Inventor^® Training

Dragging Fully Constrained Sketches in Autodesk Inventor - Page 2

By David Melvin, PE, TEDCF Publishing

The next step is to select the base point for the stretch operation. Click the Base Point button, and then select a point on the sketch geometry.

You need to select geometry that will not move during the operation. In this case I’m selecting the node on the center of the circle.

After you select the base point a prompt will appear asking if you want to relax dimensions so that you can move the geometry. Click Yes.

When there are constraints that prevent the geometry from moving you’ll see this dialog box. It asks if it is OK to remove constraints to allow the movement. You need to click Yes, but this also means that you will need to replace constraints when you’re finished.

I’ll show you a trick that will let you know which constraints were removed. Click Yes.

The next step is to drag the geometry to the desired size and location, but before you do try moving your pointer around to see how the geometry changes. This image shows the length of the left diagonal line is no longer the same as the right diagonal line. So the Equal constraint was removed from these lines. Take your time to study the geometry before you select the new size and shape. This is your best opportunity to quickly determine which constraints where removed.

Once you have a pretty good idea about which constraints were removed, select the final location, and then add the constraints back to fully constrain the sketch.

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