When a system relies on automatically tracking the geometric relationships (using planarity, concentricity, tangency and such) to make edits, the data needs to be in a good state.Ĭonsider fillets. While these are now commonplace in many systems, when those systems have a reliance on direct editing, the need for good quality data is paramount. It’s interesting to see the geometry wrangling tools built into this release. It can redefine the precision (read: tolerance) of the data and can replace blend surfaces where appropriate. This goes beyond the Inspector tool to improve the geometry. The second tool is the Geometry Optimiser. It’ll find them, try to fix them and make the geometry workable. This looks at the imported part and finds geometry problems that can cause errors downstream such as self intersection degenerate geometry and loop inconsistencies.
Solid Edge Simulation ST5 includes the ability to analyse thermal and heat transfer effects on designs due to steady-state heat sources Building on this, the ST5 release introduces two new tools that allow users to bring geometry in and find and fix problems to make data re-use easier. Synchronous technology allows models to be manipulated easily if the data has come from other systems. The ability to work with imported models from disparate systems is an age old problem and something that Siemens seems to have focussed on for this release. It’s easy to redefine and edit, but also easier to create more realistic mechanisms. The benefit is that the centre line is retained and can be used to mate together assembly parts that run in that slot. Users can now create slots with much greater ease – a centre line is sketched, then the system does the rest according to the user’s requirements. Play the slotsĪlthough, this might seem a small feature update, for those that regularly have to create these types of features, it’s going to be a boon. When the time comes, these bodies can then be rationalised into a traditional assembly and part structure, with separate part files and references. Additionally, bodies can be split and merged, bodies added with an import and others can be used to cut geometry features. This enables users to make edits and cross part references more easily. It just makes life easier at that formative stage.įor instance, this means that an assembly model, such as a STEP file, can now be imported into a single part with each part stored as a separate body rather than an overly complex assembly and part structure. Personally, I find working with multiple bodies in a single part much easier than working across assemblies, particularly when complex geometric references are rife. From this point on, it joins most other systems in providing additional capabilities that make the tools much more usable.
This is where Solid Edge has been up till ST5. Anyone working in mechanism and structural design will recognise the benefit of that. Multiple disjointed bodies allow the user to build to reference features, then construct the connection between the two. Then came the ability to hold multiple bodies in a single part.Ī new Slot command in Solid Edge ST5 simplifies the creation of assemblies with sliding parts For those who aren’t familiar with it, here are the basics.īack in the day, most 3D solid modelling systems only allowed the user to have a single manifold body in a part file – everything had to be connected and contiguous. Let’s kick off with multi-body modelling. So what does Solid Edge ST5 have in store? 3D modelling updates This means that the user can now have both types of features in a single part – using the tools most appropriate to the job at hand. Even the last few Solid Edge releases have seen the ordered (history-based) and synchronous toolsets start to merge. The initial diametrically opposed history and non-history-based modelling technologies are now starting to appear in all but a few systems. Now, four years later, the dust is settling. Solid Edge’s profile was boosted and the user community as a whole became more aware of this modelling method, which removes the reliance on a linear history of features to construct a model and lets the user work in a much more freeform, drag and drop manner. Although also implemented in Siemens’ higherend system, NX, synchronous technology brought about a tidal wave of direct modelling that enabled users to enjoy the freedom that direct editing of models supports. That was until the release of synchronous technology from the Siemens stable five years ago.