Joints & Assemblies

Joints

In the Joint tool, order matters when you select two components. An example of this is the Pin-Slot joint which requires the Pin to be selected first and the Slot to be selected second.

When selecting your component, you can use snaps. If you highlight the edge of a hole you will see a snap in the center, but when you try to hover over it, it can sometimes disappear. If you hold CTRL down, Fusion will allow you to select any of the snaps on your highlighted surface by ignoring any other surfaces you may hover over.

Joint Types

Rigid - Just like super glue, you ain't moving that any time soon.

Revolute - Synonymous with "rotation." https://youtu.be/PGNiXGX2nLU?t=61

Slider - It slides.

Cylindrical - Like a syringe, you can push, pull, and spin! (mixture of revolute + slider)

Pin-Slot - Like that type of chain lock that you put the bolt in the hole and slide it to the right.

Planar - Like a penguin on ice, you can slide anywhere on the plane, but you sure can't fly up or faze through it.

Ball - Lots of motion.

Be sure to select your axes and planes correctly.

Joint Constraints/Limits

In your browser you can edit the limits of each joint. This defines how far it can move, rotate, etc.

You first have to select the type of movement you want to constrain: Slide, Rotate, etc. Then you will select whichever constraints you want and define them. "Rest" just means whatever the default position is. The animation shows you the range of freedom.

Interactions

Multiple Joints on a complex object can work together to simulate the movement of a whole system! For example, a piston turning an axle can be simulated:

1. Stationary surface has Revolute joint with piston housing.

2. Piston housing has Slider joint with piston.

3. Piston has Cylindrical joint with wheel on the outer radius.

4. Wheel has Rigid joint with axle. (Rigid joints can move and turn in space if the component they are attached to is moving/turning, they aren't permanently jointed to a certain orientation or point in space)

5. Axle has Revolute joint with stationary surface.

Assemblies

To make an assembly, drag in files from the file menu on the left and they should appear in your file. Join these together to assemble your object. Whenever you change an individual object, it will update in your assembly because the change makes its way up the file tree.