You can design a sheet metal part on its own without any references to the parts it will enclose, you can design the part in the context of an assembly that contains the enclosed components, or you can design the part within another part document in a multibody environment.
| Convert a solid part to a sheet metal part. |
You can convert a solid or surface body, or an imported part. |
| Create the part as a sheet metal part using sheet metal-specific features. |
When you create a part initially out of sheet metal you can use the Base Flange tool with an open or closed profile sketch. This eliminates extra steps because you create a part as sheet metal from the initial design stage.
|
| Build a part, shell it, and then convert it to sheet metal.
|
If you build a solid, then convert it to sheet metal, you need more features: Base Extrude, Shell, Rip, and Insert Bends. However, there are instances when it is preferable to build a part and then convert it to sheet metal.
For example, conical bends are not supported by sheet metal-specific features such as Base Flange and Edge Flange. Therefore, you must build the part using extrusions, revolves, and so on, then convert it to create a conical part to which you can add bends.
|
The following links show how to build sheet metal parts using these methods.