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WELCOME EDITORIAL Editor-in-Chief Al Dean al@x3dmedia.com +44 (0)7525 701 541 Managing Editor Greg Corke greg@x3dmedia.com +44 (0)20 3355 7312 Digital Media Editor Stephen Holmes stephen@x3dmedia.com +44 (0)20 3384 5297 Consulting Editor Jessica Twentyman jtwentyman@gmail.com +44 (0)20 7913 0919 Consulting Editor Martyn Day martyn@x3dmedia.com +44 (0)7525 701 542

DESIGN/PRODUCTION Design/Production Greg Corke greg@x3dmedia.com +44 (0)20 3355 7312

ADVERTISING Group Media Director Tony Baksh tony@x3dmedia.com +44 (0)20 3355 7313 Deputy Advertising Manager Steve King steve@x3dmedia.com +44 (0)20 3355 7314 US Sales Director Denise Greaves denise@x3dmedia.com +1 857 400 7713

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ACCOUNTS Accounts Manager Charlotte Taibi charlotte@x3dmedia.com Financial Controller Samantha Todescato-Rutland sam@chalfen.com

little over 13 years ago, I wrote this letter for the very first issue of DEVELOP3D. When we launched, way back in 2008, our mission was to tell the stories of how designers and engineers develop the products that we use every day, to celebrate the hard work and creative skill involved. We also wanted to investigate the tools and technologies used along the way – tools that create new workflows, reinvent existing ones and allow users to be more efficient and more creative. Since then, the world in which we operate – and in which design and engineering is conducted – has changed. The changes have been dramatic in some respects, incremental in others. The tools we use to define shape have become smarter, certainly, but there is always room for improvement and for new functionality. It’s the tools adjacent to the core 3D modelling workflow that have seen the most change. The 3D printing revolution took advantage of expiring patents to deliver a new raft of affordable devices that are now commonplace, if not ubiquitous, in the design and engineering office. This is just one example among many. So when I sit back and look at what we have accomplished with DEVELOP3D, I do so with pride. We’ve built a global community of folks who share a passion for design, engineering and technology, a community comprising both users and developers. I also realised recently that I’ve been doing this for a long time – nearly a quarter of a century, in fact. Now I find I would like to explore other avenues, wander down new side roads and find new challenges. So it’s with a little sadness that I have to tell you that this will be my final issue as Editor-in-Chief of DEVELOP3D. On a positive note, I’m delighted to say that Stephen, who’s been so instrumental in many of the things that we have accomplished, will be taking the helm from now on. A safe pair of hands to push things forward into the future, define the direction DEVELOP3D will take and keep building our incredible community. It’s been a hell of a ride, folks. Thanks for coming along and enjoy the onward journey. Dean. Out.

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CONTENTS JUNE / JULY 2021 ISSUE NO. 128

NEWS AMD launches Radeon Pro W6800 & W6600, HTC takes Vive to the next level and Autodesk makes changes to Fusion 360’s generative design pricing

18 22 24 28 36 38 43 46

FEATURES Comment: Erin McDermott on the best ways to fail Visual Design Guide: Triumph Bonneville T120 Black 2021 Event report: AMUG 2021 COVER STORY D3D’s Top 30 technologies for 2021 Leading lights: Designplan delivers on durability promise Bang on target: Nishikawa Seiki’s better archery bow A sound upgrade: Classic vehicle, modern in-car audio Talking Heads: Where does viz tech go next?

REVIEWS 53 nTopology 3.0 56 Peel 3D Peel 2 CAD-S 58 THE LAST WORD It’s the end of an era, as departing Editor-in-Chief Al Dean reflects on his tenure at DEVELOP3D and finds a common thread to his work on this publication: not tools, but people 59 DEVELOP3D SERVICES

2022

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NEWS AMD LAUNCHES RADEON PRO W6800 AND W6600 GPUS WITH HARDWARE RAY TRACING

MD has launched the AMD Radeon Pro W6800 (32 GB) and AMD Radeon Pro W6600 (8 GB), the first workstation GPUs to be based on AMD’s 7nm RDNA 2 architecture and designed specifically for hardware-accelerated ray tracing. Both AMD Radeon Pro W6000 series GPUs will also be certified for a wide range of professional applications, including all the major CAD and BIM tools. The new GPUs feature enhanced compute units (CU) with dedicated ‘Ray Accelerators’. According to AMD, this enables the Radeon Pro W6800 to deliver up to 46% faster rendering in visualisation software Solidworks Visualize, compared to the previous-generation Radeon Pro W5700. Other visualisation software that can take advantage of the new Ray Accelerators include those that use DirectX Raytracing (DXR), such as Unreal Engine; those that support Vulkan Ray tracing, including those in development at Solidworks (Project Romulan), Autodesk (One Graphics System) and Enscape; and those that support AMD Radeon ProRender 2.0, which includes Acca Software, Autodesk Inventor, Rhino, Autodesk Maya, Blender and others. The new GPUs will not accelerate ray tracing in Nvidia RTXenabled applications such as Luxion KeyShot, Chaos Vray, Chaos Vantage and Enscape 3.0. According to Siddharth Palaniappan, director of graphics and advanced visualising at Solidworks, “The Radeon Pro W6800 is the perfect card to exploit the performance of real-time ray tracing in the viewport with hardware ray tracing built into the GPU and lots of available memory to load large datasets.” Beyond hardware ray tracing, the new cards also support AMD Radeon Pro Viewport Boost, a new pro driver feature designed to reduce latency and boost viewport navigation performance. According to AMD, it can increase frames per second (FPS) by as much as 214% in Autodesk Revit without impacting the visual experience. Twinmotion, 3ds Max and Unreal Engine also work

with AMD Radeon Pro Viewport Boost, with support for other applications coming soon. AMD was reluctant to go into too much detail about how AMD Radeon Pro Viewport Boost works, but did tell us that it focuses graphics horsepower around the areas of the UI that move (the model), as opposed those that don’t (for example, menus). Also, that the benefits are bigger with larger models. AMD also highlights performance benefits for the new GPUs in DirectX 12-based applications like Lumion 11.0 and Agisoft Metashape, which performs photogrammetric processing of digital images to generate 3D reality models. Other features of the Radeon Pro W6000 Series include AMD Infinity Cache, a ‘last-level’ data cache integrated on the GPU die designed to reduce latency and power consumption. “It acts as an amplifier to the bandwidth,” says Jamie Gwilliam, senior business development manager, AMD Radeon Pro graphics. “It allows us to push through more data and reduce many of the common bottlenecks out there.” The Radeon Pro W6000 Series GPUs are also designed to work better with select AMD CPUs with AMD Smart Access Memory, which essentially gives the CPU better access to the GPU’s onboard memory. AMD says this unlocks higher performance for ‘key professional workloads’ but did not provide further details.

Above: AMD Radeon Pro W6000 series GPUs feature hardware-accelerated ray tracing and up to a massive 32GB of memory Below: With six Mini DisplayPort connectors, the AMD Radeon Pro W6800 can drive up to six displays at 5K resolution

amd.com/radeonpro

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NEWS

HTC TAKES VR TO THE NEXT LEVEL WITH NEW VR HEADSETS & PRO TOOLS

TC Vive has overhauled its professional VR headmounted displays (HMDs) with the launch of the new Vive Pro 2 and the all-in-one Vive Focus 3. The Vive Focus 3 relies on the new Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2 platform to deliver a reported improvement of twice the CPU and GPU performance and 11 times the AI processing of its predecessor. Full 5K resolution with dual 2.5K displays is complemented by a 90Hz refresh rate and 120-degree field of view to add to the VR immersion. A fast-switching display panel uses real RGB subpixels, which HTC says practically eliminates the ‘screen door’ effect. The new visuals should mean fine details are dramatically clearer, making user interaction more natural. Headset design for the Focus 3 has been overhauled, too, with a new strap design and improved weight distribution. A curved, swappable battery pack can now achieve 50% battery from a 30-minute charge, while an LED indicator lets users know how much power is remaining. New open-back speakers feature dual drivers, while a special audio privacy setting dramatically reduces the risk of sound escaping. Redesigned six-degrees-of-freedom controllers are some of the lightest on the market, delivering up to 15 hours of use on a single charge. Hand tracking support is promised for a future release.

Also launched is the Vive Pro 2 headset, which features nearly identical specs on paper to the Focus 3, adding 120 Hz refresh rate, and a new dual-stacked lens design to reduce motion blur. The big feature for the Vive Pro 2 is Display Stream Compression (DSC), seen for the first time in a VR HMD. The result of HTC working closely with Nvidia and AMD, DSC ensures maximum visual quality, while retaining backwards compatibility with DisplayPort 1.2, allowing graphics cards that supported the original Vive Pro to benefit from the latest arrival. Available as a headset-only version (with discount for those upgrading), the HMD can be picked up for £659/$749/€739. The full-kit Vive Pro 2, which also includes Base Station 2.0 and VIVE Controllers, is available from £1299/$1399/€1399. The Vive Focus 3, meanwhile, will be on sale from 27 June, for £1,060/$1,300/€1,180, which includes HTC Vive Business Warranty and Services. Said HTC CEO Cher Wang, commenting on the new product launches: “We have listened to our customers, from well-known global companies to smaller firms and professional users, and have designed these premium headsets from the ground up to meet the challenges they face, adding a professional range of software, platform and services to make implementation as smooth and effective as possible.”

Above: The allin-one HTC Vive Focus 3 relies on the new Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2 platform to run the show Below: The HTC Vive Pro 2 is available on a headset-only basis, and at an eye-catching price, for enterprise users looking to upgrade

htc.com

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AUTODESK DROPS SUBSCRIPTION COST FOR FUSION 360 GENERATIVE DESIGN TOOLS

utodesk has announced some significant changes to how its generative design tools in Fusion 360 are accessed. The company has experimented with several pricing models for its cloud-based generative design exploration tools – pay-per-use, pay-percompute, pay-per-result and more recently, introducing a pretty costly all-you-can-eat subscription model with its Generative Design Extension, coming in at $8,000 per year. The latest update sees Autodesk slash some prices dramatically, down to $1,600 for the all-you-can-eat subscription (or $200 per month), but bump up the price on pay-per-use, with compute costs now at 33 cloud credits (equivalent to $33), up from 25 credits previously. The good news for those interested in a pay-per-use model is that where Autodesk previously charged 100 cloud credits to do anything useful with a resultant model (export, conversion to t-splines and so on), this practice has been abandoned entirely. Compute is now the only charge. “In the years since we first released generative design, we’ve created efficiencies in the software, optimised in the cloud, and, thanks to input from the community, become insightful about how our customers use the tool,” said Stephen Hooper, VP and general manager of Autodesk Fusion 360. “Ranging from Airbus’s Bionic Partition to Hyundai’s Elevate walking car, and including SRAM’s lighter, stiffer bicycle parts, generative design has helped accelerate both futuristic and practical projects by our customers,” he continued.

“Experience and insight put us in a position to dramatically increase access to the technology and invite a much broader swath of Autodesk users to see what’s possible with generative design. Giving design teams of any size and budget an opportunity to explore it has been our vision since inception, as we believe it will be good for everyone.” Our thoughts: We’ve had our reservations about the pay-per-use model with this sort of tool for a long while now. On the plus side, using large-scale, massively parallel cloud-based computation to explore a design space and domain is incredibly

Nextflow CFD acquired by Siemens

iemens has acquired Nextflow Software, a provider of advanced particle-based computational fluid dynamics (CFD) solutions. Nextflow Software will become part of the Simcenter software portfolio, adding rapid meshless CFD capabilities to accelerate the analysis of complex transient applications in the automotive, aerospace and marine industries. Applications include gear box lubrication, tank sloshing and electric motor spray cooling. Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Nantes, France, Nextflow’s main focus is innovative Smooth-Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) meshless CFD methods. Along the way, it has moved SPH out of academic labs and into the hands of analysts across a range of industries, for use earlier in the product development cycle.

“Our customers need to leverage sophisticated simulations earlier and more often in their design process, and this is creating a strong demand for rapid and automated CFD of dynamic gas-liquid flows,” said Jean-Claude Ercolanelli, senior VP, simulation and test solutions, Siemens Digital Industries Software. “Meshless technology has emerged as a leading solution to greatly reduce the set-up and solving times for this class of problems, accelerating time to results and proving the behaviour of products at a reduced time and cost.” Siemens executives claim that Nextflow’s technology will enable analysts to leverage the complementary nature of both meshless and mesh-based solvers, allowing them to capitalise on each of their strengths. siemens.com

powerful and could allow design and engineering teams to find new ways of working, new forms and new methods of manufacture – all of which make products more efficient. But at the same time, making cost a potential limiting factor on projects could stifle freedom of experimentation. To experiment, we need to be able to work in an unfettered manner – and it’s hard to do that with an anxious eye on price. Seeing Autodesk lower cost of adoption is great, but the bigger news is the removal of cost-per-outcome. That’s truly gamechanging. autodesk.com

Fusion 360's generative design tools were among the first to take advantage of cloud compute and are now more affordable

AWS EC2 G4ad now supports Teradici CAS

he Amazon Web Services EC2 G4ad family of cloud-based workstations, powered by AMD Radeon Pro V520 GPUs and second-generation AMD EPYC processors, now supports Teradici Cloud Access Software (CAS) as an alternative to Amazon’s NICE DCV remote display protocol. Teradici CAS is used to stream pixels from the cloud to virtually any end device, via an encrypted streaming session using the PCoIP protocol. It places a big emphasis on high-fidelity ‘lossless’ image quality, so is well suited to users of 3D CAD, design viz and other demanding 3D applications. It also works well with a variety of input devices, including the 3Dconnexion SpaceMouse and Wacom’s range of tablets and pen displays. There are a range of software clients including Windows, Linux, Android tablets and MacOS, as well as thin and zero-client options. aws.com | teradici.com DEVELOP3D.COM JUNE / JULY 2021 11

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NEWS

11TH GEN INTEL CORE AND XEON W-11000 CPUS LAUNCH

ntel has launched its new 11th Generation Intel Core H-series (codenamed ‘Tiger Lake-H’) and Intel Xeon W-11000 series mobile processors. Both families of processors will soon be available in mobile workstations from all leading manufacturers, including the new HP ZBook G8 family and the Dell Precision 3561, 5560, 7560, 5760 and 7760. According to Intel, the new mobile processors feature double-digit, singlecore performance improvements, important for the majority of mainstream 3D CAD software products. Intel also states that there is up to 19% better multicore performance improvements, which is important for multithreaded applications like rendering, simulation, photogrammetry and point cloud processing. Single and dual-core turbo performance goes up to 5.0GHz, while the maximum 8-core turbo goes up to 4.5GHz. There are two Intel Xeon W-11000 series mobile processors, the Intel Xeon W-11955M, (eight cores, 2.60GHz up to 5.00GHz) and the Intel Xeon W-11855M (six cores, 3.20GHz up to 4.90GHz), both of which support ECC memory.

Teradici to offer remote Apple Mac access

C There are several 11th Gen Intel Core processors, including the top-end Intel Core i9-11950H (eight cores, 2.60GHz to 5.00GHz). Although some of the 11th Gen Intel Core models are labelled ‘consumer’, many of them will still be available in the kinds of mobile workstations regularly used by professionals. New platform features also include 20 PCIe Gen 4.0 lanes, memory support up to DDR4-3200, 6GHz Intel Killer WiFi 6E (Gig+) support and Thunderbolt 4 with transfer speeds up to 40Gbps. intel.com

New mobile CPUs – including Xeon W-11000 and Intel Core – offer doubledigit, single-core performance improvements and up to 19% better multicore performance compared to the previous gen

KeyShot 10.2 brings new library, mesh simplication tools & better GPU caustics

eyShot 10.2 has launched, bringing new features and enhancements on top of those introduced in KeyShot 10 and offering extra scope for new options and optimisations. The updates within KeyShot 10.2 are headed by a new geometry tool – the Mesh Simplification tool – which allows users to reduce the number of triangles in a mesh while keeping its overall shape. This should prove useful for simplifying geometry for later use in KeyVR or other AR applications, where performance relies on the number of triangles in the model.

