CIMdata PLM Industry Summary Online Archive
14 August 2007
Product News
FreeDesign Inc. Releases FreeDimension 1.2
FreeDesign Inc. announced the release of FreeDimension1.2, now available at http://www.freedesign-inc.com./ . The improved version is the second update of the modeler since FreeDimension's debut in November. Along with FreeDimension1.2, the company unveiled two optional modules that offer FreeDimension users a full array of professional design tools.
The breakthrough technology of FreeDimension allows designers freedom to stylize 3D models intuitively, unburdened by the need for complex tools to create curved surfaces. With an easy user interface, the modeling technology expedites what used to be the most difficult task in 3D models - the molding of naturally looking organic shapes, ergonomic surfaces, and rich three-dimensional textures.
Version 1.2 of FreeDimension, like its previous version, is compatible with SketchUp Import and Export, and also outputs data into commonly used .OBJ, .POV and .STL formats. In addition to refinement of the software's general functionality, FreeDimension1.2 contains new architecture to add on options according to the specific needs of users.
One optional module is an IGES/NURBS export capability, which allow FreeDimension-generated models to be passed to any CAD system that can accept IGES input or NURBS surfaces.
FreeDesign also offers a second module called Professional Tools, a comprehensive set of design commands that further the practicality of easy shape generation of FreeDimension. With Professional Tools, users can manipulate, combine, and analyze freeform surfaces. Highlights of the Professional Tools module include:
Inspection Renderers -- A variety of rendering styles provide several different ways to view your model to help to analyze subtle shape variations and imperfections.
Reference Curves and Reference Surfaces -- These 'helping' lines and surfaces are tools, which can be used to more easily manipulate segments of a design model.
Mass Properties Tool - With Professional Tools, users can instantly calculate the volume and surface area of a body.
Curve Construction Surface -- Freestanding curves can be controlled by its projection onto a plane.
In the introductory period, FreeDesign offers FreeDimension1.2 for $495, and each of the new modules for $295 through download from the company website. FreeDimension1.2 bundled with both of the module packages will be available at a special price of only $795 for a limited time, and includes a free upgrade to FreeDimension 2.0 when released next year.
"Our first release of FreeDimension was essentially a baseline tool which lets anybody simply design,'" says Dick Sowar, CEO of FreeDesign Inc. "It brought the emphasis back on spontaneous creativity, and ushered in a new era that does not require complex skill sets for 3D creation. Now with the addition of export compatibility and Professional Tools, FreeDimension becomes a highly effective application for everyday design tasks."
FreeDimension is based on the patented N-Sided Surfacing (NSS) technology, which frees users from quadrilateral surfacing technologies like NURBS and Bezier surfaces. The NSS technology allows FreeDimension to present a curve-based interface to the user that closely mimics a pencil-and-paper method of design, giving designers more freedom in generating 3D shapes for new product, virtual gaming, and entertainment applications.
All FreeDimension products are available for immediate download at http://www.freedesign-inc.com/ .
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