Manage Parametric Table
.
The Parametric Table presents both parametric dimensions and design constraints and is divided into two corresponding sections.
Design Constraints are the specific result components that you are interested in seeing for those parameters. There are options for each constraint based on your selection.
Simulation parameters, nominated model parameters, enable you to vary the model and allow you to evaluate various configurations of a design. When parameters are modified the geometry updates for all corresponding features, helping to retain design intent. Choose parameter ranges that result in configurations having compatible feature structures and topology when compared to the base model.
To access the commands for Design Constraints and Parameters, right-click the corresponding row and select the command from the context menu.
Specify design constraints in the Parametric Table:
- In the Design Constraints section, right-click a row and click Add Design Constraint. The Select Design Constraint dialog box displays.
- Select the Results Component to use as a design constraint.
- Specify the value behavior - maximum, minimum, or range of values.
- Specify whether you want to include or exclude geometry. Select the entities.
- To exclude the list of geometric entities, check the Exclude box. Otherwise, geometric entities listed are included.
- Click OK to add the design constraint to the Parametric Table.
Safety Factor as a Design Constraint
When you use Safety Factor as a design constraint, the following calculations apply.
Suppose you choose a range of Amin - Amax, or in the case of a single value, Amin=Amax. Inventor adjusts the result values to account for the safety factor:
- Bmax = maximum of Amax / Safety Factor or Amax * Safety Factor
- Bmin = minimum of Amin / Safety Factor or Amin * Safety Factor
Then, Inventor checks the appropriate constraint conditions:
- If you select Upper limit, Bmax < Limit satisfies the constraint
- If you select Lower limit, Bmin > Limit satisfies the constraint
- If you select Fit in range, Bmax < Upper Limit AND Bmin > Lower Limit satisfies the constraint
- If you select Avoid range, Bmin > Upper Limit OR Bmax < Lower Limit satisfies the constraint
For example, say that you select Fit in range 100 - 25000 with a Safety Factor = 10. The range against which Inventor checks is 1000 - 2500. That is, the lower limit is multiplied by the safety factor while the upper limit is divided by the safety factor.
The lower section of the Parametric Table displays the parameters that you nominated previously.
- In the Values cell for a given parameter, enter a range using one of following methods:
- For a range, separate the minimum and maximum values by a dash (2 - 4).
- For a range with a defined number of points in the range, add a colon and the number after the range (2 - 4 : 8). In this example, the points occur every .25 starting with 2 and ending with 4.
- For a range with incremental values, add a slash and the increment (2 - 4 / .25)
- For discreet values, separate each by a comma (2, 3, 3.5, 4).
- Press the Enter key when finished.
- Do the same for each parameter for which you want a range evaluated.
- To create the geometry, right-click the slider next to the values and select the appropriate option. In this example, you would likely use Generate Range Configurations. Now, moving the slider changes the sizes.
Parameters at any level in the part or assembly hierarchy can be accessed for evaluation in the simulation.
Access: |
|
| Model Parameters | ||
| Check boxes | When checked, selects the parameter for use in the simulation. The parameter is used in a parametric table to evaluate ranges. | |
| Parameter Name | Displays the parameter name. | |
| Unit | Displays the parameter unit. | |
| Equation | Lists the parameter value where the parameter participates in an equation or references another parameter for its value, or a combination of both. | |
| Nominal Value | Displays the parameter value using a designated precision. | |
| User Parameters | ||
| User-defined parameters are listed and the simulation can evaluate them. | ||
The Parametric Table is where you specify design constraints and parameter ranges. You can easily view configurations, find one that passes all constraints, and create more optimized designs with higher safety factors.
Commands related to each section are accessed with the row context menu.
| Constraint Name | Lists the parameters identified for the model. Right-click to add or remove constraints, such as Von Mises Stress, displacement, or mass. |
| Constraint Type | Each constraint type has a specific behavior which determines how it interacts in the table. Available Constraint types are:
Limit and Range filter the results to the set that meets the limit when optimizing other constraints. |
| Limit | Filters the results to the set that meets the bounding limit when optimizing other constraints. |
| Safety Factor | Gauges how much you can exceed the variable before causing the constraint to fail. A comparison to the Limit factored by the Safety Factor determines whether it meets the limit or range. For more about how Inventor applies the Safety Factor, see Parametric Studies |
| Result Value | Displays the value of the constraint for the simulation. If the value is within the limit, it has a green background. If it exceeds the limit, it has a red background. Gray backgrounds indicate the value is interpolated or out of range and the closest value displays. |
| Unit | Displays the unit of measure for the value in the preceding cell. |
| Component Name | Displays the name of the component with which the parameter is associated. |
| Feature Name | Display the name of the feature with which the parameter is associated. |
| Parameter Name | Displays the parameter name. |
| Values | Displays the parameter value or range and points of the range. See the following information about specifying ranges. |
| Slide control | Adjusts the current value of the parameter within the specified range. The geometry updates to display the value change. |
| Current Value | Displays the current value of the parameter based on the slider location. You can type in a value and the slider and geometry update. |
| Unit | Displays the parameter unit. |
Ranges for Parametric Dimensions
Specify multiple values, as ranges, for parametric dimensions using one of the following methods:
- Define a range by separating the minimum and maximum values with a dash, such as 2 - 4.
- Define the number of points in the range by adding a colon and the number after the range. For example, 2 - 4 : 8 specifies a range from 2 to 4 with 8 points in the configuration.
- Define discreet values by separating each with a comma, such as 2, 3, 3.5, 4.
Enter the numbers in ascending order.
After defining the parameter ranges to evaluate, right-click over a row and click the desired command. A quick Reference is available for each command.
Access: |
|
Adds a design constraint to the Parametric table. Design constraints are simulation Results Components that you want to see in relation to the parameters you evaluated.
The Add Design Constraint command displays the Select Design Constraint dialog box, providing the following options:
| Results Component | Specifies the results component for evaluation. For Nth Mode Frequency, specify the mode in the Frequency Number box. |
| Maximum Value displays the maximum value for the selected results component. | |
| Minimum Value displays the minimum value for the selected results component. | |
| Range of Values displays the value range for the selected results component. | |
| Geometry Selections | Includes or excludes the listed geometry for the constraint evaluation. Use when only certain areas are considered for validation and optimization purposes. |
| All Geometry includes results for all geometry in evaluating the design constraint. | |
| Include Selected Geometry includes results for the listed geometry in evaluating the design constraint. | |
| Exclude Selected Geometry excludes results for the listed geometry in evaluating the design constraint. | |
| Faces Edges enables selection of geometry for inclusion or exclusion list. |
Promote configuration to model
Access: |
|
Parameters
After you reach a level of satisfaction for parameter values and their results, publish them to the main model as a native CAD edit.
The dialog box displays a list of affected components. By default, all parameters have a check mark. They are selected for promotion to the model as part of the edit. Both the Base Value and New Value are displayed. Clear the check box for parameters you do not want to promote to the model. Then click OK.
For each component, the parameters are modified and model updated in a serial manner. Once completed, the Base configuration of the model is updated to the new Base parameters.
Materials
Material overrides are presented on a per component basis. Override materials can be promoted to the model as a CAD edit. See Prepare for Analysis.