Feature 40 years of design F
orty years ago, the term computer- aided design (CAD) was not widely used at all – hardly any- body was talking about, or even contemplating, such an approach. The only computers that existed were expensive mainframe computers, and designers working across the manufac- turing sector used pen and paper. If any modifications to drawings were required, engineers would have to scrape the ink off the paper and redraw them. Then once the drawings were produced, manufacturing engi- neers working on the shop floor would have to read them and build the parts from there – a complex and often inaccurate process.
While CAD systems began to emerge during the 1970s, in their earliest incar- nations they were mainly used by
40 years ago, the term computer aided design was not widely used
From pen and paper to 3D printing: The evolving world of product design
In 1971, design was a pen and paper process. The decades, however, have been kind to the industry, with the introduction of software and systems which have speeded up the design process more than anyone could have imagined. Wolfgang Lynen, EMEA marketing campaign manager manufacturing solutions, Autodesk, guides us through 40 years of design, and takes a look into the future
automotive and aerospace manufactur- ers, typically working in conjunction with university research groups. Car makers like General Motors, Ford and Mercedes-Benz, and aerospace manufacturers such as McDonnell- Douglas and Dassault, all had internal CAD software development groups working on proprietary programs. Critically, these kinds of organisations were among the few at the time with access both to the computers and the necessary funds to make the devel- opment of CAD viable.
In the earliest days, CAD technology was crude – certainly by today’s stan- dards. Computers and graphics systems were not particularly powerful and
CAD systems began to emerge during the 1970s
CAD software was a new, largely unproven concept. While some of the proprietary systems of the aero and auto companies included 3D surface modelling capabilities, most commer- cial CAD systems were 2D in nature. MEDUSA, developed by Cambridge Interactive Systems, is one example, and this basically delivered an electronic version of 2D drafting. This capability in itself represented a kind of revolution, with key benefits including a reduction in time needed for drawing, easier modifications and the increased reusability of drawings.
3D to digital prototyping Commercially available 3D CAD systems emerged in around 1980 with the arrival of super minicomputers like the DEC VAX, a platform which made CAD software more accessible to smaller companies. This kind of technology helped support the devel- opment of 3D wireframes, which defined the edges of models. Relatively soon after this, 3D surface modelling was available as a commer- cial product, and this provided benefits to the consumer goods sectors. Technology also evolved to encompass the machining of 3D surfaces.
S8 - 40TH ANNIVERSARY SUPPLEMENT -
The arrival of the UNIX operating system helped to further revolutionise the computing and CAD software mar- kets. This opened the performance computer market up to a new wave of low-cost, high-performance work- stations from companies like Sun Microsystems, using standard hard- ware to run CAD software applica- tions. These developments also led to systems capable of solid modelling, such as CADDS from Computervision, for example.
In the early 1980s, we witnessed the advent of the personal computer. Autodesk, which was founded in 1982, pioneered the concept of CAD design on this exciting new platform with the launch of Autodesk AutoCAD. The benefit of AutoCAD was that it was an inexpensive, simple-to-use, open system capable of running on PCs. It represented a quantum leap from what had preceded it and paved the way for the democratisation of CAD systems. Its openness, and the innovative reseller based distribution model it was used to promote, helped to really open up the CAD market worldwide.
Just over 25 years ago, there was another landmark development in the history of CAD – the development of
Design Solutions 1971-2011
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