nTop 4’s new design instruments push additive manufacturing to the mainstream


Engineering software program developer nTop (beforehand nTopology), has just lately launched a serious replace of its flagship product: nTop 4.

The corporate asserts that additive manufacturing has opened up new avenues for design, permitting the creation of complicated components with enhanced efficiency. Nevertheless, this complexity in AM components has introduced new bottlenecks in product growth, affecting each the design and manufacturing processes. Engineers usually battle to totally make the most of some great benefits of AM as a result of intensive effort and time required, generally leading to suboptimal efficiency. Moreover, the restrictions of outdated design file codecs could make it tough and even not possible to 3D print the designed components. To handle these challenges, nTop launched a serious replace to its flagship engineering design software program. 

“At nTop, we have now all the time believed that design is on the core of fixing the world’s hardest engineering issues. nTop 4 marks the following stage of our journey enabling engineers to ship extremely engineered AM components for merchandise to succeed in new ranges of efficiency,” says Bradley Rothenberg, nTop Co-founder, and CEO.

That includes nTop 4

nTop 4 is a serious replace that permits engineers in overcoming the bottlenecks generally encountered in additive manufacturing. It gives the instruments to design and manufacture complicated components, providing enhanced design flexibility, decreased time required to deliver merchandise to market, improved high quality, and value discount.

The software program nTop is constructed utilizing three basic applied sciences: Implicit Modeling, Area-Pushed Design, and Design Course of Automation.

With the discharge of nTop 4, the latest important replace, the software program enhances its core applied sciences and introduces new functionalities that eradicate bottlenecks round 4 themes: design (Area Optimization), integration (Implicit Interop), scalability (nTop Automate), and adoption (buyer success packages).

Area Optimization: a brand new generative design expertise for additive manufacturing

With the intensive design prospects of additive manufacturing, conventional handbook iterations turn out to be impractical and time-consuming. To deal with this problem, nTop 4 introduces Area Optimization, a generative design expertise that assists engineers in managing the multitude of design parameters related to complicated engineering issues. By facilitating sooner decision-making and enhancing half efficiency, Area Optimization streamlines the design course of in additive manufacturing.

Area Optimization incorporates a multi-scale and multi-objective optimization engine into nTop’s core expertise, making a design device that possesses superior energy whereas remaining user-friendly. With the introduction of intuitive workflows, Area Optimization aids engineers in producing high-quality additive manufacturing half designs for varied purposes, together with lightweighting, medical implants, and industrial design.

Utilized to the NASA EXCITE bracket, Area Optimization concurrently optimized weight and vibrational stiffness by fine-tuning the native wall and gyroid thickness all through the half. Picture by way of nTop.

Implicit Interop gives seamless knowledge switch

As additive manufacturing components turn out to be extra complicated, the massive file sizes of legacy design information can decelerate the manufacturing course of. With Implicit Interop, the bottlenecks related to knowledge change for complicated designs are eradicated, facilitating seamless switch of knowledge between nTop, manufacturing, CAD, and CAE software program. This novel method considerably reduces file sizes from gigabytes to mere megabytes. nTop consists of further options: nTop Core, nTop Implicit File (.implicit), and nTop Plugin for EOSPRINT.

nTop Core is a developer library that facilitates the seamless integration of Implicit Interop into nTop companions’ software program purposes. It’s at present being utilized by nTop’s associate community to construct native connections and plugins that help nTop Implicit Recordsdata. The nTop Implicit File (.implicit) represents a novel file format that permits direct sharing of implicit geometry, eliminating the necessity for meshing. Consequently, this format provides smaller file sizes whereas sustaining excessive ranges of precision.

Implicit Interop characteristic streamlines the manufacturing of complicated components. Picture by way of nTop.

The nTop Plugin for EOSPRINT helps customers overcome knowledge change bottlenecks brought on by meshing when transferring information between the 2 software program. Mesh information are giant, tough to generate, and might compromise accuracy. Some complicated geometries can’t be meshed in any respect. Utilizing an nTop Implicit File and the nTop Plugin for EOSPRINT eliminates these points.

Siemens Power efficiently examined the nTop Plugin for EOSPRINT by 3D printing a beforehand unmanufacturable warmth exchanger. The nTop Implicit File used had a file measurement of roughly 1MB, which is 99% smaller in comparison with a mesh file. The technology course of was 500x sooner, and the file was sliced in EOSPRINT with utmost precision.

Moreover, nTop Plugin for EOSPRINT is now out there in public beta for all nTop clients with EOSPRINT 2.14 or later.

Utilizing the nTop Plugin for EOSPRINT, you may instantly import complicated nTop designs into EOSPRINT with out having to cope with the challenges of mesh-based knowledge switch. Picture by way of nTop.

Improved design automation for additive manufacturing

When using additive manufacturing for fast iteration throughout design exploration or mass customization, producing and managing customized or one-off designs at scale could be difficult. Nevertheless, nTop Automate provides an answer by permitting customers to amplify the effectiveness of engineering assets. By executing nTop workflows inside a programmatic atmosphere, this characteristic permits streamlined automation, thereby enhancing effectivity in producing and managing customized designs on a bigger scale.

Other than the present Home windows deployment, nTop now consists of nTop Automate for Linux, providing engineers the flexibility to make use of less expensive cloud computing options or leverage out there on-premise high-performance computing (HPC) assets. This expanded compatibility permits engineers to discover extra economical choices for his or her computational wants.

Deploy nTop Automate to scale design and manufacturing throughput. Picture by way of nTop.

nTop Speed up: speed up adoption, maximize impression

nTop not solely gives high-quality instruments but additionally provides packages to speed up adoption and maximize impression in organizations of all sizes. The most recent addition, nTop Speed up, encompasses customized coaching, customized workshops, and design sprints to assist clients obtain their program targets. Moreover, nTop continues to spend money on onboarding initiatives like nTop Study, a web based studying middle, to facilitate engineers in rapidly delivering worth.

nTop gives entry to buyer success packages. Picture by way of nTop.

To know extra about nTop software program, go to the official web site.

What does the way forward for 3D printing for the following ten years maintain?

What engineering challenges will should be tackled within the additive manufacturing sector within the coming decade?

To remain updated with the newest 3D printing information, don’t overlook to subscribe to the 3D Printing Trade e-newsletter or comply with us on Twitter, or like our web page on Fb.

When you’re right here, why not subscribe to our Youtube channel? That includes dialogue, debriefs, video shorts, and webinar replays.

Are you on the lookout for a job within the additive manufacturing trade? Go to 3D Printing Jobs for a number of roles within the trade.

Featured picture exhibits nTop 4, a serious replace to nTop’s flagship product. Picture by way of nTop.



Related Articles

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Latest Articles