upFront.eZine News Archives

What BIM Can't Do

Issue #781

 

 

The story is mostly in the German press, and so you may not have heard of how just three prestigious building projects are sticking e7.3 billion ($10 billion) in cost overruns to taxpayers. Each one is a horror story with the same plot line: politicians immature enough to put themselves in charge (to create legacy projects for themselves), and then proved to be inadequate to solve the problems that arose.

On the technical side, the projects serve to illustrate what BIM software cannot do.

I've been following the stories as they appeared in the German media, and Der Spiegel recently interviewed the head architect for each project:

Herzog & de Meuron designed Hamburg's Elbphilharmonie concert hall

• original cost and completion date = e187 million by 2009
• current cost and estimated date = e865 million by 2017
• being built on the Elbe River, looking like giant waves on a square box
• was to originally cost Hamburg tax payers nothing

Gerkan, Marg and Partners designed Berlin's Brandenburg International Airport

• original cost and completion date = e1.7 billion by 2010
• current cost and estimated date = e4.3 billion by 2014
• meant to replace three aging airports, including history-famous Tegal and Templehof
• is completed, but the fire suppression system does not work and so airport is abandoned for now

Christoph Ingenhoven designed Stuttgart 21, the new underground train station

• original cost and completion date = e2.45 billion by 2010
• current cost and estimated date = e6.5 billion by 2021
• grassroots protests and feature-creap delayed construction; existing train station is not being kept up

The architects listed the following problems in driving up the costs:

• designs were incomplete before construction contracts were let
• shut downs attempted by grass roots protestors and Green Party politicians
• difficulty working with the building contractors
• politicians, who are not experts in construction, claiming competency in oversight
• "Department for the Invention of Additional Features" in which construction companies figure out how to squeeze more funds from the owner

Project-specific problems included these:

• Brandenburg Airport was to pay for itself through passenger fees, but no one knew how many passengers for which to plan
• City of Hamburg provided the land for the concert hall and investors were to raise e40 million by other means; but then a second concert hall was added, best-in-the-world acoustics were desired
• Cost of the actual train station rose only 10%; the expense comes from the new tunnels, rail lines, and logistics
• Soundproofing of residences around Brandenburg Airport was to cost e139 million; soundproofing regulations changed, and the cost went up to an even billion dollars; meanwhile, the size of the airport increased from 2.1 million square feet to 3.4 million

Brandenburg Airport is complete, yet faces a multi-year delay due to a single problem: the failure of the fire suppression system. Politicians in charge of the project decided irrationally to award the contract to two firms, Bosch and Siemens, ensuring incompatibility. As a result, the smoke exhaust system does not work, but by the time the two firms get it working, it could be that the European fire safety standard changes, and work will have to start over. This occurred with the Stutgart 21 project, where regulations changed part way through construction, requiring fire rescue times to be twice as fast while doubling the fire load.

The funniest-saddest story of all is that no one can find the Off switch for the lights, and so the empty airport shines brightly 24 hours a day.

For all its built-in intelligence, BIM software can't account for human nature. Architect Christoph Ingenhoven summarized like this:

"Even an iPhone doesn't always work, even though it's a global brand, costs a lot of money, and has an incredible image. So why should something that's vastly bigger than an iPhone (and isn't even finished yet) be 100% functional right from the start? Mistakes are an implicit part of the [building] system; it can't even be done without mistakes and problems.

"The mistake is that people don't communicate or cooperate with each other, but actually work at cross-purposes."

Source: http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/de-meuron-von-gerkan-and-ingenhoven-on-german-construction-headaches-a-905472.html

 

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All About the New Russian-developed 3D Kernel
Part 3: A full set of tools for geometric modeling
by Leonid Baranov, Sergey Kozlov, Dmitry Semin, and Nikolay Snytnikov

Standard and Advanced Functions. The kernel provides functions for solving a wide range of geometric modeling tasks. These can be divided into "standard" and "advanced" tasks. The standard set of functions and options comprise the backbone of general purpose capabilities found in CAD. These include operations for generating base bodies, and local and global modifications of solid bodies and surfaces. Advanced functions include the creation of complex forms, building up multi-dimensional deformations, and so on.

