CAD/CAM tools raise the bar
Monday, January 1 2001
Newest software packages offer knowledgecapture tools, advanced wizards, and specialized die/mold and machining modules
IMAGE ILLUSTRATION 3CAD/CAM software advances continue, offering myriad process-specific improvements to help moldmakers and machinists design, shape, and cut parts more efficiently in job shops and large manufacturing operations. Recent knowledge-based innovations that aid CAD/CAM users may move manufacturing closer to a full realization of the "art-to-part" scenario long promised by CAD/CAM/CAE software vendors.
The latest high-end CAD/CAM packages include the updated CATIA Version 5 Release 5 from IBM Corp. (Armonk, NY) and its software developer partner Dassault Systemes (Paris, France), as well as Unigraphics Solutions Inc.'s (St. Louis) new engineering expert system-enabled Unigraphics Version 17. Unigraphics' latest CAD/CAM/CAE package features a fully integrated knowledge-based engineering (KBE) language from software partner Heide Corp. (Medfield, MA).
