Tabulated Plans - Creating Similar Parts

Overview

When part features and dimensions are generally the same, with only minor differences such as diameter size, coating color, or length, a tabulated parts plan can be created to efficiently batch and manage parts under one main plan. Before the Tabulated feature launched in 1Factory, users had to create individual plans for each part number, which was challenging when dealing with parts that had only minor drawing variations.

Example drawing of a tabulated part:

Note: The table on the right side of the above drawing is a common example and key identifier of when a tabulated part plan can generally be created.

Follow the step-by-step process below to create tabulated data associated with your part.

Step 1: Access Master Part

1. Navigate to the Master Data tab in your 1factory dashboard
2. Click on the Part Master tile
3. When the Part Master page opens, click New Part to create a new Tabulated part

Step 2: Create New Tabulated Part

Click the New Part button to input all necessary parameters:

• Clone an existing Part Master: This feature allows you to clone an existing part master to a new master. If you want to start from scratch, leave it blank and define the new part master.
• New Part Number: Define the part number
• New Part Revision: The revision of your part
• Description: Provide a descriptive name for the part
• Is Tabulated: Must be selected YES
• Is Spec Library: Select Yes if the part master is a Spec. Library that is tabulated & No if it is not a Spec. Library. 

After all selections are complete, click the Go button for next processing.

Step 3: Define Data for Tabulated Table

1. Navigate to the TOS tab
2. Define the tabulated part numbers (Tos Entry) to be used in your Plan - the number of part numbers will correspond to the number of parts shown in the drawing.
3. After all Part Numbers are entered, click the Save button  to complete the Tabulated part master creation

Step 4: Create the Tabulated Manufacturing/Receiving Plan

The process for creating Tabulated Plans for Manufacturing and Receiving is the same. This demonstration shows how to create Tabulated data in Manufacturing.

1. In the 1factory dashboard, click the Manufacturing tab
2. Select the Plans tile
3. When the manufacturing page opens, use the dropdown menu to select the Tabulated part created in the previous step in Part Master

Step 5: Create New Tabulated Data

Once your Manufacturing plan is established, you can define the inspection characteristics (balloons) that will vary across your tabulated part family. This step establishes the measurement requirements that will be populated with specific values in the Table of Sizes.

Adding Tabulated Specifications

1. Click the New Spec button to create a new inspection characteristic
2. Configure the following parameters:
   • Is Tabulated: Select YES (required for all tabulated specifications)
   • Characteristic Type: Select from the available types based on your drawing requirements
   • Characteristic: Define what is being measured (e.g., Diameter, Length, Perpendicularity)
   • Tolerance: Enter the appropriate tolerance values for the characteristic type selected
3. Click Save after entering each specification
4. Repeat this process for all dimensions that vary across your tabulated parts

Note: All tabulated specifications will display with a "TAB" prefix on the Plan page for easy identification.

Understanding Characteristic Types

1factory supports seven characteristic types to accommodate diverse inspection requirements in regulated manufacturing environments:

1. Nominal +/- Tolerance: For dimensional characteristics with bilateral tolerances where variation is equally distributed around a target value.
   • Example: 10.00 ±0.05mm
   • Use Case: Standard dimensional measurements like diameters, lengths, and widths
2. GD&T: For geometric characteristics following ASME Y14.5 or ISO GPS standards.
   • Example: Position ⌖ 0.010 | A | B | C
   • Use Case: True position, perpendicularity, flatness, concentricity
3. BASIC:It is a theoretical exact value that defines the precise size, shape, or location of a feature
   • Example: Basic [10.5mm]
   • Use Case: It represents the true geometric intent of the design without any tolerance applied directly to it.
4. Minimum - Maximum: For characteristics with only upper or lower specification limits.
   • Example: Diameter of the hole must be within….
     1.  0.6mm-0.7mm
     2. MIN 0.6mm
     3. MAX 0.7mm
   • Use Case: Hardness testing, surface finish, Linear dimension
5. Note: For qualitative requirements that cannot be measured numerically but require verification.
   • Example: "Verify Color is per Chart"
   • Use Case: Visual inspections, material certifications, process verifications
6. Plus/Plus Tolerance:For dimensional characteristics with unequal positive tolerances.
   • Example: 15.00mm +0.7mm/+0.5mm
   • Use Case: Press fits, clearance holes where direction of variation matters
7. Minus/Minus Tolerance:For dimensional characteristics with unequal negative tolerances.
   • Example: 10.00mm -0.5mm/-0.7mm
   • Use Case: Press fits, clearance holes where direction of variation matters

Step 6: Define the Table of Size

In this step, define the nominal dimension for each Tabulated data created in the previous step. It is recommended to pre-define these data in Excel and copy/paste into the Table of Size, though manual input is also acceptable.

1. Navigate to the Table of Size tab
2. The Tabulated table will open for you to fill out all necessary information
3. After all information is provided, click the Save button
4. Click the (X) button in the top left corner to return to the main Plan page

Release the Plan: Click the Manage tab to release the Plan

Step 7: Verify the TAB specification in Inspection

Next, to create an Inspection Plan - you will be able to enter any of the part numbers from a prior plan, including any part numbers created using the Tabulated table function as shown above in the Table of Sizes. In this step, you can verify how the Tabulated feature works in the Inspection plan.

1. Navigate to the Manufacturing tab and create a new FAIs or Inspection
2. Click the New Inspection button to create a new inspection
3. Use the dropdown menu to select one of the Tabulated part you want to inspect

Example: When selecting Tabulated part P001, the first seven balloons (from 1 to 7) represent the Tabulated dimensions defined when creating the Tabulated dimensions in the Plan, while balloons 8,9 and 10 come from non-tabulated dimensions. This means balloons 8,9 and 10 are always required, but balloons from 1 to 7 are variations from the drawing.