To create the surfaces of complex shapes, the kernel fully supports methods, such as sweeping profiles along 2D or 3D curves with settings for bending and scaling, and rules for treating discontinuities on sweeping trajectories. There are generators optimized for the special cases of helixes and springs, with user-defined options, such as changing the radius or screw pitch. These make them powerful instruments of creating models of complex shapes.

The lofting generator supports sections with multiple contours, tangency conditions, axis curve definitions, and so on. When sections have different topology, the generator's algorithms can automatically coordinate them by taking into account the number of discontinuities and the number of segments in each G1-continuous interval of a segment. Application developers can set correlations between section points.

Another important method of free-form modeling is the deformation of solid and sheet bodies under various rules, such as bending, translation, freeform and sculptural deformation, and deformation by curve and surface. In the course of deformation transformation, many body surfaces can change their type, changing from analytical surfaces into NURBS.

The geometric kernel includes a full set of functions for solving the task of blending of two and three surfaces, and of covering the holes with irregular shapes. Blending can be applied with continuous or variable radii and sections; special surface functions are used for its representation in the form of a surface, enabling it to represent the results precisely, and, if necessary, to convert it into NURBS. Algorithms include rolling ball and disk blending with a given or computed axis curve. The task of n-sided patch coverings can be solved for an arbitrary number of boundary segments, with the requirement of joining through G1 patches.

The kernel provides a set of classes and functions for solving basic geometric and mathematical tasks. These include operations of vector and matrix algebra, computation of geometric objects (derivatives, normals, curvatures, and so on), computation of bounding boxes, distances between objects, tessellation, and functions to access the geometric and topological elements of models.

Additional modules included in kernel are the geometric constraint solver for positioning solid bodies in assemblies or for simulating kinematic joints, and a converter that handles STEP import and export.

 

Low- and High-Level Operations. Kernel functions can be grouped under another criterion: low-level and high-level ones. The low-level operations include constructing curves and surfaces (canonical objects, NURBS, offset curves and surfaces, and so on), projecting points and curves on surfaces, intersecting and extending curves and surfaces, modifying topology (including Euler operations), and so on. Low-level operations enable application developers to modify kernel data in a most flexible manner, practically operating in manual mode.

High-level operations include operations that are standard for body generation, and Boolean operations on bodies (union, subtract, and intersect). It can be used with solid and surface bodies, and with combinations of the two.

 

High-Level Generators for Solid Body Modeling. High-level operations of body generation can be classified according to their use:

• Generating primitives: planes, spheres, cylinders, tori, cones, NURBS, and so on
• Generating kinematic operations: extrusions, revolves, sweeps of wireframes or surface bodies along 2D or 3D curves, springs, helixes with the option of setting linear and non-linear rules for changing radius and step, and so on
• Lofting and skinning: input sections can be both one- and two-parameter families, with requirements on their differential properties
• Global body modification: Boolean operations, bend deformations, rotation, scaling with different coefficients, and so on
• Local body modification: blends with continuous and variable radii, faceting, tapering, hollows, offsets, arrays of elements, face replacing, sheet sewing, surface extensions, covering of n-sided patches, and so on
• Projecting bodies on surfaces with hidden-line classification and removal
• A mechanism of grouping local operations to support development of the functions needed for direct modeling systems. As a result of them, a new body is generated using combined transformations, rather than a sequence of standalone local operations.

Next in part 4: Solutions for Standard CAD Tasks

[This article is an abridged version of the original, which appears on Russia's isicad.net at http://isicad.net/articles.php?article_num=16135. The Russian was translated into English by Olga Lukashenko.]