The Mesh Simplification tool is similar to the Re-Tessellate tool that requires NURBS to calculate the new mesh. For models that do not have any NURBS, Mesh Simplification means users can sidestep the need to reduce quality in the modelling software only to re-import it into KeyShot. The KeyShot Materials Library has been overhauled with new material-specific thumbnails to visualise material appearance and properties more accurately. Users now get the option to select the thumbnail style from among seven different models for preset, downloaded or newly created materials. Alongside this, the library will now load resources dynamically and is no longer locked while downloading takes place. Additionally, Luxion executives have said that a new caustic algorithm, first developed for KeyShot 10, brings additional refinement and speed improvements to KeyShot 10.2. The new algorithm, they claim, can handle thousands of lights, runs fast on the new Nvidia RTX Ampere GPUs, and allows details and fine structures in caustics to be seen in a fraction of the time, both up close and at a distance. keyshot.com

ombined with MacStadium Mac cloud solutions, Teradici CAS is looking to offer users GPU-accelerated access to MacOS CAD tools. Teradici has teamed up with MacStadium to develop a cloud solution that enables Mac users to remotely access Apple hardware as if they were on a local machine. The service uses MacStadium’s cloudhosted Apple Mac infrastructure to streamline and accelerate the delivery of Teradici Cloud Access Software (CAS) to Mac customers across the globe. teradici.com | macstadium.com

Shapeways adds traditional manufacturing

hapeways is set to expand its global digital manufacturing platform, by adding six traditional manufacturing technologies to its global network of verified 3D printer, materials and manufacturing partners. While best-known for its online 3D printing services, Shapeways is aiming to facilitate all its customers’ manufacturing processes, by offering a mix of 3D printing and conventional techniques. shapeways.com

Theorem JT to Catia V5 focuses on Ford suppliers

T to Catia V5 from Theorem is the latest release from the Ford-certified software supplier, with Ford having chosen the translator to support both its internal ‘Design in Context’ strategies and external design and manufacturing communications with suppliers. The JT to Catia V5 product directly converts the data into the V5 version of Dassault Systèmes’ CAD software. The translator converts all forms of 3D mechanical design geometry and assembly data and also converts PMI from an existing JT file into a Catia representation. theorem.com

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DELL LAUNCHES 11TH GEN INTEL CORE AND XEON W-11000M PRO LAPTOPS

ell has launched five new mobile workstations featuring 11th Gen Intel Core and Intel Xeon W-11000M series CPUs, Nvidia ‘Ampere’ RTX GPUs, and PCIe Gen 4 SSDs. This includes three 15-inch models, the Dell Precision 3561, 5560 and 7560, and two 17-inch models, the Dell Precision 5760 and 7760. The entry-level Dell Precision 3561 has been completely redesigned, from the use of reclaimed carbon fibre and bioplastics on the outside, to the ‘significant performance features’ on the inside. The 15-inch laptop features a new Pro2 keyboard and larger touchpad and can now support hard disk drives (HDDs) as well as solid state drives (SSDs) to offer budget-conscious users a lower price per GB on storage. Compared to the Dell Precision 3560 it replaces, CPU and graphics have been beefed up considerably, with a choice of 45W 11th Gen Intel Core CPUs (compared to the 17.5W CPUs in the Dell Precision 3560) and Nvidia T600 (4GB) and Nvidia T1200 (4GB) GPU options for mainstream 3D CAD/BIM work. These changes have resulted in a slightly larger and heavier chassis, but the Dell Precision 3561 still starts at 1.79kg. All other new Precision models have inherited chassis from their predecessors. The Dell Precision 5560 features the same lightweight combination of aluminium and carbon fibre, 92% display-to-body ratio and a foursided, 15-inch InfinityEdge 16:10 aspect ratio display. With an incredibly thin chassis (7.7mm front and 11.6mm rear), the Dell Precision 5560 features entry-level graphics options including the Nvidia T1200 (4GB) and Nvidia RTX A2000 (4GB), which are best suited to 3D CAD/BIM and entry-level viz workflows. However, there’s no compromise on CPUs, with options going up to the Intel Xeon W-11955M (8 Core, 2.60GHz up to 5.00GHz). The laptop supports up to 64GB of DDR4, 3200MHz memory. It starts at 1.84kg. The Dell Precision 5760, meanwhile, remains the only thin and light 17-inch mobile workstation from a major vendor. It is intended as a replacement for the Dell Precision 5750, but features an enhanced thermal design including dual-output fans, a vapour chamber and hidden exhaust venting through the hinge. Like the 15-inch Dell Precision 5560, it features a combination of aluminium and carbon fibre for the chassis and a 94% displayto-body ratio, thanks to the four-sided InfinityEdge, 16:10 aspect ratio display. The thin and light design means some compromise on graphics,

with the Nvidia RTX A2000 (4GB) and Nvidia RTX A3000 (6GB) being the only options, although the latter is ‘VR Ready’. However, it offers the same broad choice of 45W Intel Core and Xeon CPUs. It supports up to 64GB of DDR4, 3200MHz memory and starts at 2.13kg. The Dell Precision 7560 is Dell’s highest performing 15-inch mobile workstation, with the main boost coming in graphics. It offers a choice of Nvidia GPUs, from the entry-level Nvidia T1200 (4GB) up to the Nvidia RTX A5000 (16GB). It supports up to 128GB of DDR4, 3200MHz memory. The Dell Precision 7560 also offers enhanced display options, up to the brighter (800 nits) 15.6-inch UHD HDR 600 4k panel with 100% Adobe colour gamut. There’s capacity for up to three M.2 SSDs and it starts at 2.45kg. The Dell Precision 7760 is Dell’s highest performing 17.3-inch mobile workstation, with almost identical CPU and GPU options to the 15-inch Precision 7560, as well as 128GB memory. At 500 nits, the top-end 4K display isn’t as bright, but still offers 100% Adobe colour gamut. The machine can hold up to four M.2 SSDs for up to 14TB of storage and starts at 3.01kg.

(Bottom left) The Dell Precision 5560 features an incredibly slim chassis made out of aluminium and carbon fibre (Below) The new ‘entry-level’ Precision 3450 SFF desktop workstation

NEW DESKTOP WORKSTATIONS Dell has also launched two new ‘entry-level’ desktop workstations, the Dell Precision 3450 SFF and 3650. Both machines feature 11th Gen Intel Core or Xeon W-1300 CPUs (up to eight cores), up to 128GB of 3,200MHz memory, PCIe Gen 4 SSDs, WiFi and a choice of Nvidia and AMD professional graphics options. With a small form factor chassis, the Dell Precision 3450 comes with a more limited set of processor options, maxing out at the 65W Intel Core i9-11900 (8 core, 3.3GHz, up to 5.2GHz) and 80W Intel Xeon W-1390 (8 Core, 2.8GHz, up to 5.2GHz). With a larger chassis, bigger PSU and more thermal headroom, the Dell Precision 3650 increases the choice with the 125W Intel Core i9-11900K (8 Core, 3.5 GHz to 5.3 GHz) and Intel Xeon W-1390P (8 Core, 3.5 GHz up to 5.3 GHz). Both of these CPUs feature higher-base clock speeds so the Dell Precision 3650 should deliver better multithreaded performance. When compared to their predecessors (the Dell Precision 3440 and 3640), the new machines should deliver better performance in single-threaded CAD applications, but in multithreaded workflows like rendering, they could be slower. This is because the Dell Precision 3440 and Dell Precision 3640 both offer 10th Generation Intel Core and Xeon processors with 10 cores, two more than the new Intel CPUs. dell.com/precision

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NEWS

FORMLABS UPDATES SINTERING MATERIALS WITH NYLON 11

3D Systems sells off On-Demand Manufacturing

D printing giant 3D Systems has announced that it has signed an agreement to sell its On-Demand Manufacturing business to Trilantic North America for a purchase price of $82 million. The sale includes the company’s On-Demand Manufacturing experts and facilities in the US, France, Italy and the UK. These facilities will be rebranded as Quickparts, offering a variety of advanced and rapid manufacturing services, including additive and subtractive capabilities. 3dsystems.com | quickparts.com

ormlabs has been busy expanding its material line-up for its selective laser sintering Fuse 1 3D printer, with the new launch of Nylon 11 Powder. Company executives say that the new material was developed to bolster design and creation capabilities at a low cost per part. Nylon 11 powder, they claim, requires less training to use, and less additional equipment, when compared to other PA11 materials currently available. Using the new material, Formlabs’ Fuse 1 SLS 3D printer can print functional parts. In this way, the company is “expanding the functionality of the Fuse 1 and

enabling users to print end-use parts that can handle wear and tear over time, all inhouse,” explained a spokesperson. They describe Nylon 11 Powder as having “ductile, strong and flexible qualities”, making it well suited for snaps, clips and hinges, for example. It’s also suggested that the material is a good fit for prototypes that may experience drops or impacts. According to Formlabs, this launch is just one of many the company has planned for the Fuse 1 – in line with the company’s ambition to provide a complete solution for end-use 3D printing through the versatility of powder-based materials. formlabs.com

The new Nylon 11 powder for the Fuse 1 compliments the Nylon 12 launch material with more flexibility and a little more resistance to UV and heat

AESUB introduces bulk and longer-lasting versions of vanishing sprays for 3D scanning

ESUB is expanding its range of vanishing aerosols, designed to assist with scanning transparent, reflective or deep-pocketed objects. These sprays create a matt white coat on surfaces, reducing reflection and other inhomogeneities to deliver perfect scanning conditions. Unlike traditional sprays, AESUB vanishing sprays are free of pigments. This means they can be applied directly on to an object to be scanned, greatly increases efficiency and productivity within the digitising process. The company has recently introduced two new versions to its existing line-up of sprays: AESUB Orange is a long-lasting aerosol version, for scanning even complex geometries that demand longer scanning times.

AESUB Green is a bulk version for spray-gun application, for very large surfaces to be scanned by handheld, metrology or terrestrial laser scanners. aesub.com

IDC invests in own injection moulding facility

DC (Industrial Design Consultancy) has announced the acquisition of Naiad Plastics, an injection moulding company based in Littlehampton, UK, in a move that looks to benefit small to medium volume production for its clients. For nearly 50 years, IDC has been involved in designing thousands of products, many of which have included injection moulded parts. As a result, design for injection moulding has become one of IDC’s key areas of expertise. “During this time we have developed many strong relationships with some extremely good injection moulding companies around the world including in India, China and across Europe,” said an IDC spokesperson. “These valuable partners will continue to be a great choice for many of our clients. However, for customers looking to manufacture in low and medium volume – typically in the range of 1,000 to 100,000 units per year, the cost and logistics of managing Far Eastern suppliers can be difficult to justify and manufacturing in the UK has some significant advantages.” IDC’s statement goes on to say that, without a doubt, the combined impacts of Brexit and COVID have further accelerated this trend. In order to assist its customers’ needs for a smooth and efficient transition from design to production, this deal makes a lot of sense. By taking ownership of the full process, from design right through to production, IDC avoids the difficulties associated with handovers and can act as a more responsive and fully accountable design partner to its customers. idc.uk.com

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HP ZBOOK G8 PRO LAPTOPS LAUNCH WITH 11TH GEN INTEL CORE H-SERIES PROCESSORS

P has unveiled its HP ZBook G8 portfolio of mobile workstations, featuring 11th Gen Intel Core H-Series CPUs, Nvidia ‘Ampere’ RTX GPUs and (on select models) Intel Xeon W-11000M series CPUs and AMD Radeon Pro GPUs. The pro laptops also feature enhanced security, PCIe Gen 4 SSDs, new Dreamcolor display options and support for Thunderbolt 4, which allows users to plug in dual 4k displays or a single 8k display. The industrial design and aluminium/magnesium chassis, complete with military spec testing and durability, carry over from the HP ZBook G7 editions.HP has also extended its focus on sustainability by utilising recycled product metals, plastics, and 100% recyclable packaging materials. There are four new HP ZBook G8 models: the ZBook Power G8, ZBook Studio G8, ZBook Fury 15.6-inch G8 and ZBook Fury 17.3inch G8. They join the ZBook Firefly G8, which launched earlier this year. With a total of five machines, it appears that HP is now consolidating what was by far the largest range of mobile workstations from any single vendor, including the 2-in-1 ZBook Studio 360 and HP ZBook x2.

SECURITY HP has beefed up the security on the HP ZBook G8 portfolio with two new features: a Tamper Lock intrusion detection system and a new Tile device location feature to help find a lost/stolen laptop through an app, even when it’s turned off, as long as the laptop has battery power. The Tamper Lock can give alerts or take actions if the bottom service panel is removed. It’s designed to prevent people from stealing memory or drives or trying to input malicious data, says HP. The admin can define what action to take if the bottom comes off. It could be as simple as an alert (either locally or to the admin), or the system could automatically shut down, the BIOS automatically lock, or TPM or BitLocker keys become enabled.

ZCENTRAL REMOTE BOOST For the launch of the new HP ZBook G8 family, HP is also highlighting the integration with HP ZCentral Remote Boost software, which comes free with all ZBooks and allows individuals to remotely connect to a dedicated HP Z workstation. According to HP’s Brian Allen, there are several scenarios where the remote graphics software could be used in AEC. First, a designer with an HP ZBook Studio could have other designers from around the world remote into the laptop and collaborate on a 3D model. Second, it could be used to remotely show 3D models to prospective clients, which could be particularly useful during COVID restrictions. Three, it could allow the user to tap into more power and performance. So a designer using an HP ZBook Studio at home, , for example, could remote into an HP Z8 desktop workstation in the office which has more powerful GPUs and multicore CPUs.

The highly portable 15.6-inch mobile workstation is 17.5mm thick and starts at 1.79kg. It offers a choice of 11th Generation Intel Core H-Series processors up to the Intel Core i9-11950H (8core, 2.6 GHz up to 5.0 GHz) and up to 32GB RAM. It also features an optional 120Hz HP DreamColor display with a billion colours, 100% DCI-P3, and ‘end-to-end’ colour accuracy with Pantone validation.

The HP ZBook Studio G8 offers both pro and consumer graphics options in the same machine

HP ZBOOK FURY G8 The HP ZBook Fury comes in two sizes: a 15.6-inch and a 17.3-inch model. It’s thicker and heavier than the HP ZBook Studio G8. As such, it is able to offer users more storage, including highcapacity HDDs, and up to 128GB RAM. It offers a similar choice of CPU and GPUs, but also adds the AMD Radeon Pro W6600M into the mix. The 120Hz HP DreamColor display is also available as an option on this model. Since the HP ZBook Fury is significantly larger than the HP ZBook Studio, our feeling is that it should be able to extract more performance from the high-end GPUs, as a result of its better cooling and increased power draw. That could potentially be very useful when both CPU and GPU are in heavy use. But a quick word of warning: as always, this might not prove to be the case in real-life workplace situations. On the slimmer HP ZBook Studio, HP’s marketing machine is making a big noise about this model’s ‘vapour chamber’ cooling, which includes custom fans for cooling both GPU and CPU. “It gives us the capabilities of being able to have a highperformance system that’s unthrottled and still managing key and acoustics and to give you that best experience possible,” said HP’s Brian Allen.

