In civil engineering, drawings at different stages play a pivotal role in project execution. Beyond serving as precise guidelines for engineers and architects, these drawings offer critical information for diverse stakeholders. And from the bidding stage to project completion, each type of civil engineering drawing has different requirements. To make these clear, this article will…

3D printing, both in industry and for hobbyists, is more popular than ever, with what was once considered a niche pastime now becoming mainstream. With the number of new people of all ages taking an interest, some will no doubt be going into it without much in the way of knowledge, either about the equipment…

https://youtu.be/kbK3oDsvivc Disclaimer: This exercise was purely for experimental and exploratory purposes. Although I hoped that I would gain insights on how to better sketch in perspective by transferring the 2 point cube sketch into SOLIDWORKS, the success of the exercise wasn’t tied to the outcome. Sometimes, it’s fun to try things and follow one’s instinct…

While designing test fixtures for medical devices over at teampipeline.us, I’ve gained valuable industry knowledge and real-world experience that I’d like to share to help accelerate your learning curve.  In today’s golden tip, I’ll explain how 3D printed supports can actually affect functionality. This took me by surprise because generally the two tips shared when…

https://youtu.be/zJXQxtx5e4s The best way to learn something is by a technique called spaced repetition,  flashcards. I’ve made 180 flashcards so that you can pass the Solidworks CSWP with a 100% score like I did. I utilized the following resources to compose the flashcards: -Gabriel Corbett’s Linkedin Learning CSWP course *BONUS: Did you know that…

If you’re a user of multiple CAD platforms and 3D creation apps, you’ve probably got jars of data translation tears stashed away to… I dunno, sprinkle your computer with from time to time? Frankly, I don’t know why you would bottle up those tears. LET THEM OUT. There are, however, tools that make data translation,…

The latest update from the Fusion 360 crew has us pulling our sock over our knee-caps and throwing our hats in the air. There are a LOT of great new features like fillet weighting, part-level revision milestones, PCB hole placement via references, and more but our favorite is the ability to create text on a…

I know you’ve been hankering for the return to the free exchange of bacteria and ideas with thousands of other SOLIDWORKS users but… it’ll have to wait — at least the bacteria part. You can share that with SOLIDWORKS friends in your own community and get together for a local 3DEXPERIENCE World experience to feel…

How can you use rainwater? To grow veggies, raise a clutter of Ocelots, or fill your kiddie pool to name a few. While you may have turned the kiddie pool into a giant margarita to make it through the rest of 2020, there are plenty of ways to collect and use rainwater, granted you don’t…

If you use SOLIDWORKS now or used it in the past, one person you have to thank is Vic Leventhal. Vic passed away, October 3rd, 2020 at the age of 74. Vic was the COO of SOLIDWORKS from its inception in 1995 up until 2003, well after the acquisition by Dassault Systemes in 1997. That…

With all that free-time in the last 4-minutes of your 30-minute lunch break, you may be thinking NAPTIME. But why nap when you could LEARN? If you’ve yet to check out LinkedIn Learning, now may be a good time to finally take the plunge into the vast, virtual pool of knowledge. Aram Goganian is the…

A few months back, we had a first-look at Cadasio, an online platform to create and share product documentation and assembly instructions. Now, they have announced the official release after two years of development, a closed beta, and an early access phase. Files may be uploaded to the platform or you can use one of…

2021. There’s a lot to look forward to with that number. So, let’s start the celebration early with SOLIDWORKS 2021 and pretend everything is open, people aren’t afraid not to wear a mask, and this year is dissolved deep, deep, deep into the annals of history. The season has changed and so also has our…

Put five in the sky if yo’ feelin’ alive. Put ten up in the air if you just don’t care. Who needs a hand or fifty? I could always use a hand. I could use it for help on the farm of course, but also just to stick at random locations in hallways or slap…

The folks over at Onshape have been cranking out a ton of resource material across all categories. I’m especially excited over the uptick in surface creation related content being published out. For example, two new surfacing courses recently went live on the Learning Center. So if learning Onshape is on your bucket list, I encourage…

Hey, Solidsmackites If you are looking to learn Autodesk Fusion 360 starting at ground zero, but don’t want to go it alone, then we’ve spotted a series that may be just the ticket! Ben over at 3DGladiator kicked off a guided Fusion 360 series building a super cool vintage military tank. Currently, he is on…

How do all those selfie-shootin’ video pros snag that smooth video? Well, outside a tripod or a wall and roll of duct tape, they’re likely using a fancy gimble device to steady their on-screen antics. While you can find a few in the $120 price range, you could also just make your own. *gasp!* Yes,…

