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SpaceClaim

ANSYS Releases New Versions of SpaceClaim and FENSAP-ICE

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Engineers can accelerate product development time and more accurately predict in-flight icing to improve aircraft safety thanks to advancements ANSYS (NASDAQ: ANSS) has delivered with two new product releases. The most recent release of ANSYS® SpaceClaim™ and ANSYS® FENSAP™ dramatically enhances speed, efficiency and reliability – providing users with revolutionary workflows and unique capabilities.

As companies turn to rapid digitalization for every facet of product development, the ability to easily manipulate geometry for both design and manufacturing is crucial. ANSYS SpaceClaim 2016 transforms product development by empowering users to quickly and easily manipulate 3-D models across the entire product development cycle. SpaceClaim’s unique approach delivers superior ease of use and productivity, providing the user with extreme flexibility within product workflows.

ANSYS-SpaceClaim

“Since day one, our focus has been to provide customers with a solution to quickly create, edit or repair geometries as needed in an open platform environment,” said Frank DeSimone, senior director of product development at ANSYS. “For this release, we focused on solving challenges working with complex geometry, developing new tools like the Shrinkwrap and Skin Surface to decrease the time needed to reverse-engineer parts or prepare models for 3-D printing.”

Whether creating designs, editing, cleaning geometries from other tools or reverse engineering existing products, SpaceClaim leapfrogs previous releases by delivering unprecedented results such as 10-times faster 3-D modeling compared to other products on the market. Start-up time is two to four times improved; large model save and load stages are 100 times their former speed; and some tools, such as imprint, result in a 200-times speed improvement. From machinist to simulation analyst, existing users will see vast improvements and users of other tools will be amazed by the novel approach to geometry.

A list of new and enhanced features can be found here. http://s3.amazonaws.com/images.spaceclaim.com/RSIMG/SPC+2016+Fact+Sheet_PRINT-FNL.pdf

Aerospace engineers who analyze aircraft icing can take immediate advantage of the comprehensive state-of-the-art capabilities with FENSAP-ICE and FENSAP-ICE Turbo. The new release — the first since ANSYS acquired this technology – provides improved integration with ANSYS CFX software, its class-leading turbomachinery fluid dynamics simulation software. The enhanced integration enables users to take advantage of the unique capabilities of FENSAP-ICE and FENSAP-ICE TURBO to optimize designs and improve safety by more accurately predicting ice formation in jet engines.

The new release adds numerous enhancements for users of these two systems, enabling them to predict in-flight icing for aircraft, engines, probes and components more efficiently and accurately. The FENSAP product family incorporates speed-up and efficiency gains, enabling the user to incorporate icing prediction in their simulation-driven product development processes.

“The new release delivers streamlined import and export of required data for more efficient and accurate exchange between the FENSAP products and ANSYS computational fluid dynamics solutions,” said Andre Bakker, senior director of fluids business unit, ANSYS. “Maximizing the accuracy of icing simulation ensures that the engineering insight gained from analysis and the resulting design decisions made truly serve to improve flight safety.”

The FENSAP release also includes a number of enhancements and extensions that further efficiency, including more flexible meshing options, faster solution algorithms, direct extraction of key simulation results and more powerful post-processing. These contribute to reducing the time and effort required to investigate and solve complex questions associated with icing.

A list of new and enhanced features can be found here. http://www.ansys.com/Products/Fluids/ANSYS+FENSAP-ICE

ANSYS, Inc.
www.ansys.com

ANSYS Releases SpaceClaim 2015

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Today ANSYS announced the new release of SpaceClaim software that it claims will speed the time it takes users to manipulate geometries, prepare 3D printing files and reduce product development times. SpaceClaim 2015 is the first product to be introduced since SpaceClaim’s acquisition by ANSYS earlier in the year.

According to the company, SpaceClaim 2015 will greatly improve product development and manufacturing workflows by enabling engineers to work faster through such innovations as expansive editing and management of faceted models, improved toolpath functionality for the machinist and more complex geometry creation upgrades for anyone looking to edit or create 3D models.

