The CAPRI DriveMM Design Connector enables engineers to rapidly query, analyze and update the design intent of a CAD model in a simulation driven design process. DriveMM is the simplest and most reliable path for an engineer or analyst to perform parametric studies with their favorite CAD package. No programming expertise or expert knowledge of CAD systems is required. DriveMM is ideal for optimizing CAD designs in upfront conceptual or preliminary analysis.
Automated Design Optimization Chain Using CAD, CAPRI DriveMM, and CAE Analysis
Feature Overview
Works with parts and assemblies.
Automatically list and output the design tree and associated parameters in the CAD file.
Edit features to create different instances of the CAD model suitable for analysis. Features such as holes can be turned on/off to simplify the geometry.
Drive design changes through parameter updates. Set new parameters values and update the CAD.
Simple command language, a script can be used to embed the DriveMM connector in an automated workflow.
Various save and export options, usable in a distributed computing environment.
Benefits
Eliminate CAD rework, duplication, and tedious update process of CAD designs.
Easy to use. Does not require knowledge of using CAD packages or CAD scripting.
Reliable and significantly faster than direct CAD scripting.
Easy to connect to CAE packages and optimizers.
No rewriting scripts for every CAD. Same scripts and workflow can be used with any CAPRI supported CAD package.
Testimonials
“Our partnership with CADNexus was productive and efficient; we managed to find solutions to every major problem that we faced along the way.”
Alistair Wood
Advanced Aero Design at Bombardier
“Our optimization results were very succesful using CAPRI CAE Gateway and ModeFrontier. We generated 350 CAD designs and were able select the optimal design for our motorcycle. Your software CAPRI worked correctly !”
Sergio Corbera Caraballo
UPM-Motostudent Team
“Previously, if we received CAD geometry, it first had to be converted into a format acceptable for Chimera Grid Tools to read, i.e., unstructured surface triangulation or structured abutting patches. This process has always been very tedious and labor intensive (using commercial grid generation software), and could take days or weeks.”
“The capability to ‘read’ in CAD geometry directly into OVERGRID and then perform surface grid generation on the CAD, was simply not available until we had the CADNexus CAPRI CAE Gateway integration.”
Dr. William M. Chan
NASA Ames
“CAPRI is a very easy environment to use for CAD integration, and within a short amount of time we incorporated direct CAD model access in our grid generation system.”
Dr. Mike Remotigue
ERC SimCenter
“From my experience, CAPRI CAE Gateway is a unique software primarily because of its direct connection to CAD and overall robustness. I can use an in-house geometry manipulation and triangulation tool, but I find that the time to take something out of CAD and put the final design back into CAD is prohibitive. We have performed over 10,000 automated CFD design iterations using CAPRI for CAD integration, with parametric update and surface wrapping reliability exceeding 99.98%.”
Marian Nemec, Ph.D., ELORET Corporation
NASA Ames Research Center
“Typically our research requires access to a range of geometric and topological information which can sometimes be difficult to access (and manipulate) using traditional CAD methods. The CAPRI CAE Gateway provides a neutral platform to enable us to easily access this information for a number of CAD systems.”
Dr. Trevor Robinson
Queens University Belfast
“The CADNexus CAPRI CAE Gateway provides a means of enabling an associative link between our CAD and CAE environments, which is an important part of our PLM strategy.”
Dr. David Venditti
Analytical Lead – PLM Group, Pratt & Whitney Canada
“The CAPRI CAE Gateway software from CADNexus is proving to be of great value in moving a geometry quickly and accurately from a CAD model to the start of the CFD analysis process u sing OVERFLOW.”
“We have been experiencing the use of the CAPRI as a gateway to native CAD models for our multidisciplinary optimization system. CAPRI CAE Gateway is really a breakthrough in CAD model management, the first tool with a seamless interface to all major CAD packages. As a player in the Aeronautics business, CAPRI CAE Gateway provides us with direct interface to parametrized parts, it enables to directly optimize the part in its native format and provide the customer with a final optimized shape without any artificial CAD translation.”
Dr. Michel Delanaye
General Manager, CENAERO
“CAPRI CAE Gateway proved to be invaluable in our development of a CAD-based geometry control system for aerodynamic optimization. CAPRI simplified the integration with CatiaV5, so that the geometry could be manipulated directly within the CAD environment for design optimzation.”
Professor David Zingg
University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies
Works with parts and assemblies.
