Design mobility generally describes a user's ability to have his design work
at his fingertips while out of the office. Solid Edge has provided users
with a mobile viewer
that gives them a visual representation of their 2D and 3D data.
This software is available to customers right now
on the Microsoft, Android, and iOs stores
for free. However, what happens when you're away from your desk you need to
do more than just view your data?
Well Solid Edge and Microsoft have come together to solve that problem as well.
Solid Edge on the Surface Pro tablet gives users access to all modeling commands
and capabilities in the full version Solid Edge.
Let's take a look at what this collaboration brings us.
Imagine for a second that we're a manufacturer of these racing car display
modules like we see on screen.
We have a subcontractor that we've worked with for years
that creates the brackets for our parts. They're not local so we're having a
quick onsite meeting at their facilities
to ensure that their engineers can see and produce exactly what we need.
We've already brought in the old mount for comparison, and
you can see here that the one created for a previous version of the display
doesn't quite get the job done with our newest release.
Seeing as we want to maintain the integrity of the previous version
of this mount
we're going to replace it with a copy of itself, so that we can start designing
the proper bracket for our part
while keeping all of our files stored locally on our tablet.
No matter the complexity the models or the changes needed to be made on them,
having a single device that can store, share,
and edit our models while still being mobile greatly improves productivity
and decreases hold-ups in our everyday design workflows.
Here we're going to see some changes being made using Solid Edge's
unparalleled sheet metal capability. You can see that we have access to the
full functionality of Solid Edge.
Now that the old flanges are gone
we need to build the new mounting bracket. Even on a tablet, Solid Edge with
synchronous technology maintains the full capability
of either tracking faces directly or manipulating them using precision tools
such as dimensions
or other input values. A quick value input
of eight point five millimeters, and we've obtained our desired bracket width.
Now to finish this part off, we need to make sure that all of our sharp edges are
smoothed out
as well as create a circular cut that's going to align with the mounting holes
on the actual display adapter. Notice that Solid Edge
also supports enlarged icons to allow for easier access to commands,
even on a tablet-sized screen.
Now, once we have all of our edges rounded out, we need to create a quick synchronous
cut in order to finish out the part.
Of course, with changes in technology come changes in the way we do business.
Rather than having to traditionally prototype his part to ensure proper fit
Solid Edge can now directly link with Microsoft 3D builder to create an
output file for rapid prototyping.
Notice, with just a single click
we can export this part into the printer app to be edited
and worked on.
Now if your tablet doesn't have the 3D printer app already present,
Solid Edge takes you to the free download on the Windows store.
Now that we're finished it manufacturer's site, we have a few things to finish up
on the trip back home.
You've seen as we've worked through this workflow
that finger gestures are used for changing views with the typical zoom,
pan, and rotate capabilities, but I've also done most of the modeling using a
mouse.
Another capability that the Surface Pro gives you
is utilizing a stylus if a mouse isn't handy
which we'll use here while we're on travel. Once our views are updated on our draft sheet
we can easily finish our drawings.
Now, Solid Edge has informed us that certain dimensions couldn't be reattached upon update
so a quick reattach of our geometry fixes that
and then we can finalize our drawing with a quick detail view of our bent corner.
Notice that Solid Edge easily differentiates between stylus clicks
and fingers zooms, allowing you to use a natural combination of the two.
As I'm sure you're aware
there are many different methods for saving out drawings or images
from viewer files to jpgs. Here, we'll
simply send a screenshot of the final drawing back to the shop.
Notice with just a few simple clicks
or touches of your fingers, we can get exactly what we're looking for.
Now, in summary, this technology gives you the freedom of design mobility,
be it an onsite facility, traveling,
or at the office, full Solid Edge capability with tablet-tailored
interaction with your latest apps for 3D printing
and email allows you to have the full function of a workstation
on a single lightweight mobile device. Solid Edge and the Surface Pro:
a combination allowing you to design better.