SolidWorks 2011 Assemblies Bible - Matt Lombard [198]
Correcting mistakes
When you start to use the MotionManager, you will probably make mistakes. Don't feel bad; this happens to even seasoned veterans. The difference between you and an experienced user is that they know how to deal with mistakes and do not panic. The MotionManager does you the favor of recording all your mistakes in the form of adding key points to the change line for either the part position or view orientation. One way to troubleshoot these types of mistakes is to drag the timeline through the key points, and identify which key points need to be removed. To remove a key point, just click it and press Delete.
If you are making an animation that covers a long period of time, say, more than 30 seconds, the key points may be close together and difficult to distinguish from one another. You can use the zoom tools in the lower-right corner of the timeline area to zoom the timeline in or out. Zooming in makes the key points appear farther away from one another, enabling you to select one that might be right on top of another.
Using paths to control cameras
Cameras are discussed in detail in the SolidWorks 2011 Parts Bible, so the general details won't be covered again here. You might want to refer to that book to familiarize yourself with some of the controls. The main controls you need for animations are Target by selection, Position by selection, and Set roll by selection, in addition to the Field of View settings.
Recalling the Walk-through feature
You may want to review Chapter 3, where the Walk-through functionality is covered. Walk-through is now a stand-alone feature, but its functionality is borrowed from the MotionManager for animating a camera along a path. The Walk-through feature is somewhat simplified and intended for large structures where you can go in and around the object. Remember that Chapter 3 used a very large dump truck with a staircase and an observation platform.
Rotating the model using a path
The main weakness of the Rotate Animation Wizard is that it rotates about the screen axis, which appears to make it wobble on the screen, and this is typically not what users have in mind when they ask to rotate the model. Most users envision the “turntable” sort of rotation, where the model rotates about its own axis. Changing the rotation to rotate about the part axis isn't as easy as it probably ought to be, but once you understand the process, you can simplify it. This example involves making the camera revolve around the axis of a part, regardless of the orientation of the part, to show you how to drive a camera along a path. This exercise will start simple and gradually become more complex.
The best way to spin the view around the part axis is to make a path on a plane perpendicular to the axis. The plane should in most cases be slightly elevated from the base of the model, and should probably be circular or at least a smooth, closed-loop spline.
Starting with the robot assembly from the Animation folder on the DVD (Robot Assembly.sldasm), move to a top view, and open a 3D sketch. When doing prep work like this, it is better to work using the Model tab, instead of the MotionManager. This prevents you from creating any unnecessary key points for animatable items.
In the 3D sketch, from the Top view, draw a four-point closed-loop spline, as shown in Figure 23.21. This is in a 3D sketch so that you can change the path to non-planar if you want to.
FIGURE 23.21
Creating a camera path
The path doesn't have to be perfectly circular; in fact, it might be better if it gets closer to the assembly on one side, making it rather kidney-shaped.
Next, press Shift+down arrow to rotate the view 90 degrees, and drag the entire spline up a little bit. Finally, tweak a couple of spline points so the spline goes higher and lower. This will give you a more interesting result than just a straight