IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page1

Inthistutorial,wewilllearnthebasicsofperformingmotionanalysisusingSolidWorksMotion.
AlthoughthetutorialcanbecompletedbyanyonewithabasicknowledgeofSolidWorkspartsand
assemblies,wehaveprovidedenoughdetailsothatstudentswithanunderstandingofthephysicsof
mechanicswillbeabletorelatetheresultstothoseobtainedbyhandcalculations.
Wewillbelookingatthreedifferentanalyses:
1. Rotationofawheel,inwhichwewilllearnhowtosetupamotionanalysisandseetheeffectsof
changingthemassmomentofinertiaonangularacceleration.
2. Fourbarlinkage,inwhichwewillseehowplottingaquantitysuchasaccelerationovera
mechanismsfullrangeofmotionallowsustoidentifytheextremevaluesofthequantity.
3. Rolleronaramp,inwhichtheeffectsoffrictionwillbeevaluated.

1. RotationofaWheel
Beginbycreatingthethreepartmodelsdetailedbelow,orbydownloadingthepartsfromthebooks
website.Theeightholepatternoneachwheelisaddedtohelpvisualizationoftherotationofthepart.

COMPONENTSFORWHEELROTATIONMOTIONANALYSIS
WHEEL1WHEEL2

Alldimensionsareinches

BASE

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page2

Foreachpart,definethematerialbyright
clickingMaterialintheFeatureManagerand
selectingEditMaterial.TheMaterialEditor
willappear,asshownhere.SelectAlloySteel
fromthelistofsteelsintheSolidWorksmaterials
library.ClickApplyandtheClose.
Tobegin,wewillanalyzeasimplemodelofa
wheelsubjectedtoatorque.FromNewtons
SecondLaw,weknowthatthesumoftheforces
actingonabodyequalsthemassofthebody
timestheaccelerationofthebody,or
1
Theaboveequationappliestobodiesundergoing
linearacceleration.Forrotatingbodies,Newtons
SecondLawcanbewrittenas:
2
Where isthesumofthemomentsaboutanaxis, isthemassmomentofinertiaofthebodyabout
thataxis,and istheangularaccelerationofthebody.Themomentofinertiaaboutanaxisisdefined
as:
3
where istheradialdistancefromtheaxis.Forsimpleshapes,themomentofinertiaisrelativelyeasy
tocalculate,asformulasfor ofbasicshapesaretabulatedinmanyreferencebooks.However,for
morecomplexcomponents,calculationof canbedifficult.SolidWorksallowsmassproperties,
includingmomentsofinertia,tobedeterminedeasily.
OpenthepartWheel1.Fromthemainmenu,selectTools:MassProperties.
Themasspropertiesofthewheelarereportedinthepopupbox.Forthispart,themassis15.29
pounds,andthemomentofinertiaaboutthezaxis(labeledasLzzinSolidWorks)is105.36lbin2.
Notethatifyoucenteredthepartabouttheorigin,thentheproperties,labeledTakenatthecenterof
massandalignedwiththeoutputcoordinatesystemwillbeidenticaltothoselabeledPrincipal
moments...takenatthecenterofmass.Notethattheunitsofmassusedareactuallypoundsmass,
thatis,apartthatweighsonepoundhasamassofonepoundmass.Whenwemakeourcalculations
later,wewillhavetoconvertourvaluessothatweuseunitsofmassthatareconsistentwiththeother
unitsthatweareusing.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page3

OpenthepartWheel2.Fromthemainmenu,selectTools:MassProperties.
Notethatalthoughthemassof15.45isalmostthesameasthatofWheel1,Wheel2smomentof
inertiais146.54lbin2,whichisalmost40%greaterthanthatofWheel1.Thereasonforthedifference
isthatmorematerialinWheel2isplacedneartheouterrim.Inthedefinitionofthemomentofinertia
shownasEqn.3,thecontributionofeachparticleofmassonthevalueof dependsonitsdistancefrom
theaxissquared.Therefore,addingmassneartheouterrimofthewheelincreasesitsmomentof
inertiagreatly.
Openanewassembly.InsertthecomponentBase.
Sincethefirstcomponentinsertedintoanassemblyisfixed,itislogicaltoinsertthecomponent
representingthestationarycomponent(theframeorgroundcomponent)first.
InsertthepartWheel1intotheassembly.SelecttheMateTool.Addaconcentricmatebetween
thecenterholeofthewheelandtheholeinthebase.Besuretoselectthecylindricalfacesforthe
mateandnotedges.Addacoincidentmatebetweenthebackfaceofthewheelandthefrontfaceof
thebase.
Youshouldnowbeabletoclickanddragthewheel,withrotationabouttheaxisofthematedholesthe
onlymotionallowedbythemates.Theadditionofthesetwomateshasaddedarevolutejointtothe
assembly.Arevolutejointissimilartoahingeinthatitallowsonlyonedegreeoffreedom.
ClickontheMotionStudy1tabnearthelowerleftcorner,
whichopenstheMotionManageracrossthelowerportionof
thescreen.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page4