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Out of the Inbox

It's coincidence that the week I write about Germany's Big Three Project Failures that Dassault Systemes starts talking about its new Co-Design to Target software. Says the press release, "...many companies fail to reach their budget, schedule, and specification targets due to increasingly complex systems, overly aggressive plans, and the premature incorporation of new technologies." Heh. Anyhow, the new C-DtoT software is a real-time progress tracker for airplanes, not buildings. http://www.3ds.com/solutions/aerospace-defense/industry-experiences

 Professional 3D printer Stratasys bought hobbiest 3D printer MakerBot for an astounding $403 million (share purchase), which works out to a hugely expensive $36,000 per customer. VoxelFab explains why Stratasys felt forced into this move of desperation: http://voxelfab.com/blog/2013/06/stratays-makerbot-a-good-cat-in-the-bag/

Like being in on beta tests? IronCAD 2014 is open to all existing customers to try out the new functions, such as replicating parts and assemblies using patterns; editing multiple features at the same time; setting the default handle; and importing point cloud data. http://www.ironcad.com

Big news for Android users as IMSI/design announces it is adapting its TurboSite software to Google Glass eyewear; not expected to ship until later this year, so regular TurboSite is available through http://www.turboapps.com.
        And GrabCAD releases its Android app for viewing 3D CAD models in all major CAD formats, as well as accessing GrabCAD's library and workbenches; free from https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.grabcad

BIM is brand-new for Bricsys, and so Rakesh Rao writes about the capabilities of this beta BIM Module at http://rakeshrao.typepad.com/work_smarter_geotools/2013/06/bricscad-bim-key-features.html

ASCON plows ahead, giving its KOMPAS 3D MCAD software the ability to read all major MCAD formats through technology licensed from a firm I had not heard of before, CT CoreTechnologie of Germany. The translator handles assembly structures, attributes like names and layers, and all entities, such as points, curves, and b-rep solids. http://www.ascon.net and http://www.coretechnologie.com

Autodesk now claims 120 million customers, up 26% in just six months (95 million announced end of November at AU). Of these, 108 million are fickle mobile app and social media consumers. http://www.forbes.com/sites/haydnshaughnessy/2013/06/17/autodesk-120-million-reasons-why-the-future-lies-with-makers/

Free plugin for DraftSight from Graebert. The plugin integrates ESRI's ArcGIS Online mapping with the free DraftSight. This is, no doubt, targeted at AutoCAD 2014's mapping underlay. Doubt no more at http://www.graebert.com/onlinemaps/

 

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Notable Quotable

"The next time you copy something from someone, just say it's 'a combinatorial innovation'."
      - Casey Newton, speaking of Facebook copying Vine
        @caseynewton

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* 11547

What Marketing Gives, Engineering Takes

Issue #780

 

There's a lot of excitement in the tech media over computers running Intel's latest iteration of its iCore processor, code-named Haswell. The biggest bang is an apparently longer battery life, as boasted by companies as diverse as Apple and Samsung: 9+ hours running, one week on standby. Intel did this by aiming for 2x-3x lower power consumption by integrating functions (SoC = system on a chip) and running the CPU at a lower voltage. In the real world, battery life over the long-term is determined by how quickly the battery's cells degrade, unfortunately, and so I find within two years the battery life is cut in half anyhow.

The second point of excitement is over the extreme boost in integrated graphics: double the performance along with 128MB dedicated RAM, dubbed "HD" for the lower end and "Iris" for the upper. Now, I have found that for casual CAD users like myself, Intel's HD 4000 integrated graphics are more than sufficient. And it seems that Intel agrees with me, for it is doubtful your shiney-new Haswell-equipped ultrabook will be running Iris.

Reader Henrik Vallgren writes from Sweden about the problem: "With each new CPU generation, Intel seems to settle for single-digit performance improvements, the graphics core evolves dramatically, almost doubling for each generation. Check out the new R-series of CPUs, which have twice the amount of cores than the rest of the Haswell line. It's like getting the next generation today. Only, it doesn't seem to be available for end users."

Intel produces different levels of Haswell, just as it does with Xeon. The bottom-of-the-line Xeon is not much better than an i7, while the top of the line Xeon CPU (this would be the one with all the computing power) costs $4,500, and so you can't afford it. The top-of-the-line Haswell has Iris Pro 5200 graphics, but you can't even buy it now. In any case, you might not want it, as its CPU runs at a slower clock speed, meaning that faster Haswells don't have the faster graphics. In any case, you can't upgrade your desktop easily, because Haswells use new socket designs and so you'd need to replace the entire motherboard.