HP ZBOOK POWER G8 The HP ZBook Power is billed as HP’s ‘most affordable’ mobile workstation and is targeted at entry-level users and students. This 15.6-inch laptop offers similar CPU options, up to 64GB of RAM and more mainstream graphics options up to the Nvidia RTX A2000. It’s 22.8mm thick and weight starts at 1.89 kg. The HP ZBook Power G8 is expected to be available this month. The HP ZBook Studio G8 and HP ZBook Fury G8 will follow in July 2021. hp.com/z

HP ZBOOK STUDIO G8 For the HP ZBook Studio G8 edition, HP has consolidated two products into one. Previously, the HP ZBook Studio G7 came with a choice of Nvidia Quadro pro graphics with ISV certifications, while the HP ZBook Create G7 offered Nvidia GeForce consumer graphics. The new HP ZBook Studio G8 now offers both pro and consumer graphics options in the same machine. The options here include Nvidia T1200 (4GB), RTX A2000 (4GB), RTX A3000 (6GB), RTX A4000 (8GB), RTX A5000 (16GB) or GeForce RTX 3060 (6GB), 3070 (8GB) or 3080 (16GB). DEVELOP3D.COM JUNE / JULY 2021 15

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NEWS

RIVEN ANNOUNCES QUICK RE-SCALING TOOL FOR ADDITIVE

iven is introducing a new re-scaling tool for 3D printing, which aims to makes it easier to print parts more accurately. Riven’s software automatically computes re-scaling factors as compared to the original CAD, which should make all 3D printing processes, from FDM through metal 3D printing, more accurate with quick 3D re-scaling. Unlike checking limited dimensions with callipers or a coordinate measuring machine (CMM), Riven uses a full-part capture to compute an optimal solution based on the entire part to produce more accurate results. The company claims that its solution takes only minutes to quickly re-scale and create results with clear indications of the location and degree of variance from the intended design. After applying the re-scaling factors, the CAD-

compare result for the second printed part shows that it is more accurate, with deviations reduced significantly in critical areas. Once Riven’s re-scaling tool for 3D printing has checked a test part, new parts can be quickly adjusted using the established re-scaling factors. “Fast 3D re-scaling data can save hours, iterations and costs and produce significantly more accurate parts,” said a Riven spokesperson. “With only a few minutes for a quick scan and automatic CAD-compare, Riven keeps your projects running smoothly, even when you change materials, settings or print in a different location in the print volume,” they added. Riven’s re-scaling tool can also be used to calibrate entire build volumes for binder-jet and other professional machines. riven.ai

Prodrive Ventures' RAPID Challenge returns

pplications are now open for the 2021 RAPID Challenge. The event is organised by Prodrive Ventures, the investment arm of British motorsport and advanced engineering business Prodrive, and seeks to identify, reward and help bring the best and most innovative British-based hardware start-ups to market. As well as prize packages for winners, all projects that match the entry criteria benefit from a range of dedicated workshops. They also get valuable help and advice from the Challenge’s partners in building business plans for their projects.

Five successful submissions go forward to an interview stage, with three reaching the final at Prodrive’s headquarters in Banbury in November. Here, projects are presented and the winner announced. For 2021, there is a prize package worth £75,000, which includes cash and a range of services from The RAPID Challenge partners: RPD International, TBAT Innovation, HSBC, Crowdcube, Bridgehead International Agency, OnePLM, The IP Asset Partnership, EY and media partner DEVELOP3D. Applications open on 1 June and will close on 30 July 2021. Find out more here: therapidchallenge.com/apply

New car paint collection from digital asset & training specialist Greyscalegorilla

reyscalegorilla Plus has added a new car paint collection, consisting of over 30 hyper-realistic, drag-anddrop car paint materials for Arnold, Octane and Redshift. The collection offers an extensive array of options for rendering photorealistic cars, from sparkling retro metallic finishes to camo wraps. They're not just for cars, either, according to the company. They could equally be applied to “motorcycles and helmets, guitars and drum sets, bumper cars and bowling balls.” Since the creation of believable car paint materials from scratch can be a time-consuming activity, often requiring extensive shading knowledge, this could be a real time-saver for many users. greyscalegorilla.com

ROUND UP Volume Graphics CT data analysis software suite has added further capabilities in version 3.5, for users looking for better ways to inspect parts and improve designs, whatever the manufacturing method. A key change is that it has completely reworked the manufacturing geometry correction module volumegraphics.com

The MSI Creator Z16 is the brand’s new 16-inch laptop designed for ‘creators’, and the slimline model featuring the latest Intel Core processors and Nvidia GPUs. The Creators tag is intended to include visualisation experts using applications like V-Ray, Unreal Engine and Enscape msi.com

The BCN3D Smart Cabinet has launched, offering optimal humidity levels for 3D printing filaments, and completing the brand’s Epsilon ecosystem of bench top 3D printers – the Epsilon W27 and Epsilon W50. The BCN3D Smart Cabinet relies on smart drying technology to ensure that filaments are kept in peak condition bcn3d.com

Light Tracer Render v1.9 has been announced, with the GPU renderer adding further updates and new features, including support for the Disney material model, which makes the software more compatible with other 3D rendering tools, such as Blender (Cycles and Eevee) and LuxCore lighttracer.org

Ultimaker has added PETG to its materials list as the company continues to address industrial 3D printing. Extensively tested, the brand states its latest material is resistant to wear, extreme temperatures and chemicals ultimaker.com

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OPTIMISE YOUR ENTIRE PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT PROCESS Engineering Product development Design Manufacturing 3D printing / Additive Virtual Reality (VR) Mixed Reality (MR) Generative design Workstations CAD Artificial Intelligence (AI) Simulation •

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6 April 2022 University of Sheffield UK develop3dlive.com

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COMMENT

Her latest project may not have gone as hoped, but Erin McDermott is taking some valuable lessons away from the demise of OddEngineer.com and remains committed to testing out her ideas in real-life experiments

failed – and here’s what I learned. My pilot project for OddEngineer.com ended on 26 May. It did not go as I hoped, but it did go as planned. This platform, for paying for one-hour appointments with niche engineering experts, was an experiment. The scheduling software was a minimum viable product to connect freelance engineers with more clients. My immediate goal was at least one appointment for each engineer within four months. In this, I failed. However, my grander goal was to prove or disprove a theory: a hub for booking experts shortterm can attract clients to the benefit of everyone involved – true or false? Answer obtained: False. And therefore, a success. Before the lockdowns, I spent countless hours on free preliminary consultations and travelling to find clients. My subcontractors benefited from those contracts far more than I did. I shielded them from annoying things clients do and I paid them generously. At the same time, I took huge hits when they didn’t follow my directions or made errors. So, with OddEngineer, I tried to create a new, travel-free lead generation tool that removed my risk and unpaid hours. Clients engaged directly with the engineers, not with my company. I only provided the automated platform.

THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY On the positive side, some surprisingly useful feedback included ideas that clients came up with on how to use appointments. For example: “Could I use them to have an expert weigh in during a team meeting at the start of a design?” Or: “What about for having an expert present at design reviews at the end of projects?” Others asked: “Can they teach our technical recruiters what’s needed for different engineering jobs?” My response: “Wow, I never thought of that – but YES!” On the negative side, while prospective clients expressed enthusiasm, few immediately booked appointments. I heard a lot of, “This will be really helpful in a few months!” To which I replied, “Unfortunately, it likely won’t be around then.” I get this feedback for my niche optical engineering company, too, where clients don’t

need me until months or even years after we meet. However, I hoped this platform would play out differently. For one reason, I featured a wide spread of disciplines, to increase the chances a visitor would need one of us right away. Also, one-hour appointments aren’t a huge investment, requiring a VP’s signature. The cost is low and the risk/reward ratio is highly favourable. But as it turns out, easy access to many niche experts is as hard to promote as a single expertise! Some suggested I run OddEngineer.com longer, but getting 13 appointments in four months was not an unrealistic goal. If the idea were viable, it would have proved itself in that time.

want to book with them. The main lesson I learned is that engineers and hardware start-ups that understand what it takes to make it are an anomaly. The distribution looks less like a bell curve and more like a Dirac delta function. Initially, I asked for $50 from each engineer to create their profile. Ace engineers whose businesses were strong immediately plunked down the cash. Struggling engineers saw marketing as an unnecessary expense, and either hemmed and hawed or ghosted me. On the client side, winning engineering teams go to great lengths to seek out experts to provide



The main lesson I learned is that engineers and hardware start-ups that understand what it takes to make it are an anomaly. The distribution looks less like a bell curve and more like a Dirac delta function

 On the downright ugly side is the fact that I ran headlong into all the issues I was fleeing! Day and night, I churned out content. This left no time for revenue-earning engineering work. So, I put in more unpaid hours than ever and earned far less. In terms of extraneous communications from clients, I still got a ton. I was bombarded by those wanting white-gloved concierge service from me to pick out their engineer. Those booking appointments with me also emailed trying to get me to do free work outside of the paid appointment, or to see if they could avoid paying. Additionally, engineers flooded my inbox wanting promotion. They found it a better use of their time to directly contact me than to research the site to find the waiting list.

early guidance. They know it’s vitally important in preventing their project from becoming a dumpster fire. However, it turns out way more engineering teams than I realised penny pinch in the wrong places and avoid critical guidance. I’m not sure where I will take this thing. Maybe I’ll focus on the promotional content engineers need and want so much. Maybe I’ll create educational content to shift mindsets from dumpster fire to high-flyer. Or, maybe those rare, winning-mindset pros could benefit from a community where they can find each other. Whatever the next iteration, it will proceed like a prudent engineering design: based on lessons learned from real experiments.

LESSONS LEARNED

GET IN TOUCH: Erin M McDermott directs optical engineering at Spire Starter, helping hardware engineers who don’t know that things using light (cameras, LED illumination, laser processes and so on) need competent design, optimisation and tolerancing, just like the rest of their widget. Get in touch at spirestarter.com or @erinmmcdermott

In the end, three appointments were booked with yours truly, plus a couple I paid for through a promotional giveaway. I realised too late that promotions including my visage yielded my disproportionate success. It seems that clients need engineers shoved in their face in order to

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09/06/2021 08:58

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VISUAL DESIGN GUIDE TRIUMPH BONNEVILLE T120 BLACK 2021 The Triumph Bonneville needs no introduction, but it’s clear from this new design for the 2021 range that Hinckley’s finest aren’t relying on legacy to impress NEW INSTRUMENT DIAL FACE The upgraded 2021 Bonneville T100 is equipped with a new instrument dial face, with Bonneville branding and a traditional typeface. The integrated, multi-function display is easily controlled through the handlebarmounted scroll button

STYLING THAT BUILDS ON LEGACY Reflecting the T100’s original Bonneville DNA, there are beautiful and authentic styling details throughout, from the contrast piping on the seat to the knee pads on the signature Bonneville tank cut-outs, the steel rear mudguard, the chrome-finished mirrors and the chrome handlebars, headlamp bezel and filler cap. The compact and elegant rear light is fully LED for power efficiency and stylish high visibility

ENHANCED PERFORMANCE The new Triumph Bonneville T100 features a high-torque, 900cc twin-cylinder Bonneville engine. Peak power is 10PS higher than the previous generation, at 65PS at 7,400 rpm, while peak torque is 80NM at 3750 rpm, with 80% of peak torque available all the way from 2000 rpm to 7000rpm

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BEAUTIFUL EVOLUTION Triumph’s legendary modern classic motorcycle family has been upgraded for 2021, with a host of significant updates across the line-up, including enhanced performance, capability and style. From the timeless classic Bonneville T120, T120 Black and T100, to the stylish and contemporary custom Street Twin and new Street Twin Gold Line Limited Edition, the laidback Bonneville Speedmaster cruiser and the pure custom Bonneville Bobber, each model has evolved beautifully

ENHANCED HANDLING The handling of the 2021 Bonneville T100 has been enhanced by the 4kg weight reduction. It also comes with a higher specification Brembo 2-piston front brake and higher spec cartridge front forks

WIDE RANGE OF ACCESSORIES Riders can personalise their T100, thanks to a range of 117 genuine accessories. These have all been developed and tested alongside the bike to ensure perfect integration and to provide plenty of customisation options to fit different tastes and needs

LIGHTER WEIGHT The engine of the new T100 is considerably lighter than the previous version, thanks to the low-inertia crank shaft, lighter balancer shafts, a thin-walled clutch cover and a magnesium cam cover, all significantly contributing to the overall 4kg weight reduction

NEXT STEPS

The new 2021 Bonneville T120 and T120 Black are available now triumphmotorcycles.co.uk

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EVENT REPORT

AMUG 2021

Despite the impact of travel restrictions and social distancing measures, our correspondent SJ found much to enjoy (and learn) at AMUG 2021, held in Orlando last month

look around, slightly confused. Then I look back at the panel all eager to get back to in-person events. At the time of writing, the host. She smiles warmly, or at least I think she does. It’s official numbers aren’t available, but from my queries, it seems that hard to tell, because of her face mask. I ask again, “So… I can some 1,100 people descended on Orlando for the conference. That’s literally just go and sit with whichever subject matter expert I about half the usual attendance. want to, and start asking them questions?” She nods. Of course, travel restrictions kept most people from the UK and As I squeeze myself into an ongoing conversation, a woman Europe from journeying across the pond. The same applied to US is explaining the current situation regarding FDA [Federal Drug attendees residing in states hit harder by the virus and imposing Administration] rules and getting approvals for metal implants. more stringent rules around inter-state travel. Most notable was “And that,” she concludes, “is why Class II medical devices are so the absence of many additive companies based on the US West complicated.” Coast. With many new rocket companies signalling their moves I wait for a moment, then raise my hand. She assures me that’s towards AM, that was a disappointment. Also not in attendance not necessary. This is an open space, she says, gesturing for me to were the big vendors and their absence was profoundly felt. continue. Blushing, I clear my throat, adjust my mask and ask my No Stratasys, no DesktopMetal, no EOS, Carbon, GE or HP. question: “Are Some might the qualification argue that it was pathways for metal foolish to attend a AM parts similar conference while As I squeeze myself into an ongoing conversation, a for medical and the virus (and its woman is explaining the current situation regarding aerospace. Which variants) are still FDA [Federal Drug Administration] rules and getting one do you feel is ravaging the globe. more stringent – if Most attendees I approvals for metal implants. “And that,” she concludes, you don’t mind spoke to personally “is why Class II medical devices are so complicated” sharing that said they hadn’t information?” travelled until they’d She doesn’t mind at least had their first at all. It’s an excellent question, she says. She’s glad I asked. vaccine dose. That was slightly reassuring, but I still kept a vigilant And so my visit to the 2021 AMUG Conference continued, with me watch over every crowd for anyone showing symptoms of sniffling, wandering from room to room, conversing with high-profile LinkedIn sneezing, coughing, fever or chills. I’m sure plenty of others were celebrities and the most knowledgeable members of the industry. I doing the same. asked all of my wildest questions and I got frank, honest answers in return. Questions that I didn’t feel were significant enough to ask HOT TOPICS over email were suddenly hot topics in dinner conversations: What Given the reduced size of this year’s expo floor at AMUG, it was a machine are you using? How’s the service with that? Do you have little hard to gauge which industry trends are really grabbing the one of the larger printers? How does your factory floor handle the most attention, but here’s my personal take on the themes that really footprint? How many lasers does that one have? stood out for me. For me, this was an amazing opportunity to shoot questions in rapid fire at influential members of the AM community. But I found that I Hybrid manufacturing: The combination of additive and subtractive personally was only asked one question, over and over again: “So, SJ, manufacturing within the same machine is a hot topic right now. what do you think of AMUG?” Sure, the machines may be costly and the technology comes with a steep learning curve. But hybrid manufacturing can drastically A DIFFERENT VIBE reduce lead times for printing and machining of a specific part. Back in 2018, AMUG played host to 1,705 attendees. In 2019, there There’s a side bonus, too: reduced shop-floor footprint. This were 2,064 attendees. With the cancellation of the 2020 event, due technology is currently geared for prototyping, repair and lowto Covid, I had anticipated a large surge of people at AMUG 2021, volume production.

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New materials: The expo floor at AMUG saw the appearance of new powder suppliers and a showcase of exotic materials. Most notable was the focus around bringing refractory metals into the wider AM world. Tantalum was a big point of focus; with its ability to perform at both subzero and high temperatures and its resistance to oxidation, it’s an excellent candidate for future space applications. Plus, its wear-resistance properties and biocompatibility are garnering interest from the medical market, too.

Binder jetting: Binder jetting may have been around for two decades or more, but it’s currently enjoying a moment in the limelight as a more cost-effective alternative for DMLS [direct metal laser sintering] for metal AM parts. This prompts me to wonder if its recent widespread adoption is driven by software, specifically simulation software, which allows users to accurately predict binder jet shrinkage before printing. Qualification/regulation: At this year’s AMUG, ASTM International debuted its new certificate course in quality assurance for additive manufacturing. Topics covered include linking quality to certification and qualification systems; effectively demonstrating personal skill levels; and tips on lean manufacturing methods, tracking performance, deviations and in-process monitoring. I was pleased to see the wide breadth of topics in addition to the basics.

