CIMdata PLM Industry Summary Online Archive
5 February 2007
Company News
SolidWorks Labs Gives Engineering Community a Direct Connection to SolidWorks Corporation R&D
Why wait for the next product launch to find out what SolidWorks R&D is doing? SolidWorks Corporation today launched SolidWorks Labs, an online destination that lets product designers behind the curtain of SolidWorks R&D. They can tinker with emerging technologies, test-drive new SolidWorks functionality through their Web browser, and weigh in on the company's product direction.
At labs.solidworks.com, visitors will find new offerings to communicate, share, and manage designs. These offerings are available to SolidWorks and non-SolidWorks users alike. For example, anyone with a browser and a CAD file can sample the power of COSMOS® analysis software and perform basic design validation. Users can upload and share their 2D files with colleagues online without resorting to e-mail, just like the Internet's most popular sharing sites. Users can download software to search, organize, share, and manage all their DWG data, converting files created by AutoCAD® software to any older or newer format for shareability. They can also test drive SolidWorks' new visualization experience for CAD.
SolidWorks CEO John McEleney today demonstrated SolidWorks Labs from the stage at the SolidWorks World 2007 International User Conference and Exposition in the Morial Convention Center. At the close of the session, conference attendees had immediate access to SolidWorks Labs. The site is now public.
"SolidWorks Labs is an innovation playground for anyone interested in designing better products, whether or not they're a professional product designer or SolidWorks® software customer," said Austin O'Malley, SolidWorks Corporation's chief technology officer. "This site expresses our passion for enriching the engineering community, easing the adoption of 3D CAD, and occasionally coloring outside the lines."
SolidWorks Labs resources include:
Drawings Now - Anyone can upload a DWG or SolidWorks drawing file and share it with friends and partners of their choice. Neither party will need to download any software. Users can share their designs with people using multiple platforms (Windows, Mac, or Linux) and various browsers.
COSMOSXpressT Now - Anyone can upload any CAD file, run a basic design analysis on it, and receive instant results. This service requires no downloads, and the user doesn't need SolidWorks software to taste the power of COSMOS analysis capabilities.
ZoomIn - ZoomIn is a new communication and visualization experience for CAD data. Users can easily view, render, texture-map, and animate their designs, adding effects like custom fly-throughs. The software employs a game-like interface to immerse users in their design. It allows them to mix and merge designs from different CAD systems (such as Pro/ENGINEER® software).
DWGnavigator - Anyone can manage their 2D files using DWGnavigator. Users can perform powerful searches, find references, view, and package up files for sharing. Best of all, they can save their files to the various versions of AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT software for unmatched interoperability.
SolidWorks Labs will regularly update the offerings and provide new ones based on user feedback. SolidWorks Labs is free to anyone in the community who wants to try new ideas and innovations.
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