SolidWorks Labs Adds 4 New Apps, Updates Site

By DE Editors

In addition to the new applications and the dozen that were already available, SolidWorks Labs (Concord, MA) has updated the entire website, providing easier navigation, product related user comments, ratings, and video overviews. The “technology sandbox” for curious 3D CAD users added four new experimental applications, all free for download, and unveiled its overhauled website.

Treehouse is a breakthrough tool for design teams that think from the top down, says the company. Users can create and customize a conceptual, graphical representation of an assembly before beginning design work, simply by dragging and dropping icons. Treehouse enables you to name your components and add custom properties all before creating a single document.

A new add-in — named Tagger — harnesses the hidden power of tags to improve communication with colleagues and business partners by injecting relevant information into design files.

Presentation Studio walks designers and engineers through the creation of high-impact interactive PDF files for non-CAD users such as customers, partners, marketers, salespersons, and executives. The files can be read by any Adobe Acrobat Reader software, version 8 or above. 3D models embedded in the PDF files have full 3D interaction, including pan, zoom, and rotate.

The COLLADA Export add-in lets SolidWorks users export solid models in an industry standard 3D object and motion format for use in programs like Microsoft Robotics Developer Studio 2008. Robotics developers can use the studio software to correct any application issues early and maximize their performance.

For further details, visit Dassault Systemes SolidWorks Corp. or Dassault Systemes.

Sources: Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company's website.