1 Renishaw shows ●

off its pure copper printing capabilities. Here, we see a heat sink created in a collaboration between Renishaw and nTopology, with parts printed in 30 micron layers, for a wall thickness of 0.35mm. 2 A topology ●

optimised bracket from AddUp, where the design was optimised to reduce weight while maintaining functionality and structural integrity 3 AddUp also ●

showcased its unique combination of PBF and DED technologies, which supports the creation of parts that boast internal lattices while using DED for extra features or dissimilar materials. 4 Panelists take a ●

hands-on approach in a live, interactive workshop centered around quality management

A LEARNING EXPERIENCE

On the whole, if I had a criticism to make about AMUG 2021, it would be this: while I was excited for all the learning opportunities on offer, I was disappointed by the lack of ‘how to’ content around design for additive. For example, there were several panels on how to choose an AM part for your business, but not many panellists discussed their design process or the lessons learnt from it. That said, I was exposed to a much broader scope of the industry than I would usually experience. I learnt about new materials. I heard about innovations in other sectors like automotive and motorsports. I saw machines I’d never even heard of and met vendors I’ve never seen pop up on my LinkedIn feed. Someone had to go first. For this (hopefully) post-pandemic year, I think the folks at AMUG were the best people to do it. AMUG provided an atmosphere that was as safe and welcoming as possible, one that encouraged attendees to get the most from the networking activities provided. I can now look forward to attending other conferences this year with greater confidence, but AMUG has set the bar high – or should that be the build volume? Either way, I hope other event organisers are watching and can carry some of the lessons learned into their own events aimed at our community. These include RAPID (which is scheduled for September 2021) and Formnext (November 2021). additivemanufacturingusersgroup.com

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Sponsored content

together not just design and manufacturing, but simulation too. Then there’s companies like Cosm Medical, which is tackling the very real challenge of mass customization needed in the medical industry. Cosm Medical produces prosthetics to treat pelvic floor disorders, which nearly half of all women will experience by age 80. As you can imagine, producing prosthetics for internal use is extremely challenging. Under current circumstances, most patients will go through an extensive process to find the one prosthetic, from 50 standardized designs, that fits properly. Cosm Medical produces prosthetics that fit first time by combining 3D scanning technology, Fusion 360 technology, and Formlabs technology.

“Fusion 360…covers several steps in our process. It’s able to take in our sizing measurements from patients and build a patientspecific model and mold for our device utilizing parametric modelling. It can then export our molds to load into PreForm, so it’s fast and easy to get our molds printed. This entire process ensures the economic viability of our product in the longterm by automating many steps in the custom device design process.” Robert Lancefield, tell us, Mechanical Engineer at Cosm. The Formlabs Form 3B 3D printer provides high-quality prints with a surface quality that enables Cosm Medical to go straight to silicone mold from the print, so patients get the best fitting prosthetic, first time. We’re extremely excited by this partnership with

Formlabs, and we can’t wait to show you what other wonderful features we’re bringing to close the gap between design and manufacturing in the near future. If you’re interested in receiving a free sample part from Formlabs, or better understanding what this partnership will provide you, then for more information visit www.autodesk.com/fusion360-formlabs Already a Fusion 360 user and Formlabs owner? You can print your own sample part directly from Fusion 360 and try out these new features. Reimagine your tools. Save 30% on Fusion 360 and Fusion 360 extensions from 8th – 30th June. www.autodesk.com/F360-offer

1 Get more from your CAD and your hardware by bringing manufacturing to your design 2 A pelvic floor prosthetic by Cosm 3 Autodesk Fusion 360’s new partnership with Formlabs gives you more control over your prints

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27/05/2021 15:30

THE D3D 30

» We’ve curated a wide-ranging round-up of 2021’s most exciting technologiesfor product design and development. Each has its own individual strengths, but all aim to speed up processes and add new value to your workflows

espite the uncertainty that many businesses worldwide faced in 2020, innovation never slowed – in fact, quite the opposite: new tools and software, and paths around new problems, were all found. To help you keep on top of all the progress being made, we’ve produced our list of the 30 latest pieces of technology that we believe will change the way that companies design, develop and manufacture products. Picked entirely on merit, we’re excited to showcase this illustrious group. It includes software that takes us in new directions; start-

ups producing impressive new AR headsets; 3D printing stalwarts embracing new materials – all with the aim of helping users to create the products and systems of the future. Last year’s list highlighted several new technologies, which we watched grow in terms of capability and adoption. This year, many of you tell us you now use these technologies daily. With any luck, you’ll stumble across more this year – and hopefully you’ll have the chance to get hands-on with many of these in the months to come, including at DEVELOP3D LIVE, which returns to the UK in April 2022.

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AMD RYZEN 5000 CPU

AUTODESK FUSION 360

DELL ULTRAWIDE U4021QW

CARBON DESIGN ENGINE

New CPU to take on Intel

Opening up access to advanced CAM

40-inch 5K2K display

Let There Be Lattices

It’s hard to get excited about monitors these days, given that every company offers a 4K product with all the ports, bells and whistles you’ll ever need. One that really stood out for us this year was Dell’s UltraWide u4021qw, with its ultrawide, 5K2K resolution and USB-C connectivity. In a year in which everyone has re-evaluated how they use computing, particularly at home, this unit feels like a good option for those of us who want a high-fidelity display, but not something that makes their back bedroom look like Darth Vader’s bathroom.

Carbon is set to give wider access to its Design Engine software – the lattice software that has enraptured Specialized, Riddell and a whole host of top tier brands bringing Carbon’s end use parts into public view. Design Engine is a cloud-based application, which provides the computational power to generate complex shapes quickly and efficiently without requiring local resources. Add on Carbon’s new European reseller network, putting Carbon M2 3D printers into the hands of more designers, and we expect to see more productive uptake of both the brand’s hardware and software throughout 2021.

Intel has long been the dominant force in workstation CPUs. But last year, AMD took the highend performance lead with the 64-core Threadripper (Pro). Now, with Ryzen 5000, AMD’s also staking a claim for the mainstream workstation crown. With single-threaded performance comparable to 11th Gen Intel Core processors and offering double the number of cores, the Ryzen 5000 has plenty to offer CAD users who also want multithreaded horsepower for rendering or simulation. Currently, the only way to get a Ryzen 5000 workstation is through specialist manufacturers – but it’s surely only a matter of time before Dell, HP or Lenovo come on board.

Autodesk has been on an interesting mission to open up access to advanced NC programming tools for a number of years now. The results of this work are abundantly apparent in its flagship Fusion 360 system, which sees knowledge and technologies from the likes of both HSM and Delcam integrated at a root level. We’re not just talking a cursory, sideways glance at CAM, but professional NC programming for 2.5-axis and 3-axis production machining, up to complex 5-axis. Integrated CAD/CAM might not be unique, but the fact that it’s now available for $495 a year is mind-blowing. autodesk.com

dell.com

carbon.com

amd.com

ALTAIR SIMSOLID Simple assembly simulation Mainstream simulation tools have for too long focused on static structural analysis of single parts. The received wisdom here has been that simulation and complex assemblies are the sole purview of the analyst. Altair’s SimSolid rewrites that rulebook. By sidestepping the ageold challenges of defining contact and meshing, and by providing near real-time results, irrespective of assembly size or complexity, it allows engineers to evaluate fully featured assemblies, rather than idealised, stripped-back data. And that makes the whole process far more efficient and way less error prone compared to some traditional systems. altair.com

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THE D3D 30

HP | DYNDRITE HP UNIVERSAL BUILD MANAGER Next generation preprocessor for additive manufacturing The Universal Build Manager application from HP’s Digital Manufacturing Software team may still be in beta, but it’s already clear that results are just as impressive as have been claimed. In short, we’re talking quick, extensible and customisable. The tool is built to support additive at scale, stripping time out of the pre-processing, job-preparation stage and getting parts onto machines quicker than ever before. This is also the first time that we’ve seen an application powered by Dyndrite’s technology. Execs at the start-up have made a lot of claims about how efficient its technology is. (We refuse to use their preferred term, “performant”.) But, as ever, the proof of the pudding is in the eating – so it was with some excitement that we got to take a look at the first publicly available integration of Dyndrite’s technology with HP’s system. hp.com | dyndrite.com

DYEMANSION POWERSHOT DUAL PERFORMANCE Post-processing for additive at scale As we move into an era in which additive is a serious contender in production manufacturing, we’re going to need the ancillary tools for post-processing and finishing that traditional manufacturing processes have had for decades. One of the handful of companies addressing this is DyeMansion and its new PowerShot Dual Performance system, which combines de-powdering and finishing of polymer additive parts in one slick, highly automated unit. dyemansion.com

EPIC GAMES UNREAL METAHUMANS

FORMLABS FUSE 1

A glimpse of the future of virtual collaboration

Benchtop sintering for the masses

There’s a notion in the design/ engineering collaboration software world that we should tolerate crappy avatars and unrealistic representations of participants in the virtual world, just as we tolerate flat-shaded 3D models, “because: engineering.” In other words, engineering review means crappy robots and/or stick figures. Unreal’s MetaHumans disproves this notion. Imagine ultra-realistic representations of humans which can be tailored to represent yourself and your team. They’re not just great in marketing shoots; you can also interact with these virtual humans as you would in the real world. Uncanny valley be damned, let’s get real.

Formlabs’ benchtop sintering machine has taken four years to reach the market – but now it’s arrived, it looks more than capable of delivering on its promises. While small form factor sinterers are available from other vendors, Formlabs has done here what it does best: take a complex build process and package it up in a slick product intended for those looking for a tool that supports the design process (in terms of quality prototypes and end use parts), rather than leaving them tinkering with a machine all day. It’s early days yet, but it looks like Formlabs may have managed to reinvent laser sintering for the masses, just as it did with SLA.

unrealengine.com

formlabs.com

GRAVITY SKETCH GRAVITY SKETCH ON IPAD Multi-platform concepts Having made its debut as an intuitive virtual reality (VR) sketching app, Gravity Sketch has made a number of changes since it received £2.9m in funding last year. Its iPad app represents the most prominent shift, taking its quick sketch tools out of the VR environment and placing them on Apple’s pencil-driven hardware. Gravity Sketch execs say that under the hood, the application is identical to its VR variant, using the same geometry engine. As a result, the potential to flit back and forth between VR headset and iPad makes for an interesting proposition. gravitysketch.com

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GREYSCALEGORILLA GREYSCALEGORILLA PLUS Bananas for Cinema 4D We’ve seen a fast throughput of new products from Greyscalegorilla since the company first began offering Maxon Cinema 4D training a few years back. Since then, it’s steadily added 3D software textures, materials and HDRIs. All of the above are packaged up in Greyscalegorilla Plus, which provides a bounty of resources for Cinema 4D users. Plug-ins for animations make complex animations look easy, while specialist materials like the Car Paint pack include a custombuilt metallic flake system that gives a natural sparkle without the need for UVs. They’re compatible with Arnold, Octane and Redshift. greyscalegorilla com

HEXAGON MANUFACTURING INTELLIGENCE RECREATE

HOLO AM PUREFORM

INKBIT VISTA

Cracking copper additive

Vision of future AM

Seamless scan-to-CAD

High-resolution metal 3D printing with the ability to scale is Holo AM’s goal. The company has quietly developed a system for copper enduse parts, such as heat exchangers, components for electric vehicles and complex 3D electrical interconnects. Holo PureForm produces green parts from a metal slurry using a SLA-type method, before a standard metal injection moulding back-end process sinters the fully dense part. While the initial focus has been on the production of copper parts, exciting in itself, capabilities for 3D printing stainless steel are already on the cards.

This start-up ticks all the boxes: MIT origins, big-name backers, and an extreme enthusiasm for using buzzy terms like ‘AI’ and ‘machine vision’. That said, Inkbit is a genuinely intriguing prospect. In particular, the technology is reportedly able to output eight materials in a single build. And the company’s keen focus on resin development raises the interesting prospect of multimaterial end-use polymer parts. Backers like Stratasys and Ocado also see more to Inkbit than just marketing. The company’s proprietary vision system allows Vista to capture voxel-level 3D scan data of the print process at high speed, modifying each layer in real time for perfect prints across multiple systems.

Designed from the ground up to provide either an end-to-end reverse engineering solution, or to complement existing metrology technology, Recreate is Hexagon’s latest tool to speed up the workflow for taking a 3D scan to a manufacturable model. From point cloud data, the user is able to prepare CAD models and drawings, while the tools offered enable models to be edited and validated for manufacturing before export. If you’re already using Hexagon tools in your workflow – a portable scan arm, for example, or the company’s machining software – then this should be a good match, offering additional features for Hexagon’s growing ecosystem. hexagon.com

holoam.com

inkbit3d.com

NTOPOLOGY GPU ACCELERATION Hyper-complex geometry in a snap The rise of additive has made previously difficult or even impossible geometry much easier to manufacture, but traditional 3D design and engineering systems still struggle with creating parts that offer true creative freedom. nTopology’s implicit modelling platform supports the exploration of design possibilities like few others. The company has built a system where applications go way beyond additive, helping anyone who is looking to create geometry based on algorithmically defined inputs, simulation or physical test data. If nTopology can now make its system more friendly to the mainstream, a revolution could be on the horizon let’s see where 2021 takes it. ntopology.com

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THE D3D 30

ITI CADFIX VIZ

KVS LTD QUICKSURFACE

LYNX R-1 HMD

MATERIALISE BLUESINT

Data translation for XR

Agnostic scan-to-CAD

New vision

Fighting waste with lasers

Adoption of VR in the engineering world is growing faster than ever before, but the challenge of taking complex, heavy engineering CAD data and making it suitable for use in a virtual world remains tough. With decades of experience in data translation for the engineering world, ITI has taken its legendary CADfix application and built CADfix Viz to help take native 3D engineering data, remove unneeded portions (such as small parts, inconsequential features and internal details), tessellate it at the level most appropriate for your use case, and export it in the lightweight format you need. Software is often sold as having all the bells and whistles - but this is the opposite - it does one job and excels at it

3D scan technologies are more accessible than ever, particularly as high-end technologies move down the food (and price) chain and become more accessible. Alongside this, working with mesh-based data has become a more common activity for many. There are a number of high-end ‘point cloud to CAD’ tools out there, but price-wise, these are out of reach for many and are often locked to the scanning hardware. This is where KVS’s QuickSurface comes in. It’s capable, it’s powerful and it’s scanner-agnostic. In short, it will enable you to get analytic data out of mesh-based data without costing an arm and a leg. It then gives you the results that your downstream processes need in terms of clean, tidy geometry

For designers, Lynx should be a HMD of interest. Instead of using a transparent display for AR, its launch R-1 headset opts for a video passthrough with minimal latency. This gives you more control over the quality of overlaid graphics. With each pixel controlled, the scene can display more accurate colours and more opaque objects. The result is a greater sense of realism, while losing none of the real-world immersion. On paper, the R-1 lacks the resolution of some HMDs in this space, but its lower price point ($1,499 ) and freedom of movement, along with a few other nice touches, may trigger some interesting discussions about using it in workflows where ultimate clarity is not the key driver.

