Cadalyst: Creo Direct-Modeling Tool Offered Free

By ADMIN | Published: DEC 1, 2011

A direct approach to 3D CAD design makes creation and modification of 3D designs fast, easy, and flexible.

Creo Elements/Direct Modeling Express 4.0 has been described as, ”The standalone app enables users to edit designs using direct cut-andpaste, push-and-pull, and drag-anddrop techniques as well as commands such as Mirror, Stretch, and Scale.”

Read a full description on page 9 of Cadalyst here.

Rally the Troops: Getting Your Team Ready for 3D CAD

By BARB SCHMITZ | Published: NOV 21, 2011

When an organization makes the decision to implement any new technology, it often requires changes in established procedures, processes, and user behavior. Before implementing 3D CAD for the first time, organizations should map out their current design processes, assess the needs of their engineers, and establish the objectives for transitioning to 3D CAD. After evaluating current processes for design, modeling and data management, management should outline the areas of improvement in process, workflow and training requirements.

Organizations also must thoroughly evaluate several critical areas: processes (approaches to implementation), organization (ability to support implementation and the design process), technology (tools to support implementation and the design process), knowledge management (capturing and promoting best practices), and performance management (the ability to measure results).

A great way to maximize your investment in your CAD system is to take advantage of all the training and support services offered by your vendor. No one understands the underlying functionality of your CAD system more than its developer, so making use of its training, often offered at no charge, as well as its support offerings, will speed implementations and help resolve problems faster. This support might be offered directly through the vendor or through a value-added reseller (VAR).

Software vendors have vast amounts of experience deploying, training and optimizing their 3D CAD software at companies representing nearly every industry. Their “lessons learned” through years of experience successfully implementing CAD software and integrating it with existing systems and processes can greatly facilitate customers’ adoption of 3D CAD, as opposed to manufacturers attempting to do their own implementations with little or no such experience.

Transitioning a team of users to 3D CAD takes time, training, and patience, but the potential payoff of faster design cycles and decreased development costs will make the change to 3D well worth it.  Placing trust in your vendor or VAR to help your troops transition to 3D and having a proactive plan in place prior to implementation will help speed training periods, reduce errors, decrease rework, and boost productivity.

Let’s take a look at a few best practices for companies to follow to prepare their teams for 3D CAD implementations.

Training

Enlist outside help. According to the study, Best Practices for Migrating from 2D to 3D CAD by the Aberdeen Group, “best-in-class” companies are 22 times more likely than the Industry Average to send employees to third-party run training programs.

Take advantage of vendor-provided training. Most vendors offer a variety of training options, some at no cost, including traditional classroom training, self-paced online training, and online access to libraries of learning material and tutorials. Managers can enroll engineering teams in on-demand training so they can learn at their own pace.

Keep it simple. When conducting in-house training for updates or new functionality, keep training materials simple and straightforward. Concentrate on simple exercises that are easy enough to understand but demonstrate the concept clearly. Save before-and-after cases of your models or parts so you can easily demonstrate step-by-step.

Timing is everything. If training is done too early, employees forget what they’ve learned before they get a change to use it; if done too late, they become frustrated and bad practices develop.

Organizational Changes

Determine support options. When you purchase 3D CAD software, find out what type of support options are available to your team. Many vendors will provide customers with access to the company’s knowledge base, free webinars, online tutorials, telephone support, 24/7 Web-based technical support, including proactive alerts and access to Tech Tips Webcasts.

Add a dedicated help desk. Having a centralized help center ensures that all issues during implementation are given the appropriate level of visibility and attention.

Establish best practices. Knowledge management is key to identifying and promoting best modeling practices. Creating part and drawing templates, and material, part, and assembly profile libraries speeds up repetitive processes. Make best practices easier to follow by leveraging “start parts” that contain standard company parameters.

