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HOOPS 2022 Toolkits enhance manufacturing and BIM workflows

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Tech Soft 3D, a leading provider of engineering software development toolkits (SDKs), announced the release of the HOOPS 2022 SDKs. The enhancements to the 2022 toolkits focus on providing remarkable animation, data access and exchange, simulation and rendering capabilities to enable Tech Soft 3D partners to remain competitive in their industries by developing cutting-edge applications with proven 3D technologies.

With HOOPS SDKs, developers can reduce product development costs and bring desktop, web, mobile, and AR/VR applications to market faster.

Key feature enhancements include:

–Support for Apple Silicon: Apple’s recent shift from Intel-based chips to its new ARM-based architecture requires partners to port applications to provide the best experience for their users. We are now providing an official build of our HOOPS toolkits to enable this process.

–Animation Manager: New animation capabilities, including a new animation manager, are designed to meet various engineering animation needs, ranging from BIM 5D simulations, through Digital Factory animations, and Work Instruction authoring.

–Physically Based Rendering (PBR): PBR has been added to HOOPS Communicator to provide higher quality rendering for web applications and is now also available in HOOPS Visualize for mobile platforms.

–Spatial Relationships: Support for “Spatial Relationships” that are part of the Industry Foundation Class (IFC) model definition enables the ability to navigate in the model, query the model in the context of Quantity Takeoff (QTO) and more.

Enhancements to SDKs include:

–HOOPS Exchange
–Native CAD and standard format support for Inventor 2022, ACIS 2021 1.0 and –Parasolid 34.0
–Accessing mates for CATIA V5 files to help optimize workflows for applications in manufacturing simulation, robotic, kinematics analysis and more.

HOOPS Visualize
–New culling mechanism where front faces can be culled, allowing the user to see inside objects easier, and more easily show the results of analysis.
–Android AR Sandbox application refresh, which includes updating the ARCore SDK, using ARCore to match the 3D lighting to the environmental lighting (as seen by the camera), and adding a broader range of models.

HOOPS Communicator
–Supports assembly level features across different shattered workflows, allows users to view all the parts or a building or mechanical assembly at once and easily switch versions/revisions of individual parts or sub-assemblies without having to reconvert or process the entire set of 3D objects.
–Supports generating multiple output SC files for each body which is affected by an assembly level feature resulting in correct assembly conversion.
–New rendering modes (sketched mode and conceptual mode) based on standard AEC application interactions, enables users to replicate the environment they are used to in AEC workflows.

HOOPS Publish
–Improvements to HTML export regarding quality and fidelity with 3D PDFs.

HOOPS toolkits are also available through the HOOPS Native and HOOPS Web Platforms. HOOPS Platforms combine 3D technologies for CAD data exchange, visualization and data publishing, along with tight connections to popular modeling kernels.

Tech Soft 3D
www.techsoft3d.com

IMAGINiT Technologies adds utilities for Autodesk Vault Client and Vault Server

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The IMAGINiT Technologies’ Vault Client Utilities 2022.1 and IMAGINiT Vault Server Utilities 2022.1 releases include several new Utilities as well as notable enhancements to existing Utilities that extend the power of Autodesk Vault.

“Our software development team has a long history of creating productivity enhancing software tools that bring increased value to our customers who use Autodesk software products in their design processes,” says Matt Mason, director of software solutions, IMAGINiT Technologies. “Staffing challenges are one of the biggest obstacles facing design teams today, and the need to do more with less people makes it necessary to find new ways to increase productivity and efficiencies. Our Utilities are designed to eliminate repetitive tasks, automate processes that are labor intensive and add increased functionality to Autodesk software. These Utilities help teams be more productive, efficient and ultimately more profitable.”

In addition to being compatible with the 2022 release of Autodesk Vault, each Utility runs directly inside the Autodesk Vault products to streamline usage and provide a seamless user experience.

Vault Client Utilities 2022.1

Vault Client Utilities 2022.1 offers Vault users two brand new Utilities in addition to several notable enhancements.