I had a personal demo of the product today by Justin Hendrickson, director of Product Management for the SpaceClaim product line. The new features he showed me were quite impressive, especially the speed and ease of making changes, a hallmark of the company’s direct modeling approach. I saw several customer examples of how they are using the software, and what interested me the most was how diverse its use actually is.

Some customers use SpaceClaim software to prepare models for simulation, others for preparing models for manufacturing (including 3D printing), while still others use it for designing a product from start to finish. In light of that, I asked Hendrickson what makes the tool so versatile. His response was that the software is popular for myriad of applications because it’s easy to use and very flexible, which is “very liberating to users who are accustomed to dealing with history-based modelers,” says Hendrickson.

Additional SpaceClaim improvements include imprint and wrap tools for easier simulation edits, clean and detection functionality, as well as improved integration with ANSYS Workbench– which enable engineers to focus their time and expertise on simulation analysis, not geometry preparation. Computational fluid dynamics engineers, for example, can take advantage of the new features in SpaceClaim to quickly extract the fluid volume of designs instead of relying on CAD engineers to edit geometries.

SpaceClaim’s 3D Printing module now includes more tools for repairing models and analyzing print success. In addition, direct editing of meshes with SpaceClaim’s intuitive Pull and Move tools are now available with the 2015 release, making it faster and easier for users to get models ready for printing.

The new release of SpaceClaim improves product development and manufacturing workflows by enabling engineers to work faster with expansive editing and management of faceted models, improved toolpath functionality for the machinist and more complex geometry creation upgrades.
The new release of SpaceClaim improves product development and manufacturing workflows by enabling engineers to work faster with expansive editing and management of faceted models, improved toolpath functionality for the machinist and more complex geometry creation upgrades.

ANSYS has delivered a variety of other improvements to concept design, manufacturing preparation, detailing and interoperability. These enhancements enable users to make more efficient use of time, engineering talent and materials as they pursue faster time to market with better product designs.

“The new enhancements in SpaceClaim have allowed me to design the most complex version of my award-winning Perplexus 3D Labyrinth games in record time,” said Mike McGinnis, originator of Perplexus. “The tools are significantly upgraded. In particular is the RELIEF tool, which has saved me days in preparing files for CAM.”

What’s New

Easier 3-D Printing Preparation
• New cleanup and print prep tools, including: Repair Holes, Repair Sharps, Thicken,
Smooth, Regularize, Separate and Join
• New print analysis tools: thickness analysis, overhang analysis
• Merge/subtract/edit open meshes, including direct editing of meshes with
Pull/Move tools
• Ability to scale meshes non-uniformly
• Localized reduce capability for increased mesh accuracy
• Mesh to mesh deviation analysis
• Volume and area measurements, as well as Volume Extract, Enclosure, and
Replace tools now supporting meshes

Upgrades to Simulation Prep
• New Imprint and Wrap tools for better control over connections between parts
• New simulation cleanup and detection tools: Short Edges, Overlap Faces,
Corrupt Faces
• Power selection and update of mid-surfaces to geometry changes
• Driving dimensions from Pull tool edge pivot, as well as imports of layer
contents into selection sets
• Improved integration with ANSYS Workbench, including:
– Import geometry from Workbench and Design Modeler into SpaceClaim
– ANSYS Neutral File (ANF) format export
– 10-20x transfer speed improvement for assemblies
– New transfer option — “explode during transfer”
– Shared topology performance improvements
– Direct connection to ANSYS HFSS is now supported

