This may just be way abstract, but can you reference dimensions from a part, off of an excel spreadsheet? This way one could make all the dimensions of an assembly change with each other, in effect making the assembly ajust completely if you change one thing! This would be way cool, but it sounds impossible to me, any help?
(This is using Inventor 6)
I believe you can do this by using “Parameters”. I haven’t had any experience with parameters in Inventor, but if you dimension a sketch and go under Tools->Parameters It will come up w/ a display like this.
http://pictureposter.allbrand.nu/pictures/twinattack/parameter.JPG
From here I noticed that if you click the “Link” button you can open an Excel file/sheet.
Maybe you’ve already figured this out, but I can’t really tell from your post. If you’re looking for help with what to do with the Excel file I can’t really help.
Yes!
It is totally possible. I used this for school and on some projects it makes life a lot easier, I’ll try and post an example tommorow.
I set up a sheet that Inventor sees as the first sheet in a workbook. I believe it only views the first sheet in a workbook when you use the Link button on the parameters page. The columns in this first sheet include (at least) variable name, value, and unit type. To do the actual calcuation I used other sheets in the workbook and then simply made the cells on the first “Inventor” sheet equal to the proper values.
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Thanks for the screenshot Clark, I didn’t realize you’d posted. After you link the spreadsheet to Inventor you then type the “variable name” which you place in each row of the spreadsheet in the equation field on the parameters dialog box. I think that all of this is explained more clearly in the Inventor help.
Anyway, I’ll try to post the spreadsheet tommorow…
Awesome!!! Can’t thank you guys enough! I can’t wait to try this out at school soon! Thanks again!! 
Here’s what I did…The Word document explains the assignment, and ought to explain why I used the Excel spreadsheet like I did.
Good Luck! 
Jewelry Box.xls (28 KB)
Box Rubric.doc (43 KB)
Jewelry Box.xls (28 KB)
Box Rubric.doc (43 KB)
thanks, I just have one problem, one I can’t open your excel file (weird), and two, when I link the spreadsheet to the model (link or embed), it does nothing, other than appear under third party. Thanks for all your help, any new advice for this new problem?
Sorry, I’m not sure why it’s not opening correctly…try right-clicking and hitting “Save Target As” in Internet Explorer or something similar in another browser.
If you can get that open, you’ll see that for each dimension I made a parameter name. For each dimension I believe that you have to put the proper parameter name from the Excel spreadsheet into the Equation column.
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I believe that you can’t use the same names in the parameter columns in both Inventor and Excel at the same time, either. You have to put the Excel parameter name in the Inventor equation box. Phew…
Hope this helps…
Yes you most definitely can use Excel in tandem with Autodesk Inventor. It seems like people so far have given you some great info about how to do this. Just as an FYI, this is how those infamous i-parts are done for bushings, bearings etc. Good luck and have fun!
If I might suggest, it is possible to have dimensions for a part be calculated upon a single base dimension all within Inventor. The spreadsheet idea is an excellent way and of which I was not aware. If you take notice in the nice screen capture in the previous post the dimension can be a numerical value or an equation. Substitute a formula using dimension variables and you achieve your stated purpose. Change the value of the base dimension and the entire set updates…
for example
d1 = d0/5 :rolleyes:
I’ve found the embedded spreadsheet in iParts a key element in automating the creation of a bill of materials for my designs. By adding the Project Part Number and Description to iPart tables, I’ve created a hardware library with real vendor catalog part numbers and meaningful descriptions. Then, when I use these parts in an assembly, and create a bill of materials in the assembly drawing, it is automatically populated with the information I need to create purchase orders. No more trying to figure out what size & catalog number a “HexNut.ipt” is.
In referance to the spread sheet being used in inventor. This is how cmoplex animations are being created. making multiple constraints occur at the same time and even haveing them start and stop…and then start again is made thanks to the spread sheets and through calc mathematics. If you would like a small view of what I’m talking about see www.cybersonics.org and look under inventor. See the animations and the one where the robot is at a 45 degree angle. you will see a robot drive, stop, turn, and then drive off screen to the right. This is only the beginning of what we have been able to do via complicated animation.
If you need help doing what you want to try this website
http://www.sdotson.com/
he has a lot of great inventor tutorials he even has one on using spreadsheets to create parts. If you need iparts go to this site
www.cbliss.com
he has a ton of parts free for downloading. Good luck.
The tutorials section of Inventor (at least on 7) will show you how to link Excel and Inventor, it’s proves quite nifty.