Software Offers Data Repair, Modeling for Manufacture

Delcam’s PowerShape CAD software features Solid Doctor, which uses automatic data repair tools and surface creation and editing options to address problems that can be encountered when translating low-precision and incomplete data. These problems are said to include gaps and overlaps between surfaces as well as duplicated and missing surfaces. The software is designed to carry out simple repairs quickly and easily, while more complex problems can be overcome by deleting and replacing the existing surfaces within the model, the company says.

Once the model has been repaired, the software offers a variety of direct-modeling options to optimize the design for manufacture, particularly for the development of molds and other types of tooling. One such option enables product designers to add draft-to-CAD models, which helps remove as-designed parts from tooling. Adding draft can be accomplished either by using a specific value or by modifying the model interactively. The change can be applied to a single surface or to a group of surfaces, such as the sides of a pocket. In the latter case, the software maintains the radii of any fillets linking the sides.

According to the company, small fillets can require extra machining time and increase delivery times and costs. They can restrict the flow of material in molds or dies, increasing processing times and pressures. PowerShape can use direct modeling to identify fillets within imported geometry, even when the modeling history has been lost, and replace them with new fillets that have more suitable radii, the company says.

Once the design is complete for manufacturing, it can be transferred to virtually any CAM product, including Delcam’s FeatureCAM for feature-based programming, PowerMill for high-speed and five-axis machining, PartMaker for programming turn-mill equipment and Swiss-type lathes, and Delcam for SolidWorks.