TheMotionManagercanbeusedtocreatesimulationsofvariouscomplexities:

Animationallowsthesimulationofthemotionwhenvirtualmotorsareappliedtodriveoneor
moreofthecomponentsatspecifiedvelocities,
BasicMotionallowstheadditionofgravityandsprings,aswellascontactbetweencomponents,
tothemodel,and
MotionAnalysis(SolidWorksMotion)allowsforthecalculationofvelocities,accelerations,and
forcesforcomponentsduringthemotion.Italsoallowsforforcestobeappliedtothemodel.

ThefirsttwooptionsarealwaysavailableinSolidWorks.SolidWorksMotionisanaddinprogram,and
mustbeactivatedbeforeitcanbeused.

Fromthemainmenu,chooseTools:AddIns.Inthelistof
availableaddins,clickthecheckboxbesideSolidWorksMotion
toactivateit.ClickOK.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page5

SelectMotionAnalysisfromthesimulation
optionspulldownmenu.

SelecttheForceTool.

Wewillapplyatorque(moment)tothewheel.Wewill
setthetorquetohaveaconstantvalueof5inlb,and
willapplyitforadurationoftwoseconds.

IntheForcePropertyManager,selectTorqueandthenclickonthefrontfaceofthewheel.

Notethatthearrowshowsthatthetorquewillbeappliedinthecounterclockwisedirectionrelativeto
theZaxis(wesaythatthistorquesdirectionis+Z).Thearrowsdirectlybelowthefaceselectionbox
canbeusedtoreversethedirectionofthetorque,ifdesired.
ScrolldownintheForcePropertyManagerandsetthevalueto4
inlb.ScrollbacktothetopofthePropertyManagerandclickthe
checkmarktoapplythetorque.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page6

IntheMotionManager,clickanddragthediamondshapedicon(termedakey)fromthedefaultfive
secondstothedesiredtwoseconds(00:00:02).SelecttheMotionStudyPropertiesTool,andchange
thecalculationratefromthedefaultof25to100framespersecond.Clickthecheckmark.

Usingalargernumberofframespersecondwillresultinsmootherplots,butwillrequiremore
calculationtime.
ClicktheCalculatorIcontoperformthesimulation.

Theanimationofthesimulationcanbeplayedbackwithoutrepeating
thecalculationsbyclickingthePlayfromStartkey.Thespeedofthe
playbackcanbecontrolledfromthepulldownmenubesidethePlay
controls.
Asnotedearlier,SolidWorksMotionprovidesquantitativeanalysis
resultsinadditiontoqualitativeanimationsofmotionmodels.Wewillcreateplotsoftheangular
accelerationandangularvelocityofthewheel.
SelecttheResultsandPlotsTool.InthePropertyManager,usethepulldownmenustoselect
Displacement/Velocity/Acceleration:AngularAcceleration:ZComponent.Clickonthefrontfaceof
thewheel,andclickthecheckmark.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page7

Aplotwillbecreatedoftheangularacceleration
versustime.Theplotcanbedraggedaroundthe
screenandresized.Itcanalsobeeditedbyright
clickingtheplotentitytobemodified,similartothe
editingofaMicrosoftExcelplot.
Weseethattheaccelerationisaconstantvalue,
about1050degreespersecondsquared.Sincethe
appliedtorqueisconstant,itmakessensethatthe
angularaccelerationisalsoconstant.Wecancheck
thevaluewithhandcalculations.Notethatwhilewe
canperformverycomplexanalyseswithSolidWorksMotion,checkingamodelbyapplyingsimpleloads
ormotionsandcheckingresultsbyhandisgoodpracticeandcanpreventmanyerrors.
Weearlierfoundthemassmomentofinertiatobe105.36lbin2.Sincethepoundisactuallyaunitof
force,notmass,weneedtoconvertweighttomassbydividingbythegravitationalacceleration
(
.Sinceweareusinginchesasourunitsoflength,wewilluseavalueof386.1in/s2:
105.36 lb in
in
386.1
s

