SolidWorks UK

Research Retrospective - Play SolidWorks

Do you want to "Play SolidWorks" ?

An area we've explored in the past was whether it is possible to use a game controller to drive SolidWorks. This evolved from a Research investigation to determine whether a user could effectively use 2 mice for 3D Design and Modelling.

"Play SolidWorks" was a mini-project which was allowed a maximum time of 1 day to create a viable Proof of Concept for driving SolidWorks using a game controller which connects to the PC using a standard USB port.

A simple mechanism is required to allow input from a game controller to drive SolidWorks using simulated mouse events and keyboard presses.

There are a number of software packages available that allow a user to define what happens when using a game controller to drive a Windows application. The one I used is the Pinnacle Game Profiler software obtained from http://pinnaclegameprofiler.com

The software is simple to use and recognised that the controller I am using has a combination of 12 buttons, 2 joysticks and an 8 way direction pad.  

I made the following assignments for the various controls.

Joystick 1 (on the left) is assigned as equivalent to a middle mouse button and Joystick 2 acts effectively as a left mouse button.

The direction pad is coded to select one of the 4 predefined views front, right, top or isometric with a single click.

Other buttons were assigned to zoom in/out simulate LMB, RMB, ESC and Enter key hits

I also created a number of macros and setup SolidWorks to execute these from a single keystroke, this keystroke is then assigned to one of the available controller buttons ( see buttons 1-3 createBox, createCyl and createSphere).

Total time to configure the controller, experimenting with various combinations macro writing etc. came to about 2.5 hours.

And finally – Play SolidWorks

Worried about mixing up versions or losing data between sites? Take steps to unify your Design and Production Facilities

 

SolidWorks^® Enterprise PDM (product data management) software is enabling a U.K.-based aerospace design firm to collaborate across 14 time zones without worrying about mixing up versions or losing important ideas and modifications between sites.

Aero Sense Technologies Ltd. purchased 25 seats of SolidWorks Enterprise PDM software to coordinate operations between its production facility in Sri Lanka and its design sites in Exeter, U.K., and Los Angeles. SolidWorks Enterprise PDM software stores CAD models and supporting documents – anything from documents to images – in an indexed central repository. Secure access and built-in audit functions protect data from accidental and deliberate damage while tracking who accesses design data, what they changed, and when.

Aero Sense Technologies produces specialized measurement products for the aerospace industry. Typically, either the company’s Los Angeles or Exeter team will create the initial design using SolidWorks CAD software, then share it with each other through SolidWorks Enterprise PDM. Both teams validate each others’ design and adjust the parameters, and the two teams work back and forth to perfect the design. Exchanging data across time zones enables Aero Sense Technologies to work on its designs almost around-the-clock and bring them to production sooner. When a design has finished the prototype stage and first production, the staff at the Sri Lankan production center uses the CAD files to design and implement the production processes.

“We need robust data management and revision control between our three sites. Working from a common data model in SolidWorks Enterprise PDM gives us the control and functionality to maintain our documents’ integrity,” said Aero Sense Technologies Senior Mechanical Engineer Ashley Roy. “There are many different document formats involved in product development – SolidWorks files, Word documents, other CAD files, etc. SolidWorks Enterprise PDM creates a common environment that enables our staffs to collaborate while maintaining authoritative versions of documents and data models.”

 

 

 

Microsoft Surface at SolidWorks World 2010

The Research Group from DS SolidWorks showed a number of projects at the recent SolidWorks World 2010 conference. The projects were designed to explore the capabilities of the Microsoft Surface device and provided “proof of concepts”. They were implemented by 2 interns, Robbie Coomber and Rob Desmond who had just completed the 2nd year of a Computer Science Degree course at Cambridge University and worked at the SolidWorks office in Cambridge (UK) during the Summer of 2009.

The Microsoft Surface is a multi-touch device that incorporates an Intel Core 2 Duo cpu, 2Gb of memory and a 250Gb SATA hard drive.

The device consists of a 30 inch display mounted horizontally on a coffee table sized base unit. The display is generated using a projector mounted in the base and gives a resolution of 1024x768.

Hand gestures and objects placed on the surface are detected using a camera based vision system with LED Infrared illumination and image recognition software. The system is running Windows Vista and is optimised for up to 52 simultaneous contacts.

Full details about the Microsoft Surface can be found on the Microsoft website at:

http://www.microsoft.com/surface/

The projects explored a number of concepts including:

• The recognition of objects placed on the surface
• The interaction of multiple users and multiple touches/contacts
• SolidWorks and multi-touch
• Various user interface concepts including using both hands
• Interaction with the surface using physical objects

The resultant applications, developed to demonstrate the concepts, can be viewed below or from the playlist at

http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=50A5F50BC917ECC0

Futures… made of… Virtual Parts and Assemblies!

