COMPUTERVISION has introduced a new version of its CADDS 5 computer-aided-design software, specifically targeted at helping collaborative design of aerospace products.
Bedford, Massachusetts-based Computervision says that the CADDS 5 Revision 6 will enable a team of design and manufacturing engineers to work concurrently on an entire assembly, allowing them to detect potential design conflicts earlier in the product -development process.
Collaborative design tools provided include "-the industry's first assembly-centric NC [numerical-control] software", the company says. This allows NC programmers to work directly on the design model. "Manufacturing engineers can work in the context of assemblies, generating tool paths across multiple parts and using [Computervision's] Concurrent Assembly Mock-Up to model jig and fixture assemblies," the company says.
Revision 6 incorporates five-axis NC-machining capability, which enables the NC tool path to follow any pattern requested by the programmer. This results in a better finish and reduces the time, which is required to program and machine complex parts, according to Computervision.
Another feature automates the routeing of electrical harnesses through entire assemblies, based on engineering constraints, and automatically optimises the wiring layout, balancing those constraints with manufacturing-cost requirements, Computervision says.
Airbus Industrie, LucasVarity, Rolls-Royce and Short Brothers are among CADDS 5 users which requested the more than 600 enhancements incorporated in Revision 6, says Computervision.
Source: Flight International
