Inventor Sheet Metal and Advanced Modeling Workflows
Sheet Metal Fundamentals
Use sheet metal styles to define thickness, bend radius, and relief. Create faces, flanges, bends, hems, and punches. Understand bend order and flat pattern. Trap: incorrect bend radius causing interference or flat pattern errors.
Flat Pattern and Documentation
Generate flat patterns for manufacturing. Ensure bends are oriented correctly. Trap: forgetting to include bend notes or misinterpreting the flat pattern orientation.
Advanced Modeling
Use multibody parts, derived components, iParts, iFeatures, and skeletal modeling. Understand when to use each. Trap: overcomplicating with multibody when a simple assembly suffices.
Rule of Thumb
For sheet metal, always set the default bend radius to match the tooling. For a 90° bend with 2 mm thickness, use a 2 mm radius unless specified.
Worked Example
Create a sheet metal box 200×150×100 mm with 2 mm thickness. Use face and flanges. Add a hem on the top edge. Create a flat pattern and verify bend lines. Document with a drawing showing flat pattern and bend notes.