Commissioned to build the robots for “Real Steel”, Legacy Effects designed & built animatronic robots with motion capture technology to portray the boxing scenes.  A task this large could have taken a lot of time. Time is a highly uncommon commodity in the film industry & very expensive because of increasing time delays overall.  Reshoots, editing, post-production — all costly expenditures when making a movie but even more expensive when incorporating special effects such as boxing robots –but not for Legacy Effects.

Using a high resolution Objet 3D Printer, Legacy Effects was able to go from design, to printed 3D models, to full size production in the shortest time possible.  Printing in 16-micron layers with very tight tolerances & high accuracies, using an Objet 3D Printer to create robot models was an obvious choice for Legacy Effects.  Different elements, from an entire robot to a specific limb & even a logo, were prototyped using an Objet 3D Printer in order to achieve amazingly life-like models in a very short amount of time.  The printed models would be examined, sometimes redesigned & printed again, and then approved for production to be used in “Real Steel”.  Thanks to the use of an Objet 3D Printer, Legacy Effects was able to save on reshoots, editing & post-production resulting in lower costs overall &, most importantly, an earlier release date.

To read more about Legacy’s use of an Objet 3D Printer, visit http://bit.ly/wKaMgw  or http://www.engatech.com/Objet-3DPrinter.asp to learn more about how an Objet 3D Printer could benefit your company.

Supporting growth and expanding its product line were the primary reasons that Hutchison Hayes decided in 2005 to reevaluate the AutoCAD® 2D and Autodesk Inventor® 3D design software that it had used, according to Sales Manager Hans van der Voort. “Although we were successful using those tools to support our standard product line, our business plan required us to develop new products for additional applications,” van der Voort recalls. “To support the increased activity, we needed a 3D development platform that would enable us to tighten up development and manufacturing. By doing so, we could shorten delivery leadtimes and free up resources to go after new opportunities.”

Challenge: Shorten delivery times and improve manufacturing of liquid/solids separation products to support growth through expansion of its product line.

Solution: Implement SolidWorks Premium design and SolidWorks Simulation Professional analysis software to streamline development and manufacturing.

Results:

• Cut lead-times by 50 percent
• Streamlined sales process
• Improved manufacturability
• Supported 20 percent annual growth rate

Click Here to read the full story.

From CAD design and simulation to file management and documentation software, there is a SolidWorks solution for you.  This promotion ends December 30, 2011–so act fast before time runs out.

CALL US FOR MORE INFORMATION: (918) 599-7500

  EMAIL US FOR MORE INFORMATION

We know you are smart enough to set up a physical test, now see how with SolidWorks Simulation you can use the same knowledge to reduce the time and costs of physical testing and get to the best design faster.

We’ll prove it by breaking handcuffs and you can break free from the tedium and stress of your daily design challenges.

Watch now to see how strong is strong enough…

SOLIDWORKS WORLD 2012 SPECIAL INVITATION

Join us in San Diego, California, February 12-15 for SolidWorks World 2012 International User Conference and Exposition, the premier event for 3D design, simulation, and product development.

WHY ATTEND?

At SolidWorks World you’ll experience an energetic, one-of-a-kind event for learning and education.

• General Sessions – Learn from inspirational keynote speakers, industry leaders, and surprise experts who push the limits of innovation.
• Product Showcase – Explore more than 100 innovative products designed by SolidWorks customers.
• Partner Pavilion – Discover products and services from SolidWorks Partners that can help you tackle just about any design, engineering, and manufacturing challenge.

Watch the video to see the excitements of last year’s event.

Go here to learn more.

During the tour we viewed many different reels that Zebco painted and could not identify which was the manufacturing part verses which was the prototype!  Zebco has even printed a part that was used on an aquatic submersion unit for over 300 short runs. This machine is an endurance testing unit which spins the fishing reel main gear while it is submerged underwater until fail or to a specified number. Zebco has specific reels that are sealed and are able to be used while submerged (in saltwater) and this is one of the machines they use to make sure their products are of the highest possible quality.