0.2729 lb in s 4

Sincethetorqueisequaltothemassmomentofinertiatimestheangularacceleration,wecanfindthe
angularaccelerationas:
5 in lb
0.2729 lb in s

18.323

rad
5
s

Noticethatthenondimensionalquantityradiansappearsinouranswer.Sincewewantouranswerin
termsofdegrees,wemustmakeonemoreconversion:
18.323

rad 180 deg

rad
s

1050

deg
6
s

ThisvalueagreeswithourSolidWorksMotionresult.
SelecttheResultsandPlotsTool.InthePropertyManager,usethepulldownmenustoselect
Displacement/Velocity/Acceleration:AngularVelocity:ZComponent.Clickonthefrontfaceofthe
wheel,andclickthecheckmark.Resizeandmovetheplotsothatbothplotscanbeseen,andformat
theplotasdesired.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page8

Asexpected,sincetheaccelerationisconstant,thevelocityincreaseslinearly.Thevelocityattheendof
twosecondsisseentobeabout2100degreespersecond.Thisresultcanbeverifiedwithasimplehand
calculation:
1050

deg
s

2 s

2100

deg
7
s

Often,theangularvelocityisexpressedinrevolutionsperminute(rpm),commonlydenotedbythe
symbol :
2100

deg
s

1 rev
360 deg

60 s
1 min

350 rpm 8

Wewillnowexperimentwithvariationsofthesimulation.
Movetheplotsoutoftheway,butdonotclosethem.Clickanddragthekeyatthetopofthe
simulationtreefrom2secondstofour,sothatthesimulationwillnowlastforfourseconds.Placethe
cursoronthelinecorrespondingtotheappliedtorque(Torque1)atthe2secondmark.(Ifdesired,you
canclickthe+andsignsattherightendofthetimelinetoscalethetimeline.)Rightclickandselect
Off.

Anewkeywillbeplacedatthatlocation.Thetorquewillnowbeappliedfortwoseconds,butthe
simulationwillcontinueforthefourseconds.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page9

PresstheCalculatoricontoperformthesimulation.
Theplotswillbeautomaticallyupdated.Notethattheangularaccelerationnowdropstozeroattwo
seconds,whiletheangularvelocitywillbeconstantaftertwoseconds.Sincethereisnofrictioninthe
model,thewheelwillcontinuetospinataconstantvelocitywithoutanytorqueapplied.

Intheprevioussimulations,thetorquewasappliedasaconstantvalue.Thatmeansthatthechangeof
theaccelerationrelativetotime(commonlyreferredtoasjerk)isinfiniteattime=0.Amorerealistic
approximationistoassumethatthetorquebuildsupoversomeperiodoftime.Forexample,wewill
assumethatittakestwosecondstoreachthefullvalueoftorque.
Rightclickthekeyaddedtothetorqueattime=2secondsanddeleteit.Movethekeydefiningthe
durationofthesimulationtosixseconds.
RightclickonTorque1andselectEditFeature.
ScrolldowninthePropertyManager,andselectStepasthe
typeofForceFunction.Settheinitialtorqueto0andthefinal
torqueto5inlb,andsettheendtimet2to2seconds.Click
thecheckmark.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page10

ClicktheForceicon,andaddasecondtorque,appliedtothesameface
asthefirst.SetStepasthefunctiontype,andsetthetorquevalueas5
inlbattime=4secondsand0attime=6seconds.
Thissecondtorqueisaddedtograduallyturnoffthetorqueinsteadof
stoppingitabruptlyasinthepreviousexample.
Calculatethesimulation.

