New VISTAGY Airframe Development Environments™ 2.0 Software Now Supports Multiple Stages of Airframe Design and Assembly
Latest offering helps users visualize fastener and assembly representations with varying levels of detail to best suit the engineering task at hand
VISTAGY Inc. recently announced Airframe Development Environments™ 2.0, software for more efficiently creating large, complex airframe structures and assemblies. The solution, which is integrated into commercial 3D CAD software, supports the end-to-end airframe development process—from conceptual and detailed design to manufacturing, assembly, quality planning and communication with the supply chain. This latest release enables engineers to choose how they want to visualize fasteners and assemblies based on the engineering task at hand, resulting in an unprecedented level of flexibility and efficiency throughout the entire process, as well as reduced errors and cost.
Engineers need to visualize airframe assemblies differently throughout the development process depending on the task that is required. In light of this, VISTAGY created new software functionality that generates the appropriate weight product representation for the specific task at hand. During the assembly design and fastener layout phase, simple point and vector representations of fasteners are sufficient to communicate key information quickly—like fastener location, head side, spacing or distance to edge—while minimizing model size. At other times, cylindrical representations of fasteners are necessary for engineers to easily visualize fastener lengths and rough interferences without bogging down computing power.
But if the task is to perform complete clash/interference detection, maintenance studies or installation studies, or if it is a required supplier deliverable to the OEM, it is necessary to load fasteners into the model so all the hardware at every location can be seen—including nuts, washers, nutplates, etc. To do this, engineers need to visualize a populated solid model and have the ability to easily delete or select different fasteners and associated hardware to meet design specifications. Airframe Development Environments 2.0 now automatically loads fasteners and hardware into the 3D model with the push of a button, taking only minutes to do what can take days using a manual process. It is the only commercially available software that supports all the varied engineering tasks with the appropriate weight product representation.
In addition to the vastly improved visualization capabilities, the new software also includes a redesigned, more complete and intuitive stack-up report, which is used to determine the length of the fastener that is required at any location. This report documents everything that is intersected when an assembly is pierced at a specific point, and for the first time consists of both modeled and non-modeled parts—like shims, sealants, washers and nuts, for example. The full thickness of an assembly is now more accurately calculated because it takes both types of parts into consideration. And, because the report is now presented in the order in which parts are pierced, it is more intuitive and easily interpreted than the previous version.
The new software also supports tasks associated with quality assurance by generating output for quality planning directly from the 3D master model, eliminating error-prone and time-consuming manual methods of populating quality planning documents. This enables quality engineers to verify and certify that parts are manufactured, installed and assembled properly and according to the design intent. The software assists with creating AS/EN/SJAC 9102 form packages to support first article inspection processes. Quality planners can also verify various assembly states using the software.
"Our in-depth experience in the aerospace industry enables us to develop software that supports how engineers think about engineering challenges at different points in the development process, arming them with highly specialized and productive tools for specific tasks—like visualizing fasteners and assemblies at various levels of detail and populating quality planning documents," states Bob Flory, vice president of product development at VISTAGY, Inc. "The newest version of VISTAGY's airframe development software allows design information to be captured and leveraged more completely throughout the entire development process, making it more efficient and less error-prone."
Airframe Development Environments 2.0 will be available for shipment in the second quarter of 2008.
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