D-Cubed -- Latest release of the 3D DCM, version 29.0

FOR RELEASE Friday, February 6, 2004

D-Cubed announces the latest release of its 3D DCM component, the geometric constraint engine used to position parts in assemblies, sketch routes in 3-dimensions, modify the shapes of 3D parts and simulate kinematic motion in many of the world’s leading CAD/CAM/CAE/PLM applications. The latest functionality includes:

Additional tools for manipulating spline curves
We are committed to bringing constraint-based spline modelling techniques that are already available for 2D sketching systems to 3D modelling applications. In this release, we have extended the tools available for manipulating 3D spline curves.

Equal direction/curvature constraints. It is now possible to constrain the direction of a spline at any given position to match the direction of a line, or other directed geometry (e.g. cylinder). Similarly, the curvature of a spline at a given position can be constrained to have the same value as a circle or ellipse.

New spline solving mode: A new minimum-move solving mode is now available to influence the behaviour of a spline. The new solving mode will, where possible, limit the movement of a spline’s control points or interpolation points, tending to result in local changes to the curve’s shape. The original solving mode will use any freedom in the curve to find a solution to the dimensioning scheme.

Improved kinematic simulation
A major strength of the DCM is its ability to solve dimensions and constraints as parts are being moved. Such movement can be applied interactively with a mouse and is known as dragging. This enables a designer to study how the motion of a part is influenced by the various geometric rules in an assembly. Previously, it was only possible to move multiple parts with the same transformation. Now it is possible to apply different transformations to individual objects, enabling a wider range of assembly configurations to be investigated.

Improved feedback on underconstrained models
Designers use constraints to specify unique configurations for the geometry in their model. However, the combination of constraints that are necessary to define the position or shape of any particular object is not always obvious. For this reason, the DCM provides feedback about the degrees of freedom for each object in the model. This information can be used to help the designer select the most appropriate constraints for determining the position or shape of any given object. In this release, we have extended the feedback provided for underconstrained geometry, especially circles, cones, tori and ellipses.

About the 3D DCM
First released in 1995, the 3D Dimensional Constraint Manager is used in the majority of today’s major mechanical CAD applications and is widely acknowledged as the leading 3D geometric constraint technology. Its strengths include a genuinely 3-dimensional, fully variational (non-sequential) approach to solving a wide range of sophisticated dimension and constraint schemes applied to the full range of geometry types found in a modern CAD model. The excellent performance of the 3D DCM’s unique, proprietary and highly developed range of constraint solving algorithms is the foundation of the latest interactive approach to assembly part positioning, kinematic simulation, 3D sketching and direct (non-history based) part modification.

About D-Cubed Ltd.
Founded in 1989 in Cambridge, England, D-Cubed provides software components and technical consulting services to the CAD/CAM/CAE application development industry in all areas of geometric, solid and variational/parametric modelling. Most of the world’s leading CAD vendors have adopted one or more of D-Cubed’s widely respected component technologies for integration into their end-user applications. We have never developed, and do not intend to develop, our own end-user applications. This focus avoids any competitive conflicts of interest with our customers.