Concept Design and General Modeling Improvements

• Custom shortcuts that personalize SpaceClaim tools to your needs
• Pivoting of surface edges and vertices
• Reverse engineering improvements, such as a dedicated mesh curve fitting tool
and snap to point
• Blend improvements — blend to point capability
• Automatic Clip Volume for Repair tool options
• Tangent/natural extensions for curves and surfaces
• Variable radius rounds, re-ordering of overlapping round chains,
and projected linked points
• Plugin for Makerbot Upload
• Mirror depression/protrusion, min/max curvature points shown,
and ability to scale points/axes
• “Paste Independent” and replace component commands, support multiple components
Manufacturing Preparation Enhancements
• Relief tool for automated cutout creation at sharp corners
• Deburring and Lathe profile creation tools for generating deburring and lathe tool path
• Curve Table tool for generating associative table of curve data for export
• Edges tool for extracting the wireframe version of a part
• Support for Mastercam X8
Interoperability Advances
• New import information, including layers, materials, JT facets only, and PDF
faceted curves for optimal model editing
• Multi-threaded import for more file formats (JT, CATIA CGR), creating
faster imports
• IDF Sync to update changes made in SpaceClaim
• Ability to map CATIA Geometric sets to SpaceClaim groups on file import
• OBJ improved texture export
• Updated version support for: Inventor 2015, NX 9, Parasolid 26, Solid Edge ST6,
SolidWorks 2014
• Improved automated Converter application

Sheet-Metal Enhancements
• Swept walls, rounded louvers, split of blend junctions, and configurable junctions gaps
• Power Select of features to use only what you need faster
• Support for editing of U-shaped bends
• Fold up of individual walls and user-defined wall overlap %s

Detailing
• BOM display controls: include and collapse properties
• Highlight selected point dimension, leader underline control, and 45° chamfer note
• Overall usability improvements, including option to hide annotations behind bodies

A full list of new features in SpaceClaim 2015 may be found here.

Barb Schmitz

ANSYS Acquires SpaceClaim

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Consolidation through strategic acquisitions is nothing new in the CAD world, though I must admit to being surprised by last week’s announcement that ANSYS, a world leader in simulation technology, had acquired SpaceClaim Corp. for $85 million in cash. The transaction closed on April 30.

SpaceClaim took the “direct” approach to 3D modeling

SpaceClaim introduced direct modeling to the masses with the introduction of SpaceClaim 2007 Professional back in 2007. SpaceClaim, which my colleague Josh Mings referred to as “the company slapping the history out 3D modeling,” was founded in 2005 by industry big-wig Mike Payne, who also helped start up PTC and SolidWorks. The goal was to offer a 3D modeling tool that could be used by more than just CAD experts.

ANSYS and SpaceClaim have partnered up in the past to offer customers ANSYS SpaceClaim Direct Modeler as an option to ANSYS customers. These users, who are mostly analysts, work in 3D but didn’t want to become experts in traditional, feature-based CAD systems. With the software, users could create and modify 3D geometry models without needing to learn the complexities of the CAD software.

The functions in SpaceClaim's Prepare tab make it easy to simplify, de-feature and prepare models for analysis in ANSYS Workbench and GAMBIT.
The functions in SpaceClaim’s Prepare tab make it easy to simplify, de-feature and prepare models for analysis in ANSYS Workbench and GAMBIT.

By enabling ANSYS users to create and modify 3D models, simulation can be done upfront in the product development process, where the biggest payoffs (performance, cost and time-to-market) can be realized. The vision of ANSYS has always been to enable companies to leverage the value of computer simulation early in the design process to predict how a product will perform in the real world.

By adding SpaceClaim to its product line, ANSYS customer will have a 3D direct modeling tool for creating new concepts and then performing simulation on those models to iterate and optimize product designs. In addition, because ANSYS has always been an essentially open platform and SpaceClaim’s solutions are also relatively CAD-neutral, users can modify geometries regardless of what system was used to create them.