SolidWorks 2010 introduced some great new functionality to the area of Virtual parts and assemblies.

First of all lets go back to basics:
What are virtual parts and assemblies?

• A part or assembly that does not have a saved file on disk
• Saved internally in the assembly
• Can be a bought-in, non modelled item such as paint or glue
• Square brackets are used to denote the part or assembly as virtual

Virtual components are especially useful in top-down design. During the conceptual design process, when you frequently experiment with and make changes to the assembly structure and components, using virtual components has several advantages over the bottom-up design method:

• You can rename these virtual components in the FeatureManager design tree, avoiding the need to open, save as a copy, and use the Replace Components command.
• You can make one instance of a virtual component independent of other instances in a single step.
• The folder where you store the assembly is not cluttered with unused part and assembly files resulting from iterations of component designs.

So what’s new in virtual parts and assemblies in SolidWorks 2010?

• Make existing components virtual
• You can make externally saved components virtual, which breaks the link to the external component file. Existing references are ignored and the component is renamed.
• Naming virtual components
• The name of a virtual component now always includes its parent assembly's name. This ensures the virtual component is always unique.
• Copying virtual components
• You can copy virtual components between assemblies. The copy is not linked to the original virtual component. Existing references are not copied, and the copy is given a new name.
• Moving Virtual Components
• You can move virtual components within the hierarchy of the FeatureManager design tree. Existing references are ignored and the component is renamed.

Lets take a look at an example:

Technorati Tags: Virtual Components,SolidWorks 2010,Tips and Tricks

Welded to the spot – and now edge…

One of the most common questions from people who have welded structures is, “can you model welds?”. Well, obviously!

In 2010 we have a new edge weld connector, similar to the spot weld connector already available.

The tool allows you define a fillet or groove weld, either single or double sided between any two sheet metal parts or shell structures like the one below.

By picking two intersecting surfaces the edge weld is generated for you at the intersecting curve.

Now all you have to do is pick an electrode material from the list of steel and aluminium types, and provide an estimated weld size.

The weld is then ready to go!

Simply solve your simulation as usual and the forces and moments are automatically passed through the new weld onto the surrounding structure.

However the really neat bit comes next. Not only is the weld connector a new joint type, it currently compares the forces and moments through the weld to the AWS 1.1 standard and tells you if the weld size you have chosen is good enough!

To get this info, RMB the Results folder and chose Define Weld Check Plot. Hit the OK tick and you get a new dialog that lists all your welds into two groups, those that pass and those that fail according to the standard.

This allows you to browse each connector and see where you need to define a larger weld.

What is more, if you chose a weld in this dialog and hit the Details button, you get even more helpful info containing the required weld and throat size plus the forces and moments experienced by the weld in the particular configuration you tested.

And as a final benefit, you can also plot the required weld size and throat size along the weld length (from an indicated start point and direction) based upon the loads generated from the simulation.

 So you can see that with a few short steps it is possible to assess your design for weld sizes. In fact you could put any arbitrary weld size in, because the software then tells you what is ultimately needed, which is of course what you want to know!

Technorati Tags: SolidWorks Simulation,Simulation,Welds,Simulating Welds

Award winning bike storage!

The Cycloc, for storing and displaying bikes, from Andrew Lang

Don't miss the new series of interviews with designers on DesignTalks. Get their thoughts on business and the future of the design industry, plus insights into the role of design in overall product strategy or in addressing environmental concerns.

The DesignTalks Designer of the Month feature kicks off with an interview with Andrew Lang, designer of the Cycloc bike storage solution. He explained how manufacturing products for cyclists helped him break out of cyclical project work.

We also want to hear from you so get in touch and share with us your innovative products and technologies.

RuRoC Storm Trooper Helmet for extreme snowboarders!

RuRoC Storm Trooper Snowboarding Helmet

Industrial design firm Curventa helped client RuRoC create the “Storm Trooper” snowboarding helmet that launched the company in 2007. Developed in SolidWorks, the molded plastic helmet’s edgy styling and its seamless combination of goggles, face mask, and head protection quickly won over snowboarders and the British version of GQ magazine, which named it a Product of the Year before it was even in full production. The helmets gained even wider acceptance when Formula One race crews started wearing them as safety gear in the pit during races.

