Technology
To represent a 3D object digitally, there are three common categories:
point clouds, polygonal mesh, and NURBS curves and surfaces. Each
representation has its own merits and drawbacks.
A point cloud model is normally generated directly by a scanner.
It can represent any shape given enough sampling points. On the
other hand, it takes a very large number of points to describe
a form. When it comes to sharp corners, thin walls, and edges,
point cloud has lots of difficulties to describe a form in precise
manner. Most of all, a point cloud approach would be hard to use.
Comparing with point cloud model, a polygonal model contains
additional topological information that defines the neighboring
relationship and order among points. Polygonal model can represent
any shape or form and it can be watertight. It can be two manifold
and can easily capture thin walls and sharp corners. Most milling
machines can take polygonal mesh model as input (i.e. STL). Finite
Element Analysis (FEA) usually uses polygonal mesh representation.
The down side of polygonal model is that it lack of precision
and it requires large number of polygons to describe a form.
NURBS representation is the most compact way to represent a
model. Since most traditional CAD programs use NURBS, once a model
is captured by NURBS curved and surfaces, it can be used directly
by CAD tools. It can precisely define a surface. Models described
by NURBS can be two manifold and watertight. Most milling machine
can take NURBS model as input. It is very easy to covert a NURBS
model to polygonal mesh using tessellation. Although NURBS are
flexible, in practice, NURBS are not used for describe arbitrary
shapes alone.
GSI Studio can capture a model in any one of these representations.
Internally, GSI Studio uses flexible point representation combined
with highly optimized mesh structure. GSI Studio fully utilizes
two manifold properties from mesh to create curve and Boundary
Representation (BRep) on mesh surface. This effectively reduces
3D design complexity to 2D operations, which are much more intuitive
and easy to manage.
Leveraging the strength from each one, GSI Studio provides designer
with a wide range of tools to intuitively and efficiently editing,
sculpting, and surfacing a model. These tools include comprehensive
set of polygonal mesh operations, curve operations, and NURBS/analytic
surface operations. GSI Studio also balances automatic operations
for efficiency and fast turn-around and user control for engineering
precision and improve design quality.
Realizing the dynamic nature in 3D design and unlimited possibilities
in other applications like engineering finite element analysis
(FEA), GSI Studio offers a solid platform for adding new or user
specific tools and algorithms. This is accomplished by providing
a cleanly defined Tool Extension API so that domain experts can
utilize the GSI Studio infrastructure to create application specific
tools or algorithms to achieve their objective. The architecture
of GSI Studio Design Environment is shown in Figure 1. The same
infrastructure that is used for 3D design tasks can also be used
for FEA purposes when different set of “tools” is attached.
In the GUI front-end, GSI Studio offers a truly configurable
user interface not just to change its look-and-feel at skin deep
but also to entirely adapt to different customer specific workflow
process. GUI reconfiguration only involves metadata modification
and there no need to change any program code and no recompilation.
Using the analogy of a real symphony orchestra, the GSI product
and its underline infrastructure allow customers to easily and
flexibly conduct their own music by re-arranging the instruments,
creating and adding new ones.
The GSI Studio Benefits
Easy to learn and use
GSI Studio design environment is easy to learn and intuitive
to use. New users can be productive and see results in matter
of days instead of weeks or months.
Fast product design turn-around time
The GSI Studio design environment provides a wide array of
tools to allow designers to quickly editing, sculpting, and surfacing
a model with engineering precision control and measurement. With
GSI Studio, the entire product design cycle can be greatly
reduced.
High design quality
GSI Studio can handle larger polygonal models. Instead of
decimating the model to reduce its size, GSI Studio preserves
the model’s high definition details and leverages the detailed
model information to create precise NURBS curves and continuous
surfaces.
Open to future evolution and protecting investment
Tasks changes and so is the working environment. GSI Studio’s
architecture will protect its customer’s investment by evolving
with the work requirement through adding new tools and reconfigure
workflow process.
GSI Studio Features
- Easy and intuitive to use
- High degree engineering precision and control
- Configurable GUI (metadata driven) to adapt to customer specific
workflow
- Tool Extension API supports plug-in tools and algorithms as
well as individual tool upgrade
- Modular and Object Oriented architecture for flexible solution
packaging
- Maintain high degree of model data resolution
- Efficient system resource usage
- Great performance and scalability to handle over 10 million
polygons and preserve model high definition without decimation
- Infrastructure can handle a wide range of application from
3D graphic design to finite element analysis and support rapid
development of new algorithms
- Easy to interface with 3rd party applications or being used
as a component
- Hardware and OS platform independent
- Support international languages
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