Benefits of acquisition

* Acceleration of ANSYS’ technological product roadmap and long-time vision for Simulation Driven Product Development. SpaceClaim can help simplify and automate what has traditionally been a time-consuming process of preparing geometry for use in a simulation system, enhancing ease-of-use to help ANSYS accelerate product adoption and the growth of the simulation market overall. The transaction enables ANSYS to accomplish what would have taken the company many years (if ever) to develop alone.
* Enhanced customer offering through complementary technologies. The transaction enablesANSYS to provide its customers with a 3D direct modeling solution to author new concepts and then leverage simulation to iterate on these designs.
* Drives growth through an expanded customer base and cross-selling opportunities. The broad appeal of SpaceClaim’s technology can help ANSYS deliver simulation tools to any engineer in any industry – at the earliest stages of the design cycle – expanding ANSYS’ user base from analysts and expert users to 5 million design and systems engineers.
* Increased innovation. SpaceClaim’s flagship product is SpaceClaim Engineer, 3D direct modeler, and offers UI/UX design for both 3D applications and mobile devices.

Of those proposed benefits, I think the one that stands out as obvious is the fact that acquiring SpaceClaim expands ANSYS’ user base from analysts and expert users to five million design and system engineers. We’ll certainly be watching to see how this shakes and out and will keep you updated on any new product announcements made as a result of this union.

For more information, check out the official press release from ANSYS.

Barb Schmitz

SpaceClaim Adds Support for 3D Printing

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It seems nearly hourly a story about 3D printing is hitting the newswires and showing up in blogs, on Twitter or in the mainstream media. The applications of 3D printing are widely varied, from 3D printed chocolates to cars to houses to perfectly fitted prosthetics. It seems that the possibilities for 3D printing are nearly limitless.

My colleague and Design World Managing Editor, Leslie Langnau, has been covering 3D printing from its humble beginnings. In a future issue, she and I will be covering 3D printing, from both the hardware and software sides of the equation.

One of the obstacles for users is how do you use CAD data to print a 3D part, as you can’t simply send the CAD file to the printer. CAD files must be converted to STL files, which in turn can be used by the printer. Problems, however, often rear their ugly heads when any file is converted to another file type.

We’re very interested in hearing how you all are doing this so feel free to comment or send me an email as we prepare on how to tackle this topic.

Facilitating the CAD-3D printing connection

In the latest release of SpaceClaim 2014 SP1, the company is introducing a solution to help with the problems being faced with 3D printing. The STL Prep for 3D Printing module prepares models for 3D printing not only repairs problems, but also modifies STL and CAD files. According to SpaceClaim, this new module also extends SpaceClaim Engineer’s intuitive interface, speed, and ability to work with any major 3D format into the 3D printing world.

The new STL Prep for 3D Printing Module for SpaceClaim 2014 helps repair printing problems and modify STL and CAD files.
The new STL Prep for 3D Printing Module for SpaceClaim 2014 helps repair printing problems and modify STL and CAD files.

SpaceClaim’s director of product management, Justin Hendrickson, was interviewed by Ralph Grabowski, editor of Upfront eZine, on the obstacles faced by users who want to create 3D printed parts using their CAD models.

These problems included:

* STL files have to be watertight (no gaps between surfaces)
* Shapes must be suitable for printing, such as merged assemblies, thickened ribs, and interiors removed
* Models have to be resized to fit the envelop size
* Fixtures added, such as exterior and interior supports
* Model reduced in complexity to reduce the data sent to the printer
* Additional considerations for material, such as shrinkage
* Inability to use 2D drawings or scanned data

To resolve many of these issues, SpaceClaim’s new add-on tools help users prepare CAD models for 3D printing. In today’s multi-CAD design environments, perhaps the most important tool is one that enables users to combine models from a variety of CAD packages. When the source file is a mesh, then the new 3D Print Prep tool cleans it up, removing gaps, holes and intersecting meshes, which makes them watertight.

Hendrickson explains a common scenario in which the software’s modeling tools can help users print something derived from a model, such as a mouth guard derived from a cast of someone’s teeth. The modeling tools can be used to create a generic mouthguard, and then subtract the mesh (of the teeth) from the mouthguard model.

SpaceClaim’s new 3D print prep module also handles these tasks: converts any model to STL or AMF [additive manufacturing format] files; previews the solid to mesh export, with adjustable settings; reduces triangles automatically.

