digital tools and references
Capability: Deep Creator 2.3 is used to build interactive training
environments, particularly in the aerospace and defense industries. With
a new user interface, the software also adds new customization capabilities.
Users can now create their own toolbars and configurations to shape Deep
Creator to meet different production needs and workflows. The new version
also supports dual monitors for increased visual workspace. The upgrades
speed the building of training, walkthrough visualizations, and product
presentations. The application is integrated with the developer's
computer-aided design software, so training teams can acquire and transform
three-dimensional CAD data into the 3-D training and walkthrough models.
Hardware: PC running Windows 2000 or NT.
Developer: Right Hemisphere, 2603 Camino Ramon, Suite 200, San
Ramon, CA 94583; (925) 242-2242; fax (925) 242-2952; www.righthemisphere.com.
Cost: $1,995.
Micro- mechanics Analysis
Capability: This general-purpose micromechanics analysis
code for diverse materials with arbitrary microstructures has been upgraded
to version 1.6. Variational Asymptotical Method for Unit Cell Homogenization—or
Vamuch, for short—can be used to calculate material properties
and can recover the local fields within the microstructure. A complete
set of material properties can be obtained within one run of the code
without applying boundary conditions and loads. The dimensionality of
the problem is determined by the dimensionality of the microstructure.
Hardware: PC running the Windows, Macintosh, Linux, or Unix operating system.
Developer: Utah State University. Contact Wenbin Yu, Mechanical
and Aerospace Engineering Department, Utah State University, UMC 4130,
Logan, UT 84322-4130; (435) 797-8246; wenbin@engineering.usu.edu; www.mae.usu.edu/faculty/wenbin.
Cost: Free.
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Capability: Cyco AutoManager View 2007 allows a cross-section of employees to view, print, compare, and annotate engineering documents. The application supports more than 200 different file formats and is designed to view all CAD, Microsoft Office, and Adobe Acrobat documents from within a single environment. Support for AutoCAD, Autodesk Inventor, and SolidWorks is also included.
Hardware: PC running Windows 2000 or NT.
Developers: Cyco Software, 2400 Lake Park Dr., Suite 450, Atlanta,
GA 30080-8982; (404) 634-3302; fax (404) 633-4604; www.cyco.com.
Cost: $249 to start; $139 for enterprise license.
Beyond DOS
Capability: General CADD Pro is a two-dimensional CAD
and drafting program that includes many features of the developer's
generic CADD, a DOS-based CAD. The upgrade offers a two-letter command
structure, Macro programming language, 32-bit accuracy, and compatibility
with many file formats. Many CAD users maintain an older DOS-based computer
to run a particular CAD program, according to a spokesman for the developer.
This application is intended to give those users an easy upgrade to Windows.
Hardware: PC running Windows 2000 or XP.
Developer: General CADD Products Inc., 1 Railroad Ave., Cherry Valley, NY 13320; www.generalcadd.com.
Cost: $599.
Structural Stress
Capability: Developed by research laboratory Battelle,
Verity is commercially available only in fe-safe, the fatigue analysis
software for finite element models. This structural stress software can
be used to analyze structural welds in thick plate, seam welds in thin
sheets, and spot welds. A single analysis can be divided among several
processors to help speed large-model or complex analyses. Users can predict
the fatigue life of welded structures regardless of the complexity of
welded components and design detail.
Hardware: PC running the Windows or Unix platforms. A Linux version will be available shortly.
Developer: Safe Technology Ltd., One The Southwest Centre, Archer Rd., Sheffield S8 0JR, England; (44-114) 255-5919; fax (44-114) 255-5910; P.O. Box 11603, Cincinnati, OH 45211-0603; (513) 598-1520. www. safetechnology.com.
Cost: $15,000 to start; annual lease price.
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