CATIA V5 – Animate Constraint in Sketch

The Animate Constraint command   within the sketch allows you to change a single constraint. If the entire sketch is properly dimensioned (not over-constrained or under constrained) it is possible to look at the sketch behavior depending on the variation of one constraint. In this way, it is possible to simulate the behavior of the complex assembly in the sketch in a simple way.

The behavior of a straight triangle is shown in the following example. The triangle is defined by one angle and the length of a cathetus. It is necessary to click on the dimension of the angle in the sketch and then to the Animate Constraint   .  The menu opens where it is necessary to define the initial and final value of the dimension that varies (in this case, the angle) and the number of steps.

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Except for the parameters in the menu, Actions, and Options keys are available.

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  Run Back Animation - displays different constraint values starting from the last value (Last value),

  Pause Animation – stops the animation at the current value of the defined constraint

  Stop Animation - 

  Run Animation –  starts the animation according to the defined options,

  One Shot – displays animation only once

  Reverse – shows the animation from the start to the end, then from the end to the beginning,

  Loop –  works the same as Reverse with infinite repetition

  Repeat – works the same as One shot with infinite repetition

The following example shows the animation of the piston stroke

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