#Spiral Spring
5 messages in this thread
We are trying to design a special purpose spring fro a client. We are
attempting to do that we AME and having problems trying to mdel the shape.
Does anyone have a sping routine ? is anyone doing any work in API or is it
just shipped as a hang over from AutoSOLID and for show ?
regards,
Ian Dagger
Sydney Australia.
Ian,
At this time, AME cannot create swept solids through a parametric path,
even with API.
This means that you can only roughly approximate the spring. You could do
this by using the 3dpoly command, feeding it calculated points. You could
create a circle at each vertex normal to the next polyline segment, extrude
it along the segment and perhaps union it with adjacent extrusions. The
bonus routine spring.lsp (I think that's what it's called) may be of use.
Depending on how you will be using the model, perhaps the envelope of the
spring would be sufficient: a cylinder, cone, or swept conic section.
If you only plan to use the model for illustration or presentation
purposes, you may want to create a wireframe representation of the spring
and then use project.lsp to project the desired view onto a
plane where you can then "fatten" it to the correct wire gauge.
I hope one of these ideas will prove helpful.
Dieter
Dear Dieter,
Thanks, I was expecting the answer that yoyu have given me. We need to do
more than visualization. We were hoping to create springs under
different conditions to get moments of Inertia, centroid etc…etc
But thanks anyway.
Is there any API products being developed ?
Ina…
Ian,
If you need the mass properties of the spring under varying conditions, you
might still be able to approximate it with AME close enough for your
specifications. Of course the best approach would be to sweep a circle
along a path but AME will need to support NURBs before we can offer that
capability.
I personally am not familiar with any API products currently available
although I expect a number of developers are working on applications. You
might want to contact the following companies for information:
Swanson Analysis Systems, Inc
P.O. Box 65
Houston, PA 15342-0065
Engineering Technology Associates, Inc.
1100 E. Mandoline, Suite B
Madison Heights, MI 48071
Lapcad Engineering
1568 Diablo Point Court
Chula Vista, CA 92011
Structural Research & Analysis Corp.
1661 Lincoln Boulevard #201
Santa Monica, CA 90404
Dieter
Last year I worked on several parametric 3D spiral routines – which I call
"Spiralitis". I gave up because I did not know enough about spring and
screw manufacturing and could not access such expertise.
Cany you send any drawings of the springs you have in mind? I especially
want to know what the typical beginnings and ends of springs (how they are
cut or formed). I want to know if a sectional cut through a spring is
circular or elliptical. And do you have any illustration as to the
geometry of a spring that is in the process of being squeezed or stretched.
Or is there a textbook about springs?
Currently my routines are surface oriented – but I could look at AME
possibilities. I had a lot of fun with variable radius springs, springs
along splined 3Dplines, multi-thread springs that spiraled along the
spiral, variable profile springs and lots of other good stuff.