Notethattheangularaccelerationcurveissmooth,andpeaksat2100deg/s2.Attheendofthesix
seconds,thewheelwillbeturningatabout10,500deg/s(1750rpm).
NowletsseetheeffectofreplacingtheWheel1componentwithWheel2,whichhasahighermass
momentofinertia.Ofcourse,wecouldstartwithanewassembly,butitiseasiertoreplacethe
componentintheexistingassembly.Thiswillallowustoretainmostoftheassemblymatesand
simulationentities.
Clickthemodeltabatthebottomofthescreen.ClickonWheel1intheFeatureManagertoselectit.
Fromthemainmenu,selectFile:Replace.BrowsetofindWheel2.InthePropertyManager,clickthe
checkmarktoacceptthereplacementoffacesintheexistingmateswiththoseofthenewpart.Click
thecheckmarktomakethereplacement.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page11

Dependingonhowyoumodeledtheparts,itispossiblethaterrorswillbeencounteredwhenthe
programattemptstoreapplythemates.Ifthishappens,closetheerrormessages,deletebothmates,
andapplynewmatesmanually.
SwitchtotheMotionStudy.Rightclickeachtorque,selectEditFeature,andclickonthefrontfaceof
thewheeltodefinethedirection.Inthesimulationtress,rightclickoneachplot,andclickonthe
frontfaceofthewheeltodefinethecomponentforwhichvelocity/accelerationistobeplotted.
Calculatethesimulation.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page12

Notethatthemaximumangularaccelerationisabout1510deg/s2,whichissignificantlylessthatofthe
simulationwiththeearlierwheel.Thisvaluecanbeverifiedbyrepeatingtheearliercalculationsorfrom
theratio:
9

105.36
deg
2100
146.54
s

1510

deg
10
s

2. FourBarLinkage
Inthisexercise,wewillmodela4barlinkagesimilartothatofChapter11ofthetext.Inthetext,we
wereabletoqualitativelysimulatethemotionofthesimulationwhendrivenbyaconstantspeed
motor.Inthisexercise,wewilladdaforceandalsoexploremoreofthequantitativeanalysistools
availablewithSolidWorksMotion.
Constructthecomponentsofthelinkageshownonthenextpage,andassemblethemasdetailedin
Chapter11ofthetext.TheFramelinkshouldbeplacedintheassemblyfirst,sothatitisthefixedlink.
YoushouldbeabletoclickanddragtheCranklinkaroundafull360degreerotation.

Connector

Crank
Rocker

Frame

NotethattheConnectorlinkhasthreeholes.Themotionofthethirdholecanfollowmanypaths,
dependingonthegeometryofthelinksandthepositionofthehole.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page13

FRAMEROCKER

CRANKCONNECTOR

Alldimensionsareinches.Allpartshavethicknessof.25

Beforebeginningthesimulation,wewillsetthelinkstoapreciseorientation.Thiswillallowusto
compareourresultstohandcalculationsmoreeasily.
Addaperpendicularmatebetweenthe
twofacesshownhere.
ExpandtheMatesgroupofthe
FeatureManager,andrightclickonthe
perpendicularmatejustadded.Select
Suppress.

Theperpendicularmatealignsthecranklinkatapreciselocation.However,wewantthecranktobe
abletorotate,sowehavesuppressedthemate.Wecouldhavedeletedthemate,butifweneedtore
alignthecranklater,wecansimplyunsuppressthemateratherthanrecreatingit.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page14

SwitchtotheFrontView.Zoomoutsothattheviewlookssimilartotheoneshownhere.
TheMotionManagerusesthelastview/zoomofthemodelasthestartingviewforthesimulation.

MakesurethattheSolidWorksMotionaddinisactive.ClicktheMotionManagertab.
SetthetypeofanalysistoMotionAnalysis.SelecttheMotoricon.Inthe
PropertyManager,setthevelocityto60rpm.Clickonthefrontfaceofthe
Cranktoapplythemotor,andclickthecheckmark.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page15

Clickanddragthesimulationkeyfromthedefault
fivesecondstoonesecond(0:00:01).
Sincewesetthemotorsvelocityto60rpm,aone
secondsimulationwillincludeonefullrevolutionof
theCrank.

ClicktheMotionStudyPropertiesTool.UndertheSolidWorksMotiontab,set
thenumberofframesto100(framespersecond),andclickthecheckmark.
Thissettingwillproduceasmoothsimulation.
ChooseSolidWorksMotionfromthepull
downmenu,andpresstheCalculatoriconto
runthesimulation.

ClicktheResultsandPlotsTools.InthePropertyManager,setthetypeoftheresulttoDisplacement/
Velocity/Acceleration:TracePath.ClickontheedgeoftheopenholeoftheConnector.

Playbackthesimulationtoseetheopenholespathoverthefull
revolutionoftheCrank.
Ifdesired,youcanaddpathsfor
theothertwojointsthatundergo
motion.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page16

Thefourbarlinkagecanbedesignedtoproduceavarietyofmotionpaths,asillustratedbelow.

