Master Autodesk Fusion: Understanding Bodies vs Components [UPDATED!!]

In this video, we tackle one of the most common questions we receive: what is the difference between bodies and components in Autodesk Fusion? We start by exploring the foundational building block: bodies. A body in Fusion refers to any continuous 3D shape, such as a sphere or a coil. Bodies are identified by a cylinder icon in the browser and must be continuous. Cutting a body in half creates two separate bodies. We discuss three specific constraints that bodies have, including sharing the coordinate system and origin of the top-level assembly, independent changes when copying and pasting, and exclusion from parts lists and part drawings.

Next, we delve into components. In Fusion, a component is a part with its own unique origin, enabling motion in the design space. Components serve as containers for various design objects. We use a piece of furniture as an example to illustrate the concept. Components are represented by block icons in the browser, with multi-block icons indicating components containing other components and design objects. Expanding a component reveals nested objects like origins, bodies, sketches, construction planes, and even other components. Notably, components have their own unique timeline, which can be activated by selecting the radial button in the browser.

Lastly, we provide an example workflow, demonstrating how to create a new body or component using the extrude command. We explain the distinction between creating a new body in the main Bodies folder and creating a new component listed at the bottom of the browser. Activating a specific component ensures that changes are nested within its own timeline. We conclude by highlighting the versatility of components in organizing complex projects and facilitating the reuse of design parts in other projects.

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[eriorellana]

in the example workflow its still unclear what the difference is

[gkoornhof]

Day 1 of asking for Dark Mode in Fusion 360

[NicollasAlexandre]

At 2:40 you exported the component as it's own file to be able to be reused. However on the original assembly you still have the unlinked version of that component.
Is it on the plans to include a check box or similar to automatically replace the local instance on the original assembly with the external linked version of that component? AFAIK the "save copy as" command does the exactly same thing and also don't create the link automatically - you could change the functionality of it to perform this change automatically.

[eddrm]

My timeline does not change when I activate a component.
Do I need to change something in preferences to make that happen?

[rsilvers]

99% of my parts are a single body. I assume there is no reason to make that into a Component since it can be dragged into an Assembly anyway? Or is there still a benefit? Is it needed for Joints to work properly? I read that it was, but I have also made Joints without turning a part into a "component." Does this mean that single-body parts imported into an Assembly get "component" status automatically?

[eriorellana]

so when you want to make something you create components to organize bodies? I have always built things in fusion 360 just by creating sketches and making new bodies but thats the wrong way apparently.

[James-wbiq]

Please don't use background music - it makes the audio harder to follow.

[yoyoyosiie]

can't help but notice the Audio Jungle "watermark" at the very beginning 🧐would've thought autodesk had the money to pay for it....

[BGraves]

Look how cluttered and disgusting that feature history timeline is.