Autodesk has constantly been instrumental in rising accessibility and information about Generative Design software program for engineering by means of the Fusion 360 platform.
Initially launched through Mission Dreamcatcher inside Autodesk’s analysis unit, generative design is now accessible to all Fusion 360 customers as a cloud-based extension.
Mike Scent, the Senior Product Supervisor for Fusion 360 at Autodesk, will probably be presenting the latest developments in Autodesk’s Generative Design throughout CDFAM in NYC June 14-15.
Upfront of his presentation at CDFAM, we requested Mike concerning the integration of generative design inside Autodesk’s overarching manufacturing technique, the advantages and customary misconceptions he has skilled from prospects interacting with generative know-how and optimum methods for integrating generative design into current engineering workflows.
With Autodesk’s historical past of democratizing design software program throughout varied fields, from large-scale city planning and structure, by means of to mechanical design, and electronics, from the early days of AutoCAD revolutionizing drafting, by means of to TinkerCAD enabling STEM training, how does the addition of Generative Design in Fusion 360 help and improve this elementary product philosophy or technique?
“Autodesk just lately introduced the institution of three industry-specific cloud platforms to deal with the wants of our prospects, for our Design & Manufacturing prospects this {industry} cloud is named Autodesk Fusion.
“Throughout the Autodesk Fusion {industry} cloud, we now have Fusion 360, the supply car that connects our prospects, their information, and their community throughout all the product improvement life cycle. Fusion 360 supplies skilled instruments for 3D modeling, CAD, CAM, CAE, and PCB product design and manufacturing.
“We try to make sure that Fusion 360 customers can simply extract the worth of design exploration, improved productiveness, and higher engineering outcomes from the beginning of the design course of.”
The time period ‘generative design’ is usually debated and in comparison with different ideas like computational, algorithmic, and simulation-driven design or topology optimization. Within the context of Autodesk software program, how is ‘Generative Design’ outlined, and what distinguishes it from these different phrases and approaches?
“At a excessive degree, Autodesk views generative design as clever design exploration know-how that generates a number of actionable outcomes primarily based on user-supplied necessities.
“These design outcomes allow engineers to check and make tradeoff choices primarily based on what greatest meets their wants.
“If we take a more in-depth take a look at the generative design applied sciences in Fusion 360, we provide options for various levels within the course of.”
“Early on, Automated Modeling lives proper within the Design workspace and supplies a number of design alternate options with minimal inputs in minutes. When customers are able to dive additional into engineering, validation, and optimization of designs, the Generative Design workspace supplies options for structural and fluid circulate purposes, producing designs for a specified set of necessities.
“For instance, simulation-driven and topology optimization usually require an current design or design area to get began, whereas generative design can work with solely vital geometry for design intent and generate the remainder of the geometry to attach every part, making it simpler to problem that establishment for a given design.
“On the opposite facet, computational and algorithmic approaches don’t at all times embrace ideas of physics or manufacturing, which means there may nonetheless be guesswork within the effectiveness of the design.”
What are the indications or standards that may assist designers and engineers decide when it’s the optimum time to make the most of generative design for addressing their engineering challenges?
“Generative design makes plenty of sense when engineers are pursuing new product proposals, design transformations, or are working to develop options that help the manufacturing or meeting course of. Nice manufacturing examples are robotic finish effectors or jigs and fixtures for advanced designs.
“From a extra technical viewpoint, if a design goes by means of simulation workflows for stress, vibration, and/or buckling, or you’ve gotten the pliability to make use of a unique materials or manufacturing course of, there’s additionally an incredible probability that generative design can assist you discover a higher engineering end result.”
What are a few of the most typical misconceptions or unrealistic expectations you’ve gotten encountered from people looking for to make use of generative design for addressing engineering challenges, and the way do you assist shoppers overcome them?
“One of the crucial widespread points we encounter is consumer expectations.
“We frequently discover that customers aspire to have generative design exchange conventional design and simulation workflows. They count on to have the ability to outline necessities for all of the potential physics and validation research required to carry a design to market, creating an all-or-nothing state of affairs.
“In these situations, we work with our prospects to combine generative design to enhance their current course of and assist them unlock the worth of generative design as a collaborator and accelerator within the design course of, even with out designing for all their potential necessities or changing their complete course of.
“One other widespread problem is when customers are restricted in how far they will probe for a given design. For instance, if they’re restricted to 1 materials and manufacturing methodology, a extra conventional optimization or design of experiments workflow could also be a greater choice.”
The outcomes generated by algorithmic or generative design are extremely depending on the standard of inputs and the readability of drawback definition. How does Fusion 360 help engineers in framing the suitable questions, and does it present any warnings or steering when they won’t be heading in the right direction?
“Generative Design in Fusion 360 offers the consumer steering on the rules of the design area setup, nevertheless, it doesn’t give steering on the definition of efficiency necessities or the accuracy of how they characterize a desired software. The consumer should perceive the appliance and translate it into load instances for the research.
“Customers who’re much less acquainted with the physics of their software or aren’t able to spend on a regular basis defining these necessities is perhaps higher beginning with Automated Modeling to discover shapes and options to their design challenges.”
How has the combination of machine studying and synthetic intelligence influenced the event and capabilities of generative design, and what potential developments can we count on within the close to future?
“Generative Design in Fusion 360 presently leverages a machine-learning-based method for figuring out and sorting outcomes by visible similarity.
“With the speedy advance of AI applied sciences in latest months, the probabilities are practically infinite, and we’re aggressively researching how they will greatest transfer the needle within the product improvement course of.
“You possibly can ensure that developments on this space will proceed to concentrate on serving to our customers be extra productive and obtain higher engineering outcomes. An important potential alternative could be serving to translate the efficiency necessities for the design into appropriate load instances for the research.
Fusion 360 combines parametric CAD, generative design, floor modeling, in addition to subtractive and additive manufacturing preparation, simulation, and execution, empowering designers, engineers, and groups to design and manufacture throughout the identical software program platform. In instances the place different software program or {hardware} instruments are obligatory within the workflow, how is information transferred out and in of Fusion 360 to make sure seamless integration?
“Fusion 360 supplies AnyCAD workflows to ascertain an associative hyperlink for incoming third celebration information that can be utilized for a Generative Design research.
“A resultant generative design end result is a totally editable Fusion 360 mannequin. Fusion 360 can export to many various third celebration CAD or impartial codecs to be used in different methods. Autodesk Inventor customers have a selected workflow to assist isolate design geometry and use it associatively with Fusion 360 for generative design.”
To wrap up, what are the principle takeaways you purpose to impart by means of your presentation on the CDFAM symposium, and what insights or learnings do you hope to accumulate in the course of the occasion?
First, Fusion 360 supplies skilled instruments for 3D modeling, CAD, CAM, CAE, and PCB product design and manufacturing that connects customers, their information and their networks throughout all the product improvement lifecycle. We’ve got made our generative design applied sciences extremely accessible to assist customers obtain higher engineering outcomes.
As for me, I hope to find out how others understand the worth of generative design and different automated design applied sciences and acquire a broader view of how they’re impacting the world of product design. I’m trying ahead to networking with all of the good people who’re working in the same know-how space.”
You possibly can register to attend the CDFAM Computational Design (+DfAM) Symposium occurring in NYC June 14-15 2023 to listen to from Mike and different specialists within the discipline of computational, generative and AI-driven design for superior manufacturing.