–Local Copy Cleanup is a new Utility that helps individuals quickly and safely reclaim space on their computer hard drive by identifying and removing redundant local files from current projects in Vault. The Utility can be set to run on a schedule and if redundancies are found, users are asked to confirm or approve the deletion.
–Copy Folder Permissions is another new Utility that reduces human error and takes the complexity out of ensuring the right team members always have the appropriate access to project folders. As team requirements evolve, this advancement helps to automatically copy permission updates whether it’s assigning or removing user access to specific folders. The previous manual process was time-consuming and error-prone.
–Lifecycle Change Notification Utility can now be more interactive and allows users to adjust the distribution list before notifications are sent to ensure that the right people have all relevant information.
–Standard Folders Utility enhancements now allow administrators to customize the rollout of the standardized document sets that go to all Vault users in the organization and select the files that will be overwritten or cleaned-up post roll-out.

Vault Server Utilities 2022.1

This latest release of administrator focused Vault Server Utilities includes one new Utility and several notable enhancements that bring immediate ROI to CAD managers.

–Related Files Checker is a new time-saving Utility that can be setup in the background to regularly scan for new files that meet specific criteria and align with the rules applied to related files (for example, a drawing needing a PDF or a sheet metal file needing a DXF). If a missing file is identified, an automated process can quickly search for or create the missing file. Team productivity is maximized by ensuring members have the files to do what’s required of them instead of searching, recreating or synchronizing missing files.
–Vault Backup enhancement includes the ability to automatically synchronize to another location, such as the Cloud, once a regular back-up is completed.
–Network License enhancement now allows CAD managers to run various IMAGINiT Utilities remotely without having to request specific server access.
–Vault Metadata enhancement now allows users to add missing data from an external source such as a spreadsheet. If the data already exists within Vault, it will not be overwritten.

IMAGINiT Technologies
www.imaginit.com

Latest updates to Siemens’ Simcenter 3D 2022.1

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Siemens Digital Industries Software announced the latest update to Siemens’ Simcenter 3D software, part of Siemens’ Xcelerator portfolio of software and services. Among the new capabilities, Simcenter 3D offers increased support for turbomachinery modeling, a dedicated drop test application for handheld devices, tightly integrated topology optimization with the NX Design environment, and a new acoustic solution method that is up to 10 times faster than standard methods.

Siemens’ Simcenter 3D 2022.1 release focuses on helping engineers overcome challenges in four key areas:

Model the complexity: The ability to model and understand complex physical phenomena is at the forefront of this release. Simcenter 3D’s industry-leading solution for the turbomachinery industry has been extended with additional thermal multiphysics, rotordynamics and thermal fatigue capabilities to more accurately capture the complex physics happening within these machines. A new dedicated set of tools to simulate spiral bevel gears, as often found in automotive differentials, enables accurate, system-level NVH analysis on these mechanisms to reduce gear whine. Additionally, a new dedicated application simplifies and streamlines the drop-test simulation process for electronic and other handheld devices for engineers who are not simulation experts.

Time varying thermal fatigue helps you understand durability over real operational cycles and reduce modeling time by reading temperatures and stresses/strains from FE results.

Explore the possibilities: Acoustics auralization capabilities allow engineers to not only simulate but also listen to the acoustics/sound within the context of the end-user’s experience. Engineers can now mix all contributing sounds and listen to the combined acoustics results to answer questions such as “What will a loudspeaker sound like when you put it in a car and combine it with background noise from the engine, HVAC, wind and road?” In this release, topology optimization is now more tightly integrated with the NX Design environment so that simulations are ‘replayable’ and become easier for designers to create lightweight, yet structurally capable designs.

Get acoustics results up to 10X faster with new high performance boundary element method with adaptive order solution (BEMAO).

Go faster: Two core updates enable our customers to break new ground more quickly than ever before. The new high-performance boundary element method with adaptive order solution (BEMAO) used for acoustics simulation is up to 10 times faster compared to the standard boundary element method, while new load case filtering for aerostructures allows engineers to quickly determine the final critical list of load cases from the thousands of load cases experienced in an airframe.