STL Prep for 3D Printing is available as an add-on for SpaceClaim 2014 SP1 for an additional $1,200; Base package for SpaceClaim is $2,445. Find out more about STL Prep for 3D Printing here.

Barb Schmitz

Taking a Closer Look at SpaceClaim Engineer 2014

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Last week Design World hosted a very successful webinar entitled, “The Pros and Cons of 3D Modeling Paradigms,” during which industry experts discussed the benefits and downsides of each modeling paradigm–history-based and direct modeling–and areas of product development each are best suited.

Though most of you already know the basics of each approach, here’s a quick summary. Parametric, feature-based 3D modeling tools provide engineers with a methodical, orderly and powerfully automated way to create complex models, but require engineers to anticipate and define feature constraints, relations and dependencies. Though powerful, these tools often make doing edits difficult, especially when working with models created in different CAD systems.

Direct modeling, on the other hand, enables users to take a more flexible, intuitive approach to creating geometry and doesn’t carry the overhead of history-based dependencies. Users can directly manipulate model geometry without regard to how that geometry was created. To make changes, users simply grab, pull and drag geometry, making direct modeling an easier modeling paradigm to use.

Though both approaches were discussed during the hour-plus webinar, it seemed like the majority of time was used to discuss direct modeling, perhaps in part because it’s the newer of the modeling techniques.

SpaceClaim delivers direct modeling alternative to history-based systems

One company not represented during the webinar that perhaps should have been was SpaceClaim. The company introduced direct modeling to the masses with the introduction of SpaceClaim 2007 Professional back in 2007. SpaceClaim, which my colleague Josh Mings refers to as “the company slapping the history out 3D modeling,” was founded in 2005 by industry big-wig Mike Payne, who also helped start up PTC and SolidWorks.

This brings me (finally) to SpaceClaim Engineer 2014. Rolled out officially in December, the new release touts a 30% improvement in model load times; multi-threading support; live interference detection; and improved drafting using parting surfaces and automatic splits.

This new release also makes some headway in increased interoperability with a Solid Edge translator and on-demand floating translator, AMF export/import from AutoCAD, support for ASME 14.5 (GD&T), and a 3D PDF module.

SpaceClaim Engineer's 3D mechanisms capabilities include gear and tangent placement conditions and are completely integrated with SpaceClaim's direct modeling of parts and assemblies.
SpaceClaim Engineer’s 3D mechanisms capabilities include gear and tangent
placement conditions and are completely integrated with SpaceClaim’s direct
modeling of parts and assemblies.

Here’s a list of the new tools in SpaceClaim Engineer 2014:

* Pinned datums, axes, and points that follow the geometry from which they are defined for semi-parametric functionality
* Web-hosted model viewer

Simulation
* New mass property driving dimensions
* New surface simplification tool
* Support for baffle geometry when transferring to ANSYS Workbench
* Orient and surface fitting for improved modeling with meshes

Sheet Metal
*Unfolding torus forms
* Multi-edge hems
* Sheet metal blends
* Improved edge cleanup during conversion.

Manufacturing
* Move Body and Align
* Create Workpiece
* Unroll tool for flattening developable surfaces
* Angular component measurements for sequential rotations between two faces.

You can find more on SpaceClaim Engineer 2014 here. If you missed the “The Pros and Cons of 3D Modeling Paradigms” webinar, click here to watch it.

Barb Schmitz

SpaceClaim Engineer 2014 Now Available

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SpaceClaim today announced the immediate availability of SpaceClaim Engineer 2014. With advances in nearly every aspect of the software, from new tools and extended interoperability to significantly faster performance, this new release maintains the popular interface and intuitive work flow of SpaceClaim Engineer while introducing several benefits.

