Submodels, mpd, and Lpub3D

[Brian Dag]

<snip>
I want to build submodel 1, 2, and 3 and then show how they go together. Then I want to build submodel 4 and attach it to the growing assembly, then submodel 5 and 6 and attach them to the main model. Build submodels 7-10 and show them being attached. Submodels 11 and 12 get built directly onto the main model. There are 4 copies of submodel 13, then attach them, finally submodel 14 goes in place and then gets rotated a bit.
<snip>

One way to tackle this is to have multiple sub-levels of sub-models. You create your 13 individual "bottom-most" sub-models and then combine them to form another sub-model. For example;

Your top-level model would be defined as:
  Sub-model [A]
    Which is created as the combination of [1], [2] and [3]
  (Insert a "STEP" command here).
  Add [4]
  (Insert a "STEP" command here).
  Add [5]
  Add [6]
  (Insert a "STEP" command here).
  Add [7]
  Add [8]
  Add [9]
  Add [10]
  (Insert a "STEP" command here).
  Add [11]
  Add [12]
  (Insert a "STEP" command here).

  Add [13] #1
  (Insert a "STEP" command here).
  Add [13] #2
  (Insert a "STEP" command here).
  Add [13] #3
  (Insert a "STEP" command here).
  Add [13] #4
  (Insert a "ROTSTEP" command here).

N.B. you may find this easier to do the above using LDCAD. LDCAD offers an interactive 3D model perspective, part snapping and integration with the STEP command which (in my view) are easier to do with LDCAD than with MLCAD.

Regards,

David

Thanks David, this is kind of what I was thinking. I'm trying to figure out how to integrate it into the instructions though. To create submodels of my model I need to create new mpd files right? Then I have to bring these mpd files into the main mpd but that doesn't look possible, importing an mpd into another mpd.