Topology optimization capabilities for designers have an even tighter, more intuitive integration within the Siemens’ NX environment.
Define a flexible build plate for additive manufacturing process simulation to calculate stress build-up and see how the build plate will deform after removing the fixture bolts.

Stay integrated: Simcenter 3D now connects with Xcelerator Share for Xcelerator as a Service (or XaaS) subscribers. The Xcelerator Share collaborative cloud environment helps users or distributed workgroups seamlessly share files and communicate results to aid ad-hoc collaboration. Finally, engineers can now launch simulations remotely to any workstation or HPC cluster right from their desktop.

Siemens Digital Industries Software
siemens.com/software

Renault Group and Dassault Systèmes strengthen partnership

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Dassault Systèmes and Renault Group announced they are reinforcing their 20-year collaboration with a new partnership contributing to Renault Group’s strategic plan “Renaulution” focused on value creation.

In a first-of-a-kind deployment for an industrial company of this scale, Renault Group is adopting Dassault Systèmes’ 3DEXPERIENCE platform on the cloud globally, to develop programs for new vehicles and mobility services. This enterprise platform will provide Renault with a new backbone for sharing, in real time, all product-related data throughout the product life cycle, and for managing the virtual twins of its diverse product configurations.

Major trends in the transportation and mobility industry – increasing regulatory constraints, product complexity, electrification, connectivity, sustainability and new mobility services – require accelerating the interconnection of different functions and expertise within an agile and collaborative ecosystem.

Renault Group will deploy its use of the 3DEXPERIENCE platform on the cloud to more than 20,000 employees in vehicle development functions such as Design, Product Engineering, Industrial Process Engineering, Parts and Materials Purchasing, Costing and Quality. Connected to the cloud, the platform will provide access to the same systems and software, 3D modelling and simulations, updated in real time across the world. The large-scale collaboration based on virtual twins will improve data sharing between the different functions and agility within the company, while reducing costs and vehicle development time by around one year. Renault Group will benefit from continuous technological evolutions and functional enrichment of the collaborative 3DEXPERIENCE platform on the cloud.

“Our decision to adopt the 3DEXPERIENCE platform on the cloud demonstrates our belief in the leadership role of engineering and digital in our ‘Renaulution’. Our shift toward becoming a technology, services and energy company must be collaborative,” said Luca de Meo, CEO, Renault Group. “The 3DEXPERIENCE platform connects engineering to all disciplines in one digital company. We will gain agility, speed, and effectiveness to develop new mobility faster than ever.”

“Sustainable innovation is in the DNA of both companies. Renault Group’s transformation will radically change the mobility industry going forward, much like the first virtual development of a commercial passenger airplane did for all industries in 1989. We are fully engaged in this partnership and in supporting Renault Group’s success,” said Bernard Charlès, Vice Chairman and CEO, Dassault Systèmes. “Today’s industrial ecosystems are no longer linear, but circular. Innovating requires new collaborative approaches with virtual twin experiences that address and include the entire evolving value chain. As Renault Group moves to an enterprise platform, our partnership confirms that the 3DEXPERIENCE platform goes beyond vehicle creation and production. It is a lever to drive the industry toward the delivery of new, sustainable mobility experiences.”

Dassault Systèmes
www.3ds.com

3D design platform makes collaboration easy

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Gravity Sketch, the spatial 3D design platform, announced the launch of its virtual collaboration space, LandingPad Collab, making it available to designers and their teams, anywhere in the world.

LandingPad Collab, which is free to use, gives design teams the ability to create a personal collaboration room in which they can invite team members to easily communicate, collaborate and design at scale in 3D. Designers can immerse themselves virtually to create life-size models and review products such as a pair of trainers, a new car or a bike, which can then be viewed, modified and commented on from any location.

LandingPad Collab allows up to four people to collaborate on a design at the same time, breaking down geographical barriers by bringing teams together in a virtual space and rapidly accelerating workflows. During the pandemic, this enabled teams to continue working on 3D products without the need to travel and meet in person.

Gravity Sketch enables designers to break down the barriers of the computer screen to design and model naturally using their hands. Wearing a VR headset, they are transported into a virtual workspace, where with the use of a remote controller, they can create end-to-end 3D designs. LandingPad Collab provides industrial designers with the ability to make unlimited adjustments, as well as to present final designs virtually before going through the manufacturing process.

