Part dimension tolerance and properties

It is not possible to manufacture parts to exact dimensions. The closer to an exact size an item or feature must be manufactured, the more expensive it becomes. Conversely, the part may not function correctly if the tolerance range is too large. Depending on the type of part and its purpose, there is a range of acceptable tolerances for each dimension.

Use tolerances in Inventor to:

• Capture manufacturing data in the model so you may not have to create a drawing.
• Add tolerances to specific geometry in the model when testing fit and motion by driving constraints or analyzing interference.
• Capture tolerances when you get model dimensions in a drawing.
• Maintain relative sizes and positions of a part by controlling tolerances as parameters in equations.

A company standard usually establishes the allowable tolerance for dimensions. Set up your company standards as defaults in the Document Settings dialog box and specify standard tolerances and a default tolerance. Add a row for each unique combination of precision level and tolerance range.

As needed, you can change defaults for an entire document or override a specific dimension. Use the Dimension Properties, Parameters, or Tolerance dialog boxes to specify a tolerance for an individual dimension.