Hello back to the second day of the Dassault Systèmes User Conference, where 500 users of CATIA, SIMULIA and other solutions gathered in the Congress Park Hanau. Freshly recovered after a nice evening event, it goes directly into the parallel sessions. Like yesterday I report live from the event.

9:00: Brothers Grimm Hall B: The hall is well filled for the presentation by Rohan Keswani of Dassault Systèmes who talks about "3D Automated Engineering". He shows how, for example, valves of an atomic motor can be automatically inserted into the cylinder head. An engineer-friendly scripting language makes it possible to install 96 components at the push of a button - this is worthwhile at the first change.

It is possible to build complete apps in CATIA, Keswani shows an example that creates a 3D-printed drone with the help of a few user inputs. In addition to the typical, fixed rules of a configurator - if the user selects Propeller A, battery B must be installed - the app also provides a dashboard of values ​​where there is no "black and white". The app shows how many percent a condition is met, such as how close the center of mass is to the geographic center - the closer, the better the flight characteristics.

The third option for automated geometry creation is the pattern creation function in the new role of the 3DEXPERIENCE platform xGenerative Design. When creating a geometry in this tool, parameters and patterns of the pattern are automatically defined, which can be subsequently changed and extended.

9:30: Federica Giuliani of Digital Orthopedics talks about how anatomical 3D models can be automated for medical applications using the patient's CT scans. Interesting: The CT shows only the bones, the cartilage, tendons and ligaments are generated purely on the basis of converted into surface models STL model of the bones from the scan.

The manual construction of a foot model took up to three weeks, now the process takes a few hours. With CATIA, you can even define bands that nestle around an intervening bone. The bands are basically predefined and can be created by selecting fewer points in the model. The manual work is limited to the creation of these connection points by a doctor, but also this process is to be automated, as Giuliani reported on demand.

9:50: Brüder-Grimm-Saal A: Instead of the expected lecture by Geberit, I get into the talk by Taiki Furuki from Kubota, whom we met at yesterday's design roundtable. The Japanese agricultural machinery manufacturer worked with 3D-CAD in the design department in the early 90's, but rather badly. After an intermediate phase with design software from another manufacturer, the designers work today together with the designers on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform.

The designers work with AR / VR as well as Mixed Reality, in which the designer can see his own hands in the virtual driver's cab, for example for installation studies.

10:10: Finally, the presentation by Thilo Cramer of Geberit, who talks about the "Rollout of the 3DEXPERIENCE and CATIA in the Geberit Design Studio". "I do not know if you know Geberit, but I'm sure you used our products this morning, Cramer introduces the Swiss sanitation specialist.

Geberit is using CATIA V5 and the 3DEXPERIENCE platforms in all areas of the company, from building and production planning through the various product categories to the sanitary ceramic designers acquired a few years ago, which are currently replacing another 3D CAD system.

The launch of 3DEXPERIENCE started in 2016, with a number of problems on both the Dassault and Geberit sides, especially in the first two years. In the meantime, the two partners have adjusted to each other and the transition runs as smoothly as such a process is possible. In 2020, the migration to the platform should be completed.

The resistance in the Design Department against the introduction of CATIA V5 ended with a remarkably good demonstration of design tools in 3DEXPERIENCE with Imagine & Shape and Natural Sketch. At the first workshop, the designers were able to design taps, which are now produced exactly in this form.

11:10, Paul Hindemith Room: It continues with the medical track in the main hall, Denis Feindt of Synopsys talks about creating high-quality CAE models from 3D image data. He shows that the processing of the results of imaging procedures is interesting not only in medicine but also in mechanical engineering, for example in reverse engineering or quality assurance. Synopsys offers the software Simpleware. Simpleware also offers models of human bodies that are not personalized, but built on the basis of statistical data. So a researcher can research a model of the typical 60-year-old European.

The CT scan creates slices whose elements are used as slices to create extremely detailed 3D models depending on the distance between the slices. These are used, among other things, to adjust prostheses and implants - Feindt showed a picture of a mandibular partial implant that was inserted into a patient. The 3D printed part could be customized in the context of the 3D model of the remaining mandible and skull before it was 3D printed and implanted.

11:35: Lisa Wiesent from the OTH Regensburg reports on the numerical analysis of stents with Abaqus. Stents often deform during insertion - in the course of which they are bent up to the diameter of the vein with a balloon catheter - so that the edges initially lie against the vein wall during expansion, thereby injuring them. Thus, at the site of the stent - which is supposed to eliminate a narrowing of a coronary artery - can form again a proliferation. The aim of Wiesent's research is to expand the stent so that it opens parallel or with edges bent inwards.

It's amazing how much Wiesent was able to simulate folding the balloon and applying the stent to the balloon. The folded positions and also the inflation were compared with cuts through real stents and filmed with a high-speed camera - the deviation between simulation and reality was below one percent!

Wiesent was able to achieve a better expansion behavior through stiffer ends of the stent, which would mean a major step forward in stent research. Chapeau!

12:00: Lunch break and an opportunity to stroll through the exhibition. A whole range of partners are showing solutions for the Dassault Systèmes product family. Cenit, for example, is part of Generative Design; other exhibitors in the foyer include Technia Transcat, Schwindt and Wacom with their impressive tablets. 3DConnexion is represented with the space mice and also CT Core technology: em Engineering Methods, Desys and others show flag at the User Conference.

Dassault Systèmes itself is represented with its 3DEXPERIENCE Playground, outstanding is a booth where joint VR conferences are shown. Locally two, in total up to four people can meet in the virtual reality and, equipped with VR glasses, for example, consider a prototype and communicate with each other.

In addition, a driving simulator is set up, in which one can follow the Formula One race track of Monaco. The special feature: the behavior of the vehicle is calculated and controlled in real time via Simpack. For example, a flat tire can be simulated by pressing a button.

The stands are well visited, the visitors show great interest in the solutions shown.

13:30, Paul-Hindemith-Saal: I chose the Materials Track. Andrew Reilly of Granta Design finds drastic words to illustrate his long-standing association with Dassault Systèmes' CAD system: "If you cut away my arm, you can probably read CATIA o the inside." While the CAD user engages in one material only interested in the name and perhaps the density, the "simulators" need much more extensive data, up to the behavior at different temperatures.

Granta Design provides a database application called MI with this data. Own data is supplemented with material properties from standard material databases. Fatigue test data is only released on new materials after years - because the tests take just as long. The Granta MI database interfaces with 3DEXPERIENCE, interposing a material authority that decides which Granta assets to synchronize to the platform.

Currently, MI is focusing on the simulation roles of the platform, and in the future, a dashboard widget will be created to search the Granta database.