Gravity Sketch has made the feature free in response to unprecedented demand from the design community who are increasingly eager to share virtual spaces and communicate their ideas more effectively. It also allows the company to further its mission to democratise digital 3D design. The first step towards this was when the Gravity Sketch platform was made free to everyone at the start of the year.

LandingPad Collab features include the ability to create or import 3D models, have real-time voice conversations with people in the virtual room, edit each other’s work, move around at scale or zoom in and out. Users also gain access to 1GB of cloud-saves through the company’s accompanying free LandingPad platform.

Gravity Sketch is an intuitive 3D design platform that allows cross-disciplinary teams to express ideas, create, collaborate and review spatially. For the first time, Industrial designers can design in 3D from start to finish, rapidly improving the speed to market of products, from cars to footwear. For businesses, adopting the technology also helps to attract new design talent in an increasingly competitive market. In addition to Adidas, other brands already using the platform include Ford, Nissan and Volkswagen.

Gravity Sketch
www.gravitysketch.com

3D CAD & CAE manufacturer catalogs powered by CADENAS now available in SOLIDWORKS Electrical 3D

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Good news for all electrical engineers and component manufacturers: SOLIDWORKS Electrical 3D joins the long list of software solutions for CAD, CAE, PLM and simulation that offer direct access to thousands of digital manufacturer catalogs powered by CADENAS. Millions of manufacturer-verified 3D CAD and CAE data are now directly integrated into the popular solution for electromechanical design. By integrating the Strategic Parts Management PARTsolutions, users have access to not only the countless 3D CAD models. They also benefit from an extensive selection of standards as well as intelligent functions for managing and finding proprietary, purchased and standard parts.

Optimized cooperation between MCAD and ECAD divisions
The electrical design situation is different from mechanical design, where not only, but above all, the geometries of the digital components are decisive. Electrical engineers need information about circuit diagram symbols, connections, component types (connector, cable, standard component, terminal, etc.) or parent-child relationships when selecting the appropriate component. The product models must also provide information on which connectors are compatible or how the installed components are to be correctly dimensioned in relation to each other. If this data is not stored within the CAD model, it must be compiled in a time-consuming process from various sources. Multi CAD capable product data based on CADENAS technology enables seamless collaboration between ECAD and MCAD, as component information can easily be transferred between mechanical and electrical design – without loss of information.

SOLIDWORKS Electrical 3D by Dassault Systèmes provides additional support for smooth electromechanical collaboration. With the software module, design data of circuit diagrams can be integrated bidirectionally into the 3D model of a machine or assembly. ECAD components such as wires, cables and harnesses can be easily positioned and automatically routed in the 3D MCAD model. Design and bill of materials are also synchronized in real time, minimizing sources of error.

The software indicates which connectors are compatible or how the installed components are to be correctly dimensioned in relation to each other. If this data is not stored within the CAD model, it must be compiled in a time-consuming process from various sources. Multi CAD capable product data based on CADENAS technology enables seamless collaboration between ECAD and MCAD, as component information can easily be transferred between mechanical and electrical design – without loss of information.

Dassault Systèmes
www.3ds.com

XVL on 3DEXPERIENCE is released after a three-year joint development project

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After a three-year joint development project between Dassault Systèmes and Lattice Technology Co. Ltd, working with Toyota Motor Corporation, native XVL on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform for Japan is available now (worldwide release is planned for 2022). The inclusion of native XVL with the platform enables increased usability downstream of product design in areas such as production engineering and service.

“Users can instantly and directly access XVL data on 3DEXPERIENCE. The members of design and production engineering feel that they have reached a new level of 3D utilization. The timeliness achieved in this project is very important in terms of accumulating the reduction of one small operation and not disturbing designers’ thinking“, said Hiroshi Kawazoe, Director/Toyota Systems Corp.