“We continue to invest every year in R&D to make SpaceClaim Engineer a better platform for design engineers, CAE analysts and manufacturing engineers to embrace the 3D modeling that was previously the sole domain of CAD experts,” said Chris Randles, SpaceClaim CEO. “This version of SpaceClaim Engineer is our fastest, easiest, most flexible and most powerful release ever. It brings the benefits of 3D to a new level, with new modeling capabilities, and exciting new collaboration tools.”

SpaceClaim Engineer 2014 brings faster performance for many functions throughout the software, including a 30 percent improvement in model load times and multithreading support in several areas, including file import.

“I find SpaceClaim Engineer 2014 refreshingly enjoyable to use. I use it for generating novel, complex parts from scratch; it is an excellent modeling tool,” said Hugo DeRrick, Principal Interdisciplinary Creative for Renishaw PLC. “We pride ourselves on creating innovative solutions to complex problems; SpaceClaim Engineer 2014 gives me the tools to do exactly that.”

SpaceClaim Engineer has become a valued tool in model pre-processing for manufacturing and simulation. Users will find this release offers several new tools that speed and automate common tasks, eliminating much of the repetitive and difficult work that stands between engineers and their goals. The new version also expands interoperability with new translators and file format compatibilities including Solid Edge® AMF and AutoCAD®.

Recently, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers approved ASME 14.5, which standardizes notation and inclusion of tolerance data with the geometry. SpaceClaim Engineer provides full support for this new standard, making geometric dimensioning and tolerancing (GD&T) a fully integrated component of the model.

“Many of the enhancements in SpaceClaim Engineer 2014 come directly from user feedback, and eliminate time consuming extra steps from any user’s process,” said VP of software development, Frank DeSimone. “We are completely committed to making this product fast, powerful and easy to use, and will continue to seek good ideas for improvement from our users.”

With new features like direct drag and drop file access from Outlook and new semi-parametric functionality, SpaceClaim Engineer users will find the 2014 release to be even more intuitive and easier to work with than any previous version. This release also offers support for web-hosted, browser-viewable models that anyone can view and interact with using a PC, smartphone or tablet.

Finally, Dynamics for SpaceClaim is a fully integrated add-in from Algoryx Simulation available for the first time with the launch of SpaceClaim 2014. It provides motion dynamics for multi-body systems with joints and frictional contacts, driven by Algoryx’ market leading physics engine AgX Dynamics. When installed, a Dynamics tab in SpaceClaim offers mechanics modeling, interactive dynamics simulation, plotting and analysis, and full Luxion Keyshot integration for stunning photo-realistic simulation videos.
The product is available today. Anyone interested can request a trial through http://www.spaceclaim.com/en/trial.aspx.

SpaceClaim Corporation
www.spaceclaim.com

SpaceClaim: Sheet metal design for pirates?

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Let this be a warning to all CAD vendors: Don’t encourage your application engineers to “be creative and have fun.” You might end up with product videos such as this one:

All seriousness aside, SpaceClaim does have compelling sheet metal tools for people other than pretend pirates. And, unlike some older CAD programs, SpaceClaim is relatively fun to use – probably because it doesn’t make you “walk the plank” to get your job done.

What this video alludes to, without coming right out and saying it, is that SpaceClaim, as a direct modeling CAD system, lets you use whatever existing part geometry you may have, from just about any other CAD system, as a starting point for sheet metal design. So, if someone throws a part file at you, and asks you to turn it into sheet metal, you can get it done with minimum fuss – even if the original CAD file is a mess (as many are.)

In the last few years, SpaceClaim has been starting to make an increasingly large impact on the market, not just because it works well, but also because it doesn’t require users (or the companies they work for) to throw-out their existing CAD tools.

After this video was posted, Blake Courter, a SpaceClaim co-founder, commented on Twitter that this year’s marketing campaign for SpaceClaim “consists entirely of setting up booths at renaissance festivals.” I think he was kidding (though I wouldn’t be surprised to see SpaceClaim at Burning Man later this year.) Until then, you might try visiting their website.

SpaceClaim 

www.spaceclaim.com