Where Haswell really disappoints is in the area of cores. It has only four, with a 12-core CPU not to be released until the end of next year. With a turbo-boost speed of 3.90GHz, the CPU runs no faster than before, leaving arch-rival AMD as the champion in being the first and only to reach 5.0GHz. As Techradar.Pro put it succinctly, Haswell shows that Intel no longer cares about desktop users.

Which is fair. When we look at the sales numbers, ARM is Intel's true arch-rival as we prefer computers we can stick in our pockets and purses over ones that are bolted to the desktop or lugged along like carry-on luggage.

Sources:
http://www.techradar.com/news/computing-components/processors/haswell-everything-you-need-to-know-about-intel-s-latest-core-processors-1156004

http://www.anandtech.com/show/6993/intel-iris-pro-5200-graphics-review-core-i74950hq-tested/2

 

 

All About the New Russian-developed 3D Kernel
Part 2: Getting Ready for Application Developments
by Leonid Baranov, Sergey Kozlov, Dmitry Semin, and Nikolay Snytnikov

In developing application systems, particularly for parametric CAD, there is the task of storing references to topological elements -- vertices, edges, faces -- in a stable manner. This is essential in setting parameters of local editing, or the elements involved in geometric constraints. RGK's geometric kernel has a stable identification and storage mechanism of topological elements based on specially-generated keys. This mechanism allows programmers to halt searches of geometric parameters that become inconvenient after local modifications are made.

 

Working with System and User Attributes. To store additional information related to topological elements of a model, a mechanism of typified attributes, which are stored and copied together with a body is used. Apart from topological elements, attributes can be stored in session and in user identifiers.

 

Detailed Error Diagnostics. The results of functions are returned as error codes. Detailed information about problems is recorded in a report on functions and performance. To assist centralized monitoring of errors, the kernel has a user class, a monitor, that gives detailed descriptions of errors. It is especially convenient for debugging applications.

The kernel has powerful tools for verification of body correctness. Such verification is necessary for imported models or models obtained by users through low-level editing facilities, such as manual modification topology.

 

Rollback Operation. "Generator" classes are the main means of controlling and editing models. The result of executing them is the modified geometry and topology of bodies. If an error occurs in the generator (such as because of incorrect output), the state of the model becomes indefinite or incorrect. In this case, the geometric kernel performs an undo operation to the initial generator state; this ensures the correctness of the model and avoids the cost for permanent model copying by the application developer.

 

Universal Platform-Independent Data Format. To store 3D model data, we developed our own exchange format. It is an XML-document, and data can be stored in standalone files, as well as be part of application data. The choice of the XML data structure was determined by its advantages in being a universal data format, having platform independence, being easy to scale, and is open. The format is used also for debugging purposes by recording sequences of calls made to kernel functions.

 

Quality Assurance and Test Infrastructure. As a 3D geometric kernel, the complex software has strict quality requirements. We reached the following quality assurance goals in developing and designing the kernel's architecture:

• Creating a convenient test infrastructure for developers, including continuous integration, test driven development, daily automatic builds, and runs of several thousand tests on all supported platforms and configurations
• Continuous extension of the test database with new user scenarios, exactly emulating the calling sequence of the kernel's functions
• Supporting backward compatibility in further development, improvements and modifications of the geometric kernel

Next in part 3: A full set of tools for geometric modeling

[This article is an abridged version of the original, which appears on Russia's isicad.net at http://isicad.net/articles.php?article_num=16135. The Russian was translated into English by Olga Lukashenko.]

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Out of the Inbox

Susan Smith of AECcafe reports on a new AEC software from Precient for designing and building multi-unit structures with robotic welding. http://www.prescientco.com

Scott Wertel gives the MCAD world its first peek at Solid Edge ST 6: reflective display mode and dimension auto-arrange are two of the new functions to be unveiled June 25 at SE University. http://www.engineering.com/DesignSoftware/DesignSoftwareArticles/ArticleID/5807/First-Peek-into-Solid-Edge-ST6.aspx

