Product category:
3D CAD software
News Release from: SolidWorks Corporation | Subject: SolidWorks and CosmosWorks
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 20 April 2006
Software aids display design for trainee
pilots
Military pilots will soon learn how to fly jets and helicopters safely with a lightweight, yet durable helmet-mounted display designed and tested using 3D design and analysis software.
Military pilots will soon learn how to fly jets and helicopters safely with a lightweight, yet durable helmet-mounted display designed and tested in SolidWorks and CosmosWorks software Zygo improved productivity with SolidWorks 3D mechanical design software, and fine-tuned the device's weight and durability with the Cosmos design analysis tool to deliver a better performing flight simulation aid than current models
This article was originally published on Engineeringtalk on 22 Dec 2004 at 8.00am (UK)
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US firm Zygo specialises in developing equipment that tests the curvature, surface texture and wavelength capabilities of lenses and lens systems used in various applications, including cameras, microscopes and telescopes.
Zygo also makes optical products such as lenses, lasers and space-borne telescopes.
The company has 48 licences of SolidWorks and CosmosWorks.
It faced complex weight and assembly design problems developing a flight simulator display with better resolution that could reduce pilot fatigue and fit any pilot's helmet, rather than forcing trainees to use a shared helmet.
SolidWorks' ease of use, assembly capabilities and automated part interference features helped with the display's design.
The software's ability to detect and fix colliding parts also saved time and downstream errors.
"The optical design is very complex", said Michael Harkins, Senior Mechanical Designer at Zygo's research and development division in California.
"The display literally wraps around the pilot's helmet".
"We simply couldn't have designed it in 2D".
"SolidWorks and CosmosWorks have made us more productive and innovative".
CosmosWorks design analysis software let Zygo troubleshoot design errors and reduce prototyping costs.
For example, engineers used the software to ensure the tiny rods that support the display had the appropriate stiffness to handle the display's weight, the low profile to reduce visual distractions and the light weight to reduce pilot fatigue.
"Design and analysis should be a tightly woven process", said Rainer Gawlick, SolidWorks VP of Worldwide Marketing.
"Using SolidWorks and CosmosWorks gives Zygo the tools to develop quickly and accurately lenses, lasers and other optics with the precise measurements and performance these products demand".
Zygo works with SolidWorks resellers Hawk Ridge Systems and SolidVision for software training, implementation and support.
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