Parasolid Functionality
Functionality Siemens PLM Software works closely with the world's most demanding users to meet today's real-world 3D modeling requirements. This relationship drives the develOPMent of Parasolid's robust capabilities, extending to more than 750 object-based functions that include a wealth of model creation, editing and querying utilities, as well as high-level, application-oriented functions packaged to maximize modeling automation. In addition, Parasolid is continually validating and extending its comprehensive application support and graphical output functions to enable customers to quickly and easily integrate Parasolid into their software solutions. The breadth and depth of these capabilities together ensure that users of Parasolid-based applications can design, analyze, manufacture, visualize and exchange the most complex 3D product models found in today's highly sophisticated industrial, commercial and consumer markets. Functionality & Parasolid Advantage Modeling operators Powerful hybrid modeling operators enable users to create and edit new models by uniting, subtracting or intersecting any combination of wire, sheet and solid bodies. The suite of boolean-based operations includes: Versatile region selection and matching options for optimized feature attachment Instancing for fast replication of features Generalized Booleans for operations involving disjoint, non-manifold or mixed-dimensional models Feature support Parasolid offers several powerful modeling techniques to support advanced feature creation, including comprehensive extrude, emboss and patterning capabilities. Extrusion allows profiles to be swept linearly into solid models with a range of termination conditions Embossing enables profiles to be mapped onto models to create complex pads and pockets Patterning quickly creates a repeating pattern of existing features across multiple faces of a model Advanced surfacing Parasolid provides a broad range of generalized surfacing functionality for generating sculptured shapes from profiles and boundaries. Sweeping allows profiles to be swept along an arbitrary path to generate complex shapes Lofting creates a surface that fits a series of sectional profiles, using powerful shape controls that can accommodate guide curves, tangencies, degeneracies and curvature continuity Automatic hole-filling includes the capability to patch open regions of a model smoothly with free-form surfaces Parasolid fully integrates these functions at the topological level, which results in industry-leading functionality, reliability and performance. Thickening, hollowing and offsetting Parasolid delivers a range of methods that enable CAD users to create thin-walled parts using simple inputs, including: Thickening of sheet models Hollowing of solid models General offsetting Each of these methods provides powerful functionality, including automatic self-intersection removal and together form a comprehensive suite of tools that accelerate the design of plastic moldings, castings, pressings and panels. Tapering and drafting Parasolid includes an extensive range of tapering and drafting functionality to support automated mold and die-making. Parasolid accommodates complex tapering strategies, including both single and double-sided tapering, mitering, undercuts and flexible definition of parting surfaces to support diverse mold-making and casting techniques. Direct modeling Direct modeling is an extremely powerful editing capability that allows regions of a model to be manipulated and/or replaced; it is particularly useful when applications need to make complex model adjustments independent of any model history. Parasolid provides high-level functions that users leverage to perform multiple model edits such as offsets, tapers, geometry replacements and transformations in a single step while automatically regenerating surrounding data to ensure the resulting model’s integrity. Blending and filleting Parasolid provides a comprehensive suite of functionality for blending and filleting edges and faces of complex geometry with unmatched reliability and ease-of-use. Parasolid supports rolling ball, variable-radius, face-face, 3-face, cliff-edge, curvature continuous, tangent hold line, disc, conic section and conic hold line blend types. Parasolid also provides automatic overflow, propagation and self-intersection repair controls, which combine with blend preview capability to allow applications to determine the appropriate outcome in ambiguous cases. Sheet modeling Parasolid's sheet modeling functionality complements the system‚s solid modeling capabilities by enabling applications to seamlessly integrate the strengths of the two paradigms in hybrid modeling environments. For example, collections of free-form sheets can be arbitrarily trimmed to meet designer concepts and can be sewn together to construct solid or sheet models. Parasolid's sheet modeling functionality includes: Extending, trimming and untrimming Booleans, clashing and sewing Replacing the surface of a sheet body Thickening a sheet body to create a solid body Deleting holes from a sheet body Blending of sheet bodies Graphics and rendering Parasolid supports wide-ranging graphical output capabilities including wire frame, drafting and precise hidden line removal with comprehensive controls and rapid performance. Parasolid supports high performance requirements by enabling users to accurately render very large models, and minimizes memory usage and enhances performance by providing convenient mechanisms for rendering selectively and incrementally. Tessellation Extensive model faceting and tessellation capabilities are provided to support visualization, CAM, CAE, surface analysis and simplification applications. Parasolid faceting includes a wide range of visibility, shape, tolerance and connectivity controls to enable flexible and adaptive tessellation of a model, and further optimizes performance with the ability to filter out insignificant levels of detail. Model simplification Parasolid offers the ability to identify and remove model details, including holes, blends and arbitrary faces, to support downstream operations – such as finite element analysis and CAM – where certain model details can be safely ignored. Modeling operators Powerful hybrid modeling operators enable users to create and edit new models by uniting, subtracting or intersecting any combination of wire, sheet and solid bodies. The suite of boolean-based operations includes: Versatile region selection and matching options for optimized feature attachment Instancing for fast replication of features Generalized Booleans for operations involving disjoint, non-manifold or mixed-dimensional models Model enquiries Parasolid models can be used across the manufacturing process as definitive 3D representations, so Parasolid provides a comprehensive suite of functions that enable applications to query information about a given model, including: Mass properties Model validity Data structure Entity selection Geometric evaluations Clashing and containment Min/Max distance calculation Modeling support Parasolid includes a range of advanced functions that create profile and curve information that can be used as the basis for further modeling or analysis. These include: Spun silhouette for computing the outline of a rotated model Swept outline for computing the outline or shadow of a swept model Non-destructive section for computing sectional outlines without altering the model Integration and application support Parasolid provides a wealth of tools that help integrate Parasolid tightly and efficiently to support complex application-specific functionality, including: Ability to store attribute information on any model entity, with behavior that is customizable via callbacks Intrinsic entity-tracking mechanisms to support diverse feature-based modeling strategies Comprehensive rollback and partitioning capabilities for unlimited undo/redo and history management Advanced debugging facilities for efficient application development Enhanced performance for multi-processor machines .NET Binding to integrate Parasolid into .NET applications written in C# Interoperability support Parasolid provides core functionality to support interoperability between Parasolid-based applications and with other sources of 3D model data. Features include: Two-way XT data compatibility – enabling Parasolid-based applications to share models seamlessly from both later and earlier versions of Parasolid Interoperability tools – including functions for importing trimmed surfaces and boundary-representation solid models Sewing and checking – including tools for stitching trimmed surfaces together into composite sheet or solid models and for checking the geometric and topological validity of models |