The source for this press release was a live interview between Hiroshi Kawazoe, Director/Toyota Systems Corp., Stephane Declee, ENOVIA CEO/Dassault Systèmes and Hiroshi Toriya, CEO/Lattice Technology Co. Ltd.
Toyota Systems: Different Needs for Design, Production Engineering & Services

“In Toyota, CATIA is widely used in the design area, and XVL is widely used in the production engineering and service document areas. When these two solutions are closely linked on 3DEXPERIENCE, I think Toyota might have bigger benefit from them,” said Hiroshi Toriya, CEO/Lattice Technology Co., Ltd.

“We need both the technical role of creating content, and a simple mechanism that many people can use for taking advantage of the content,” said Hiroshi Kawazoe/Toyota.

“Toyota uses CATIA for the former and XVL for the latter. It has great meaning that the technical department creates detailed data and people in production site or factory, suppliers can use lightweight 3D and simple tools even from places where IT infrastructure is not sufficient”, said Kawazoe.

“Also, such a situation greatly expands the range of 3D utilization. In particular, Lattice, a purely Japanese-like company, has been very effective developing applications that meet the specific needs of the Toyota production process”, Kawazoe went on to say.
Dassault: Need for Agility & Resiliency

“Agility and resiliency will become even more important in the future. Many manufacturing companies are considering how they can change the way of work according to these goals. The way of work in design and production will surely change”, said Stephane Declee, ENOVIA CEO/Dassault Systèmes“. It is necessary to reform the way of working so that we can provide appropriate information to people and collaborate with each other wherever they are. This also leads to remote work and to work anywhere. This is true not only for Dassault and its customers, but also for partners. In addition, “Cloud” will become a keyword in new measures for the design and production fields”, said Declee/ENOVIA.

”Global collaboration is also very important for the themes we are working on with Toyota Motor Corporation. Not only online but also offline collaboration is essential. That means delivering correct information based on 3D data. With 3D, various members can have a common understanding intuitively and without misunderstandings. Such aspects of 3D data will become so important as to be called indispensable”, said Kawazoe/Toyota.
XVL & The 3DEXPERIENCE Platform

XVL is an important addition as a native format available on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform for purposes other than design because it is extremely lightweight (about 1/100th the CAD file size) and maintains CAD level accuracy.

XVL can also accommodate all major CAD formats in a single representation, meaning SOLIDWORKS® models, CATIA® models, and models from other CAD systems can be combined into a single model, that is accurate for performing work outside of the design department from manufacturing planning, to assembly simulation, creating work/service instructions, and any technical documentation that needs the 3D model.

The process is seamless. Users can download any model in XVL format, regardless of its origin.

“Now XVL and CATIA data exist in a 1-to-1 state on 3DEXPERIENCE. Non-CAD users can get their job done while sharing the correct 3D data globally, both online and offline.”, said Toriya/Lattice.

“As a result of this strong partnership and great efforts by all three companies, I believe that the best collaborative solution has been achieved. XVL can be managed as a native format on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, said Declee, ENOVIA

Dassault Systemes’ SOLIDWORKS 2022 launched, with enhancements that accelerate product development

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Dassault Systemes has introduced SOLIDWORKS 2022, the latest release of its portfolio of 3D design and engineering applications used by millions of innovators worldwide. SOLIDWORKS 2022 delivers hundreds of new user-driven enhancements that accelerate innovation and streamline and speed up the product development process from concept to manufacturing.

Featuring an array of customized and flexible solutions, SOLIDWORKS 2022 enhances the capabilities and workflows used every day for design, documentation, data management, and validation. New workflows, new features and performance improvements inspired by the SOLIDWORKS community of users enable innovators to work smarter and faster, creating better products in fewer steps and in less time. SOLIDWORKS 2022 also opens up possibilities for them to leverage the collaboration capabilities of Dassault SysteÌmes’ 3DEXPERIENCE platform, and increase their competitive advantage by connecting to the 3DEXPERIENCE Works portfolio of solutions.

