Briefings: August 2006

By DE Editors

ABAQUS for CATIA V5 Version 2.3 Launched

Dassault Systemes (DS; Paris, France) has announced Version 2.3 of ABAQUS for CATIA V5. V2.3, says DS, takes advantage of the latest technology in ABAQUS 6.6 and CATIA V5 R16 as well as builds on the company's SIMULIA strategy. (SIMULIA, which encompasses all DS simulation solutions, offers scalable simulation solutions and an open framework for multidisciplinary analysis within PLM.)

ABAQUS for CATIA V5.

The ABAQUS-CATIA integration enables advanced methods developed and validated by ABAQUS specialists to be deployed in an enterprise as "proven" analysis workflows. This enables design engineers and analysis specialists to leverage identical FEA methods and models within CATIA V5. It also, says DS, lets design teams do more simulations earlier in the product development process.

ABAQUS for CATIA V5.

New functions in ABAQUS for CATIA let you leverage CATIA’s weld modeling functionality. Its support of ABAQUS 6.6 is said to take advantage of full functionality of ABAQUS/ Standard solver capabilities, including contact enhancements and performance improvements. Further, the ABAQUS continuum shell technology is available to users. This enables the modeling of shell structures with continuum shell elements, which permits the use of the actual CAD geometry of the structure rather than an approximation involving midplanes and offsets. This approach is said to simplify modeling while improving the accuracy of simulations involving contact.

For more information, click here.

Third Annual Extreme Redesign Global Design and 3D Printing Contest

$2,500 and $1,000 student scholarshipawards aimed at promoting interest in engineering careers.

The Dimension 3D Printing Group, a business unit of Stratasys, Inc. (Eden Praire, MN), has announced the third annual Extreme Redesign: The Ultimate 3D Printing Challenge global design and 3D printing contest for high school and college students. CAD students worldwide are invited to send in their best Extreme Redesigns for a chance at scholarships in the amounts of $2,500 or $1,000. Judging is based on design creativity, part utility, integrity, and aesthetics.

The company will award teachers of first-place student winners a notebook computer for classroom use. In addition, the teacher with the most student entries overall will receive a notebook computer for encouraging student participation in the contest. To qualify, the instructor’s name and e-mail address should be included on the contest application form.

Last year’s Extreme Redesign contest received more than 500 student entries from around the world. Winning designs included a detachable cord reel, electric toothbrush wall mount, and rotating calendar. Photos and descriptions of the 2004 and 2005 winners are available on the Extreme ReDesign web page.

To enter, students need to identify an existing product, piece of art, or architecture and redesign it, improving on the original design by adding new functionality or aesthetic qualities. Once the design is complete, students send an .STL file of their Extreme Redesign via the Dimension website along with a completed submission form and a 200-word description of the value and benefit of the redesigned part. Dimension will then send entrants a 3D print of their redesign that they can hold in their hands and evaluate. From that point, entrants have the opportunity to make design improvements to develop a second iteration for final submission.

Final entries must be postmarked by Dec. 31, 2006. Complete contest rules and submission details are available by clicking here.

Spicer Releases Imagenation 8

Spicer Corp. (Kitchener, ONT) has announced the release of version 8 of its Imagenation digital communications solution for the distribution and output of MCAD files and office documents between technical and non-technical users. Version 8, says Spicer, features desktop interactivity improvements that enable users to scan, review, mark up, and print office documents, CAD drawings, and model formats more efficiently.

Imagenation 8’s new XP-style user interface is designed to help you customize your desktop by organizing toolbars and preferences to suit your needs. This, says the company, results in faster, more efficient desktop interactivity between documents, scanners, and browsers.

Imagenation 8 from Spicer Corp.

RP4Baghdad AID Program Completes First Year in Iraq

One year after the launch of the RP4Baghdad program, an initiative founded by members of the RP&M (rapid prototyping and manufacturing) industry, doctors in Iraq report that the project has supported the successful treatment of more than 45 civilians suffering from severe injuries to the head and face, according to RP4Baghdad.

In addition to aiding in these complex reconstructive surgeries, RP, which produces 3D models from computer-generated designs, is now being used to produce prosthetic limbs through the program.

Courtesy of RP4Baghdad.

