CAD or Computer Aided Design software was introduced in the late 1960s to accelerate the technical drawing process. CAD plays an important role in the creation process of a 3D configurator. While CAD is mainly used in engineering drawing and architecture, it can also be used for other purposes.
There are different directions of CAD and there are different methods to classify them.
Types of CAD software.
2 Dimensional CAD.
2D CAD is the pioneer of CAD software and was developed in the early 70s. At same time, major automotive, aerospace and other engineering companies developed their own tools to automate repetitive drawing requirements. 2D CAD is based on basic geometry shapes such as lines, rectangles, circles etc. to create flat drawings. This type of software was developed as early as the 1970s.
Autodesk is one of the pioneering companies that has played a significant role in the development of CAD software.
3 Dimensional CAD.
3D CAD is an evolution of the 2D CAD software of the past. As the computing power of computers increased and graphical representation capabilities improved, 3D CAD has become an increasingly popular design tool. 3D CAD enables the creation of realistic images.
These images are called 3D models because they can be viewed and rotated in all directions – X, Y or Z. You can also view views from a 3D model, such as isometrics or perspectives, from any angle with 3D CAD, 3D CAD tools were developed in the 1980s through the partnership between IBM Dassults. 3D CAD quickly became popular because of its improved visual capabilities.
The rapid advancement of 3D software has led to a rapid turnaround in product design and the concept of Product Lifecycle Management (PLM). Some of today`s leading 3D CAD software includes SolidEdge or SolidWorks. Of course, the variety of tools requires professional training to master these tools.
3D CAD can be further classified as:
Wireframe models – they create skeletal models with lines and arcs. Because they appear to be wires and everything is visible in the background, they are called wireframe models. They are no longer very popular.
Surface models – unlike wireframe models, these models are created by connecting 3D surfaces. Since nothing is visible in the background, the Surface models are very realistic.
Solid models – they are considered to be the most useful CAD models. Although they look surface models, they have additional properties such as weight, volume, and density, just like physical objects. These models are often used as prototypes to study technical designs.
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