Blending is one of those features where you gotta love using CAD.
When a complicated blend comes back successfully, it’s one of those “oh yeah” moments. We made a video demoing some of ViaCAD/Shark’s blending capability using a part that had stumped Rhino users. Click on the movie below which has several of those moments.
But… there are times when it does not work and you get frustrated. A frequent situation is that where the radius is too large for the given geometry. Another common issue is when the edges and nearby faces are nearly tangent (greater than 2 degrees less than 5). Below is a video by Nick Johnson of CADSoft Solutions Limited that demonstrates how to repair a body to blend that has the “nearly tangent” issue.
I had an interesting question from a customer last week. The customer designs putting greens using 12×12 interlocking tiles. They wanted to know if ViaCAD could tabulate the full or partial areas of tiles trimmed to a outline.
Below is a movie showing how you could use ViaCAD Pro to accomplish the task. The primary tools used in the demo include:
I was first introduced to ACIS in 1992 by Bruce Morgan of Spatial. For those of you unfamiliar with ACIS, this is the underlying modeling kernel in ViaCAD and Shark. At that time I was responsible for Lockheed’s internal CAD development group. Bruce came in with his ACIS sales hat on with the mission to get Lockheed to incorporate ACIS components into our CAD tools.
What he set into motion though was something quite different!
Do you keep forgetting where the thicken surface to solid tool is located? The reference card which comes with all our ViaCAD & Shark products may be the thing you’re looking for. We recently updated the Shark FX card for V7. This reference card is a handy reminder for keyboard short cuts, mouse functions, viewing commands, as well as tool palette locations for tools. Click on the image below to download the Shark FX V7 reference card in PDF format.
Design8 bv, our Shark distributor in the Netherlands, is hosting a studentdesign contest using Shark FX V7. For more information and design rules visit the link below.
Punch is pleased to announce the beta of Shark FX V7. The beta contains over 100 improvements or features relative to V5 that include updates to modeling, drafting, photorendering, and interoperability. Some of key new features (some with videos) are listed below:
Key New Features
CATIA(TM) V5 & Inventor 2010 (TM) file import for parts and assemblies
The CATIA V5 and Inventor translators are available only on PC. However with Shark’s hybrid licensing you can install the PC version on your Mac (VMWare, BootCamp) to access these features.
Many thanks to those of you who participated in our first Shark webinar. This webinar provided a technical overview of Shark FX and demonstrated several of the new features coming out in V7. One of the key features of Shark is its ability to work with three integrated modeling methods that include associative NURBs, history based solid modeling, and direct face editing.
The webinar also includes some demos showing several of the new features in V7 such as G2 blending, interoperability with Inventor 2010 parts and assembly import, HDRI rendering, and The Gripper.
I enjoy hearing back from users on how they are using ViaCAD or Shark.
If you have an interesting use please drop us an email so that we can share your experience with others.
This week’s Shark In Action features a full scale display model made by a major aerospace firm using Shark. As the former Chief Engineer for this company’s CAD group, I know from experience how hard these guys can push a CAD system. This task was no less demanding than I’ve come to expect from these guys!
Below are 10 very useful tips regarding the user interface for ViaCAD and Shark.
10. Using the Mouse for Viewing
Pan View: Press space Bar AND the left button at the same time.
Zoom View: Roll the scroll the wheel forward or backwards. Select Preferences:User Interface: Reverse Mouse Wheel Zoom to change of zoom relative to roll direction.
Rotate View: Press and hold the Scroll wheel. If something is selected, that becomes the center point for rotation.
