CAD Systems - Makers of 2D CAD engineering drawing systems

There are many producers of the lower end 2D CAD engineering drawing systems, including several free and open source programs. These systems can be adjusted as required during the creation of the final draft.

3D wireframe is an extension of 2D drafting. The final product has no mass properties associated with it nor can it have features added directly to it such as holes.

Neutral files such as IGES, STEP, etc. are dumb solids. 3D dumb solids programs are created very similar to the way real world objects are created, in that if the designer wants to alter the object in any way he/she then has to add or subtract material, or completely delete the object or feature and begin from the beginning. However, if there are any modifications that need to be in the future, the process used to create the original object should not affect the process used to create the new modifications.

3D parametric solids programs require the operator to use what is referred to as "design intent.? Design intent is the rational arrangement of a design's features and dimensions and it also governs the relationship of features within a part as well as the parts within the assembly. For instance, if a feature is to be located off of the center of a part, then designer must locate that feature off of the center of the model. 3D Parametric solids require that the designer consider all consequences of his actions, for what the designer sees as a simple solution today may end up being he worst case scenario tomorrow. With 3D parametric solids, draft views can easily be generated from the models. There is an ever-increasing amount of tool kits available for these systems, including 3D piping and injection mold designing packages.

CAD systems such as Pro/ENGINEER and Catia provide the capabilities to incorporate organic and ergonomic features into the design. Surfaces are frequently combined with solids to permit the designer to produce products, which fit the human form as well as interface with the machine.

The ultimate goal of the CAD operator should be to produce future task on the current project as easy as possible, which requires a solid understanding of the system being used by the operator.

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