Upgrade hardware. CAD management must carefully consider if their hardware infrastructure is adequate for 3D modeling. 3D CAD tools often require network upgrades. The CAD files can be very large and running the 3D CAD applications can consume a large amount of memory so upgrading computers and purchasing high-end graphics cards will greatly increase performance.

Appoint an in-house expert. According to the Aberdeen study, one of the top strategies for improving the use of 3D CAD was to identify an internal technical expert. This ensures that the majority of the staff can get a basic level of training while the expert can complete more in-depth training and become a resource for the remainder of the staff.

Provide central access to data. As more data is created, the need for centralized data storage via data management and product lifecycle management (PLM) systems is essential to ensure all users can access the data they need. Also facilitates version control.

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Designing from the Outside In: Reverse Engineering

By BARB SCHMITZ | Published: NOV 14, 2011

Product design today is largely a digital effort. Paperless design has been something that writers and analysts in the industry have been writing about for years, but the reality is that though designs can be tested, verified and validated digitally, physical parts and prototypes remain a reality for most manufacturers.

As a result, capturing data from physical objects and putting that data back into the digital model is often a crucial part of the design cycle.  With the use of 3D CAD systems on the increase, reverse engineering has become a practical tool to create a 3D virtual model of an existing physical part that can then be used in 3D CAD, computer-aided manufacturing and other computer-aided engineering applications.

More manufacturers are adding reverse engineering to their product development efforts, in part, because the costs of the scanners and other hardware used to input measurements have dropped dramatically in price. At the same time the hardware has gotten smaller and easier to use. The software has also become easier to use and the process of converting and managing scanned data simplified.

The reverse engineering process requires hardware and software that works together; the hardware is used to measure the object and the software reconstructs it into a 3D model. The physical object can be measured using 3D scanning technologies, such as coordinate measuring machines (CMM), laser scanners, structured light digitizers or computed tomography.

Let’s take a look at some of the advancements in reverse engineering technology, from the 3D laser scanners to the software that helps convert the scan data.

Scanning new advancements

A growing number of engineers are using laser scanners to help create prototypes for new products and ensure their conformity to original CAD designs. Even when prototypes are produced using the latest and most accurate methods, they still often need to be measured and checked against CAD designs to ensure accuracy for the customer. Laser scanners make it easier to capture 3D data from physical objects.

New 3D laser video scanners capture a 3D image in each frame and then combine them automatically into a single mesh. The scanning process enables users to walk around the object while continuously videoing it from 360 degrees. The video-based scanners measure speeds of up to 500,000 points per second, making them faster than laser scanners and are able to scan moving objects as well as stationary ones. Because they are portable, they can be used for sports, medical, computer graphics, architecture, prototyping and manufacturing applications.

Traditionally scanners required multiple setups and fixed-position tripods, mechanical arms or external positioning devices that must be aimed at re-aimed at the target surfaces. New handheld scanners can digitize 3D surfaces in real time and capture surface information in full 24-bit color, rendering the complete picture of the object, not just the geometry.

These handheld models are ideal for scanning objects in tight spaces. Also, they capture data in a single reference model so users don’t have to invest the time or risk errors post-processing to stitch multiple scans into one. Color 3D data enables more realistic and data-rich visualization and concept models, making it perfect for product design and reverse engineering.

On the soft side

Several improvements on the software side have also made the process of reverse engineering easier and faster.  The result of scanning a physical object is a point cloud of data, which is often enormous in size. With previous versions of reverse engineering or point cloud processing software, users would then weave surfaces through those point clouds, continually tweaking the accuracy and fit. The result was a model with no features, parameters or intelligence, just geometry.

Today, reverse engineering software is now easier to use and more affordable than ever. It’s also tightly integrated with CAD programs so engineers can access the most important features through their CAD software. Users can scan objects and then import the scanned data into reverse engineering software. The software processes the 3D point could data and then convert it into a model, a neutral, surface-based CAD model or a mesh that can be simulated digitally.

