solidThinking Overview

Where ideas take shape…

solidThinking Evolve allows industrial designers to develop forms faster, using either Windows or OS X. It enables you to capture an initial sketch, explore styling alternatives, and visualize products with realistic renderings generated in real time. Evolve provides organic surface modeling and parametric control, with NURBS-based surfaces and solids and a unique ConstructionTree history feature.

No new features were added for Evolve 2017.1, only bug fixes. Key enhancements for solidThinking Evolve 2017 included:

•	Symmetry: New Planar Symmetry and Radial Symmetry tools have been added to replace the Mirror and Polar Copy tools.

•	Loft and Sweep feedback: The Loft and Sweep tools now provide additional feedback in cases of failure.

•	Length Parameter: A length parameter has been added to the Line and Rounded Polyline tools.

•	Curve Offset: When using the Curve Offset tool, you can now select surface edges directly.

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Depth of Field: All images which are rendered inside Evolve include a Depth Channel (tiff). This Z-depth channel can now be saved in the Image Browser and used in post-processing tools such as Adobe Photoshop to simulate the natural blurring of foreground and background scene elements when viewed through a camera lens.

solidThinking Inspire enables design engineers, product designers, and architects to create and investigate structurally efficient concepts quickly and easily. Inspire enhances the design process by generating a new material layout within a package space using the loads as an input. The software is easy to learn and works with existing CAD tools to help design structural parts right the first time, reducing costs, development time, material consumption, and product weight.

Key updates for Inspire 2017.1 include:

•	Gauge Optimization: The new gauge optimization feature allows you to optimize the thickness of surface parts. Gauge optimization can be run by itself, or at the same time as topography optimization.

•	Static Load Extraction from Motion Analysis: Motion analysis results for a part can now be extracted for use in structural (FE) analysis and optimization. Peak loads will be automatically extracted from the motion simulation and used in analysis and optimization runs.

•	Component Forces: You can now define forces, torques, and g-Loads in terms of their x, y, z components.

•	Fastener Optimization: When optimizing fasteners, you can now constrain the axial and shear forces using the optimization properties in the Property Editor.

•	Inertia Relief: The new inertia relief feature is used to analyze unsupported systems that are not fully grounded, such as airplanes and satellites.

•	PolyNURBS Split: The new PolyNURBS Split tool replaces the old Loop tool, and allows you to trim individual cage faces.