It’s estimated that in every SLS build, around 50% of the unsintered powder is wasted. Materialise has developed BlueSint to address the issue of plastic reuse. Currently, shrinking occurs when PA12 powder cools between two consecutive sintering processes, leading to an unwelcome ‘orange peel’ surface effect. The usual remedy – adding more fresh powder to the mix – is simply not sustainable. With a 3D printer with multiple lasers, Materialise BlueSint makes it possible to use 100% of the powder. One laser sinters the PA12; a second keeps the powder above a certain temperature threshold. Because powder doesn’t cool between layers, shrinking is avoided.

iti-global.com

mesh2surface.com

lynx-r.com

materialise.com

PTC CREO 8 SNAPSHOTS Making complex models easier PTC’s Creo is built on a set of technologies over four decades in the making – so many might dismiss the idea that innovation is possible in a product and community with such a long track record. They’d be wrong. What PTC has managed to do is take stock of where it is at, pinpoint areas for improvement and then build something that doesn’t just bring Creo up to speed, but actually surpasses the state of the art. Snapshots is a perfect example: this provides a quick insight into a model’s history and allows you to reuse any of the geometry from that history in just a couple of clicks. ptc.com

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PEEL 3D PEEL 2-S Fine detail scanning at lower cost The Peel 2 3D scanner from Creaform/AMETEK spin-off Peel 3D impressed us greatly last year. Peel’s now back with a dialled-in version, which brings the parent company’s knowledge and knowhow in structured light scanning to the task of tackling smaller, higher detail parts. The new Peel 2-S brings the resolution capturable down to 0.1mm. When combined with the Peel 2 CAD software, you’ve got a workflow to capture high-resolution scans, post-process and clean them up, and then build up your fitted surfaces and features – all in a single application. peel-3d.com

MICROSOFT AZURE NVV4 CLOUD WORKSTATION Certification gives seal of approval

NVIDIA NVIDIA RTX A4000 GPU

PROTOLABS/3D HUBS ACQUISITION & MERGER

SHAPR3D MAC OSX

Pro GPU for the masses

Globally sourced production

Parasolid-based modelling on Mac

Earlier this year, we were blown away by the Nvidia RTX A6000, the Cloud workstations have never first workstation-class GPU based been more relevant. The Covid-19 on Nvidia’s ‘Ampere’ architecture. pandemic has highlighted the need However, at a price close to $5,000, to work from anywhere, seamlessly. the 48 GB GPU is not for everyone. Microsoft Azure NVv4 cloud Instead, we already have our eyes workstations are hot on price. This on the Nvidia RTX A4000, which will is made possible through Windows be available soon for under $1,000. Virtual Desktop licensing, combined While it won’t deliver the same with 64-core AMD EPYC CPUs and levels of 3D performance and AMD Radeon Instinct MI25 GPUs, hardware-accelerated ray tracing which can be virtualised at a as its big brother, we expect a great hardware level, so you only pay for deal from this 16 GB GPU. the GPU resources you need. We believe it should hit the sweet Importantly, Microsoft now has spot for designers and engineers a growing list of ISV certifications who use design viz applications like for NVv4, including Autodesk KeyShot or Solidworks Visualize, Inventor, PTC Creo and Siemens alongside their bread-and-butter NX. Certifications are particularly 3D CAD tools. important for enterprises, the very nvidia.com same firms most likely to invest heavily in Azure.

Earlier this year, Protolabs acquired 3D Hubs, creating the largest global manufacturing service for custom parts. After a year in which supplychain issues heavily impacted product development and delivery, options for a bolstered distributed manufacturing service will be welcomed by many. Protolabs’ range of injection moulding, 3D printing, CNC machining and sheet metal fabrication services are already well-known across the company’s markets in America, Europe and Japan. Once you add to this mix the breadth of facilities offered by 3D Hubs’ partners, then your options for price, speed and manufacturing methods are significantly wider still.

Shapr3D has been doing stellar work on its iPad-based 3D modelling system over the last year, introducing engineering drawings and more. Recently, the start-up released a new variant of its system that runs on MacOS, taking advantage of both Intel and Apple Silicon when needed and built on the Parasolid kernel. MacOS is a popular choice for many, particularly in the field of education, so it’s good to see greater choice for those looking for a native modelling system for the platform. shapr3D.com

protolabs.com | hubs.com

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THE D3D 30

swatchbook the new home of materials

STRATASYS H-SERIES H350

SWATCHBOOK SWATCHBOOK MIX

VARJO XR-3 AND VR-3

Combining Xaar’s printhead technology with Stratasys’ increasingly manufacturing-focused machinery, the new H-Series has volume production in mind and HP’s MultiJet Fusion technology firmly in its crosshairs. The binder-jetting H350 has clearly been designed to target some of the foibles of HP’s rival system: front and centre are same-direction powder and binder layering for stronger, more accurate parts; high throughput; and factory-ready MT Connect compatibility. A reported ability to build with up to 23.5% part density, versus the 6% to 10% claimed by competitors, should see this 3D printer receive a warm welcome on factory floors.

The use of fabrics in the context of product design and engineering is rarely covered in our digital design tools, but Swatchbook has been working to make soft goods as wellintegrated into the design workflow as rigid materials. By working with fabric mills to provide accurate digital swatches that can be used in its collection management and visualisation tools, as well as pushed into the product viz workflow, the company is changing the game for many. Its Swatchbook Mix application takes this wealth of data, combines it with live renders and delivers it on both the desktop and the iPad, making real-time experimentation with swatch data possible for the first time.

Varjo has blown us away yet again with another high-resolution, low latency headset with over 70 ppd across a 115-degree field of view, and LiDAR depth of field. An integrated eye tracker at 200 Hz, combined with built-in Ultraleap hand tracking, keep things slick, adding to the experience of its 90 Hz frame rate and custom lenses. Compatible with Unity, Unreal and OpenXR, Varjo also boasts software integration for Autodesk VRED, Techviz (Catia, NX, Creo), and Mindesk (Solidworks), making it very much the leading HMD for designers.

stratasys.com

swatchbook.us

Binder jetting brilliance

Real time CMF exploration

The HMD wearing the crown

varjo.com

XENCELABS MEDIUM PEN TABLET + QUICKKEYS Wacom finally gets some serious competition

Since the dawn of time (OK, since the 1960s), drawing on a computer has relied on pen-based input. While Wacom has seen a number of competitors come and go, new start-up Xencelabs looks like it might be a serious contender. Based on a familiar yet tweaked design, the Xencelabs launch product is a combination of pen/ stylus and drawing tablet, a format with which many of us will be comfortable. Alongside this is a small rectangular device, the Quick Keys Remote, that provides hot keys and shortcuts in a small form factor. It looks usable and configurable, thanks to the OLED display indicating what’s been assigned. xencelabs.com

ULTIMAKER ULTIMAKER PROFESSIONAL Scaling-up software

The enterprise is where it’s at for 3D printing right now. Ultimaker’s desktop 3D printers are decisively moving into that space with the introduction of new software subscriptions for professionals. Ultimaker Professional is the lower-ranking tier of the two paidfor options, but offers a decent package of unlimited cloud storage, the ability to open CAD files in Cura (rather than .STL), plus some new and improved analysis and reporting tools. Billed annually, based on the number of users and printers you’ll connect, it should prove of interest to anyone building out an in-house print farm, and signals the likely future of the brand in the enterpriselevel additive manufacturing sector. ultimaker.com 34 JUNE / JULY 2021 DEVELOP3D.COM

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PROFILE

LEADING

LIGHTS At Designplan Lighting, a move to Solid Edge is helping the company to deliver on its durability promise across a wide range of products

s well as normal wear and tear, electrical equipment sometimes needs to be able to withstand extreme conditions or even deliberate attack. For half a century, London-based Designplan Lighting, part of the Fagerhult Group, has been making weather- and vandalresistant luminaires with tough bodies, tightly sealed diffusers and tamper-proof screws. The company’s extrastrong light fittings can be found in airports, train stations, secure health care units and on housing estates. Specialist products are available for specific situations, such as custodial settings, where care must be taken to prevent harm through the design of smooth, rounded surfaces that prevent a ligature from being attached. In underground railway systems, lighting units must also incorporate antifire and anti-smoke features. A pioneer in LED (light-emitting diode) lighting, Designplan’s comprehensive portfolio includes an extensive range of energy-efficient fittings that are environmentally friendly and low maintenance. Above all, they are durable. One indicator of durability is the level of protection against mechanical impact; in Europe, this is measured via impact protection (IK) ratings. For lighting products, the standard requirement is a rating of 10 IK, which protects against an impact of 20 joules, or 5 kilograms being dropped from a height of 40 centimetres. Designplan’s most robust products are rated much higher, at 16 IK, which protects against impact of 150 Joules, or 10 kilograms being dropped from a height of 1.5 metres.

CUSTOMISATION REQUIREMENTS Designplan makes both standard and customised lighting products, and it was the particular challenge of making customised products that led the company to review its use of technology in the development process. Tony Croke, design team manager, explains: “Over the years, the company had acquired multiple CAD platforms, so when we had to quote for a new product, we

1 faced a whole series of questions. Which existing model was closest to what was required? Which package had it been designed in? And who was most familiar with that software? Our vision was to consolidate on one package and improve our efficiency.” A demonstration from Siemens Digital Industries Software solution partner OnePLM convinced the Designplan team that Solid Edge with synchronous technology was the way forward. “It was clear that if we created a master model for each product, we could use synchronous technology to modify attributes such as height and length easily and quickly,” Croke says. Solid Edge was implemented early in 2016 and rolled out to nine design engineers, who each received tailored indepth training from PCE and from Siemens. Designplan immediately established a project to create a consistent, modifiable master model for every product in the company’s existing catalogue. The major product elements are body, gear tray and lamp with diffuser and frame or LED.

1 Designplan ●

Lighting projects include railway and metro stations, social housing complexes, custodial environments, secure healthcare facilities and urban areas, where robust lighting is essential

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Deeprose notes the benefits of the new approach: “In particular, synchronous technology allows us to work organically. We can explore options, because there is no sketch to build, as in an ordered modelling environment. When we have a Solid Edge assembly, we can do model explosions and gain visual help to cross-reference quickly against the master BOM.” All Solid Edge files are kept together in one folder as Designplan builds a library of master and variant components within product families. The data management features of Solid Edge support basic workflows for file release, storage and retrieval. “The way that we manage files within Solid Edge is a vast improvement over our previous system,” Deeprose says. The team has also been creating building information modelling (BIM) files, in line with government legislation, she adds. “Solid Edge is fully compliant with BIM regulations and produces widely recognised standard BIM files. There is no extra step required. If a BIM file is requested at 8am, we can usually produce it by midday.”

FULFILLING THE VISION

2 Designplan ●

Lighting has reduced production stoppages from between 10 and 18 per week to just four 3 In addition to ●

the usual wear and tear expected in public places, Designplan Lighting’s product must also be vandal-proof

The first products designed using Solid Edge went into production nine months after the software’s implementation. Each standard item comes with a large matrix of options “We can make an assembly much more intelligent; it is and variations: three different lengths, and six or seven so easy to set up components and alter them as required,” versions such as flat or angled, plus the extra specifications says Deeprose. “Now that we have started to work from necessary for underground locations. Any potential master models, any changes are taking minutes rather customisations are in addition to these. Designplan than hours.” therefore began by targeting its most popular lines. The ability to upgrade the technology within a product quickly and easily also makes a big contribution to its USER RESPONSE operating life, Hough adds. “I find Solid Edge very intuitive to learn and it gives us better “Local authorities are saving costs by replacing sodium tools,” says Amy Deeprose, design engineer at Designplan. lighting, and retrofitting LED elements into an existing “Solid Edge also has a lot of features that are extremely fitting takes just a few minutes.” helpful – for example, the ability to pattern a feature.” According to Croke, there has been a huge opportunity to Playback is particularly useful, she adds. “If I go away freshen up the company’s top revenue-producing products. from a project and return to it later, it’s really easy to see the “We will have addressed 90% of our best sellers within one steps I took before and continue without losing any time. I year,” he notes. can also share this feature with colleagues to demonstrate “In addition, we have improved our products and reduced how to do something. There is much assistance available manufacturing errors. Production stoppages for bespoke from the wider Solid Edge community and I often obtain products used to average between ten and 18 stoppages per information from online resources.” week. Since we began to use Solid Edge, they have dropped John Hough, bespoke design engineer at Designplan, to just four.” focuses on customised products. “I had worked for 25 years The rollout of Solid Edge across the production facility with CAD, but moving to Solid Edge opened my eyes to also gives Designplan the opportunity to highlight what is possible. I love synchronous. I find it very quick to established checklists that enable operators to provide manipulate an existing model in order to change a fitting, feedback on procedures such as punching, folding, lengthen a luminaire, reposition a hole or amend a pitch. shaping, fitting and assembly. I am saving more than half the time I previously spent There is also the option to use the simulation capability making changes at the part and assembly level.” within Solid Edge to assess structural integrity. “We can With Solid Edge, the Designplan team can easily access cut further time in production if we identify any weak historical design data. “We can open up any file and work points through simulation,” explains Deeprose. “This is with it straight away,” Hough says. “Sheet metal is our particularly important, as we have to physically prove the bread and butter, as it is used for all bodies and for some strength of our anti-vandal fittings.” fittings. We have several fittings designed on a platform The business benefits of the new platform will continue that we used previously, and when we bring these files to emerge as the design team implements various plans. into Solid Edge, they are actually associative. We can even Use of rendering is enabling sales and marketing images import drawings from a basic 2D package we use for the to be produced early in the design process for in-house punch press.” knowledge, customer presentations and for use on the company website. STREAMLINING QUOTES AND DESIGNS “Every time we get a job, whether it is standard, bespoke After six months, Designplan had created master or retrofit, Solid Edge helps us to save time,” concludes models for three product sets and the team was Hough. “We used to complete an average of five bespoke reviewing customer requests and anticipating demand fittings per week. We are now averaging eight per week.” for different sizes. designplan.co.uk | siemens.com DEVELOP3D.COM JUNE / JULY 2021 37

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FEATURE

BANG ON

TARGET When Nishikawa Seiki Co Ltd wanted to broaden the appeal of its archery bows, it turned to generative design to help reduce mass, as Autodesk’s Tyasuo Matsunaka explains

1 The riser created using generative ●

design with limbs attached

Nishikawa Seiki. The first model (far left) was inspired by the popular models of the day. That shape rapidly evolved into the SH-02 (middle, gold), which provided high performance in a sleek profile

ALL IMAGES COURTESY OF NISHIKAWA SEIKI

2 Past bows developed by ●

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estled within the Edogawa ward of Tokyo is a workshop reviving the Japanese archery bow with a modern twist, code name: Project Sakura. Led by Yoshihisa Nishikawa, president of Nishikawa Seiki Co Ltd, the quest started with his love of archery and his lifelong goal to develop the ultimate bow. The result is the Nishikawa SH-02 bow riser, which went on sale last year. Now, the challenge is to make the bow even lighter through partnerships that explore generative design with leading researchers. The SH-02 is designed for archers competing at the highest levels. The riser, which is the middle part of the bow that includes the grip, features a special design where the two springboard ‘limbs’ attach to the top and bottom of the riser. This minimises wobbling when the bow is released, providing a more precise and smooth release; Nishikawa says it embodies “the joy of shooting.” “Top archers train hard to strengthen their core and tend to favor heavier bows, as they reduce wobbling,” he explains. But this trend toward heavier bows has been a roadblock to archery gaining wider appeal in Japan. “Newcomers to archery are often frustrated by the weight of the bow, and soon they quit,” Nishikawa continues. “Of course, there are lighter bows out there, too, but they are harder to aim. If we could make a light high-performance bow, weight could be added to the liking of each archer. I felt this was the sensible approach.” Nishikawa Seiki is a metalworking company that fabricates a broad range of products, from simple machine parts to special-order medical research systems. It also produces socially conscious goods such as ultra-compact mobility vehicles. For this project, Nishikawa

turned to his colleague Toshihiro Irie, a professor in the Department of Precision Machinery Engineering at Nihon University College of Science and Technology. Together, they wanted to find methods to lighten the bow riser while maintaining its rigidity.