Luxion links up with GrabCAD (no relation to me) so that 3D models can be rendered by KeyShot. The process works in reverse: starting in KeyShot, selecting Plugins prompts the user to log into their GrabCAD account online, KeyShot grabs the model, renders it, and gives the user the option to upload the rendering to GrabCAD. http://www.keyshot.com/keyshot-grabcad-integration

SmartCAM goes to a schedule release cycle that consists of a major release each year in the fourth quarter, along with maintenance releases as required the rest of the year. Version numbering is changing from V18.7 to 2014 (this year's release). http://www.SmartCAMcnc.com

 

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Notable Quotable

"If you store your customer data, the government's going to come and ask for it later."
      - Chris Soghoian, senior policy analyst, American Civil Liberties Union
         http://www.theverge.com/2013/6/13/4426420/twitter-prism-alex-macgillivray-NSA-government

 

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* 11547

Drawings = Data, and HP's newest large-format printers were designed by users

Issue #779

 

I s'pose we could ask CAD vendors if they hand over customer data through FISA [USA's Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, first implemented in 1978 under president Jimmy Carter], but they would have to deny it. One blogger recommended that the best way to ask the question is as follows: "Have you received court orders under 50 USC 1881a (a.k.a. FISA Section 702) for communications data?" But the latest revelations show that data are being taken from Internet companies without their knowledge.

We could ask, but we'd be no further ahead. Nevertheless, if someone did bother to ask CAD vendors about their FISA involvement, it would be fun fisking the responses from them.

Would the US government want to peruse our drawings? The Chinese government apparently is very interested in them, because drawings = data. The worst part of FISA is that CAD vendors are unable to reassure customers that their data are safe from governmental parsing.

If nothing else, this whole FISA scandal reminds us to not store documents on the cloud. A portless desktop, disconnected from the Internet, remains the most secure location on earth.

 

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 HP's newest large-format printers were designed by users
Ramon Pastor, vp of large format printing at HP, reported that since 1991 HP shipped three million printers, some 8x more than the next competitor. I think that 1991 was when HP first began selling inkjet printers; the number would be much larger if they included pen plotters.

HP is facing a problem. Customers say that the image quality and speed of its printers are good enough, so how can the company encore its current line of Web-connected printers? Well, they researched users to find what pain points they might be experiencing, including those that go beyond printing.

What is the ideal design of a large format printer? HP gave customers cardboard and tools so that customers could build and change models of large-format printers. HP was more interested in the insights customers had in how they designed their cardboard printers. These are shown as the little notes in figure 1.

Figure 1: Customers with their cardboard printer designs and insights

 

Here are the results of the study. Large-format printers should have...

1. A robust stand -- so that it does not move (see figure 2, left image)
2. A small footprint -- so that the printer does not take up space in the office
3. Two media rolls -- so that two different types of media can be used without switching (center image)
4. Media rolls at the front -- so that loading of new media is easier, and the printer can be pushed up against the wall
5. A cover that protects the media -- so that expensive media, like glossy paper, is not damaged
6. Glass cover -- so that users can see right away what is happening to the printer
7. Touch screen controls -- to mimic the direct interaction of smartphones and tablets
8. Organized output -- so that drawings are organized, and not curled (right image)
9. Ergonomic height -- printer is not too tall or too short

Figure 2: Development of the wooden model of an ideal printer. Left to right: Stand, body, completed model

 

Since customers today cannot use wooden printers nor can HP sell them (as Mr Pastor put it), the model was transformed into real printers: 36-inch DesignJet T920 ($5,395) and T1500 ($7,495). They share the following features (see figure 3):

Figure 3: The new DesignJet printer

 

• 30% smaller footprint
• front loading rolls, can be done when seated (two rolls on the T1500 only)
• six colors, including gray and black
• D-size prints in 21 seconds (or more)
• 32GB (64GB on T1500) virtual memory, 320GB hard drive (T1500)
• 4.3" touch screen, with USB port for quick plots
• can email drawings to be printed, including from Android and iOS devices
• transparent cover; flat surface for checking prints
• output flat collated stacking tray, plus second output path for express prints

So now all of HP's competitors know what to do!

Q&A

Q: Did the users have any input to the design of the ink cartridges?

A: There will be low-fill cartridges for customers who don't print a lot and so can pay less, and higher-fill ones with 130-150cc for those who print more.