Wewillnowaddaforcetotheopenhole.
SelecttheForceTool.InthePropertyManager,thehighlightedboxpromptsyouforthelocationofthe
force.Clickontheedgeoftheopenhole,andtheforcewillbeappliedatthecenterofthehole.

Thedirectionboxisnowhighlighted.Rotateandzoominsothatyoucanselectthetopfaceofthe
Framepart.Theforcewillbeappliednormaltothisforce.Asyoucansee,theforceactsupwards.

Clickthearrowstoreversethedirectionof
theforce.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page17

ScrolldowninthePropertyManagerandsetthemagnitudeofthe
forceto20pounds.Clickthecheckmarktoapplytheforce.
Runthesimulation.
Wewillnowplotthetorqueofthemotorthatisrequiredtoproduce
the60rpmmotionwiththe20lbloadapplied.
SelectResultsandPlots.Inthe
PropertyManager,specifyForces:Applied
Torque:ZComponent.Clickonthe
RotaryMotorintheMotionManagertoselect
it,andclickthecheckmarkinthe
PropertyManager.
Formattheresultingplotasdesired.

Notethattheappliedtorquepeaksatabout51inlb.Att=0,thetorqueappearstobeabout30inlb
(thenegativesignsindicatesthedirectionisabouttheZaxis,orclockwisewhenviewedfromtheFront
View).Inordertogetamoreexactvalue,wecanexportthenumericalvaluestoaCSV(comma
separatedvalues)filethatcanbereadinWordorExcel.
RightclickinthegraphandchooseExportCSV.Savethefiletoa
convenientlocation,andopenitinExcel.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page18

Attime=0,weseethatthemotortorqueis29.2
inlb.
Handcalculationsforastaticanalysisofthe
mechanismareattached,whichshowavalueof
29.4inlb.
Itisimportantwhencomparingthesevaluesto
recognizetheassumptionsthatarepresentinthe
handcalculations:
1. Theweightsofthememberswerenotincludedintheforces,and
2. Theaccelerationsofthememberswereneglected.
Thefirstassumptioniscommoninmachinedesign,astheweightsofthemembersareusuallysmallin
comparisontotheappliedloads.Incivilengineering,thisisusuallynotthecase,astheweightsof
structuressuchasbuildingandbridgesareoftengreaterthantheappliedforces.
Thesecondassumptionwillbevalidonlyiftheaccelerationsarerelativelylow.Inourcase,theangular
velocityofthecrank(60rpm,oronerevolutionpersecond)producesaccelerationsinthemembersthat
aresmallenoughtobeignored.Letsaddgravitytothesimulationtoseeitseffect.
ClickontheGravityicon.InthePropertyManager,selectYasthedirection.Therewillbeanarrow
pointingdowninthelowerrightcornerofthegraphicsarea,showingthatthedirectioniscorrect.
Clickthecheckmark.Runthesimulation.

Thetorqueplotisalmostunchanged,withthepeaktorqueincreasingbyonlyoneinlb.Therefore,
omittinggravityhadverylittleeffectonthecalculations.
Nowwewillincreasethevelocityofthemotortoseetheeffectonthetorque.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page19

Dragthekeyattheendofthetopbarinthe
MotionManagerfrom1secondto0.1second.Usethe
ZoomInToolinthelowerrightcornerofthe
MotionManagertospreadoutthetime
line,ifdesired.

Dragthesliderbarshowingthetimewithinthesimulation
backtozero.
Thisisanimportantstepbeforeeditingexistingmodel
items,aschangescanbeappliedatdifferenttimesteps.
Becausewewantthemotorsspeedtobechangedfrom
thebeginningofthesimulation,itisimportanttosetthe
simulationtimeatzero.

RightclickontheRotaryMotorintheMotionManager.Inthe
PropertyManager,setthespeedto600rpm.Clickthecheckmark.

Sinceafullrevolutionwilloccurinonly0.1seconds,weneedtoincrease
theframerateofthesimulationtoachieveasmoothplot.

SelecttheMotionStudyProperties.InthePropertyManager,settheSolidWorksMotionframerateto
1000frames/second.Clickthecheckmark.
Runthesimulation.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page20

Thepeaktorquehasincreasedfrom51to180inlb,
demonstratingthatasthespeedisincreased,the
accelerationsofthemembersarethecriticalfactors
affectingthetorque.
Youcanverifythisconclusionfurtherbysuppressing
bothgravityandtheapplied20lbloadandrepeating
thesimulation.Thepeaktorqueisdecreasedonly
from180to151inlb,evenwithnoexternalloads
applied.