DESIGNING AN EXTRAORDINARY SHAPE Topology optimisation is one approach to lightweighting a product by eliminating areas within a part that are not stress-bearing. Generative design takes this idea further. “We are surrounded by preconceived notions about what makes something efficient or a good design,” Irie says. “Generative design can strip away these obstacles to reveal a purer form. I saw how some of my students working on the space elevator project used generative design to create parts, and I was fascinated by the process. When I showed this to the team at Nishikawa Seiki, they were equally impressed.” The team used the results of 3D position measurement to observe the movement of the bow string and then analysed that data to derive equations for the load applied by each shot. The riser created by Irie’s students using generative design in Autodesk Fusion 360 is notable for its asymmetric shape. “Within the generative design process, it becomes a problem if the top and bottom of the riser have different lengths from its center,” Irie says. “If you look at the final product, you can see how this factored into our design.” In archery, the vibration created once the string is released affects the steadiness of the grip, which determines aim and relates to the rigidity of each part of the bow. Irie’s team used this data when creating various patterns of load, repeating simulations as they looked for a shape that would satisfy all the requirements. Nishikawa says the new bow riser is “totally different from the SH02 in terms of our design approach, but it incorporates numerical DEVELOP3D.COM JUNE / JULY 2021 39

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FEATURE

3 data and concepts from our earlier work. Our team could not have possibly come up with this incredible shape by themselves.” Through the generative design process, a 1,531-gram riser was lightweighted to 633 grams. The overall weight of the riser was reduced by over 50%, and adjustments allowed limbs and other accessories to be attached. After the design was finalised, the complex shape was fabricated using DMG Mori Seiki’s NTX1000 secondgeneration 5-axis integrated milling machine. Ryusuke Haruta, a research student at Nihon University’s College of Science and Technology, handled the CAM operation. “I was able to see for myself how various factors in a manufacturing process influenced the final part,” Haruta says. “And we were able to attain sufficient rigidity.” Veteran operators at Nishikawa Seiki then converted the data, verified the process, and successfully fabricated the detailed part on their very first attempt. The team had been running simulations, and Nishikawa says that, as a smaller company, it could fabricate

4 the part quickly to perform actual tests. “Nothing compares to holding the actual part in your hand, seeing how it performs, and being able to test it for flexure or warping,” he says. “I’m amazed that we were able to get such data out of our first try with this technology.” The vibration measurement for the SH-02 had results equal to the best available models. When the Nishikawa team put the generativedesign riser to the same test, horizontal vibration was slightly greater than that of the SH-02, but vertical vibration was less.

GLOBAL AMBITIONS Looking at the test data, Nishikawa says the team has already identified some points for improvement. The next step will be applying this data toward an even better design, making the riser even lighter while improving its rigidity. “Looking down the road, we hope to use generative design to make recurve bows that can be used in Olympic competition—and compound bows, as well,” he says. He sees a unique opportunity in the bow market for a smaller company to succeed. “To large Japanese corporations, the archery market is just a drop in the ocean, but for a small company like us, it’s like a vast body of water we can set sail into and discover new lands,” he says. The domestic Japanese market numbers in the thousands, but millions of people worldwide enjoy archery. Nishikawa is developing a business strategy to expand into this global market space. “The mere fact that a Japanese company is reentering the archery market will stand out at overseas trade shows,” he says. “And the ‘Made in Japan’ brand has undeniable clout that will help us succeed.” nishikawa-archery.com | autodesk.com This article originally appeared on Autodesk’s Redshift, a site dedicated to inspiring designers, engineers, builders, and makers.

3 3D-printed models from data ● created using generative design. This approach, which diverges wildly from conventional cut-out techniques, allowed Nishikawa Seiki to dramatically reduce the riser’s weight 4 President Yoshihisa Nishikawa ●

of Nishikawa Seiki (centre) and Professor Toshihiro Irie of Nihon University College of Science and Technology’s Department of Precision Machinery Engineering (right) with a research student

5 The final SH-02 in all its ● generatively designed glory

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10/06/2021 07:37

PROFILE

REBUILDING THE DREAM With the owner of a 2002 Maserati GT Coupe looking to upgrade to a more modern in-car entertainment system, Long Racing worked with Envision 3D Art and KVS’s Mesh2Surface to fulfill the customer’s wishes

IMAGE COURTESY OF CLASSICDRIVER.COM

aserati: a symbol of excellence, royalty and elegance. But even with its timeless character, it’s not uncommon for the proud owner of a Maserati to want something new and original for their own vehicle, involving the sensitive application of twenty-first century designs and technologies. At Magnolia, Texas-based Long Racing, the recent restoration of a 2002 Maserati GT Coupe interior involved an upgrade to the sound system, with the replacement of its radio with a large, modern touchscreen. The big challenge here was that the original dashboard had complex and elegant contour surfaces that would be difficult to extract using traditional contact measurement tools. So instead, Long Racing contacted Envision 3D Printing, based in Spring, Texas, where the team collaborated with Mark Solly of Envision 3D Art for design solutions.

“I chose Mesh2Surface as it is one of the best solutions on the market for reverse engineering. It provides the user with simple and efficient tools to define their needs and saves an enormous amount of time. The style lines tool IN-CAR UPGRADE in particular provided the main backbone for creating a The task was to modify the design of the radio bezel surface,” says Solly. to accommodate the latest technology in sound and “And the built-in analyser helped me get the surfaces communications. Solly suggested the best approach precisely within a couple of microns. With this software, would be to 3D scan the original bezel, using a creating the style lines was easy. With a couple of clicks, Einscan Pro 2X, then use I could work directly on the Mesh2Surface by KVS for the mesh and see my deviations reverse engineering tasks. This in real time,” he continues, approach offers restoration explaining that for him, this With this software, creating shops the speed and flexibility was a faster, frustration-free to design custom interior and more accurate process. the style lines was easy. With automotive parts without a couple of clicks, I could work additional inspection tools. DEVIATION directly on the mesh and see my SURFACE A further challenge was to ANALYSIS deviations in real time recreate the bezel without The surface deviation analysis the openings for the existing that comes with Mesh2Surface screen, knobs and push is designed to help users make buttons, and without changing necessary adjustments to the solid design where the part would attach to the interior. surfaces and/or 3D splines by revealing how well they fit Solly knew that commonly used mesh editing software onto the scanned mesh file. would only create flattened bridges if he deleted areas and Once the 3D sketch was created, with straight lines and used the fill hole tools. Therefore, he chose to remodel 3D splines that intelligently snap and bridge across to create new surfaces by drawing 3D splines over the mesh using traditional smooth surfaces, Solly finalised the 3D model. Mesh2Surface. The object was shelled and the holding features were added.

The Maserati 2002 GT Coupe – a classic, but with potential for incorporating modernday electronics

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PROFILE The first 3D print was made at Envision 3D Printing, using the company’s Stratasys Fortus 380 with ABS materials. Finger holes were added to the prototype, so the customer could position the radio at the correct angle to the viewer. Lastly, the final 3D print was vapour-smoothed, painted and

integrated with the interior. The results speak for themselves: the restored Maserati can now boast a cutting-edge sound and communication system, one that easily rivals those seen in brand-new cars. envision3dprinting.com | mesh2surface.com

WORKFLOW: FROM PART TO SCAN TO ADDITIVE REPLACEMENT

1 The 2002 Maserati interior dashboard as it looked at the ●

2 Front view of the 3D scanned bezel, with the scan carried 3 Rear view of the bezel, showing the more complex ● ●

out with a Einscan Pro 2X

mounting features needed for the upgrade

4 Mounting brackets were needed to integrate with the ●

5 3D splines drawn on top of scanned mesh data, ●

6 The next step in the process was the creation of 3D ●

7 Bridging straight lines and 3D splines across openings ●

8 Surfaces overlaying mesh data ●

10 Here we can see the final lofted and patched surfaces ●

11 Mesh2Surface deviation analyser was used to ensure a ●

12 Parametric features were added to ensure a good fit with ●

13 Final bezel with mounting features in place ●

14 Touchscreen now ready for wiring up and mounting ●

15 Project complete and back in pride of place on the car ●

start of this project

corresponding parts in the body work of the car

that were needed

completed using Mesh2Surface

match between CAD and scan

splines along tangencies

9 Filled-in bottom surface, as per customer request ●

existing parts

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TALKING HEADS

THE FUTURE OF:

VISUALISATION

isualisation – in the context of design, engineering and manufacturing – has changed dramatically in recent years. But right from the start, the idea that the 3D engineering data that defines a product’s form and function could also be used to generate realistic images and animations of that product has proved to

be 100% valid. What hampered this idea was crappy tools. These suffered from scene set-ups that were too complex, computation times that were too lengthy and, if we’re going to be frank, pretty awful results. Anyone who was around at the tail end of the 1990s and early 2000s will be more than familiar with the state-of-the-art of that time: a phong-shaded, super-shiny part (irrespective of the actual material used), typically presented under a spotlight and inexplicably placed on a marble plinth. And on top of this, it could take three hours to render out an image large enough to print in a brochure. Fast-forward to today and we are presented with a bewildering choice of much-improved offerings, from older technologies that have made great steps forward, to brand, spanking new approaches, and from rendering engines built into our CAD system of choice to standalone tools that take you from 3D geometry to a nearphotorealistic rendering in just minutes. In short, the visualisation technology market has never been so wide, nor so diverse. At the same time, new technologies that originated in the games and entertainment markets have started to make real in-roads in the industrial sector. Head-mounted displays (HMDs) are now both affordable and capable and GPUs can get us to results in a fraction of the time it used to take. Real materials are scanned, processed and available to the masses. Let’s face it: you’re spoilt for choice. But visualisation marches on to conquer new horizons. While the concept of ‘doing a render’ is now common and pervasive enough to perhaps be considered best practice in all manner of organisations, there are always those who are looking to push the envelope, to explore what’s next. Look at the live stage used on Disney’s Mandalorian to dazzling effect (Google it, if you haven’t already, it’s breathtaking). Look at Unreal’s MetaHumans project. Look at what Nvidia is up to with Omniverse. The list of what’s coming down the line is endless. Arthur C Clark’s adage still holds true: “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” Something that one year is considered state of the art, beyond the grasp of the mainstream, offering the magic of Hollywood and so on, is quickly packaged, commoditised and made available for all of us the following year, sometimes even sooner. At the moment, there is an interesting convergence between the technologies and engines used in the gaming industry and those in the industrial world - it won’t be long before the two collide to create a brand new set of tools where the differentiation between play and work doesn’t really exist anyone. So to help us identify what to expect next from visualisation technologies, we’ve asked nine experts from the field to tell us what they believe the future holds. Their thoughts are presented here and should give you some inkling of future developments. Forewarned, as they say, is forearmed.

GAVIN BRIDGEMAN CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER TECH SOFT 3D

of red, green and blue values, along with a transparency (also called alpha) value. That was until physically based rendering (PBR), implemented via GPU shaders, came along. PBR via GPU originated in the gaming industry and provides a way to describe materials with equations that more accurately reflect how surfaces react to light. With PBR came a way to have lifelike renderings of models on rom media and practically any device. entertainment, to design In recent years, there have and engineering (yes, you been several file formats – .FBX read that correctly), there is now and .glTF – that allow you to a strong desire to have models on describe your models with PBR your devices look like they do in materials. The problem is that the real world. these file formats are new, and It wasn’t long ago that CAD not everybody has moved to PBR engineers didn’t value having definition for their materials. lifelike renderings of their This begs the question: When models, or that CAE engineers are we going to see widespread were happy with the digital support for PBR materials within simulations they’d been using the industry? for years. With technology like Ultimately, this isn’t just about augmented reality (AR) and 3D rendering. It’s about being able scanning now blurring the lines to expand the use of 3D. For between the physical and digital example, why can’t we take the

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Ultimately, this isn’t just about rendering. It’s about being able to expand the use of 3D. For example, why can’t we take the same design model and use it to power a fantastic retail experience via AR?

 worlds, that’s no longer true. One of the primary requirements to get lifelike renderings of your digital model is having more sophisticated descriptions of the materials from which it is made. The engineering world, in particular, has been stuck in the RGBA world, where surface colours are expressed as a combination

same design model and use it to power a fantastic retail experience via AR? In order for design visualisation and rendering to take its next big leap forward – and in doing so, push users’ productivity and capabilities further – enabling them to easily access lifelike renderings of their 3D data will need to be addressed. techsoft3D.com

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We set out to find out where the design visualisation and rendering technologyindustry goes next. Our experts, meanwhile, let us in on some of the driving factors spurring them on to push users’ productivity and capability further

BELINDA ERCAN TWINMOTION PRODUCT MARKETING MANAGER EPIC GAMES contractors, consultants and many more specialists often find themselves working in separate silos, as an island on their own, in a world where no person (or tool) should be an island any longer. Now, with simplified creative tools, what’s happening is the convergence of technologies, allowing for more collaboration between the separate roles, where the architect can more oday’s world is so very easily work with the acoustic fast-paced and rapidly consultant, the engineer can changing that it’s not collaborate with visualiser, the easy to keep up with the entire gamer can collaborate with the spectrum of tech advancements programmer, the student can as they are happening, let alone collaborate with the teacher, comprehend the nature of the and so on. ‘now’, of technology today. The roles and tools of a It is hard to predict what’s next, specialist now become more if we can’t grasp what’s now. But accessible to the generalist, as Carl Sagan said, “You have to thus driving and unleashing know the past to understand the slumbering potential for present.” creativity and productivity When I look back, I see the in a broader pool of users. convergence that is impacting Everything’s becoming more the ‘now’. With highly complex interconnected. design tools becoming So it’s actually a case of increasingly more simplified, the multiverse becoming relations have started to form the universe – one holistic, between toolsets once seen as interwoven, unified system of unconnected entities. creators collaborating, supported For example, the AEC industry by tools and the rarest, most has typically worked in a valuable commodity of all, their relatively compartmentalised own creativity. way. Architects, engineers, epicgames.com

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The roles and tools of a specialist now become more accessible to the generalist, thus driving and unleashing slumbering potential for creativity and productivity in a broader pool of users. Everything’s becoming more interconnected

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HENRIK WANN JENSEN CO-FOUNDER & CHIEF SCIENTIST LUXION

he most overarching effects of advancements in design visualisation and rendering technology are seen in the emergence of immersive real-time experiences, driven by development in GPU ray tracing hardware and viewing equipment for virtual, augmented and mixed reality. These developments directly

increased abilities to accurately interpret and correlate real-world appearance, lighting, sensory and environmental conditions. The correlation with digital creations will also become more aligned with physical phenomena, input and variation while overcoming its limitations. This creates downstream workflow improvements for 3D professionals, and even consumers, helping them to realise factors that affect product appearance and function, within or without immersive capabilities. As hardware and visualisation technology continues to advance, we will see output capabilities that far exceed what was ever thought possible. In the same way that we see the speed and accuracy of product visualisation advance, we will also see the accessibility of

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The correlation with digital creations will also become more aligned with physical phenomena, input and variation while overcoming its limitations

 advance the visualisation capability of 3D professionals across all industries, by providing abilities that allow more experiential, hands-on, and adaptive creation of completely realistic product appearance and function in their natural environment or expanded synthetic environment. Within this, we will see advancements in material creation and application, brought about by new methods to capture and digitise material data, with

product visualisation advance. This will be most notable in a company’s ability to provide or present product experiences, but also show up in a consumer’s ability to realise or otherwise generate immersive product experiences. Such accessibility will create demand for accurate appearance and function, which will in turn lead to more hardware and software constraints being overcome. keyshot.com

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MAREK TRAWNY DIRECTOR OF PRODUCT, AUTO AND CONCEPT DESIGN AUTODESK storytelling to the process of design reviews. Multiple key stakeholders immersed in the same virtual world, regardless of device or location, have a shared virtual experience in which to view and discuss the product. This puts powerful decision-making information at the fingertips – and in the faces – of the people who keep organisations agile. t Autodesk, we believe Every day, we’re overcoming rich design visualisation infrastructure and process and rendering will play a challenges that slow the seamless central role in collaboration and delivery of these experiences. design decision-making of the As connected design datasets future, as well as yield engaging are increasingly stored in the new marketing and sales cloud, important pieces of this experiences. puzzle come together. Tedious As technologies used for design, data preparation tasks required engineering, visualisation and before creating renders are being manufacturing converge, it’s eliminated. becoming simple to render and Autodesk is enabling view product designs, even as automotive, accessories and real-time modifications are made, apparel and consumer product through technologies like VR and design leaders to even capture extended reality (XR). and archive the feedback resulting Getting there requires from virtual reviews, right in the integrating digital technologies original design data. more deeply into creation and Increasing rendering efficiency review workflows, but we’ve been pays off by enabling everyone doing so for years and will soon from executives to marketing effortlessly deliver renders to managers to potential customers any device, from high-end VR to have immersive visualisations headsets to the phone in your available instantly. pocket, adding imagination and autodesk.com

