Basic use of Datum plane in Creo Parametric

Basic use of Datum plane in Creo Parametric
Waqas Ahmad May 28, 2012 1
The main purpose of this tutorial is to show some basic use of datum plane feature in Creo Elements pro formally Pro Engineer. IN my upcoming tutorial I might use them.
Start your creo element and make a new solid part. After getting into main window click at the datum plane icon. This will open a new box asking you to select the reference. So click at front plane. To position our datum plane we need to make some offset distance so set the translation value to 70 and prefer the new plane lie behind the front plane and click ok.

Now select the front plane again and click at sketch button. in sketching window make a section as shown in fig using line and arc tool. First make a line of length 100 that is symmetrical about vertical-axis.now in arc tool menu select the center and end arc. First you have to specify the center of arc, for this just click at the middle of line than click at either end then click at other end. This will make the section like in fig. after this click at done button.
Now make solid protrusion using extrude tool and make its depth up to 120 as shown in fig.
After extrusion click at extrude tool again. it will ask you to define sketch, for this select the datum plane you have created earlier and click at sketch button in dialog box.
In sketching window use line tool and concentric arc tool to make the sketch as shown in fig below. First draw a line at specified distance from above reference and then select the co-centric arc tool. Click at one end of line you sketched and then click at other end keeping the arc section above.
Click at done button. Now use solid cut option in extrude feature and make a cut as shown in fig. your cut should move from datum plane towards front plane.
Now we are going to draw a datum plane inclined to front plan. Click at datum plan icon and then click at top plane, for reference, make it offset up to 50. Now press and hold ctrl key and select the lower outer edge of the solid part. In following fig the mouse curser is highlighting the edge that have to be selected. it will make a plane that will be at some angle w.r.t front plane. Now just rotate the plane to make it according to fig and click ok.
Now select the new plane click at sketch icon. Iin sketching window make a rectangle of reasonable parameter as shown in fig and click ok.
Now click at extrude button and use solid cut or solid protrusion, it's your choice and make an extrude accordingly. i use solid cut and make a little change in color. 
The final part will be as shown below.




How to create Datum plane in Creo Elements/Pro
Waqas Ahmad February 3, 2011 2
Datum planes are individual features that can be redefined, suppressed, hidden, or deleted. A datum plane is a planar reference that has no mass. It is infinite in size, but its display size can be edited to visually fit a part, feature, surface, edge, axis, or radius. You can also drag its drag handle. A datum plane has two sides that display brown and grey. The front, or brown side, is considered to be positive, while the back, or gray side, is considered to be negative.
The RIGHT, FRONT, and TOP datum planes included in all the default templates are known as the default datum planes. Every feature is directly or indirectly created off of these datum planes. A datum plane can be used as construction geometry for a feature. It can also be used as a reference for
Assembling components
Other features such as sketches on an angle
Other datum features such as datum axes
Here is a simple method for creating the datum plane
1) Create a new Part file and name it as Datum
2) For the sake of practice select the front plane and click at plane.Or you may do it in reverse
order you can select the plane option then select the front plane.
3) When you do 2nd step a new dialog box will open as shown in following fig

The offset option will enable you to create a plane that is referenced to the selected plane (in this case it is front plane) and at a specified distance apart. In the above fig you can see I am creating plane that is 70 units far from front plane. You can change the placement of plane by making the distance negative (-70) .
Second thing that you can do by clicking at the word "offset" so it turn in to a box.Now if you click at the drop down box you will see four types of datum plans that you can create
Offset
Through
Parallel
Normal
The example shown above is for offset type.
"Through" option will enable to create datum plane by using any of one of these
Point
axis/Edge/Curve
Cylinder
using " Parallel" option you can create a datum plane by selecting a plane
In "Normal" option you can create plane by using
axis
edge
plane
curve
The Method of creating these datum planes will be updated in the tutorial that i will make.