I know you’ve got a special place in your heart for the ol’ dry cell battery but I think we can all agree that a torus of hot plasma heated to millions of degrees Celsius is absolutely ideal for all our personal energy needs. Unfortunately, personal fusion power is quite possible yet with, ya know,…

When you’re bakin’ up 3D models daily, you’ve likely got your standards and purchase parts modeled up and ready to go, a system in place to create them, or a snarky intern with an old set of calipers ready to do your bidding. We’ve gone past thinking it could be found at an online model…

You’ve got some options when you need to create graphics for assembly instructions and technical documents but when you need to create animated assembly or service instructions your options narrow quite a bit. And, if you prefer a web-based option, cadasio is the only option that offers the features to make you more mobile. Why…

It’s days like these where you’re in your speedboat zipping from port to port with bags of frozen melon balls ready to hand out and bless everyone’s day with sweet, icy goodness. Yet, how do you keep those melon balls from getting drenched by the mad wakes you’re frothing up in the bay? I know…

Ya know, a lot of people are impressed by a 70″ flat screen as the centerpiece of the living room. But what if that massive monitor was instead a massive 3D printed clock? Yes, endless hours of entertainment AND so much better as a focal point for your home. Now, this week’s ‘model of the…

If there’s one plant you can grow in your workspace with very little sunlight, weekends without water, and the occasional sneer from a co-worker with an aversion to plant-life, it’s a succulent. There is, however, one thing it does need. Warm, moist, humid-erifically, moist air. I’m fascinated by large water feature fountain and atrium designs…

Wouldn’t it be fun to live in a world made of LEGOs? Apart from the excruciating pain of stepping on anything LEGO, the ability to build whatever you think of at a moment’s notice would open up a world of vlocky possibility. While we may never live in such a world, the Bricker add-on for…

No matter how much you may be winning your latest video game, there’s no winnin’ when your snacks are out of reach. You have options like placing multiple bags and bowls within arms reach but what if you could have a bowl attached to your controller? And what if it had a gimbal design to…

The touch-aware team over at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) has developed a wearable device to keep you from touching your mug and spreading diseases from your filthy hands. Yeah, I see you getting ready to scratch your nostril. DON’T DO IT. Don’t Touch! Or as my college roommate used to say, “손대지 마!!!” Yes,…

Shapr3D has been doing a lot of ‘bringing’ to their iPadOS-based CAD app over the past three years, from introducing Parasolid 3D modeling for the iPad Pro to a new direct 3D modeling workflow. With trackpad and mouse support for the latest iPad Pro, plus LiDAR scanning, announced March 2020, they’re taking 3D CAD where…

When Siemens Software announced their adaptive UI for NX, we knew there were good things ahead for NX users. Well, this week at #SiemensMAC2020, @siemenssoftware introduced #SketchNX, a new (and I would say the first) adaptive, inference-driven, selection-aware sketch solver that continuously evaluates the sketch. Over the last several weeks, I’ve had the chance to…

Since time immemorial, CAD users have faced challenges when adding shell features to their designs. Typically used to convert solid 3D objects into hollow shells with walls of a specified thickness, challenges are met when adding shells to solids with small radii, unreasonably thick walls, intricate details and, sometimes, even very simple geometry. nPower Software’s…

Get your sculpt brushes and buckets of inspiration ready. Today, Pixologic introduced ZBrushCoreMini, a free entry-level version of its ZBrushCore and ZBrush software designed to help people get started with digital sculpting. ZBrushCoreMini provides a simplified version of the Academy Award Winning ZBrush software used by leading digital artists around the world. ZBrushCoreMini is designed…

It was a slow ride over to SketchUp subscription city but you saw the road signs along the way. First Trimble put SketchUp online bringing you SketchUp for Web. Then, in February 2019, they announced a subscription pricing option, retaining the perpetual license option. Now, they’ve announced a complete move to an annual subscription model…

Editing appearances inside Onshape just go better. Now applying custom color to any region or face is a snap! Gone are the days of needing a workaround to simply change the face color of solid or surface faces of part-studio geometry. It looks like my old “zero offset surface copy” workaround has been rendered obsolete.…

Note: This is concept software! Interested in available 8-bit/DOS modelers? Check out Magicvoxel, 3D Studio DOS, or Mikshape3D! Game developer Johan Peitz posted a tweet recently with a video of a project he’s working on called “PICO CAD”. It’s a kind of 8-bit 3D modeling system to develop very simple 3D objects. We don’t yet…

Konichiwa, SolidWorks ninjas. Welcome to the dojo (Designing Objects Journeymen Organization). Let’s flip roll right into our training regime. Mid Plane Is Your Symmetrical Friend As we take our 2D sketches from the flat world into the third Extruded Boss/Base Feature dimension we have options. Some options utilize references as drivers. When not using reference…