 

Q: Is ePrint free or a paid service? Are there time limits to prints uploaded to the ePrint service?

A: ePrint is completely free, and there are no time limits.

 

Q: When will these printers be available?

A: June 10 in Europe, and July 8 in the USA.

 

Q: Which operating systems do the drivers work with?

A: Any operating system, whether Windows or Mac OS X. [Linux was left off the list.]

http://www.hp.com/go/DesignjetT920

http://www.hp.com/go/DesignjetT1500

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Out of the Inbox

Vectorworks Architect achieves IFC Coordination View 2.0 certification from buildingSMART International. The certified IFC exporter will be available with Service Pack 4 later this month.

nVidia is demonstrating PTC Creo 2.0 M060 software operating in a virtualized environment via nVidia's GRID virtual desktop technology. You'll need an NVIDIA GRID K2 board along with Citrix XenServer, and Citrix XenDesktop. http://nvidianews.nvidia.com

Siemens PLM Software releases JT2Go app for Windows 8, downloadable from Windows Store. [I think they are the first CAD vendor with a shipping app specific to Winbdows 8.] View JT files on the go at http://apps.microsoft.com/windows/en-us/app/jt2go/cba82781-772c-46c5-83ea-463a4afe8b4b

Open Design Alliance releases Teigha v3.9 with multi-threaded DWG file loading and rendering, ACIS updated to R23, and first release for Java. http://www.opendesign.com

 

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Letters to the Editor

Re: All the Nitty-gritty Details About Russia's Brand-new 3D Kernel

"I am reading the info on the Russian kernel and wondered about the cloud? Have they adapted this to be cloud-ready?"
      - Chris Williams, ceo
        Vuuch

The editor replies: "You're right, there was no mention of this. As best as I can tell, Russians are not keen on the cloud, other than what exists now. Perhaps it comes from their (bad) experience of centralized government. (There is one cloud-based app from Russia that I know about, the DEXXA PLM system from ASCON.) I'll ask around."

Mr Williams responds: "Interesting analogy."

 

David Levin replies: "According to the development team, RGK currently does not support a ready-to-use cloud-based solution; however, the system architecture provides all requirements necessary to support clouds, such as thread safety, separate sessions, multiple documents, algorithm parallelization, and some others."

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Notable Quotable

"The press, doing its job, is 'reckless'. Glad we've got that cleared up."
       - Felix Salmon, @felixsalmon

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* 11515

Vero Software's View of the CAM Industry, and All the Nitty-gritty Details About Russia's Brand-new 3D Kernel

Issue #778

 

Ralph Grabowski: I am wondering about the kernel Vero's CAM systems use. Do they all use the same one, or is there variety (due to the acquisitions)?

Marc Freebrey: Vero has a large product portfolio that serves a number of manufacturing industries, ranging from production mill-turn, complex mold & die, and multi-axis milling to laser cutting and wire EDM [electrical discharge machining]. For this reason, there isn't a single CAM [computer-aided manufacturing] kernel.

Very importantly, however, we are developing CAM algorithms as 'engines' that allow the technology to be shared between products where applicable. For example, all milling applications, regardless of industry, require a roughing routine. We are using a common algorithm where possible, and then fine-tuning the parameters to suit the relevant market needs.

As we acquired more technology and knowledge, we have been able to improve all areas of our CAM technology.

 

Ralph Grabowski: It appears that solid modeling is becoming important in a CAM system. Can you comment on it?

Marc Freebrey: Solid and surface modeling has always been a vital part of the manufacturing cycle. Typically, CAD models are not prepared for manufacturing, and so it is often necessary to modify the data -- fill holes, change fillet radii, add extension surfaces, and so on. It is also important to recognize that the constant strive to improving efficiency is forcing some traditional CAD activities out of the design office and onto the shopfloor, where the work is done by CAM operators; for example, having the ability to extract electrode models for manufacturing.