"It may come as no surprise that health care facilities in Iraq have degraded significantly over the last several years," Dr. Omar Al Ani, an Iraqi surgeon involved in the project was quoted as saying. "The RP4Baghdad program has given our physicians an invaluable advance in technology. The models, unlike two-dimensional x-rays, provide detailed, ]3D] replicas of the treatment area, giving both patient and physician superior pre-surgical information. This results in more effective pre-surgical planning, reduced procedure times, and more precise fitting of implants and prosthetic limbs."

Patients identified as candidates for the RP4Baghdad program are referred to a Baghdad medical facility where craniofacial injuries are CT scanned or amputees have casts made that are, in turn, sent to the US for laser scanning. The data from the scans is then sent to one of four manufacturing facilities—three in the US and one in Belgium—where the data is converted to either a 3D computer model of the anatomy or parts for socket construction in artificial limbs. The model is then shipped back to Iraq where it used to plan and practice surgery or, in the case of sockets for prosthetic limbs, is fit to the patients. The models or parts usually arrive in Iraq within a few weeks of the CT scan.

By August 2005, more than 300 civilians were wait-listed for artificial legs in one of three medical centers in Baghdad. Doctors in Iraq believe that many more amputees are in need of prosthetic legs but have not registered for the list due to the backlog.

Fried Vancrean, president and CEO of Materialise and an originator of the program, said, "RP4Baghdad displays not only the powerful impact of additive fabrication in the field of medicine, but more importantly, an inspiring level of human concern and compassion across our industry."

For more, click here.

UGS Embraces 3D Geometric "Shape Search"
Technology That Eliminates Duplication ESPRIT 2007 to Ship This Summer

Update scheduled for introduction at IMTS Show in Chicago.

DP Technology (Camarillo, CA), the creator of ESPRIT CAM software system, has announced its latest release, ESPRIT 2007. The new software will be introduced officially at the IMTS 2006 machine tool show in Chicago from September 6-13, and is expected to begin shipping to customers by late summer.

ESPIRIT 2007 will include a variety of new and upgraded features including enhancements and new functionalities for milling, turning, and wire EDM programming. It will also introduce ESPRIT FX, which the company describes as a new innovation in advanced CAD-to-CAM feature exchange.

ESPIRIT 2007.

ESPRIT FX technology goes beyond transferring just the part geometry, says DP Technology, by providing portions of the original CAD Feature Tree directly inside the ESPRIT user interface, thereby including the complete original design intent with all features, tolerances, material properties, surface finishes, administrative data, etc. Using the FX technology, the CAD features and their associated properties are mapped into machinable features. These manufacturing features and their properties are then fed into the ESPRIT KnowledgeBase, aiding the user in selecting how to machine the part based upon existing best practices.

In addition to ESPRIT 2007, DP Technology has said it will also be demonstrating its newest addition to the ESPRIT CAM software family, ESPRIT Mold, an automated 3-axis and 5-axis CAM system (click here for more ESPRIT Mold).

For more information on ESPRIT 2007, click here.

Axonai.com Web Portal Simplifies Bidding

Parts bidding barriers between buyers and suppliers eased and simplified.

Axonai Inc. (West Lafayette, IN), an online collaborative network specializing in connecting buyers and suppliers, has launched an Internet portal that, it claims, makes the parts bidding process more efficient and affordable.

According to Axonai, the process takes a pay-as-you-go approach, unlike many online models that are membership-based. Axonai’s process detects eligible suppliers based on information they’ve uploaded to the site’s directory and matches them to buyers. This, says the company, weeds out inappropriate bids and shortens the bidding process by an average of 12 days.

Once a design engineer uploads a CAD model depicting an item the buyer wishes to have produced, Axonai’s Buyer Sourcing Assistant helps the buyer determine the most appropriate manufacturing process for that particular part. It then distributes RFQs to previously qualified suppliers.

Once buyers submit their RFQ, they can receive and review the responses online. They can also access such information as the supplier’s profile and rating as well as comments about the supplier in reference to other jobs.

At the opposite end of the supply chain, suppliers use Axonai’s online service to specify their capabilities and the kinds of manufacturing jobs they would like to receive. When an RFQ comes their way, they can review, at no cost, the part’s dimensions, tolerances, materials, and specifications (including delivery deadlines). They also are able to view how many RFQs the buyer has posted previously as well as the buyer’s ratings from previous jobs. Once the supplier is satisfied that it has met eligibility requirements, the supplier can pay a fee to view the buyer’s contact information in anticipation of bidding on the job.

The Axonai system also includes enhanced project management features for buyers and suppliers to work together during the design, production, and inspection phases. For more information, click here.