(Image courtesy of solidThinking.)
Designed to be easier to use than most modeling software but with less extensive capabilities, the solidThinking Design Suite includes Evolve and Inspire for building designs and performing topology optimization and structural analysis. These tools help engineers investigate designs faster, minimize the material needed for parts and predict product performance under required loads.
Unlike most structural simulation platforms, Inspire can generate shapes with optimal weight and material placement in a structure by using the loads as inputs. New features in the 2017 release include:
- The aforementioned new Motiontool for mechanizing models in order to investigate motion in a system and predict loads for moving parts;
- Topography Optimization tools for changing the shapes of shell structures through stamped bead patterns, used to improve patterns and improving structural performance;
- Updates to the Partition tools that will allow users to divide parts into different regions (design and non-design) by selecting pockets, holes or faces to offset and
- A new Bolt Pretension tool that will allow users to obtain more accurate results for analyses that include bolts under pretension.
Evolve includes parametric control for solids, modeling of NURBS-based surfaces and tools for rendering and visualization—with simpler steps and more organic drawing tools than conventional CAD software, but again without some of the more complex features. The environment allows exporting to CAD programs, so that engineers can add final touches or more complicated surfaces after they’ve drawn up a design with Evolve.
Evolve is particularly powerful for enabling designs in a fast-paced development environment by helping teams drive quickly through many iterations, noted Jens Andersson, design lead at Philips. This brings design concepts to life more quickly. Based on customer requests, new features in the 2017 release of Evolve include:
- Planar Symmetry and Radial Symmetry tools to replace the Mirror and Polar Copy tools;
- Images rendered in Evolve will now include a depth channel (TIFF)that can be saved in the image browser. These can be used for post-processing, including such as in programs like Adobe Photoshop, and for simulating the blurring of foreground and background scene elements;
- Improved import and export capabilities for SVG, PDF 2D, DWG and DXF formats;
- A new length parameter for the Line and Rounded Polyline features
- The Curve Offset tool has been improved for working directly on surface edges.