COSMOS is the most popular validation software among machine designers involved in design and development of ingenuous systems performing complex functions. When feasibility, efficiency and reliability challenges require to be addressed. COSMOS has always delivered without any compromise on cost and functionality. A partial list of COSMOS usage in the machine building industry are provided as under:
Stiffness (deflection) and stress calculations of load bearing members
Frequency and Vibration estimation for machine spindles and power train
Kinematic simulations of mechanisms involving lower (such as revolute, prismatic) and higher order pair (Gears and Cams)
Infinite life designs of high speed actuation systems
Strength and Durability calculation’s for pressure, machining centers, fixtures, positioning devices, hydraulic and pneumatic actuators, structural sub systems among others
Bearing, Cam follower contact load calculation’s
Gearbox stiffness and vibration calculations
Material Handling Equipment Applications:
Conveyors, Cranes, Scissor Jacks, Lifting Devices among other material handling equipment’s are required to provide fail – safe service without compromising on safety. Though Indian and Internationally accepted Standards provide guidelines for design of these equipment’s, they serve as guidelines for incorporating best design practices. Finite Element analysis has become commonplace to address cost and weight challenges without compromising on integrity, safety and longevity of such heavy-duty mechanical systems. COSMOS has been aiding design engineers in providing fail-safe designs to address mission critical requirements.
Some of the areas of applications include:
Stiffness and strength calculations of load bearing members
Factor of safety calculations for combination of loads involving self-weight, payload, wind-loads (for outdoor applications) among others
Natural frequency calculations for girders
Weight and Cost reduction strategies for load bearing members
Limit load analysis and buckling load factor calculations for full systems
Performance simulations of shipboard equipment’s subjected to shock and vibrations
The process of duplicating an existing component, subassembly, or product, without the aid of drawings, documentation, or computer model is known as reverse engineering.
Need For Reverse Engineering:
The original manufacturer of a product no longer produces a product
There is inadequate documentation of the original design
The original manufacturer no longer exists, but a customer needs the product
The original design documentation has been lost or never existed
Some bad features of a product need to be designed out. For example, excessive wear might indicate where a product should be improved
To strengthen the good features of a product based on long-term usage of the product
To analyze the good and bad features of competitors’ product
To explore new avenues to improve product performance and features
To gain competitive benchmarking methods to understand competitor’s products and develop better products
The original CAD model is not sufficient to support modifications or current manufacturing methods
The original supplier is unable or unwilling to provide additional parts
The original equipment manufacturers are either unwilling or unable to supply replacement parts, or demand inflated costs for sole-source parts
To update obsolete materials or antiquated manufacturing processes with more current, less-expensive technologies
Process Of Reverse Engineering:
Identify the system’s components and their interrelationships
Create representations of the system in another form or a higher level of abstraction
Create the physical representation of that system
Important Points To remember Before to Start Reverse Engineering:
Reverse engineering enables the duplication of an existing part by capturing the component’s physical dimensions, features, and material properties. Before attempting reverse engineering, a well-planned life-cycle analysis and cost/benefit analysis should be conducted to justify the reverse engineering projects. Reverse engineering is typically cost effective only if the items to be reverse engineered reflect a high investment or will be reproduced in large quantities. Reverse engineering of a part may be attempted even if it is not cost effective, if the part is absolutely required and is mission-critical to a system.
Product Development By CAD Integrated Reverse Engineering Concepts:
Reverse engineering of mechanical parts involves acquiring three-dimensional position data in the point cloud using laser scanners or computed tomography (CT). Representing geometry of the part in terms of surface points is the first step in creating parametric surface patches. A good polymesh is created from the point cloud using reverse engineering software. The cleaned-up polymesh, NURBS (Non-uniform rational B-spline) curves, or NURBS surfaces are exported to CAD packages for further refinement, analysis, and generation of cutter tool paths for CAM. Finally, the CAM produces the physical part.
Services:
Contact & Non-Contact (laser) Scanning
Deviation Analysis of physical part with CAD Model
This software makes the process of creating parametric CAD models from real world parts faster and easier by utilizing a design process and user interface that are instantly familiar to CAD users.
Geomagic Studio:
Geomagic Studio transforms 3D scan data and polygon meshes into accurate 3D digital models for reverse engineering, product design, rapid prototyping and analysis.
RevWorks:
RevWorks® enhances the state of the art for CAD-Driven Reverse Engineering™. In linking SolidWorks to your 3D digitizer or coordinate measuring machine (CMM), RevWorks opens the door to greatly enhanced productivity.
DezignWorks:
The standard in reverse engineering for SolidWorks, allowing users to create complex 2D and 3D shapes, with a Romer, Faro, Baces, or MicroScribe Digitizer/Portable CMM.
Rhinoceros NURBS Modeling for Windows:
Rhino can create, edit, analyze, and translate NURBS curves, surfaces, and solids in Windows and offers full support for all 3D Digitizers and Portable CMMs.
Reverse Engineering Inspection Software:
MobiGage
The first hand-held metrology application. Installed on an Apple iPhone or iPod touch, MobiGage uses wireless communication to manage data collection from one or more MicroScribes linked to a MobiBox Silver interface
PowerINSPECT from Delcam
This software leads the way in today’s market by delivering a complete CAD-based inspection solution.
RapidformXO/Verifier
Rapidform XOV is the ideal solution for inspecting parts with a 3D scanner.
Geomagic Qualify
Geomagic Qualify enables fast, accurate, graphical comparisons between digital reference models and as-built parts for first-article inspection, production inspection and supplier quality
Applications Of Reverse Engineering:
Reverse engineering is very common in such diverse fields as software engineering, entertainment, automotive, consumer products, microchips, chemicals, electronics, and mechanical designs. For example, when a new machine comes to market, competing manufacturers may buy one machine and disassemble it to learn how it was built and how it works. A chemical company may use reverse engineering to defeat a patent on a competitor’s manufacturing process. In civil engineering, bridge and building designs are copied from past successes so there will be less chance of catastrophic failure. In software engineering, good source code is often a variation of other good source code.
In some situations, designers give a shape to their ideas by using clay, plaster, wood, or foam rubber, but a CAD model is needed to enable the manufacturing of the part. As products become more organic in shape, designing in CAD may be challenging or impossible. There is no guarantee that the CAD model will be acceptably close to the sculpted model. Reverse engineering provides a solution to this problem because the physical model is the source of information for the CAD model. This is also referred to as the part-to-CAD process.
Another reason for reverse engineering is to compress product development times. In the intensely competitive global market, manufacturers are constantly seeking new ways to shorten lead-times to market a new product. Rapid product development (RPD) refers to recently developed technologies and techniques that assist manufacturers and designers in meeting the demands of reduced product development time. For example, injection-molding companies must drastically reduce the tool and die development times. By using reverse engineering, a three-dimensional product or model can be quickly captured in digital form, re-modeled, and exported for rapid prototyping/tooling or rapid manufacturing.
