Fusion 360 is a product innovation platform that follows the cyclical process of design, make, use, and evaluate. It allows you to create 3D parametric designs and models. The term parametric refers to the use of design parameters to construct and control the 3D model you create. For instance, you might begin a design by creating a base sketch to define the profile of a part. In this sketch you would use dimensions as parameters to control the length and width of the sketch. The dimensional parameters allow you to construct the sketch with precise inputs. Below is an example of a parametric model sketch.
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Fusion really is a lot of things and some people even specialize in parts of this platform. Autodesk is greatly committed to education, allowing students, teachers, and academic institutions worldwide to be eligible for free access to their software. One of my first tasks in this class is to get Fusion 360 installed in student computers and help them login. Then, we'll move on to create a simple part or sketch.
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Before going any further, I would like to point out that in the website (http://www.autodesk.com/products/fusion-360/overview) under the Support & Learning menu option there is a Learning option which has various levels of learning to suit your needs and learn from the experts.
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It has such things as high level learning such as Foundational Concepts all the way to the feature level if you want to learn something about the fillet, if you need to. There's a ton of learning opportunities. So much learning content all over the website and YouTube, which offers a different way of learning for CAD tools nowadays. Checkout the YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/user/AutodeskFusion360) with several playlists whether there are tips you want to learn or hour long oriented videos to get you really deep dive. Rather than having to ask an expert, you can even just Google it and you get a short video.
In addition to all this, there are also different learning opportunities. Some people don't like to watch videos. They like the one to one touch person there, so that's why Autodesk also offers webinars (more of an overview), virtual labs, deep dives (which are similar to webinars but it goes deep dive say into rendering and CAM), and then there are several meetups (this is very group oriented, all around the world, happening in several different countries).
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As I start the application I begin by looking at the platform environment.
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Let's review the user interface. Like any application it has a Toolbar with typical options like File, Save, Undo, and Redo.
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The Top
I try to identify each of the 8 regions by using the image above. However, it would be easier to have an assembly already open. So then I notice on the top left of the window (the first option of the menu bar) the Show Data Panel option and I click on it. This is where I find a number of projects available, like the utility knife and lamp.
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To open each simply double-click on the thumbnail and voila!
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Look at the application bar under File. There are many options to try here like New Design, Save As and others. You can even send your assemblies and designs to other people via by Sharing Public Link or to the Fusion 360 Gallery if you look in the Share option.
Using the Share Public Link will be used a lot during the course of the semester.
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On the far right you will find the profile and help options. You will see your name with options related to your Autodesk account, preferences, and profile. Often people use the option Preferences / Default Units / Design to change the units to mm or cm in Fusion 360.
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If you select My Profile, you will open A360 from the web. This will give you access to your projects online. In fact, A360 is a cloud-based workspace that centralizes, connects and organizes your project information across your desktop, the web, and mobile devices.
Opening each project will allow you to see a list or small images of the designs.
If you click on a project you can select options to Share your work with the teacher or your design team.
When you Share, you can do it by copying a URL, email or embed code of the model.
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Under Help access great videos under Learn Fusion 360 Product roadmap. You can also type something in the search box.
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The screenshot below shows two assemblies open at the same time Utility Knife v1 and lamp v1. You can have multiple tabs opened with different files. You can close the Data Panel by clicking on the X.
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On the far right you will see the View Cube. This allows you to rotate the assembly. Front Face & Rotate to see the Right Face or click on the Home to go to Isometric View.
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The Center
Beneath the Model there is an window called Browser. It presents an organized view of the data in your design in a tree-like format. You can control the visibility of the components and bodies in each Browser reference. You can hide/unhide any components and bodies using the light bulbs in the Browser, next to each component or body.
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On the toolbar in the Model Workspace you can see the tools available. Make sure that you start by using the Model Workspace, as shown below:
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Let's take the case if the lamp and change the Workspace to Render. Using this option you see a rendered image of your design.
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Under Create you will see options like Box, Cylinder, Extrude, etc. If you are using these options a lot, you can add or remove them from the toolbar.
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Under Modify, you will find options like Press Pull, Fillet, Combine, and much more.
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The Bottom
Learn how to navigate using Orbit, Pan, and Zoom and change Display Views on the Navigation and Display bar. For example under Display Settings you can select Effects and Disable/Enable Ground Shadow. Under Grid and Snaps you can Disable/Enable Layout Grid. Finally, under Viewports you can select Multiple Views or Single View.
Since I already have a wireless mouse with a center wheel, it really makes my navigation easy and fun. Test the trackpad gestures on a Mac as well.
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At any point, you can right-click on the Graphics Window or Drawing Area to reveal the Marking Menu also known as the Context Menu, containing many used tools and all tools on the toolbar.
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At the bottom of the Fusion 360 window you will find the Timeline. This is where you can see how the part was modeled.
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