Archive — This feature reflects the mobile CAD tools and interviews discussed in 2020. Product availability, capabilities and figures refer to that period.
Mobile devices have changed how people communicate, access information and work. They have also extended where designers can create and review 3D models. What does that flexibility mean for manufacturing?
Computer-aided design (CAD) is an established part of many manufacturing workflows. Moving some design tasks to a tablet raises practical questions: which operations can be performed, with what accuracy, and how do the resulting files fit into the production process?
This feature focuses on tablets, while also considering phones and desktop workstations. The choice depends on the software, the complexity of the model and the task to be completed.
According to Sophia Georgiou, chief designer and founder of the 3D modelling application Morphi, tablets were used more often than phones for this work.
At the time of the interview, Georgiou said her team had been developing Morphi for four years and that its iPad software was used by people of different skill levels in more than 125 countries.
What are the advantages of CAD on mobile devices?
Accessibility is one attraction. Cloud-based CAD can make files available across devices, provided the application, connection and access permissions support the task. Using a shared device also requires care over account access and confidential designs.
Morphi’s founder emphasises the creative freedom offered by a portable touch interface.
“Users can design from anywhere inspiration strikes them, like on the subway or while outside, whereas laptops are often not as portable”, she explains. Morphi advocates 3D modelling as an empowering tool. That’s why, the company has developed other 2D and 3D drawing tools to improve the user experience through a touch interface.
To illustrate the capabilities of such type of modeling tools, the Chief Designer mentions the 3D printed Names Dress designed by Sylvia Heisel, a wearables specialist. Presented in 2019, the Names Dress was described as a compostable couture gown and was displayed at the Ferragamo Museum in Italy. Heisel utilized Morphi on iPad to write the names of over 300 women in STEAM fields on the touchscreen. She extruded them in 3D in the app and fused them together to form one continuous piece.
This artistic example illustrates the interface’s possibilities. Industrial use raises additional questions about model accuracy, revision control and compatibility with engineering workflows.
In a more industrial environment, engineers “need to resolve design issues on the GO & stay on schedule”. Imagine an engineer working in a SME. With a myriad of responsibilities, his position might require him to run between different sites (at suppliers and/or customers location) to investigate manufacturing issues.
Those responsibilities are not limited to reviewing drawings and rotating 3D models. They require active modifications to designs. According to Siemens, “there are other prudent reasons to take immediate action. Given the fact that the amount of time they have at the desk is shrinking, engineers can’t afford to let desk-based to-do lists build up while working remotely. Such a backup in design tasks can unnecessarily delay the overall product development process. They need to resolve them immediately, as much as possible, while they are on the go.”
Augmented reality (AR) provides another way to view a digital model in its surroundings before manufacturing it. Georgiou described Morphi’s development in this area:
“We started developing our Augmented Reality viewer for Morphi on iPad back in 2016 and released our first feature in 2017 which was a very simple way to open your camera and place your 3D model in your environment. After the release of Apple’s ARKit in various stages, we have been able to create more immersive ways for our users to directly 3D model and visualize their designs in a variety of ways in our iPad apps. We also have a new iPhone app, Morphi AR for iPhone, that will be released next week [from February 17th] where you can import 3D models created in any CAD software and place and edit them in AR using an iPhone.”
The release timing in this quotation refers to February 2020, when the interview was conducted; it is not a forthcoming launch announcement.
These uses illustrate the flexibility of mobile design. They do not make every tablet application interchangeable with a desktop CAD workstation.
Other considerations to take into account
To run smoothly, CAD applications need processing power, memory, hard disk space and high graphics performance.
Complex models and assemblies containing hundreds of parts can require substantial processing power, memory and graphics resources. Loading and editing performance depend on both the platform and the software.
Be it on a desktop workstation or a tablet, without the proper compute resources, simple tasks such as loading, modifying or manipulating can lead to time lags or delays.
Desktop workstations can offer substantial processing capacity and, depending on the machine, opportunities to upgrade it. Suitability for a large CAD model must nevertheless be assessed against the actual workload and software requirements.
An external display may make a tablet’s interface easier to view, where the device and application support it. A larger screen alone does not add the computing resources needed to manipulate a complex model.
“Processors, screen size. device connectivity, getting used to touch screen as opposed to a mouse and a lack of accuracy in 3D modeling tools are sometimes discussed as limitations to 3D modeling on mobile devices. However, we think the biggest limitation is probably mindset. Mobile devices are powerful computers and impactful designs are created on them every day. Users have even told us that designing in 3D on mobile devices enhances their creativity because they associate it with experimentation and can see things in new and interesting ways”, said Morphi’s founder speaking of limitation of CAD on mobile devices.
The Siemens material cited in the original feature also highlights touch gestures as a possible productivity advantage:
“Finger gestures on a touch sensitive screen and other peripheral-less interactions on tablets present an opportunity for productivity improvements. Instead of plugging in a physical keyboard and mouse, which may not be possible in some use cases, users can enter text or interact with models on the touch screen directly. Besides supporting the software with the right computation resources, some software providers have retooled the interface and interaction of their CAD application to leverage multi-touch interfaces”.
Productivity and design freedom
The useful question is which CAD tasks a mobile device can support for a particular user, rather than whether all design work should move to tablets.
A business may prioritise controlled revisions, collaboration and delivery dates; an individual designer may value experimentation and portability. Both still need tools suited to the intended result.
For Morphi’s Sophia Georgiou, “people should use whichever tools they feel will help them better visualize, evolve and share their ideas. It is not about choosing to model in 3D on a desktop versus mobile device – they can do both seamlessly now. It’s more about people being empowered to create the things that matter to them and their communities.”
The original feature cited a 2015 Siemens PLM study reporting that, on average, 55% of development projects were released on time. The underlying sample and methodology are not identified here, so this historical figure should not be treated as a current benchmark or as proof that mobile CAD improves delivery rates.
For manufacturers, the practical test is whether mobile access helps resolve a design issue earlier without compromising accuracy, file control or downstream work. That benefit needs to be assessed in the company’s own workflow.
This dossier was originally published in the March–April 2020 issue of 3D ADEPT Mag.
THE 3D ADEPT WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
The industry moves fast. Stay ahead.
Every week, the latest additive manufacturing news, in-depth features and real-world applications, straight to your inbox. Plus, be the first to know when a new issue of 3D ADEPT Mag is out.
Free · One email a week · Unsubscribe anytime
Clicking loads our email provider’s sign-up form, including its analytics and Google’s anti-bot protection. You’re only subscribed if you complete the sign-up. Read our privacy policy.