In addition, machine operators are more aware of the current condition of the shop floor, such as the tooling, materials, and machines that are available. By moving CAD to the shop flow, the operator can react to issues immediately, rather than waiting for the data to go back to the CAD operator and be modified. This improves job scheduling and reduces down time. The time saved increases machine usage, and reduces interruptions to the CAD/CAM department's workflow

 

Ralph Grabowski: So far it appears (to me) that Vero acquisitions are of European firms. Will firms from other continents be considered?

 

Marc Freebrey: Vero has a global footprint with the business evenly spread across Europe, America, and Asia. Our acquisition in February of California-based SURFCAM should show that the objective is to find the right technology, reseller network, and customer base where we can join forces to provide the most efficient and productive solutions.

 

Ralph Grabowski: Why is Vero acquiring so many firms in the same category of CAM?

Marc Freebrey: Vero has a vast and in-depth knowledge of CAM, but it is important to highlight that the CAM industry is very diverse. The technology used to drive multi-axis laser cutting machines is very different from the technology required for 2D lathes.

The major benefit should be felt, however, by the customers of each product. With greater global distribution, additional development resources, good coding practices, and a proven technology sharing concept, the products advance at an even faster pace helping to deliver innovative technology to our customers that ensures they remain competitive in a tough manufacturing environment.

 

Ralph Grabowski: Normally, an investment firm looks to eventually sell its acquisitions at a profit, such as happened with UGS. Is this Vero's plan? Who might want to buy a large collection of CAM products?

Marc Freebrey: Vero Software is now the largest CAM-centric software business in the world. We are growing both organically and through acquisitions. Our focus is on continuing to build a world-class software business that offers excellent products and support to its customers and partners. Achieving these goals means that the investors in the business will also benefit; this is an attractive proposition.

http://www.verosoftware.com

[Marc Freebrey is group marketing director at Vero Software Limited.]

 

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All About the New Russian-developed 3D Kernel
Part 1: Modern Architecture with Innovative Solutions

by Leonid Baranov, Sergey Kozlov, Dmitry Semin, and Nikolay Snytnikov

The world's newest MCAD kernel last week was unveiled in Saint Petersburg, Russia: RGK. Other "new" kernels have also been released over the last two years, but Dassault's CGM and Ascon's C3D are not new, having been kept proprietary for their first decade or two of service to the respective CAD vendors. In contrast, RGK is brand-new, the coding having begun just a little over a year ago. The name is an abbreviation for "Russian Geometric Kernel."

I am reproducing this article, because it is interesting to read of the results when a kernel is written with today's state of computing in mind. This article is an abridged version of the original, which appears on Russia's isicad.net at http://isicad.net/articles.php?article_num=16135. The Russian was translated into English by Olga Lukashenko.

 

As is clear from the history of software, creating an industrial-grade geometric modeling kernel is one of the most difficult tasks in developing engineering software. Finding the right solution combines top-level competencies in mathematics, computer system architecture, software design, and CAD expertise. Only a few kernel vendors are currently represented in the global market; a huge segment of the CAD market and related products depend on them, commercially and technologically.

All kernels most popular today were created 15-30 years ago. Over this time, they have been developed, enhanced, and adjusted, their program architecture and implementation cannot fully support the new software capabilities and hardware technologies that have been continuously emerging.

RGK (Russian geometric kernel) is part of a project funded by the Russian Federation's Ministry of Industry and Trade to build up a foundation of independent components important to Russian's high technology sector. This project is being supervised by STANKIN Moscow (State Technology University) and is being executed by an integrated team of several Russian groups of developers and specialists.

Development of RGK kernel started at the end of 2011; when working on the project, we tried to use the modern, effective solutions as well as some new mechanisms and possibilities, which are described in the first section of the paper.

The border between the basic kernel functions (sought after by most applications) and the kernel shell, which supports several specialized but stable classes of applications and procedures, is tentative. Some kernel vendors insist that such shells (for instance a geometric solver or a data converter) are an integral part of the kernel, while others believe that configurability is the advantage of their solution. One way or the other, support for popular classes of applications for standard technological operations must be associated with a modern geometric kernel.