Toperformhandcalculationswiththeaccelerationsincluded,itisnecessarytofirstperformakinematic
analysistodeterminethetranslationalandangularaccelerationsofthemembers.Youcanthendraw
freebodydiagramsofthethreemovingmembersandapplythreeequationsofmotiontoeach:
F

ma F

ma M

Theresultisnineequationsthatmustbesolvedsimultaneouslytofindthenineunknownquantities(the
appliedtorqueandthetwocomponentsofforceateachofthefourpinjoints).
Theresultsapplytoonlyasinglepointintime.Thisisamajoradvantageofusingasimulationprogram
suchasSolidWorksMotion:sinceitisnotevidentatwhatpointinthemotionthattheforcesare
maximized,ouranalysisevaluatestheforcesoverthecompleterangeofthemechanismsmotionand
allowsustoidentifythecriticalconfiguration.

RolleronaRamp
Inthisexercise,wewilladdcontactbetweentwobodies,andexperimentwithfrictionbetweenthe
bodies.Wewillbeginbycreatingtwonewpartsarampandaroller.
Openanewpart.IntheFrontPlane,sketchanddimensionthetriangleshownhere.

Origin

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page21

Extrudethetriangleusingthemidplaneoption,withathicknessof1.2inches.

IntheTopPlane,usingtheCorner
RectangleTool,drawarectangle.
Addamidpointrelationbetweenthe
leftedgeoftherectangleandthe
origin.Addthetwodimensions
shown,andextrudetherectangle
down0.5inches.

Modifythematerial/appearanceasdesired(shownhereas
Pine).SavethispartwiththenameRamp.

Openanewpart.SketchanddimensionaoneinchdiametercircleintheFrontPlane.Extrudethe
circlewiththemidplaneoption,toatotalthicknessofoneinch.SetthematerialofthepartasPVC
Rigid.Modifythecolorofthepartasdesired(overridingthedefaultcolorofthematerialselected).

Openanewsketchonthefrontfaceofthecylinder.
Addanddimensionthecirclesandlinesasshownhere
(thepartisshowninwireframemodeforclarity).The
twodiagonallinesaresymmetricaboutthevertical
centerline.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page22

ExtrudeacutwiththeThroughAlloption,withthesketchcontoursshownselected.Ifdesired,change
thecolorofthecutfeature.

Createacircularpatternoftheextrudedcutfeatures,withfiveequally
spacedcuts.SavethepartwiththenameRoller.

Openanewassembly.Inserttherampfirst,andplaceitattheoriginoftheassembly.Insertthe
Roller.

Addtwomatesbetweentherampandtheroller.MatetheRightPlanesofbothparts,andadda
tangentmatebetweenthecylindricalsurfaceoftherollerandthesurfaceoftheramp.

Thebestwaytosetthecorrectheightoftherollerontherampisto
addamatedefiningthepositionoftheaxisoftheroller.

FromtheHeadsUpViewToolbar,selectView:TemporaryAxes.

Thiscommandturnsonthedisplayofaxesthatareassociatedwith
cylindricalfeatures.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page23

Addadistancematebetweentherollersaxisandtheflat
surfaceatthebottomoftheramp.Setthedistanceas6.5
inches.

Sincetheradiusoftherolleris0.5
inches,theaxiswillbe0.5inches
abovetheflatsurfacewhenthe
surfaceoftherollercontactsthat
surface.Therefore,thevertical
distancetraveledbytherollerwill
be6.0inches.Also,notethatthe
distancetravelleddowntheramp
willbe12inches(6inchesdivided
bythesineoftherampangle,30
degrees).

Turnoffthetemporaryaxisdisplay.SwitchtotheMotionStudy.SelectSolidWorksSimulationasthe
typeofanalysis.Addgravityintheydirection.

SelecttheContactTool.InthePropertyManager,youwillbepromptedto
selectthebodiesforwhichcontactcanoccur.Clickoneachofthetwo
parts.ClearthecheckboxeslabeledMaterialandFriction.Leavethe
otherpropertiesastheirdefaults.