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Every day, we’re overcoming infrastructure and process challenges that slow the seamless delivery of these experiences. As connected design datasets are increasingly stored in the cloud, important pieces of this puzzle come together. Tedious data preparation tasks required before creating renders are being eliminated

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SANDEEP GUPTE SENIOR DIRECTOR, PROFESSIONAL SOLUTIONS GROUP NVIDIA

n today’s hyper-competitive environment, businesses strive to develop new products and get them to market as quickly as possible. As a result, manufacturers are looking to accelerate workflows at every stage. That might involve automating unsafe and repetitive tasks on the factory floor, or using advanced engineering software to instantly explore design alternatives,

working remotely, collaborating with ecosystems of colleagues, contractors and vendors in globally dispersed locations becomes increasingly complex. Over the years, Nvidia has pushed the pace of innovation with breakthrough technologies in physically based rendering, engineering simulation, immersive virtual reality and applied AI. But professionals also need a common, open and extensible platform, which is easily accessible and can be connected to AI, design software and intelligent machines – a truly interactive, open environment in which users can seamlessly collaborate with teams around the world, all in a virtual shared space. This is where we have directed our recent research and

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Real-time collaboration is becoming more of a necessity, whether it is between design and engineering teams, between manufacturers and customers, or even with AI and intelligent machines. And with so many people working remotely, collaborating with ecosystems of colleagues, contractors and vendors in globally dispersed locations becomes increasingly complex

 or even seeing photorealistic simulations of design concepts at their earliest stages. Whatever the solution may be, it is critical to find every way possible to work faster and more efficiently. Additionally, working together is essential for designing and building high-quality products. Real-time collaboration is becoming far more of a necessity, whether it is between design and engineering teams, between manufacturers and customers, or even with AI and intelligent machines. And with so many people

development efforts – in bringing all these capabilities together within a photorealistic, physically simulated and AI-driven environment. Here, product development professionals can accelerate workflows, maintain productivity, and collaborate interactively unlike ever before. We call it Nvidia Omniverse. As you may have seen at Nvidia GTC, we are already well along this path, working alongside companies like BMW to put Omniverse through its paces in real-life workplaces. nvidia.com

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TALKING HEADS

THOMAS TEGER CO-FOUNDER & CHIEF PRODUCT OFFICER SWATCHBOOK

he trend in visualisation and rendering is clear: it is all moving towards real-time visualisation, on any platform. While the traditional marketing shot is still important, people want to interact with the product: to view it, spin it, interact with it, configure it, see

data model for 3D in tools for preparation of the asset for the desired platform has never been greater. What is new is the aspect of materials, not just from a visual standpoint, but also from a metadata aspect. This means information relating, for example, to price, availability and sustainability. This in turn requires that digital materials must follow the same principles as geometry: the ability to use a ‘standard material description’ that allows reuse of such materials in any system. While visualisation applications still use their own proprietary shader model, it must be open enough to ingest and reuse



Taking into consideration that a lot of companies are moving towards a ‘sell it before you make it’ process, it will be important that any product sold is tied to an actual vBom not just listing components, but also materials. This will tie together design, production, retail and consumer in a new way, and allow for seamless bi-directional flow of data between brand and consumer

JAMIE GWILLIAM SR. MARKET DEVELOPMENT MANAGER AMD of hardware for performing calculations is the GPU, but this has historically been expensive. Now, with the introduction of GPU hardware rendering on even low-workload GPUs, we see software companies adding functionality that transforms the standard design viewport into an interactive ray trace renderer. endering is historically As end users, our expectations all about waiting and continue to rise. What was seen refining, waiting and as high quality two years ago is refining. While the refining stage now sub-par and takes too long. will always be part of creating As consumers, we want it all beautiful product images, the and we want it now – and we want waiting part shouldn’t be. to pay as little as possible for it. We’ve seen the rise of realThese wider expectations will time workflows, where design continue to drive a rise in quality has taken its lead from the and ease of use. games industry. We’ve seen There will always be specialist the rise of more CPU cores, users, creating stunning leading to improved rendering marketing visuals, but we all speeds. We’ve seen our overall know what makes a good image understanding of what makes a of our product, and we want to good product image increase, by create it within our CAD product, looking to others for inspiration at multiple stages in the design and reading tutorials. process, not just at the end of it, All of these advancements are or using specialist software or driven by the hunger for speed, hardware. or more specifically, of not So what drives rendering wanting to wait. We simply don’t advancements further? My want to wait for calculations to answer: It’s our expectations. And be performed and for pixels to long may that drive, which we all be generated. share, continue. One of the fastest pieces amd.com

 it on the device, in 3D, AR or VR – all in real time. Taking into consideration that a lot of companies are moving towards a ‘sell it before you make it’ process, it will be important that any product sold is tied to an actual vBom not just listing components, but also materials. This will tie together design, production, retail and consumer in a new way, and allow for seamless bi-directional flow of data between brand and consumer. In order for this to succeed, the process must be fluid, so that data can be reused from concept all the way to the consumer. The importance of a common

any of the standard material descriptions with little to no rework. This also calls for further democratisation of the tools used in the process. Tools that allow anyone to participate in the creative process, allowing them to put their talents to work to create the best designs possible, without being limited by their knowledge of the applications they use. And, of course, it has to work on mobile. With the power of the recently introduced iPad Pro, it is foolish not to take advantage of the compute power and the overall user experience a tablet can give with touch.



One of the fastest pieces of hardware for performing calculations is the GPU, but this has historically been an expensive addition. Now, with the introduction of GPU hardware rendering on even low workload GPUs, we see software companies adding functionality that transforms the standard design viewport into an interactive ray trace renderer



swatchbook.us

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DAVID VARELA SR. INDUSTRY MANAGER – MANUFACTURING UNITY TECHNOLOGIES

t Unity, we’re seeing design visualisation play a key role throughout all steps of the product life cycle, from concept design to sales, marketing and after sales activities. One of the specific areas we see rendering technology disrupting is everincreasing customer demand for customisation at ever-decreasing timescales. Additionally, as teams and consumers remain remote, you’ll see increased adoption of real-time 3D technology to enable new ways to conduct sales and marketing. Examples of this might be in virtual design centers and meeting rooms, where this technology fosters the personal connection that you might otherwise lose by just using video conferencing technologies. With people stuck at home,

we see customers using the Unity Editor to host collaborative design reviews with people located all over the world. The same tool allows teams from all sectors to create digital twins and virtual reality training and guidance applications, to simulate robotic cells, and even to train AI-driven vehicles. Furthermore, using tools like Unity Forma, developers at automotive, transportation and engineering companies are overcoming the skills barrier and enabling users of all backgrounds to create engaging experiences for product reviews, configurators and sales applications. The most exciting stage is yet to come. Unity’s real-time platform is gaining massive adoption from industrial users, because of its huge potential to enable and empower digital manufacturing. We see real-time 3D transforming how products are made, by enabling companies to adopt flexible manufacturing operations, accelerate new product introduction and use AI to optimise manufacturing processes – and in these ways, help organisations to build the agility and resilience necessary to survive in today’s challenging environment. unity.com

PHILLIP MILLER VP OF PRODUCT MANAGEMENT CHAOS

t Chaos, we see a continuum of rendering possibilities stretching out before us, from game-like, real-time rendering and VR, to real-time ray tracing of massive assemblies, to predictive simulation, and finally, to filmquality experiences. More importantly, we believe all of this can be part of a continuous workflow that unites the efforts of designers and visualisation specialists across projects and 3D tools.

more widely employed in the rendering process, making tedious or multi-step setups automatic, while also suggesting new permutations for design exploration and experimentation. Combining AI with wellcurated libraries of materials and methods will enable even casual users to easily achieve the type of surface appearances that help them predict how the manufactured result will behave across surface options and lighting scenarios. As these changes take hold, efficiency and productivity will dramatically increase. For most designers, this will mean they can explore more ideas/approaches to achieve a superior design, rather than delivering an average design more quickly. And ultimately, better designs should translate into better business. Finally, as the rendering



Artificial intelligence (AI) will continue to become more widely employed in the rendering process, making tedious or multi-step set-ups automatic, while also suggesting new permutations for design exploration and experimentation

 

We see real-time 3D transforming how products are made, by enabling companies to adopt flexible manufacturing operations, accelerate new product introduction and use AI to optimise manufacturing processes – and in these ways, help organisations to build the agility and resilience necessary to survive in today’s challenging environment



The critical design details made clear through material, surface and illumination choices will no longer be stranded in one renderer, tool or designer’s mind, but will persist throughout the project lifespan, saving time and preserving design intent. Artificial intelligence (AI) will continue to become

workflow reaches an always-on/ continuous state, the ability to share results and interactive experiences with remote decision-makers will also increase, which will do wonders for design communication and accelerating the decisionmaking process. chaosgroup.com

COMING UP NEXT ISSUE: How will the rise of artificial intelligence influence the world of product design and engineering technology? Want to get involved? Email stephen@x3dmedia.com DEVELOP3D.COM JUNE / JULY 2021 51

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A single source of truth for all your data! No more unsecure, out of date or duplicated information www.designdatamanager.com

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REVIEWS

SOFTWARE REVIEW

nTopology 3.0 Built-in simulation tools and newly added GPU acceleration make this software a definite must-have for any team looking to flex its muscles in simulation-driven design, writes our reviewer SJ

ome designs are just too complex to create using conventional CAD programs. That’s the thinking behind the nTopology platform from nTopology. This resonates. As a black woman in engineering, and now in additive manufacturing, I understand the scrutiny and pressure to constantly go above and beyond expectations just to be considered as good as everyone else in the room. So I’m constantly looking for ways to make my designs for additive manufacturing really stand out. As my mother always tells me, “Birds of a feather all flock together.” After reviewing nTopology 3.0, I can confidently say that I’m flocking with nTopology. Before we even open the programme, let’s break down the problem we’re trying to solve. As a real-life example, I’m currently working towards lightweighting a pair of skateboard trucks. With conventional/explicit modelling (for example, in Solidworks or Fusion 360), I could achieve this in a variety of ways. The easiest method might be to use generative design or topology optimisation modules that already exist. This requires the

» Product: nTopology 3.0 » Supplier: nTopology Price: on application ntopology.com

1 Less is more as ●

topology optimisation drives rapid prototyping to its limits, allowing the user to swap inputs such as material properties, reaction forces and boundary conditions effortlessly

designer to make a design change and then run the part through an FEA-style analysis, to ensure it won’t fail under critical loading conditions. If it doesn’t fail – then yay! We move on to manufacturing. If it does fail (as it so often will), then I’ll need to play with the geometry or the material settings in iterative trials until I get it right. Which kinda sucks, because Fusion 360 requires me to pay for a set of tokens any time I want to use its generative or topology optimisation modules. The costs can add up really quickly. As an added bonus, the Fusion solver is run in the cloud and can sometimes take hours to compute before I get a result. Solving a generative design problem shouldn’t require engineers to run ‘set it and forget it’ computations. It should be as instantaneous as punching numbers in the calculator. This is the pain point. This is the frustration that nTop can eliminate, with computations that run in mere minutes, not days.

GETTING STARTED First, a few words of advice upfront: NTopology is an acquired taste, like sushi,

NTOPOLOGY 3.0 AT A GLANCE Dropping the nTop name: Just like the best albums, nTopology is now used to refer to both company and product GPU acceleration: It’s GPU-agnostic, so if you’re an AMD or Nvidia house, you should see a big performance boost New UI control for real-time editing of scalar values: This powered by the GPU compute, but quick drag-and-drop of inputs makes the workflow sing Overhang constraint: Now officially released. If you’re going additive, this will help you get the best end result out of your machine of choice New lattice blocks: These include Periodic Lattice Body, Custom Implicit Unit Cell, TPMS Unit Cell with Bias, Orient Unit Cell and Voronoi Volume Lattice Body New Meshing Methods: Including Mesh from Implicit Body by Voxels (10/10 would recommend) DEVELOP3D.COM JUNE / JULY 2021 53

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SOFTWARE REVIEW

2 or wine and charcuterie. Do not go into this expecting your typical Solidworks or Fusion 360 layout or design process. And now, I’m going to say outright what everyone has been sort of tiptoeing around: the nTopology design process relies on modifying existing CAD geometry, using long algorithms of advanced computer code. (Yes, that’s right. They’ve tricked us all into somehow liking computer science. I honestly wish that coding had been presented in such a straightforward and easy manner back when I learned computer science.) So, let’s break it down. As with most coding, you don’t have to start from scratch – there’s always a base workflow to get you started. The success team at nTop does an excellent job at this, providing a few basic notebooks that you can download from the company’s site for free. I’d highly recommend that most beginners start here. The notebooks are well-documented and it’s fairly straightforward. Before we get in too deep, let’s take a quick look at some of the terminology at work here. A variable in nTop is very similar to the ones we know from Java and Matlab. It’s any parameter that’s subject to change. You can convert any block into a variable, and I’d recommend this if you plan on reusing the contents of the block throughout your notebook. This can easily be done by right clicking and then selecting ‘Make Variable’. An implicit body (most commonly nicknamed ‘implicit’) is a 3D geometry represented by a distance field. When you convert an explicit CAD model from Solidworks or Fusion into an implicit, the part is no longer represented by the concrete surfaces, edges and vertices you’re

familiar with. Instead, the part is converted into a system of mathematical equations that represent the geometry of your part. These equations (or fields) are more robust as a data file and take less time to compute. A mesh is like a net that wraps around your part to define the vertices, edges and faces of an object. When you open the software and start a new project, on your left opens you’ll see a notebook open. The purpose of this notebook is to help designers document, group, comment and organise their workflows. I like to think of the notebook as a literal piece of paper where I describe my process for modifying a geometry. Finally, there’s blocks. nTop successfully hides all of the anxiety-inducing hard lines of code and condenses them into blocks, which contain functions that operate based on given inputs from the user.

PUTTING NTOP TO WORK Let’s return to my example for lightweighted skateboard trucks. The workflow recommended by the nTop support documentation is to first import the CAD file; then convert the CAD to an implicit body; and finally, to shell it and fill it with a lattice. Let’s break down those three steps in more detail. The first step to almost every Notebook is to import the CAD geometry you want to optimise. NTop works best with Parasolid files (think .step, .iges or .x_t), but it also accepts native CAD geometry files from most programmes. Next, that CAD is converted to an implicit body. This step is important, because it’s less labour-intensive and time-consuming for the software to run computations on these implicit bodies.

Implicit models can be queried in an infinite number of ways, without the application needing to recalculate the solution each time. This delivers optimised processing speeds, providing a new model in a fraction of the time. When it comes to modifying your implicit geometry, you can run operations like Booleans, offsets, drafts and rounds simultaneously. Here we see one of the biggest ways in which nTop differs in its approach to design. Instead of making a change and waiting for your CAD tree to update, you can make several changes and they all update at the same time and in real time. Finally, the third step: Shell and fill with lattice. In the latest release, nTop has updated its lattice pipeline to include new blocks: Periodic Lattice Body block (beta), Custom Implicit Unit Cell block (beta), TPMS Unit Cell with Bias (beta), Orient Unit Cell block, Voronoi Volume Lattice Body (Beta). For the purpose of the lightweighting, however, nTop already has a custom block for operation, so it should be fairly straightforward to just tell the application what you want and… Bam! Done in under 60 seconds. You can see the results in Figure 2.

2 Call me Hue-dini! ●

The colour saturation on the static analysis results really pop. The nTopology simulation tool allows the user to select between displacement (shown here), strain, stress, and reaction forces at the click of a button for instantaneous feedback

GETTING RESULTS I didn’t even have time to stretch before the application had finished solving and generated my part. The new nTop update to GPU acceleration means rendering is between ten and 100 times faster than in the previous nTop version. The updated user interface allows you to make real-time edits to any scalar value at the click and drag of a mouse, providing you with dynamic, instantaneous feedback.