You’ve got so much work, you could use an extra hand, am I right? Well, how about a Heavy Loader or ten? Unfortunately, our model of the week won’t pick up the slack but it will pick up your spirits when you gaze upon the army of 10-inch bot loaders you’ve printed to share your…

If you haven’t caught Xometry’s Ok Xoomer yet, you’re missing out. But don’t worry, they’re only on 10 episodes in and one of their latest episodes is the perfect place to start. Aaron Lichtig of Xometry interviews technologist, prototyping expert, and SolidSmack friend, Jude Pullen. The quick 15-minute interview goes into where Jude has been…

Ah! The early days of flight! Experimental flights, experimental aircraft and, most interesting of all, experimental engines. Since 1903 there have been all matter of engines from air-cooled to liquid-cooled, inline, v-type, rotary, piston, turbine, and more. A bump in the 100+ year history of the aircraft engine is the Curtiss Number 3, a V-8…

Did you know Autodesk is providing free access to Fusion 360 due to the crisis? Fusion 360 Features Autodesk’s Fusion 360 system is a powerful cloud-based CAD tool that can provide both beginners and full-time professional designers a worthy experience. The system includes a wide variety of CAD features, including 2D sketching, 3D modeling, simulation,…

Imagine you had a robot or five. One of those would need to be the cute little mascot that seemingly had no purpose but was, in fact, the leader of them all. This, it that robot. The V-Walker is ‘A Dumb Walking Robot’ project from Yele Labs that moves along like a single-jointed inch-worm on…

With so much going on in the world, it’s easy to go out on a balcony, stare off to the horizon, reflect inside and say, “I have SO many awesome mixtapes!” Or had, if you tossed them in a fit of KonMari rage. If ya do have some stashed away, however, we have the PERFECT…

If you ask any software development company what they’re doing to help with the COVID-19 pandemic, you may find they’re using their software in unconventional ways to solve, and in this case, simulate, the challenges that could help improve the design of so many personal protection equipment (PPE) initiatives. Dassault Systèmes has released a video…

First, if you haven’t used Turbosquid to source models, check it out quickly. If you have used Turbosquid before, you know it’s incredibly useful to source just about any type of model you’re looking for. Tools, Cars, ROBOTS. Hust about anything. You might assume Turbosquid is a 3D model repository for media and entertainment, not…

[WARNING: May lead to extreme tingling and happiness in the fingers.] With coronavirus getting everyone running around screaming with their hands up in the air, people are doing 62% fewer things with their fingers. IT’S TRUE. Think about it. No more hugs, handshakes, or high-fives. No more going into that building or opening that door.…

Presented by We’re enchanted with the idea of working from home. We imagine ease, flexibility, and access to a completely stocked pantry, fewer meetings, higher efficiency, and more getting things done. While we’re at the office, the idea seems simple. Then we get home, happy to leave work behind. And then a virus spreads around…

With COVID-19 spreading, the state of the world has changed faster than you can change your shirt in the morning. We’ve gone from running about like productive worker bees to huddling in our house… nearly overnight. Part of me is like: And the other part is all like: Just about every aspect of life has…

With all the quarantining and disease spread lately, you’ve probably thought, “When’s the next flight off this crazy planet?!” Alien abduction volunteers? “Take Wuhan!” Hey now! The virus has already spread. “Blow the planet!” Calm thyself. “I’m outta here!” Ok, granted you’ll take all your bacteria and viruses with you, but should you be planning…

Yep, you’re right. I just double-checked. It is, in fact, 2020. How easy is it to view and share 3D models online? Well, easier — we’ve made a lot of progress over the last decade — but you would think viewing and sharing photorealistic 3D models would be common and incredibly easy. Until it gets…

SelfCAD has been bustin’ solid modeling moves for a few years now, adding feature after feature to their browser-based 3D modeling app. They’ve grown from a basic 3D shape modeler to including features that would make other CAD software sit up and peek over their shades. Mmm-hmmm. Version 3.0 is in the works but their…

Depending on what news program you see, time of day, and star alignment you’ll hear that the COVID-19 (Corona)virus is worse than any other virus, not as bad as other viruses, killing thousands, or killing millions. Regardless, it’s a serious strain of protein-crowned protease masses wreaking havoc on our world. We don’t want to get…

Well, well, well. Tech Soft 3D, the developer of the HOOPS family of CAD data translation, 3D PDF, visualization, and toolkits for web, desktop, and mobile, has just announced “significant investment” from global, technology-focused investment firm Battery Ventures. This represents their first bit of funding since the Oregon-based company’s founding in 1996. Tech Soft 3D…