Wewilladdfrictionlater,butourinitialsimulationwillbeeasiertoverifywithoutfriction.IntheElastic
Propertiessection,notethatthedefaultissetasImpact,withseveralotherproperties(stiffness,
exponent,etc.)specified.Ateachtimestep,theprogramwillcheckforinterferencebetweenthe

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page24

selectedbodies.Ifthereisinterference,thenthespecifiedparametersdefineanonlinearspringthat
actstopushthebodiesapart.Contactsaddconsiderablecomplexitytoasimulation.Ifthetimesteps
aretoolarge,thenthecontactmaynotberecognizedandthebodieswillbeallowedtopassthrough
eachother,oranumericalerrormayresult.

SelecttheMotionStudiesPropertyTool.Settheframerateto500andchecktheboxlabeledUse
PreciseContact.Clickthecheckmark.

Forsomesimulations,itmaybenecessarytolowerthesolutiontoleranceinordertogetthesimulation
torun.Forthisexample,thedefaulttoleranceshouldbefine.

Thematesthatweaddedbetweenthepartstopreciselylocatetherollerontherampwillprevent
motionoftheroller.Ratherthandeletethesemates,wecansuppressthemintheMotionManager.

RightclickoneachofthematesintheMotionManagerandselectSuppress.Runthesimulation.

Youwillseethattherollerreachesthebottomoftherampquickly.

Changethedurationofthesimulationto0.5seconds,andrunthesimulationagain.Createaplotof
themagnitudeofthelinearvelocityoftherollervs.time.

Therollerreachesthebottomoftherampinabout0.35seconds,andthevelocityatthebottomofthe
rampisabout68in/s.Thesevaluesagreewiththosecalculatedintheattachmentattheendofthis
document.

Nowletsaddfriction.

Movethetimelineofthesimulationbacktozero.RightclickonthecontactintheMotionManager
tree,andselectEditFeature.ChecktheFrictionbox,andsetthecoefficientoffrictionto0.25.
Calculatethesimulation.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page25

Theresultingvelocityplotshowsthevelocityatthebottomoftheramptobeabout54in/s.Thisvalue
agreeswiththatofthecalculationsshownintheattachment.

Toconfirmthattherollerisnotslipping,we
cantracethepositionofasinglepointonthe
roller.

SelecttheResultsandPlotsTool.Definethe
plotasDisplacement/Velocity/Acceleration:
TracePath.Clickonapointneartheouter
rimoftheroller(notonaface,butona
singlepoint).Clickthecheckmark.

Thetracepathshowsasharpcuspswherethe
pointsvelocityapproacheszero(itwillnot
becomeexactlyzerounlessthepointisonthe
outersurfaceoftheroller).Forcomparison,
repeattheanalysiswithalowerfriction
coefficient.

Changethefrictioncoefficientto0.15and
recalculatethesimulation.

Thistime,thetracepathsshowssmoothcurveswhenthepointisneartherampssurface,indicating
thatslidingandrollingaretakingplace
simultaneously.

Intheattachment,itisshownthatthe
coefficientoffrictionrequiretoprevent
slippingisabout0.21.

Itisinterestingtonotethatthefriction
coefficienttopreventslippingandthetime
requiredtoreachthebottomoftherampare
bothfunctionsoftheratioofthemomentof
inertiatothemassoftheroller.Youcan
confirmthisbychangingthematerialoftherollerandseeingthattheresultsofthesimulationare
unchanged.However,ifyouchangethegeometryoftheroller(theeasiestwayisbysuppressingthe
cutoutregions),thentheresultswillchange.

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page26

ATTACHMENT:VERIFICATIONCALCULATIONS
STATICANALYSISOFFOURBARLINKAGESUBJECTEDTO20LBAPPLIEDFORCE
FreebodydiagramofConnector:

20lb
B

CD

Bx
By

NotethatmemberCDisa2forcemember,andsotheforceattheendisalignedalongthemembers
axis.
Applyequilibriumequations:
M

5.714 in

sin 75.09
5.522 in

1.832 in

cos 75.09

0.4714 in
5.993 in

228.5 in lb

228.5 in lb

228.5 in lb
5.993 in

38.13 lb

38.13 lb cos 75.09

9.812 lb

11.427 in 20 lb

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page27

38.13 lb sin 75.09

20 lb

16.85 lb

FreebodydiagramofCrank:

By
Bx
T
Ax
Ay

NotethatBxandByareshowninoppositedirectionsasinConnectorFBD.
SummomentsaboutA:
M

3 in

3 in 9.812 lb

0
29.4 in lb

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page28

ROLLERCALCULATIONS
NoFriction:
Freebodydiagram:

W
y

W sin

W cos

Whereistherampangle(30degrees)

Sincetheweightisequalthemassmtimesthegravitationalaccelerationg,theaccelerationinthex
direction x willbe:
g sin
x

Theaccelerationisintegratedwithrespecttotimetofindthevelocityinthexdirection:

g sin d

g sin

vxo

Wherevxo istheinitialvelocityinthexdirection.Thevelocityisintegratedtofindthedistancetravelled
inthexdirection:

g
g sin
v d
sin
v
x
2

Wherex0 istheinitialposition.Ifwemeasurexfromthestartingposition,thenx0 iszero.Iftheblockis

initiallyatrest,thenvxo isalsozero.Inoursimulation,theblockwillslideadistanceof12inchesbefore
contactingthebottomoftheramp(seethefigureonpage23).

Knowingthedistancetravelledinthexdirection,andenteringthenumericalvaluesofgas386.1in/s2
andofsin of0.5(sinof30o),wecanfindthetimeittakestheblocktoslidetothebottom:

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

12 in
or

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

386.1 ins
2

0.5

Page29

0.353 s

SubstitutingthisvalueintoEquation4,wefindthevelocityatthebottomoftheramp:

in
in
386.1 2 0.5 0.353 s
68.1
x
s
s

Thisvelocitycanalsobefoundbyequatingthepotentialenergywhentherollerisatthetopoftheramp
(heightabovethedatumequals6inches)tothekineticenergywhentherollerisatthebottomofthe
ramp:
1
2
2

2 386.1

in
6 in
s

68.1

in

s

FrictionIncluded:
FreeBodyDiagram:

W
y

f
N

Whiletherollerwithoutfrictionslidesandcanbetreatedasaparticle,therollerwithfriction
experiencesrigidbodyrotation.Theequationsofequilibriumare:
F
F

W sin
N
M

W cos
r

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page30

Ifthereisnoslipping,thentherelativevelocityoftheroller
relativetotherampiszeroatthepointwherethetwo
bodiesareincontact(pointO).Sincetherampis
stationary,thisleadstotheobservationthatthevelocityof

pointOisalsozero.
C

SincepointOisthecenterofrotationoftheroller,the
tangentialaccelerationofthecenteroftheroller x can
bewrittenas:
O
r
x

Substitutingthisexpressionintothefirstequilibriumequationandsolvingforthefrictionforce,

W sin mr

Substitutingthisexpressionintothethirdequilibriumequationandsolvingfortheangularacceleration
,

W sin mr r Io

W sin r I
mr

W sin r

I
mr

ThemassandthemomentofintertiaI canbeobtainedfromSolidWorks.Fortheroller,thevaluesare:

m 0. 017163 lb

0.002515 lb in
I
Sincepoundsareunitsofweight,notmass,theyquantitiesabovemustbedividedbygtoobtainthe
quantitiesinconsistentunits:
m

0. 017163 lb
386.1 in/s

0.002515 lb in
386.1 in/s

4.4453 X 10

lb s

in

6.5139 X 10 lb in s

Thevalueoftheangularaccelerationcannowbefound:
W sin r
I
mr

0. 017163 lb sin 30

6.5139e

6 lb in s

4.4453

0.5 in
lb s
5
in

243.4
0.5 in

rad

IntroductiontoSolidModelingUsingSolidWorks2012

SolidWorksMotionTutorial

Page31

Therefore,thelinearaccelerationinthexdirectionis:
r

0.5 in

243.4

rad

121. 7

s2

Integratingtoobtainthevelocityandpositionatanytime:

1
2

vxo
v

121. 7

in
s2

in
s2

60.85

in

s

Fortherollertotravel12inchesinthe direction,thetimerequiredis

12 in

60.85 ins

Andthevelocityatthebottomoftherampis:

121. 7

Wecanalsocalculatethefrictionforce:
W sin

mr

in

0.444 s
2

0. 017163 lb sin 30

0.444 s

54.0

4.4453 e

in
s

lb s
in

0.5

243.4

rad
s

0.00318 lb
Fromthesecondequilibriumequation,thenormalforceis:
N

W cos

0. 017163 lb cos 30

0.1486 lb

Sincethemaximumfrictionforceisthecoefficientoffriction timesthenormalforce,thecoefficientof
frictionmustbeatleast:

0.00318 lb
0.1486 lb

0.21

Thisistheminimumcoefficientoffrictionrequiredfortherollertorollwithoutslipping.