Introduction to geometric modeling and CATIA v5

The designer plays a crucial part in the application of procedures for the construction of machines, plants, and other technical objects. As a technical problem solver, the designer is primarily responsible for function and price.

The planning, forming, production, introduction, and recycling work phases must be considered in conjunction with the development and design step because it is only one stage of the product life cycle.

The end result of several operations for analysis, synthesis, and testing is the technical product. The design process aids in organizing these discrete phases and doing feature-based product evaluations. Computer-aided design (CAD) software is a key instrument in this process.

This computer help should, in general, increase the designer's degree of knowledge and reduce the already significant amount of time needed for information acquisition.

The usage of CAD systems is concentrated on automating the development of support information, engineering analysis, and CAD geometry. The system must function inside an integrated design environment in order to be helpful and demonstrate its usefulness. The sort of modelling approach that the designer chooses is typically dependent on how simple it is to use during the building phase and how the resultant database will be used in the design and production processes.

Regardless of the approach used, the user builds a geometric model of an item on a CAD/CAM system by entering the object's data using the user interface offered by the programme in the manner specified by the modelling technique. After that, the programme transforms the data into a mathematical representation and saves it in the model database for subsequent use. During the design and/or production stages, the user may retrieve and/or edit the model.

Geometric modelling on computers

A broad field known as Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) includes Computer Aided Design (CAD) and Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM). Finite Element Analysis, Computer Aided Drafting, and Computer Geometric Modeling are other subcategories of CAD.

The mathematical depiction of an object's geometry using software is known as computer geometric modelling. The form of the represented item is described in a geometric model. Curves are utilized to create geometric shapes because surfaces define geometric shapes.

Curves are used in computer geometric modelling to easily manage an object's surface. Analytical functions, a collection of points, or other curves and surfaces might be used to create the curves.

These three stages can be used to generate a geometric model of an object:

• Create simple geometric objects in CAD software by utilising the points, lines, and circles commands.
• To change these geometric parts, use commands like accomplish scaling, rotation, etc.
• Integrate the object's many components to create the final geometric model.

A Little History:

Modeling in engineering refers to the representation of data in computer memory and its visualization. The information is kept in a convenient data structure that the visualization algorithm may easily access.

Geometric modelling is the practice of utilizing mathematical formulas to represent the characteristics of an item or a system. The study of mathematical techniques used to create realistic things for computer graphics and computer-aided design is known as computer geometric modelling.

Computers are used to store the information and geometrical characteristics of a system or part. Due to advancements in computer technology, this relatively young technology has grown quickly. Most of the 1950s' first-generation CAD applications were non-interactive.

To produce the desired 2D geometric forms, CAD users have to write computer codes. In the 1960s, interactive CAD software started to emerge and was mostly utilized in the aerospace and automobile sectors.

The development of CAM for creating machine tool paths and finite element analysis techniques for computerized stress analysis also began in the 1960s. The late 1970s saw the introduction of microprocessors, which increased computer processing capability. It also sparked the creation of 3D CAD applications that were simple to use and, most crucially, interactive.

From very basic computer-aided drawing to extremely complicated computer-aided design, the 1980s saw the development of computer application software. At this time, the industry began using 2D and 3D wire frames for geometric modelling as a technique to boost production.

Various commands entered through the CAD programme are translated into mathematical models during the geometric modelling process, which is then stored as files and shown as an image. The designer's geometric models are always available for examination, alteration, or analysis.

With the development of 3D solid modelling technology, which increased industrial adoption of CAE technology, CAD truly came into its own. With 3D wireframes as a starting point, 3D modelling techniques were developed. Because it allowed designers to utilize a single object and see it from several perspectives, it represented a significant advancement in computer geometric modelling. However, because surface definition is not included in a 3D wireframe model, wire frames are subject to misinterpretation.

The natural next step was computer geometric modelling with surface definitions to fill this gap. The next advancement in geometric modelling brought by increased computer CPU power was solid modelling. Designers may more easily envision an item thanks to surface modelling, which groups and arranges the edges that constitute polygonal surfaces.

Geometric Solid Modeling

The nodes, edges, and surfaces of an object may be defined using solid modelling. It represents a perfectly contained and filled volume mathematically in a comprehensive and clear manner. Solid modellers, as contrast to surface modellers, begin with a solid or make use of topological principles to ensure that all surfaces are joined together correctly.

Consisting of constructive solid geometry and boundary representation, solid models are often represented using these two techniques. Basic solid objects are combined in constructive solid geometry (for example a rectangular prism, cylinder, cone, sphere, etc.)

Simply adding or removing these forms creates the final solid shape. In boundary representation, things' borders are used to define them. It delivers orders that sweep or rotate a defined face into a third dimension to produce a solid as well as defining the points, edges, and surfaces of a volume. The union of these surfaces that exactly and totally encompass a volume then constitutes the object.

Concurrent engineering was a new paradigm that emerged in the 1980s. The whole production team-designers, analysts, engineers, testers, and production managers-works together simultaneously on this idea from the very beginning of the project. This partnership produced feature-based parametric modelling, which we have discussed independently.

To sum up, the many kinds of computer geometric modelling methods available now are as follows:

• skeletal models (describe an object using boundary lines)
• model surfaces (describe an object using boundary surfaces)
• strong models (describe an object as a solid)

The importance of the kernel

The use of solid geometric modelling has increased. One of the most crucial CAD applications is this one. Solid modelling software for CAD helps design engineers see the component or thing as though it had actually been produced. Even the perspective and viewing angles may be altered using the CAD programme. Popular tools for computer geometric modelling, especially solid modelling, include SolidWorks, CATIA, and PTC Creo.

The kernel is the brain of computer geometric modelling software. It is the code, also known as a geometric modelling kernel or solid modelling kernel, that decides how the image you see on the screen is really mathematically depicted. Because they are mathematical representations of actual and hypothetical objects, kernels are significant.

Making decisions on the calculation and storage of each form is necessary when describing shapes in a mathematical representation.

It goes without saying that a geometric modelling software is better the better a kernel. A decent kernel should include all the features programmers need, but it also has to be dependable and fast. Companies like PTC, SolidWorks, CATIA, and others are continually working to enhance it since the quality of a kernel influences the quality of the entire CAD system.

The Future of Computer Geometric Modeling

Many industries, including industrial engineering, automotive engineering, aerospace engineering, defense, power, etc., employ computer geometric modelling. Additionally, geometric modelling is being used in other emerging fields, including robots, imaging in medicine, visualization, etc.

Geometric modelling services, both solid and feature-based, are in extremely high demand in developing nations (for instance, in India, China, and Brazil).

This is because simulation takes a lot of time. It is tiresome as well unless you have cutting-edge software like PTC Creo, Solid Works, or CATIA, which small businesses often do not have. Due to the intricacy of the geometry, there have been instances when the geometric modelling time alone required nearly half the PLM time!

For design engineers, the more complex the surface features (surface mesh), the better. As a result, businesses that offer geometric modelling as a service are becoming more and more well-liked in India and abroad.