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What’s great here is, without doubt, the ease of use. Designing in nTop is akin to driving a Nascar. You get fast-paced, robust, highly optimised performance. That said, you do need to take some time to understand what you’re doing before you start out. nTop isn’t like most engineering CAD programmes, where you enter the display window and start pressing random buttons until something generates. Its purpose is to solve complex engineering problems. For that reason, your task should be approached as seriously as one would approach the challenge of professional racing. Another big bonus is quality: this software offers best-in-class lattice generation tools. The lattice application is fast, powerful and responsive, providing visual feedback as you navigate workflows. The website also provides a customer portal with supporting documentation that’s easy to read and understand, as well as pre-built notebooks to help designers get started. Customer support is fast and responsive via email, web, or Slack. As a user, I also appreciate that the newly updated error/warning messages in nTop 3.0 give you helpful hints as to what you may be doing wrong, so you can troubleshoot independently. And with the new GPU accelerator, the tasks of saving, closing and reopening notebooks also feels faster. That sounds like a small thing, but when you’re the engineer on a Zoom call who has to present your design to a wall of faces, you can feel more confident and at ease knowing your rendering is reliable and fast.

WHO AND WHEN? To answer the question ‘Who’s it for?’, I think it’s just as important to think about, ‘When’s it for?’ In other words, how do you identify the best stage of the process for you, or someone on your team, to put nTopology to work? In my opinion, the application has the greatest impact at the concept stage, where it can be used to create generative designs based on engineering knowledge. Those designs can then be exported from nTop into traditional CAD programmes, in order to enter the company’s product development workflow. From the CAD stage, the part moves on to manufacturing, where members of the manufacturing team – or those working on the shop floor – can easily feedback the results to the product development team. This allows for faster design changes, more iterations and a quicker time to market. Although it makes more sense to me to start with nTop at this early stage, I’ve more commonly seen nTopology used at the stage that lies between the CAD phase and manufacturing. This is a typical workflow for companies that are structurally optimising already-existing parts using the nTopology platform. So to focus in on the ‘who’ question: everyone who touches the product during

development should be aware of nTopology and knowledgeable in how it works. This includes subject matter experts, specialising in software like Ansys or Abaqus, who typically focus on simulation. They will most likely find nTop incredibly intuitive and experience a shorter, faster learning curve. It also includes application engineers in charge of product designs, who will benefit from being able to automate their workflows to come up with a series of designs that can be tested quickly. And it most definitely includes manufacturing engineers. Just because a part is organic in shape, this doesn’t make it easily manufacturable – and for that reason, I strongly recommend nTopology to this group. In my view, it will enable them to offer better input to product designers and shorten the time it takes to send feedback up the development chain.

programmes far outstrip nTop in terms of wide acceptance and faster learning curves, but they can’t compute anywhere near as quickly, nor do they offer the same level of performance in terms of implicit modeling or lattice generation. I’ve used Siemens NX to generate similar lattices to nTopology, but the render was incredibly slow and my part file became so massive that exporting it required me to leave the laptop in the office to run overnight. In terms of speed, customisation, design automation and workflow offerings, nTopology can’t be beat. In terms of cons, nTopology is still finding its place in legacy engineering workflows. If you’re in a rigid, legacy company that expects both a solid part (not just an STL) and a drawing to be released before the part can head to production, nTopology may have difficulty garnering acceptance. It also has a high learning curve and its likeness to coding may scare off the less adventurous.

PROS AND CONS

CONCLUSION

I found much to praise in nTopology 3.0. Its built-in simulation tools make it easy to perform design analysis, and the results of this analysis can then be used as an input to drive part geometry. With GPU acceleration, it becomes faster and easier than ever to design, simulate, and export parts. Best thought of as an engineering tool – not a CAD programme – nTopology is a programming language perfectly suited for engineering design. The advanced geometry kernel based on their implicit modeling method creates unbreakable geometries. With the new release, nTop continues to hold the title as the greatest at advanced, complex geometric structures such as lattices and gyroids. Alternatives to nTopology include conventional CAD systems such as Siemens NX, Fusion 360, and Solidworks. Additionally, applications like Onshape, Rhino, FreeCAD, and Grasshopper 3D are also candidates for generative design. Most of these more conventional

Whenever I want some new dohickey, my boss always asks me, “Is this something that you want, or is this something that our team needs?” Normally, the answer is a grumbled “Never mind”, but in the case of nTopology, it’s a definitive team need, especially as an additive engineer. Additive manufacturing allows us to print shapes and geometries that conventional manufacturing can’t achieve. It’s faster to market, materials can be locally sourced and lead times can be cut from almost a year to just under four weeks. Now, imagine what additive could achieve when used in conjunction with a software that iterates and designs just as quickly? The goal of nTopology is to offer the most advanced engineering software in the world. With a team composed of experts in geometric modeling, computational mechanics, advanced manufacturing and computer science, the company is successfully setting the standard while simultaneously exceeding the limits of simulation-driven design

3 ‘Lattice’ not ●

forget that shells and bespoke infills allow us to lightweight parts without making any sacrifices in overall performance

ntopology.com

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HARDWARE REVIEW

Peel 3D Peel 2 CAD-S The Peel 2-S is a scanning device that boasts a sharp focus on capturing smaller objects in finer detail than its predecessor, the Peel 2. It’s a welcome addition to the Peel 3D product range, as Al Dean reports » Product: Peel 3D » Supplier: Peel 3D/ SolidPrint3D Price: from £7,995 peel3D.com | solidprint3d.co.uk

ack in the April 2019 issue of DEVELOP3D, we took a look at the Peel 2 CAD 3D scanner from Peel 3D. As we noted at that time, the brand is an offshoot from Ametek/Creaform. It takes all of the parent company’s 3D scanning knowledge and reverse engineering, and then wraps it up into more affordable products, under a different brand name, to attract a different audience. When we looked at the Peel 2, we found a scanner that was capable and useful in many contexts, but that lacked the ability to capture finer details on parts. This time, we’re taking a look at the newer Peel 2-S, to see what’s changed. The Peel 2-S takes much the same approach as its predecessor in its use of structured white light, but it dials down the resolution, so it’s better suited to capturing finer details. To give you the numbers, the Peel 2-S focuses on a recommended part size of under 0.5 metres, compared to the 0.3 to 3m recommended for the Peel 2. What this means in practical terms is that, using the same sensors and camera rig, the size of the projected image shrinks from 380 x 380mm to 142 x 108mm. Essentially, you’ve got the same number of pixels in a much smaller space, so the Peel 2-S can capture 3D forms at a mesh resolution of 0.1mm (or, in other words, a fifth of the resolution that the Peel 2 offers).

SET-UP AND FIRST USE

1 The Peel 2-S ●

Scan2CAD is designed to capture physical objects at high resolution and many of its capabilities are driven by its background within the Creaform stable 2 The Peel 2-S ●

scanner is compact, well-balanced and perfect for dialling in on those finer details you really need

The set-up process is much the same as almost every other 3D scanning unit. All of your kit is supplied in the usual foam-lined pelicase: the scanner unit, USB software and licence dongle, and the cabling. This cabling combines power (in a standard power brick) and data (via high-speed USB 2.0). Installation is a snap. Pop in the USB, start the install and you’re guided through the process. In terms of hardware requirements, you’ll need a modern workstation/laptop with a 2GB Nvidia GPU in place as a minimum. The faster the better, but as the system is targeting smaller parts, the odds of maxing out a modern GPU are minimal. Once installed, it’s time to break out the calibration plate. Calibration of these types of units is simple and the general advice is that it needs to be done semi-regularly, but in particular, when the conditions in which the device is used changes. That could be in terms of ambient light (such as moving

1 to another office or another area of the shopfloor/workshop) or of temperature. With calibration completed, you’re ready to go. When first firing up the Peel 3D software, you’re presented with two basic pathways. If you want, you can follow a guided workflow, which takes you through the scanning process, defining how you want to capture your object, the resolutions used and the tracking methods (such as geometry, textures and registration markets), and gets you working. The other pathway is to perform the set-up yourself and crack on. Essentially, you need to first define the resolution of the scan. It’s set at 1.0mm by default, but the scanner can work from 0.1mm up to 2.0mm. The smaller the number and finer the resolution, the more dense the scan and the larger the dataset. Given that the Peel 2-S scanner is built for capturing smaller objects in finer detail, if you’ve got a decent GPU on board, you shouldn’t have any issues running at 0.1mm. The next step is to set how the system tracks the movement of your scanner around your object. As with many such devices, you have three options here: texture, geometry and marker. If you’ve read our 3D scanner reviews before, you’ll know that structured light scanners enabled with texture capture are able to use surface texture to also track movement of your scanner/ object. The Peel 2-S can also use the geometry of your object. Both of these approaches are highly suited to organic shapes and textured objects. If you have more regularly shaped parts with uniform surfaces (most

commonly associated with mechanical parts), then you may need to employ registration markers. These are small, known-size reflective markers that can be stuck on or around the object. They’re used to triangulate the position of the scanner in relation to the object. As long as the scanner can see three markers at any one time, this approach usually delivers a good result and keeps the scanner tracking properly.

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The Peel 2-S is also supplied with a set of small plastic devices that feature three markers and these can be placed around your object for very quick set-up. This is particularly useful given that the scanner is focused on scanning smaller, higher detail parts, and sticking a series of 4mm stickers all over them isn’t likely to lead to success.

SCAN PROCESS The scan process, as is common, involves you capturing as much data as possible in a single orientation. The device is pretty lightweight and nicely balanced (a boast that many competing products can’t make.) The combination of on-screen range finding (the ideal is 300mm from the object) and on-device lights mean that you can very quickly scan the part in front of you. It’s worth noting that the Peel 3D software presents you with a very rough preview. Since the device is typically capturing a huge amount of data, filtering that back incrementally as you work makes sense. As you get used to how the device works and how quickly you can move the scanner around your object (or how quickly the part turns on a turntable), you’ll also learn how to maintain tracking. At any point, you can take your finger off the trigger, pause the scan and inspect the data, then go back to scanning missed areas. Once that initial scan is done, you have two options. If you have enough data, then you can start the clean-up process and remove the data you don’t need. There are a number of tools to achieve this and the workflow is pretty slick – one of the areas where all that Creaform know-how pays dividends. You then take it through a meshing and further clean-up routines. The other option, particularly when you’re working on more complex parts and need a more comprehensive scan, is adding another scan set. This repeats the same process, with the end result being two or more scan sets that need to be registered together (unless you get really lucky). Again, Creaform’s knowledge and know-

3 how comes into play here and you can use common points (where you select three common points between the two scans or more) to integrate your scans. Once you have your scan (or scan set) ready, the next stage is to prepare it for your downstream workflow. It might be the case that you simply want to mesh the points, perform some hole-filling and export your data as an OBJ or STL. In that case, the available tools will help you smooth surfaces, remove any noise and fill any holes, to arrive at a robust export. Alongside this, you may want to take your points/mesh data and construct analytic surfaces based on it, either as point of reference for reusing the mesh in a CAD system (the surfaces would allow you to align and assemble it in place), or to create reference geometry to build a fuller model. The Peel 3D software isn’t really designed to let you build a fully enclosed solid model. Instead, its intention is to help build a set of reference surfaces that are fitted to the point and mesh data. From

there, you can import them into a more complete 3D design system and complete your work there, based on references pulled from the scan data. While this might sound a little complex, the reality is that, in most cases, a more prismatic part can have surfaces (such as cylinders, spheres, planes and so on) added in no time at all. Once that’s done, those surfaces and points can then be loaded into your CAD system. This will typically require two export operations: Firstly, the mesh file as an STL or OBJ; secondly, the surfaces as a STEP or IGES (for instance) . This means you should end up with a set of two geometry types which can be used to build up the model as needed.

3 The Peel 2-S can ●

track positioning using geometry features, texture detail or registration markers 4 Once you’ve ●

learned the best methods to capture physical form with the Peel 2-S, the results speak for themselves

IN CONCLUSION When we first looked at the Peel 2 scanner, it impressed us. The price was lower than has traditionally been the case; the build quality was excellent; and, just as importantly, the software was robust and easy to use. The main issue we had was that it wasn’t a good fit for those wanting to capture finer resolution scans. What the Peel 2-S does is take the same approach as its predecessor, but focuses (both literally and metaphorically) on smaller objects and on capturing finer detail – but retaining the same ease of use combined with Creaform’s software. The scans captured are outstanding in terms of detail and once you’ve mastered the art of multiple scans, registration and alignment, along with the practicalities of dealing with reflective surfaces, you can make some real progress. The ultimate combination might be using both devices in a single office, giving you more options and the best of both worlds. In fact, there’s just such an option. If you’re in the market for 3D scanning capability, the Peel 3D product range is worthy of deeper investigation. peel3d.com | solidprint3d.co.uk

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THE LAST WORD

As he writes his last few words for DEVELOP3D, Al Dean is feeling wistful about his time at the helm of this fine publication, but discovers a common thread that means it has all been worthwhile: people

f you’ve read this month’s Editor’s Letter, you’ll already know that I’m stepping down as editor on DEVELOP3D and handing the reins to my partner in crime, Stephen Holmes. It’s his job now to steer the good ship DEVELOP3D into the clear blue yonder. If you haven’t read my letter, then yeah, I’m out of here and on my way to explore a different path. It’s a strange feeling to be writing those words, particularly given that I, along with the majority of the team, have been working on this publication since its launch. We’ve seen it grow from the inklings of an idea, borne from a desire to do technical publications differently, to become what it is today. The name ‘DEVELOP3D’ was conceived in a coffee shop in Farringdon, London. We wanted a name that didn’t directly reference technology, but a process – a workflow, if you will. We have always wanted this publication to be about the process and creative endeavour of product development, not the tools. And 128 issues later, that still holds true. Over the years, I’ve travelled the globe looking for new stories and new

things happen when you very least expect them. Stay out a little bit later than you think you should. Say yes more than you say no. That might lead to meeting a former stuntman in a bar in Vegas and discovering that he and his team are building vehicles that could evolve their own chassis design. It might mean meeting a quiet robotics wizard and children’s author, exploring autonomy in the rural idyll of Berkshire. I’ve met people who I’d consider true masters of their art. I’ve met people who have become lifelong friends. Thankfully, there have not been many arseholes. If you’re looking for travel tips, I can also give you a couple of these. Always check-in your bag - it’s really not worth the hassle of lugging it onto the aircraft yourself. Travel a day ahead of schedule for long-haul trips, and visit a museum. Go outside more often at conferences. Hydrate. Photograph your hotel room number – and also, the front of the hotel, just so you can be absolutely sure you’re trying to get into the correct room, in the correct hotel. Especially late at night. A Tiki bar is always a fine thing to find. Here, Google Maps is your friend. Avoid mixing sake with lager, unless you want to leave early from the memorial drinks

‘‘

If I have lessons to give you all from my experience, it’s these three. Interesting things happen when you very least expect them. Stay out later than you think you should. Say yes more than you say no

’’

technologies to bring back to these pages. I’ve sat in more conference centres than anyone should do in one lifetime. I’ve sat through more product demonstrations than is seemingly possible. I think I’ve only fallen asleep in two. I’ve also enjoyed myself along the way and had more than a few adventures. Late nights and early mornings never mix well, but if I have lessons to give you all from my experience, it’s these three. Interesting

for Pantera’s drummer. Don’t ask Leonard Nimoy when he’s going to resurrect his music career. This last one is very specific, but also avoid hanging out with Samoan bouncers in San Diego, unless you’re quick on your toes when the cops show up. Ultimately, the real joy that has been the driving force behind my time at DEVELOP3D has been people. Designers and engineers are a fascinating breed of humans. Initially reluctant to discuss what they do, once you

get them started, the conversation can be as compelling as the products they develop. Taking those conversations and turning them into stories to share, stories that really celebrate that work, has been a true honour and one that I’ll miss. As with all good speeches, I have some folks I’d like to thank. Above all, my family, for putting up with deadline fever and travel schedules. The team on DEVELOP3D; it has been a true gift to work with you all over the last 13 years. And lastly, all of the folks I’ve met over the years; keep doing what you do, it has been truly awe-inspiring to explore your world and your successes.

The very first issue of DEVELOP3D, from June 2008, is still available on DEVELOP3D.com

GET IN TOUCH: Email Stephen on stephen@x3dmedia.com. Are you developing and building products? We want to tell your story. Talk to us!

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