Siemens NX has announced its first 2022 update, adding technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced simulation capabilities to the software as it looks to add significant productivity and capability enhancements.
The increased AI takes the form of machine learning embedded in the Selection Prediction and Select Similar commands, which uses shape recognition to quickly identify geometrically similar components.
Combined with NX’s voice control function, the user can faster navigate multi-level menus and operations, as well as teaching the system words or phrases to carry out common tasks. Siemens gives the example of asking ‘Have we done something like this before?’ and NX will carry out a Shape Search using Siemens’ Geolus.
A new NX Topology Optimizer set-up helps create parts based purely on functional and design space requirements, resulting in editable convergent bodies that would be almost impossible to design and engineer manually.
Inevitable design changes can be quickly made, optimisations and any downstream features updated automatically, which Siemens states will save time, effort and aid increase the reuse of design and engineering data.
Additionally, Design Space Explorer combines design space exploration with generative engineering to help designers automatically optimise a design against multiple objectives.
The user defines the optimisation problem with all parameters, constraints, and objectives in place and NX uses Simcenter HEEDS software to conduct multi-objective parameter optimisation. The results are said to provide the designer with an immediate set of viable design alternatives to consider that would typically require a simulation specialist.
Siemens’ Simcenter 3D simulation gets a run out in NX by marshalling its lattice structures, which can now be optimised to derive the optimal lattice structure in a singular environment – eliminating the multiple design analysis steps required traditionally.
Elsewhere, Part Orientation Optimization brings nesting of parts (and their associated supports) within a machine build area along with integrated cloud-based orientation optimisation processes to find the optimal build orientation for reduced thermal distortion.
“With each new release of NX, Siemens is pushing the barriers of what product development systems are capable of,” said Bob Haubrock, senior VP product engineering software, Siemens Digital Industries Software.
“Our shift to continuous releases of NX is proving incredibly popular with our community,” continued Haubrock at its 2022 launch, adding that it’s enabling NX to add industry leading capabilities faster than before.
“This means providing access to new tools and technologies so they can be applied to our customers’ design, engineering and manufacturing challenges to help them overcome them more quickly. We continue to improve the core tools our customers rely on every day, with over 1,200 customer enhancement requests delivered in this release.”
