MachineWorks New Software Release Presented at EMO 2017

So what’s new in MachineWorks version 8.0? Here are a few sneaky snippets:

Surface and Feature Detection

New Surface and Feature detection functionality allows applications to analyse cut surfaces and detect their features. Users may be interested in finding generic geometrical features like cylinders or spheres (surface detection) or may be looking for machined features such as drilled holes (Feature Detection). Both Surface and feature detection represent vast time savings when creating CAD data from polygonal data or generating a toolpath. The image above shows Machining Features detected and highlighted in different colours.

Sheet Bending Simulation

MachineWorks is now capable of simulating sheet metal bending, providing its highly optimised collision checking and performance to this type of manufacturing.

Collision Detection Optimisation

Concave machine parts, typically U- and L- shaped objects, can present a challenge to simulation and slow down collision checking. MachineWorks‘ latest release has overcome this problem by automatically decomposing such solids, enabling significant performance improvements in collision detection.

Simulation Snapshots

This handy new feature allows the application to take ‘snapshots’ of a solid, for example the stock, during the course of a simulation and quickly revert to them at will. When programming or editing a toolpath incrementally, this fast ‘undo’ option becomes an extremely useful function to have to hand.

Cloud Simulation

MachineWorks functionality supports both client and server-side rendering of simulation in real-time as a standard. An improved compression scheme and tools to handle communication and decompression mean that a fast a network connection between client & server is no longer required. There’s also a new client-side library that introduces an API to handle the client-side of the communications therefore making implementation much easier.

3D Simulation Recording 

MachineWorks 8.0 allows users to generate a 3D recording of a simulation that can be used to create movie files to view later. The recording contains information to allow users to manipulate the view (e.g. change the ‘camera’ position) when producing a movie. Most sales and marketing departments including ours would kill for this feature.

See you in Hannover!