When further optimization is required, however, these models often lack the intelligence or design intent from which to make further refinements and changes. The wider adoption of direct modeling tools could change that. Direct modeling capabilities enable designers to direct manipulate model geometry without regard to its history, making it much easier to manipulate and tweak surface-based models created with scanned data.

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Breaking Down Global CAD Trends

By BARB SCHMITZ | Published: NOV 9, 2011

Though the benefits of using 3D CAD to design new products has been well documented and more and more manufacturers are adapting 3D design tools, the majority of organizations continue to deploy a mix of 2D and 3D tools. Despite that, there are a growing number of companies that are standardizing their product development efforts on 3D CAD platforms. Let’s take a look at where 3D CAD is having the biggest impact and what industries and countries these users represent.

In the study, CAD Trends in Product Design, conducted by PTC, over 7,000 product development engineers, managers, and executives worldwide were asked to weigh in on the current status of both 2D and 3D CAD. Respondents came from over 51 countries, including the U.S., Germany, Japan, France, Italy, India, Korea, China, U.K., and 41 other countries.

Let’s look at the overall breakdown of today’s design tools and environment. Of all respondents, a little over 10% reported using mostly 2D design tools; almost half (47.3%) reported using a mix of both 2D design tools and 3D CAD; and 41.2% reported using mostly 3D CAD.

Of those who were at their respective companies when they transitioned to 3D CAD (60% of respondents), the primary benefits cited included fewer design reviews (53.8%), fewer physical prototypes (56.8%), less engineering change orders (61.1%), and the ability of more people to participate in design reviews (58.7%). Perhaps most interesting is the fact that over half of respondents reported achieving two of these four benefits (50.4%) and another 38.6% reported achieving three of the four benefits from using 3D CAD.

CAD Usage by Country

When the survey broke down those respondents by country and industry, respectively, some interesting facts emerged.  In the U.S., the percentage of companies using mostly 2D was quite small (6.3%) compared to those reporting using mostly 3D (55%), which was higher than the global average.

The country with the highest usage of 3D CAD was Germany, with 59.1% of respondents reporting their companies use mainly 3D CAD, and correspondingly the lowest usage of 2D design tools (4.8%). Perhaps surprisingly, Japan led in the survey with the highest use of 2D design tools with nearly a third (27.4%) reporting using mostly 2D. A nearly equivalent share (25%) reported using mainly 3D, with the remaining 47.6% using a mix of both 2D and 3D.

A higher rate of investment in technology among its manufacturers may be partially responsible for the German manufacturing industry’s robust growth, despite the global recession. According to research conducted by the Deutsche Bank, the German manufacturing industry reported production increases of more than 10% in 2010, and is up 12% in the first six months of 2011.

U.S. manufacturers are also experiencing growth. According to the Institute for Supply Management’s October 2011 Manufacturing ISM Report on Business, the U.S. manufacturing sector expanded in October for the 27^th consecutive month.

3D Adoption by Industry

More interesting trends emerged when we looked at 2D and 3D design tool usage by industry. The industry with the highest use of 3D was the medical design industry, with over half (52.6) reporting using mostly 3D. This industry, however, only represented 5.4% of the total number of respondents.

Other industries with high 3D CAD adoption rates were the aerospace and defense industry (50.2%) and the automotive industry with (47%) reporting using mostly 3D CAD. These industries had correspondingly low 2D CAD usage; medical device industry reported only 4.1 %, aerospace and defense (4.4%) and automotive (6.3%).  Overall these three industries combined represented 28.7% of respondents.

The industry with the lowest rate of 3D CAD adoption and correspondingly the highest use of mostly 2D design tools was the industrial equipment industry. Among the respondents in this industry segment, which represented 33.8% of all respondents, 13% reported using mostly 2D and 38.6% reported using mostly 3D design tools, and nearly half (49%) using a combination of 2D and 3D tools.

