It addresses those questions we as users have been constantly striving to answer:

• How can we change our design as quickly as we change our mind?
• How can we capture ideas as soon as we think them?
• How do we thrive in a multi CAD world?
• When will CAD be so simple anyone can use it?

The great news is that we are now seeing many of the CAD software vendors actively present their tools to address these issues. But we’re being bombarded with confusing messages, nothing is clear, in fact things are confusing, everything is a shade of gray. From what we are seeing surely all these systems use Synchronous Technology.

Wrong! There is black and white. Whilst there are many 3D CAD systems available only two have Synchronous Technology those being Solid Edge with Synchronous Technology and NX, both Siemens PLM Software products.

Why the gray then? As always terminology tends to confuse the issue quite a bit. So let’s define the terms:

• History-based: features managed linearly and are dependent on each other, edits trigger regeneration of subsequent features
• Direct editing: body editing that appends a feature in a history modeller (parametric but directed from parent feature)
• Explicit editing: body editing in a non-history based system (no parametrics other than some possible dimensions)
• Synchronous Technology: feature-based, history-free modelling that offers parametrics in a non-history world

There are many systems that use history based, direct editing and explicit editing methods. Sometimes a combination of these methods may seem like Synchronous Technology. But only Solid Edge with Synchronous Technology and NX actually have Synchronous Technology.

This is what Synchronous Technology can do:

Test your own or other 3D systems to see if they can do this, and gray will become black and white.

Why not try Solid Edge with Synchronous Technology for yourself.

You can get a free 30 day evaluation by selecting the following blue text. Free trial of Solid Edge with Synchronous Technology.

Unified 2D & 3D
Steering Wheel
Live Rules
PMI Dimensions
Editing Imported Data

However all of these examples focus on the creation and manipulation of geometry within the part model itself. I now want to illustrate some of the capabilities we have with regards to making design changes directly within the assembly.

A synchronous assembly will allow us to manipulate a parts geometry using the Steering Wheel, PMI dimensions and Live Rules, all without the need to in place edit the component. This ultimately speeds up the design process for us since we can make modifications to multiple part simultaneously.

The video below will demonstrate these capabilities but first of all I would like to set the scene…

The scenario is that we have a partially completed design of a garage door opener. A supplier who uses a different 3D CAD product (this could be SolidWorks, Inventor or any other 3D CAD application) has designed a couple of parts and sent them to us in order to be used in the final assembly. Once we have brought them into our design we then find out they need some modifications in order to fit and function correctly. In the past this would have involved getting our supplier to make the required changes and re-sending the new files. This of course would have a lengthy turnaround time associated with it as well as certain communication barriers that may need to be crossed. This would not be the case If we used Solid Edge with Synchronous Technology, these changes can be implemented in minutes rather than days as we shall see below.

View a higher quality version of this video

Keep an eye open for more information on Solid Edge with Synchronous Technology or subscribe to our feed for automatic notification.

We all have a “toolbox” containing our favourite tools but if you are like me we always want access to the best tools for the job. I remember when I was trying to drill some holes into a concrete post. I had a hammer drill so no problem. But when I tried to drill the hole, the drill bit was glowing red after a while, the hammer drill was so hot you could cook an egg on it, and the hole was only a quarter of an inch deep. Now I could probably have got there but how long would it have taken and at what cost. So I went and bought an SDS drill. I felt good and the drill went into that concrete like a hot knife into butter.

So the moral for me was that although I already had a drill there was actually a better type of drill for the job in hand, and more importantly if I’d used the right tool in the first place I could have got the job done a lot quicker.

Solid Edge with Synchronous Technology is another tool that makes sense to have in your toolbox.

You probably have to share and modify solid model data with others whether they be clients, subcontractors, or suppliers. Unless they are using exactly the same design system as you, i.e. SolidWorks, changes are difficult. This issue has always been the Achilles heel of our entire industry.

SolidWorks has commands such as Move Face that allows you to make some changes to imported data but it is limited and can be time consuming.

The right tool for this job is Solid Edge with Synchronous Technology. Take a look at this video from one of our previous posts.

Note how quick and easy it is to select the elements to modify as well as the move direction whilst maintaining your design intent. Also how we can drive an imported part with our own dimensions added to the model after import. Try doing that in SolidWorks or any other parametric modelling system.

View a higher quality version of this video

If you would like to see the whole article about Solid Edge with Synchronous Technology select the highlighted blue text.