There’s a dichotomy in data management. While you can hold an incredibly rich 3D representation of a part, when it comes to search functions, you’re left with plain old text. Al Dean reports on a new tool that can change this in many ways

Looking at CAD data, each part contains 3D geometry and a complete physical description of how that part is formed. Alongside this, there’s also all the associated meta-data that the user creates: part name, number, material, dimensions etc. In concert, this is an incredibly deep description of a part.

But when it comes to searching for parts - whether using basic Windows search functions or data management tools – the user has to rely on what is arguably the least descriptive part of that data, the text. But what if parts could be searched for using not just text strings, but geometry as well? This is what ShapeSearch has set out to accomplish with its PartBrowser application.

INDEXING 3D

PartBrowser is analogous to the Windows Indexing technology that many will be familiar with, but with two big differences. Firstly, it doesn’t cripple a workstation when indexing files for the first time. Secondly, and more importantly, it works with CAD geometry. Yes, it’s a 3D geometry search tool.

The system uses a proprietary technology, developed at the University of Edinburgh, to search for, locate and index 3D geometry files, alongside more standard text-based indexing of text and file properties. It then provides a number of tools to do things with that data.

A 3D browser

The system is driven from a very simple user interface, not unlike Windows Explorer. There is a hierarchical view of data sources, local and network drives, as well as folders for favourite searches and other functionality. There are several user scenarios.

At a base level, text-string-based searches can be carried out to find parts using wild-cards. PartBrowser has also been configured to understand engineering language. For example, when using the term 50 x 100, the system understands the meaning of the x and the results reflect this. But the really impressive part is how the system displays the results. Alongside the standard list of results, there is the PartBrowser window. On initial looks, this appears complex, but it isn’t and it’s incredible immersive. Essentially, the system categorises the results by the quality of the match to the search string. The PartBrowser window shows a series of planes, with a number of parts, slowly rotating on each. The first plane shows the parts that most closely match the search, then each subsequent plane behind it shows parts that match less closely. Sounds confusing? Think “Good matches at the front, bad ones at the back.”

By selecting a part, bounding box dimensions are shown on screen and the user can drill into that part’s meta-data in the window below.

Of course, what makes the system really interesting is the shape-based search. The user can either start with a basic shape already in the system or model one roughly in their CAD system (PartBrowser currently works with Solid Edge, SolidWorks, SpaceClaim and STL data). The system will then find parts that match that part’s shape.

As before, matches are presented in order of ‘match quality’. Where it gets interesting (and the browser tag comes in), is that the user can pick a closer match and further refine the search. In short, click through the 3D data, find the required part, and load it into an assembly. It’s as simple as that.

There are a couple of other useful functions, one of which is the Duplicate Parts search. This finds shapes which match using a very tight tolerance and the system presents each match pair (or more) on a separate plane. PartBrowser works around different alignment and co-ordinate systems and gives the user a very quick idea of how much data and how many part numbers are associated to essentially the same part.

Conclusion

PartBrowser is at an early stage, and there are other similar technologies on the market (Siemens’ Geolus is probably the best known). What I haven’t seen before is an intuitive way to present those results in a manner that suits a 3D environment.

While better use could be made of both colour (which might be useful for material classification, owner or status) and fading between the different results planes, this is a highly impressive product and technology. There’s currently a product for Solid Edge, with others under development, with an active beta program for SolidWorks.

PartBrowser is at a very early stage of development but the core functionality is there and working. While more interactivity could be added and the presentation of the 3D information improved, it’s clear that a tool like this can pay real dividends within many organisations - initially through duplicate part identification and reduction, but also to ensure that design teams do not repeat work that’s already been carried out.

This is one of the most impressive bits of technology I’ve seen in ages and while it’s at a very early stage in development, the potential for saving of time, effort and inventory, means that the adoption is going to be very easy to justify.

Al Dean is editor of Develop3D magazine (London, UK). This story originally appeared in the February 2009 print edition of Develop3D magazine.

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