“Crews usually wore motorcycle helmets, but a lot of the mechanics found them too hot and heavy to wear during races,” said Curventa Director Ian Murison.  “In 2008, the Red Bull team contacted RuRoC and said they wanted to use the snowboarding helmets for their crews. We made some modifications and added flame retardant materials to the helmets, and they broke on the Formula One scene last season. Pretty soon, the McLaren team ordered chromed helmets for their pit crew. Now RuRoC has distributors in North American, Canada, and Europe selling to other motorsport teams.”

Curventa did the design work for RuRoC founder, Rob Gavin, when he came to the London firm with a rough physical model of a snowboarding helmet that protected faces from extreme cold while venting enough to prevent goggles from fogging over. Curventa laser scanned the helmet design then entered the data into the SolidWorks 3D design environment.

“We created the early designs in blue foam, and once approved by the client we laser scanned them into SolidWorks. From then on, we were designing and detailing on the fly within SolidWorks,” Murison said. “We did a lot of adjusting inside SolidWorks, tweaking the helmet design to adjust how it fit in the back, for example, or how it moved when the wearer turned their head. SolidWorks really held up well during that process.”

Find out more:

http://www.ruroc.com/

http://www.curventa.com/what/ruroc/

http://www.mclaren.com/teammclaren/newsletters/pit-crew-helmet.html

http://www.rgslracing.com/brawn-gp.html

 

Inspiring design

 

Isis in Hyde Park

 

Simon Gudgeon, whose “Isis” sculpture was unveiled in Hyde Park by Halcyon Gallery and the Royal Parks Foundation in September, will use SolidWorks to model and SolidWorks Simulation software to validate kinetic sculpture designs for clients before he sculpts them from metal.

 

Kinetic sculptures move with the wind, like mobiles, and often include individual pieces that move simultaneously. The SolidWorks software enables Gudgeon to test a kinetic statue’s balance and material properties while he’s designing it. He can also use it to design the mechanisms of bars, bearings and counterweights that make the sculptures move, and test it for problems such as interference and collisions.

Although CAD software is most often used for product and building design, Gudgeon sees it as a useful tool for artistic pursuits as well. For most of his career, Gudgeon specialized in still statues of water birds, like “Isis.” Moving into kinetics, Gudgeon realized he had a new set of considerations to weigh, and needed new tools to help him.

“I’m not a classically trained sculptor, I’m self taught, and I’m always looking at new methods and technologies,” Gudgeon said. “I’ve often looked to the auto industry for ideas because they use clay and sculpture to model cars. One of my contacts in the auto industry suggested computer-aided design software and recommended SolidWorks because it has useful features and it’s easy to use. I tried it and liked it. I can use it to create a shape, then perfect its balance and design the below-ground mechanisms. It’s very intuitive, and comes with very good manuals and tutorials for learning new skills.”

Useful links http://www.simongudgeon.com/

http://www.royalparksfoundation.org/

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/visual_arts/article6825341.ece

 

The Future of SolidWorks Simulation?

It’s been a while since I’ve posted a simulation blog as I’ve been busy looking after my new daughter. As proof, here’s a picture showing just what a fan of SolidWorks she’s already become :-).

So enough about me, let’s get back into the swing of things with a couple of insights this week.

Firstly I received this fantastic video of a flow simulation showing a timing sequence of valves in an engine manifold.

I particularly like the simplicity with which the pressures can be switched on and off using the dependency button. Very impressive.

Up next, as part of our SolidWorks 2010 launch we have been showing some of the great new motion simulation features.

One of the main reasons for using motion simulation is to know the loads that your mechanism experiences when its moving. After all, as the mechanism moves, the loads will change at each moment in time putting varying strains on your design. How do you know if you have tested the worst case?

In 2010 we have a new tool, called stress recovery (because that is what it does). Notice the three new buttons on the motion dashboard…

The first button on the left provides a dialog allowing you to choose which components you want to see stressed, and of course which period of the motion you are interested in (perhaps the entire motion just in case you can’t decide when the worst case is!).

Having defined this and run a motion study as normal to generate the loads, the middle button    then launches the structural solver to calculate the displacements and stresses on your chosen part at each time step.

And the final button on the right let’s you pick which contour you want plotted.

So, with hardly any effort, and moving from right to left through these new buttons, it is simple to generate a proper understanding of the response of your mechanism to the changing loads generated in a motion study.

 

Technorati Tags: SolidWorks Simulation,Motion Simulation

 

Tips for engineers

10 tips for using Microsoft Office Excel, try these today and improve your design productivity.

The screencast covers 10 tips for transforming Excel from a basic spreadsheet software into a powerful engineering application. You will learn how to input data more efficiently, build easy-to-use interfaces, utilize powerful functions for advanced calculations, and optimize how the data is displayed.