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      <title>Introduction to the Progressive Die Wizard</title>
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      <div class="title_topic1" id="xps10_pagetitle">Introduction to the Progressive Die Wizard</div>
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      <p class="para_topic">A progressive die transforms a flat strip of metal into completed 3D parts by progressively moving the strip though a series of stations that cut, form, and coin the material into the desired shape.</p>
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      <div class="title_figure">Progressive Die</div>
      <p class="para_topic">The Progressive Die Wizard (PDW) helps you design progressive dies in NX. PDW transcends part and feature type limitations, allowing you to design progressive dies for any kind of sheet metal parts.</p>
      <p class="para_topic">PDW maximizes productivity through intelligent automation of the progressive die design process. It provides a complete environment that encapsulates die making expert knowledge, providing a user interface that incorporates industry best practices to guide designers through the steps required to build a progressive die. PDW directly uses sheet metal features in part models created with NX and also includes tools for recognizing sheet metal features and rebuilding parametric sheet metal models from imported geometry. The wizard can fold and unfold sheet metal models to help develop the strip layout and assign operation stations in the die, even for complex multiple-row and multiple-part strips. PDW helps ensure quality of the process design as well as the die structure design with integrated simulation and analysis tools. Once the strip layout is complete, designers can view a 3D simulation of the strip as it progresses through the process stations until the final part is formed. The wizard automatically calculates stamping operation forces and force centers to ensure die and stamped part quality. The step-by-step approach provides guidance along the way for less experienced die designers. Customizable libraries of material, process definition, die bases, insert groups and standard parts accelerate whole die design. PDW automatically produces Bills of Material and associative assembly drawings to expedite die manufacturing.</p>
      <p class="para_topic">With the Progressive Die Wizard, you can:</p>
      <ul>
         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Automate progressive die design tasks</p>
         </li>
         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Provide full 3D models to manufacturing</p>
         </li>
         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Modify product design results associatively when the design is altered </p>
         </li>
         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Modify and extend: material, pre-process, intermediate process, die base, insert group,&nbsp;and standard part libraries </p>
         </li>
         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Modify spreadsheets to customize dialog options</p>
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         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Add in your design knowledge</p>
         </li>
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      <div class="title_division">Overview</div>
      <p class="para_division">To use the Progressive Die Wizard, you begin with a sheet metal part designed in NX or with any other design tool. Then, you use the Progressive Die Wizard to plan the forming processes and design the die assembly. </p>
      <p class="para_division">Planning the forming processes includes:</p>
      <ul>
         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Defining pre-processes such as multi-bending, forming, and burring, and trim</p>
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         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Unfolding the part</p>
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         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Laying out or nesting the flat pattern (blank layout)</p>
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         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Designing the scraps</p>
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         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Determining the strip station layout </p>
         </li>
      </ul>
      <p class="para_division">Designing the die assembly includes:</p>
      <ul>
         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Choosing a die base for a completed strip layout from a die base library</p>
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         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Designing insert groups for operations on the strip layout</p>
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         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Adding in standard parts</p>
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         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Making holes</p>
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         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Adding reliefs </p>
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      <div class="title_division">Basic Knowledge</div>
      <p class="para_division">&nbsp;To use the Progressive Die Wizard effectively, you must be familiar with progressive die design and have a working knowledge of the following NX applications and tools:</p>
      <ul>
         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Feature Modeling &nbsp;</p>
         </li>
         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Layers </p>
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         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Assembly Navigator</p>
         </li>
         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Changing the Display and Work Part &nbsp;</p>
         </li>
         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Adding and Creating a Component &nbsp;</p>
         </li>
         <li>
            <p class="para_item">Creating and Replacing a Reference Set &nbsp;</p>
         </li>
      </ul>
      <div class="title_division">File Systems</div>
      <p class="para_division">The Progressive Die Wizard is available on both UNIX and Windows systems.</p>
      <p class="para_division">For Windows systems, environment variables and paths are listed as follows:</p><pre class="indent">%PDIEWIZARD_DIR%\drafting\</pre><p class="para_division">The comparable location on a UNIX system is:</p><pre class="indent">$PDIEWIZARD_DIR/drafting/</pre><div class="title_division">Progressive Die Wizard Help</div>
      <p class="para_division">This documentation follows the general PDW progressive die design sequence as presented in the PDW toolbar, working from left to right. Each topic area describes the major dialogs and options in each module. </p>
      <div class="title_division">Starting Progressive Die Wizard </div>
      <p class="para_division">If you are starting <b class="uiTerm">Progressive Die Wizard</b> for the first time, see the important information in <a class="links" href="javascript:void(0)" onclick="top.openFile('pdw/pdw_start.html');return(false);">Starting PDW</a>.
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