3000 WORD ASSIGNMENT

CAD/CAM Assignment



CAD/CAM Assignment

1         Introduction

In engineering fields today the use of CAD softwares has become imperative. These softwares are used to manipulate and test designs before the product is even made. It is essential to have some knowledge of these softwares in order to use them in an efficient manner and to use them to their maximum abilities. Our company “FrogiePrice Inc” must implement a functional, price conscious CAD package”. (Bennett and Hendricks 1987 39-46)

2         Problem definition / Problem statement

To evaluate the top CAD softwares that are available in today's market. The evaluations will be comprised  of (in no specific order):

                1)   Current user share in the CAD market

                2)   Current user growth of the software

                3)   Special features (pros and cons)

                4)   Availability of extension and third party software

                5)   Ease of use (including learning resources such as online tutorials)

                6)   Price (Nostrand 1988 9-17)

In addition to the comparison of CAD softwares there will be an evaluation of two productivity tools:

1)      ProductView Express from PTC and

2)       eDrawings Viewer and Publisher from SolidWorks. (Teresko 1983 46-47)

A conclusion will be the suggested software to purchase and why it should be chosen over the other CAD softwares. (Sitaraman and Altan 1991 247-271)

3         CAD Softwares

This section will be dedicated to the comparison of the different CAD softwares available in today's market

3.1       AutoCAD 2009 (AutoDesk)

Autodesk says that by utilizing its AutoCAD 2009 software users will be able to: “Design and shape the world around you with the powerful, flexible features found in AutoCAD® design and documentation software, one of the world's leading 2D and 3D CAD tools. Speed documentation, share ideas seamlessly, and explore ideas more intuitively in 3D. With thousands of  available add-ons, AutoCAD software provides the ultimate in flexibility, customized for your specific needs. It's time to take design further. It's time for AutoCAD.”

As for an unbiased review of AutoCAD, it is easy to see its popularity since it holds 85% of the current AutoCAD market.  Perhaps why it is so popular is of its low price tag of 4,000 USD. This price is relatively low to the other competing softwares. (Marks 1988 33-38)

Software Price & File Translators:

As was already said, this is complicated. There are different kinds of CAD files, different types of CAD/CAM. A 2D CAD/CAM for basic 2.5D or 3 axis CNC milling usually supports DXF and sometimes HPGL, IGES or even PDF. Modern 3D CAD/CAM software usually includes the basic 3D model translators for STEP and IGES. These are generic formats and very in quality and usability. You need to compare each program individually. For example, Alibre can now import AutoCAD, SolidWorks & Rhino files directly without intermediate STEP files. TransMagic is a program that specializes in translating between CAD/CAM systems. (Groover 1982 29-35)

Usergrowth: AutoCADs user growth has been quite steady over the past few years. A large factor of this revenue growth is contributed by Autodesks new subscription plan that allows users to basically rent the software and pay per use rather than ...