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Simulation Tools Help Answer “What if” Queries Early in Process

By BARB SCHMITZ | Published: DEC 19, 2011

Better designs result when chances are taken, mistakes made, and many different avenues are explored. Innovation results when designers and engineers are allowed the luxury and time to explore many different design options. It’s only when all these various directions are explored that a clear path to innovation emerges. Despite this, production schedules, budgets, and ship dates often hinder the ability to explore many options. After all, time to market in today’s brutally competitive, increasingly global markets remains of paramount importance.

Analysis and simulation tools put the power of innovation in the hands of designers without sacrificing crucial time to market by enabling them to ensure the quality and performance of their designs by testing them digitally for valuable technical insight early in the design process. Competitive pressures have lead to engineering simulation being adopted more and more across all industries as a strategic tool for driving innovation and reducing development costs.

With effective and accurate use, simulation software can help engineers predict product performance, gain insight, reduce the risk of failure, lower production costs, cut down on use of raw materials, and reduce over-design. Not only does this process produce better and higher-quality products but can also reduce warranty claim costs due to product failure.

There are several different types of simulation tools, though the ones most used by design engineers are finite-element analysis (FEA), computational fluid dynamics (CFD), and multi-physics software. FEA software enables engineers to understand the affects of forces and stresses between parts by applying bearing loads, pressures and torques to model geometry. CFD software enables designers to study conduction, convection, and radiation heat transfer to better understand the effects of temperature changes on parts and assemblies.

Multi-physics simulation, an offshoot of traditional FEA, enables engineers and designers to create virtual prototypes of their designs operating under real-world multi-physics conditions, or where multiple types of coupled physics interact. Multi-physics simulation tools simulate the interaction between structural mechanics, heat transfer, fluid flow, and electromagnetics within a single environment, making them ideal for mechatronic design.

Not just for experts. Simulation tools were once used only by white-cost-wearing “specialists,” which made it difficult for the analysis results to be fed back into the design loop. Collaboration between analysts and engineers is often complicated due to different domain knowledge, special techniques, and the use of different languages. Analysts think in terms of material properties, load cases, stress and strains. Engineers, though well-trained, do not have the familiarity with the finer points of nonlinear mechanics, fracture, creep, yield, and phase transformations, all important to FEA.

CAD integration. Vendors have worked hard to develop simulation tools that can be used by design engineers by closely integrating their tools with CAD software, improving the user interface, and using jargon common to engineers. Engineers can import their CAD models directly from their CAD software to test for strength, to show motion, and to explore fluid dynamics and heat flow around and through products.

Anticipate the unexpected. Simulation tools enable engineers to optimize the performance of their products and design them to be immune to variations in parameters, such as material properties, dimensions, and environmental conditions, even unanticipated customer usage. By digitally optimizing the product by taking into account any possible problem or accidental variation in use, engineers can ensure optimal product performance.

Better meshing. Meshing—the breaking down of a computer model into small pieces suitable for computer simulation—is critically important to gaining accurate results. The more dense the mesh, the more accurate the solution will be. Analyzing large models, however, is a very compute-intensive task so simplifying the geometry by removing features, etc., has become the industry standard method of dealing with this problem. Simulation tools now offer at least partially automated meshing, which greatly simplifies the process of preparing geometric data for analysis.

Go direct. Models created with traditional, parametric history-based CAD tools can be difficult to use with simulation tools. Direct modeling tools make it easier for users to incorporate simulation into their design process because they can edit geometry directly, without regard of its history. Direct modeling tools also make it much easier to remove features from models to prepare them for simulation.

Real-time results. It wasn’t that long ago analysts would set up their simulations, go home, and come back the next day to see the results. Thanks to more powerful, yet inexpensive workstations and more advanced simulation codes, those days are long gone. Today there are products on the market that perform simulations in real time, so engineers get answers to “what if” queries instantaneously.