Modern Architecture

In the RGK kernel, a 3D model is described using boundary representation (B-rep). But other descriptions are used when necessary. For instance, to optimize the speed of kernel's functions, and to ensure precise storage and computation of the model, canonical objects and NURBS curves and surfaces are used. To solve tasks associated with complex operations (such as hole-covering surfaces, n-sided patches, and blending surfaces in complex cases), special types of curves and surfaces are used by the kernel. In many situations, combining these solutions accelerates kernel functions and makes them more precise.

To develop the architecture, a complete set of advanced tools and modern techniques of coding, debugging, code optimization, and reliable methods of describing model objects interactions were used.

 

Multithreading. Parallel computations on multi-core computers were chosen as one of the main methods of increasing computation speed. When many operations with geometric and topological data take place, there is considerable room for parallel computations, which require precise and well-thought software implementation.

For instance, generating 300,000 simple objects in a single-threaded operation takes 40.9 seconds, where as six simultaneous threads completed the tasks in 8.5 seconds (4.8x faster).

Parallel operations on several computers can be completed at different levels and in different modes. Parallelism can be forcibly disabled for the entire geometric kernel for a single session (document). It is possible to set a number of parallel computational flows, and to launch operations with bodies in parallel. Special attention was paid to developing scalable parallel computational algorithms.

Calculations on GPUs. Another resource that enhances productivity in modern systems is the use of GPUs (graphics processing unit). Normally, they are meant for displaying graphics, but can today be used for general purpose calculations. As a result of studies, we developed special algorithms with demonstrated efficiency for GPUs. They can handle functions such as computing mass-inertia characteristics of bodies, projections, searching model elements upon the given point, and so on. OpenCL is the base library for mass computations.

 

Multiple Platforms. Our geometric kernel supports 32- and 64-bit architecture, and Windows and Linux platforms. It can be compiled with any C++ compiler that implements features of C++11 standard.

Multiple Documents. Developers of end user CAD/CAM/CAE applications immediately have a ready infrastructure with which to work in several documents using their own 3D objects (such as bodies), different parameters for computational precision, and other specific settings. Each session keeps its set of objects isolated; this proves to be a convenient way to control object initialization, creation, and deletion. Keeping kernel sessions isolated, together with multithreaded processing, enabled us to create a modern and efficient application system that fully uses computational capabilities of computers.

Solids and Hybrid Modeling. Modern CAD/CAM/CAE systems must support solid, surface, and wireframe modeling. (See Figure 1.) The RGK kernel has the full set of tools to solve tasks in all these areas, and even enables the application to work simultaneously with those objects within the same model. For the convenience of the CAD developer, the same class is used whenever possible for work and for creating different types of bodies. For instance, the class of "lofting" generator can successfully generate models of solid and surface bodies depending on the options provided or the types of data input.

 

Figure 1: A hybrid model containing solid, sheet, and wireframe bodies

 

Precision. The kernel carries out all computation with finite precision. The ratio between linear and angle precision is determined by the user's choice of modeling dimensions, and can be set individually for each session.

When it is not possible to get representation of geometric objects within the limits of the kernel's precision, then users must work with low modeling precision; in this case, tolerant geometry representation is used. It is characterized by a special treatment of undefined values and discontinuities, geometric errors in topology, and it takes into account restrictions in model operations. Tolerant geometry is used to convert data from one representation to another. One example is using IGES and STEP formats to exchange information between CAD/CAM/FEA systems.

Coming up in a future issue of upFront.eZine: Part 2, Getting Ready for Application Development

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Out of the Inbox

Rakesh Rao writes to tell me that his firm has released CADPower V14 to work with AutoCAD 2007-2014 and on BricsCAD V13. New tools include the ability to examine EXIF data in images; a steel section for drawing standard angles, channels, I, T and L beams from the tables; and a section to draw hex bolts, nuts, washers, fasteners and so on. $139 for 100+. http://www.4d-technologies.com

From Susan Smith's AEC Cafe e-newsletter, we learn that Trimble, the new owner of SketchUp, has delivered the 2013 release. The free version is renamed SketchUp Make, See http://www10.aeccafe.com/blogs/aeccafevoice/2013/05/29/trimble-announces-sketchup-2013 for more details.

 

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Notable Quotable

"In this age of technology, where you can manipulate anything, how do we retain that human element?"
     - Sound City

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