Check out the above picture of a fishing reel.  As realistic as this parts looks, 99% of the assembly is printed on Objet printer and 1% is an additional piece. The Eden 333 has allowed for faster changes and parts that resemble those that are machined.   “I constantly hear from Zebco engineers that they have a hard time remembering how the department functioned before, “said Ruprecht. “After using a competing system for years, they still have no idea how they got their work done without Objet,” said Brad Ruprecht, Model
Maker.

Read more about how Zebco uses their Objet 3D Printer

Trimming and extending lines is one of the first skills that any CAD user must learn. The process is pretty straight forward; the Trim Entities tool is used to trim sketch entities to the nearest intersection and the Extend Entities is used to add length to a sketch entity until it meets another sketch entity. It is not uncommon to have s ketch that requires the user to switch back and forth from the trim to extend tools a few times during the sketch creation. But there has got to be an easier way, right?

Did you know that you do not need to switch between these two tools? As crazy as it sounds, you can use the trim to to extend sketch entities as well. Today’s Quick Tip will show you how that can be done quickly and easily.

1. The sketch below shows a couple of lines that need to be trimmed or extended to make a single rectangle. Yes I know it would be easier to just use the Rectangle tool, but this is just an example.  Click here to read the rest of this tech tip.

Please join the SolidWorks technical team for our complimentary webcast series.  This month we’ll show you SolidWorks’ latest offerings and solutions of the 2012 release.

Date: Friday November 18th
Topic: What’s New in 2012

SolidWorks Premium Webinar / Time -  11:00am CST:
Experience faster design, shorter development times, better collaboration, and amazing performance.  We will show you the new automated functionality to improved part and assembly performance tools. SolidWorks 2012 is truly design that drives our customers’ businesses. Register Now

SolidWorks Simulation Webinar / Time -  12:00pm CST
There are several enhancements in SolidWorks Simulation 2012 product line for different modules in Simulation, Motion, Flow and sustainability. In this presentation, we review these enhancements and demonstrate a few of the more important ones specifically. Register Now

SolidWorks Data Management Webinar / Time -  1:00pm CST
SolidWorks Enterprise PDM enables real time design collaboration. This webinar will give an overview of core functionalities,  and  typical use case examples. We will also be demonstrating the latest features in the new 2012 version.  Register Now

SolidWorks 3DVIA Webinar / Time -  2:00pm CST
3DVIA Composer 2012 brings 3D data to life by offering enhanced lifelike look and feel capabilities.  We’ve made publishing professional content more flexible and easier.  We’ve also enhanced our interactive web capabilities.  Join us and see what these benefits means to you.  Register Now

1. To uninstall SolidWorks in Windows Vista and later, click Start > Control Panel > Programs > Programs Features . For Windows XP, click Start > Control Panel > Add or Remove Programs .
2. From the Summary screen in the SolidWorks Installation Manager, click Change. Select items to remove from the Advanced Options screen.

You can specify which standards to support before installing the SolidWorks Toolbox. By default, all standards are selected for a new installation of the Toolbox. To select standards:

1. In the Summary screen, expand Products and click Change.
2. In the Product Selection screen, expand SolidWorks > SolidWorks Toolbox and select standards from a list.

The installation of the Workgroup PDM Server requires a validation code. The Installation Manager can obtain the code automatically. If an Internet connection is not available, you can obtain the code by email.

This is only one of the over 200 enhancements added to our 20th release of SolidWorks. Want to learn more? Just visit the SolidWorks 2012 website to learn about the rest of the updates for our 20th release.

Slopestyle riding puts enormous pressure on bikes, and if the equipment doesn’t hold up, riders can sustain serious injuries. With this in mind, Straitline Components has developed a slopestyle-grade bike pedal built to withstand the enormous pressure of riding which is being used in competition today.

This innovation is what led slopestyle rider Mike Montgomery to approach Straitline Components to design a hydraulic brake line detangler, which allows handlebars to spin without tangling brake lines. Existing hydraulic brake line detanglers are not currently effective due to weak seals, so Straitline Components looked to combat this challenge by designing one to withstand the rigors of competitive slopestyle riding. Using SolidWorks Simulation software, Straitline tested the new design to ensure the seals were leak proof and the prototype was ready for competition. Edge Factor highlights the development and testing of this design, as well as the competition itself, including commentary from designers and riders.

Read the full story here.