Technical illustration software updated

A PTC - Parametric Technology (UK) product story

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Apr 18, 2007

PTC's Arbortext IsoDraw 7.0 is the only solution that provides comprehensive support for both 2D and 3D illustrations and animations.

PTC has released Arbortext IsoDraw 7.0, the latest release of its technical illustration software.

Since its acquisition of Itedo Software in October 2006, PTC has focused on delivering a complete solution for creating, managing, and publishing text, interactive illustrations and graphical content for technical publications.

This release of Arbortext IsoDraw 7.0 is the industry's only solution that provides comprehensive support for both 2D and 3D illustrations and animations.

In addition to the capabilities for creating 2D technical illustrations, Arbortext IsoDraw 7.0 includes several enhancements and features, including the ability to create rich, 3D illustrations as well as 2D and 3D animations, a direct integration with Pro/Engineer, and expanded support for industry standards.

3D technical illustrations improve publications by enabling readers to interact with the selected illustration and to view it from multiple angles and perspectives.

2D and 3D animations embedded in a technical publication can visually demonstrate entire procedures, which can reduce the need for lengthy text descriptions, minimise the potential for user errors, and improve the delivery of computer-based training, assembly instructions and online maintenance manuals.

2D technical illustrations will continue to be required for printed materials, illustrated parts catalogues, standards-based applications like S1000D, and publications leveraging legacy illustration archives.

Now, with Arbortext IsoDraw 7.0, companies can use one industry-proven solution for all their 2D and 3D technical illustration and animation needs.

"Arbortext IsoDraw is our standard tool for creating 2D technical illustrations", said Werner Meyer, Manager Publication Systems Support DCEO, Deere, European Office.

"The newly-added 2D and 3D animation capabilities will enable us to enrich our technical publications by animating important steps and procedures that reduce the amount of explanatory text and the associated translation cost".

"With full support for 2D and 3D illustration and animation capabilities, Arbortext IsoDraw 7.0 will enable us to meet all our technical illustration and animation requirements with a single solution".

Arbortext IsoDraw 7.0 is directly integrated with Pro/Engineer, providing the bridge from design data to technical publications and enabling automatic creation of high-quality technical illustrations and animations directly from Pro/Engineer models.

Illustrators can open native Pro/Engineer files in Arbortext IsoDraw, manipulate the model to convey the intended meaning, automatically create high-quality 2D and 3D technical illustrations directly from CAD files, and quickly update illustrations as designs change.

Highlights of the Arbortext IsoDraw 7.0 release include: the ability to create 2D and 3D technical illustrations and animations with a single solution; a direct integration with Pro/Engineer; improved support for CAD tools through industry standard formats such as STEP, VDA, SAT and Parasolid; added support for webCGM 2.0 and the new S1000D 2.3 CGM profile; expanded international support for nine languages that include English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, Traditional and Simplified Chinese; and software-based licensing (FLEXlm).

"There is tremendous value locked up in our customers' CAD models".

"With its integration to Pro/Engineer and expanded support for a variety of CAD formats, Arbortext IsoDraw 7.0 provides the means to unlock and leverage this value by enabling companies to repurpose and re-use design data for their technical publications", said James Heppelmann, Executive Vice President and Chief Product Officer, PTC.

"For companies looking to drive down their translation costs, increase customer satisfaction, and improve the quality of their technical publications, the 2D and 3D illustration and animation capabilities of this release deliver a clear path to value".