SOLIDWORKS 2022 includes:
• New workflows and feature enhancements in assembly and part design, drawing detailing, simulation and product data management.
• New features in parts such as hybrid modeling and creating standardized external threads.
• User interface enhancements to shortcut bar, configuration management, geometric tolerancing and more.
• Quality and performance improvements when working with large assemblies, importing STEP, IFC, and DXF/DWG files, detailing drawings and managing product data.
• Automatic assembly performance optimization without worrying about modes and settings.
• Fastest graphics to date with improved display response and quality.
• Access to the 3DEXPERIENCE platform’s collaborative digital environment to improve innovation and decision-making.
• Access to the cloud-based 3DEXPERIENCE Works portfolio of expanded applications for design, engineering, simulation, manufacturing, and governance.

Dassault Systemes
www.solidworks.com/product/whats-new

Automatically determine fill levels and internal volumes

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The software 3D_Evolution Simplifier, known for data reduction and know-how protection, helps users automatically determine fill levels in tank systems or room volumes in air conditioning systems and vehicle interiors.

The German-French software manufacturer CoreTechnologie has added new functions to its 3D_Evolution Simplifier software. In addition to the generation of 3D envelope geometries for data reduction and know-how protection, the tool performs the otherwise time-consuming calculation of the interior volume for determining fill levels in tank systems or other spatial volumes in complex assemblies such as vehicle interiors.

From a user-defined starting point within the assembly, a virtual balloon is inflated to represent the volume of air or liquid in the interior. If necessary, auxiliary geometries are generated in the software to limit the interior volume or to define specific filling heights. The calculation and representation of the interior volume is done by a voxel model with freely definable edge length, influencing the calculation accuracy. The inner volume is represented by a triangulated solid, which can be converted into formats such as jt, stl or cgr for further processing in other systems. The virtual balloon can also be used in data simplification for automatic selection of interior or exterior components.

The tool processes over 40 different 3D formats, including Catia, Creo, Nx, Solidworks as well as JT and STEP without access to a CAD license and can therefore be used flexibly in any environment.

Panasonic and SnapEDA offer free resources for electronics designers

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SnapEDA, the best way to discover and design-in electronic components, and Panasonic, the global technology leader, have collaborated to release a free collection of helpful resources for electronics designers.

These resources include computer-aided design (CAD) models for over 75,000 of Panasonic’s components. These CAD models allow engineers to make custom products with Panasonic’s electronics components quickly and reliably.

“Panasonic strives to provide the highest quality products to their customers and these new CAD models are no exception. Our new collaboration brings thousands of new high quality CAD models to engineers, streamlining their design process and enabling them to move to scale faster and more reliably with Panasonic components” said Natasha Baker, Founder & CEO of SnapEDA.

The new models include schematic symbols and PCB footprints for electronics design, as well as 3D mechanical models to ensure proper mechanical clearances and design visualization. In addition to the CAD models themselves, engineers can also see a real-time report generated by SnapEDA’s patented verification technology, to gain instant transparency into manufacturability.

The new CAD models cover Panasonic’s radial and surface mount resistors, capacitors and inductors. They are compatible with all major electronics and mechanical design tools.

“Panasonic is proud to support its customers with CAD models through SnapEDA’s global design community. In mere weeks, SnapEDA created and verified over 75,000 CAD models and their rapid support made the process seamless” said Tetsuya Fukuzawa, Director at Panasonic Industrial Solutions.

As the first and leading search engine for electronics design, SnapEDA is now relied on by over a million professional engineers developing hundreds of thousands of new products each year. SnapEDA also supports component suppliers on their mission to “digitize the design win”, helping them scale up demand of their products digitally, and track the design journey through to purchase.

The new CAD models are freely accessible to millions of engineers via the SnapEDA website, as well as through its syndication partners which include Digi-Key, RSComponents’ DesignSpark, and Mouser.

The new Panasonic CAD models are based on IPC-7351B, IEEE-315, and SnapEDA’s standards. They can be downloaded free at www.snapeda.com. Over 15 PCB design formats are supported including Altium, KiCad, Autodesk EAGLE & Fusion360, Cadence OrCAD & Allegro, Mentor PADS, DesignSpark, Pulsonix, DipTrace, Proteus, & more.

SnapEDA
www.snapeda.com

Panasonic
www.panasonic.com/global