3D System Releases Geomagic Freeform 2016

3D Systems (NYSE:DDD) announced the release of its Geomagic® Freeform® 2016 software products, including Geomagic Freeform, Geomagic Freeform Plus and Geomagic Sculpt™. These updated software products offer professionals an organic engineering solution for precise, sculpted 3D design that bypasses the restrictions of geometric CAD platforms and enables the quick transition from design to production.

The new Geomagic Freeform 2016 products allow engineers, designers, artists, model makers and sculptors to solve complex design and manufacturing challenges with the industry’s most comprehensive organic 3D engineering tools. These professional-grade products allow users to manipulate virtual clay models into any detail or form with an advanced set of tools to support 3D printing. Geomagic Freeform Plus extends these toolsets with advanced manufacturing design capabilities, including automatic conversion of digital clay and polygons to NURBS surfaces, mold and die design, shelling, draft analysis, parting line and surface creation tools for complex organic shapes.

“3D Systems Geomagic Freeform products deliver an advanced design environment that enables designers and engineers to create incredible products,” said Calvin Hur, Vice President, Co-Chief Operating Officer and Chief Revenue Officer, 3D Systems Software. “The 2016 release of these Geomagic Freeform products represents 3D Systems’ commitment to delivering the very best tools for design, engineering and manufacturing.”

New features and functions of the 2016 Freeform products include:

• Improved 3D CAD and direct scan data input. 3D data can be scanned directly into Geomagic Freeform products using the Geomagic® Capture® scanner for a seamless scan-to-design workflow. Imported CAD data can serve as the basis for organic designs as well as be subjected to a complete Boolean toolset, ideal for subtracting mechanical parts from the finished product design.
• New StructureFX™ toolset for lattice structures, delivering the ability to create custom, internal and external lattice structures for intricate and lightweight designs. Advanced cage creation tools assist the design of structures for functional applications such as custom medical implants. StructureFX tools work alongside Freeform’s advanced 3D print analysis tools to successfully 3D print advanced designs.
• Improved 3D print analysis and printability tools to streamline the design to manufacturing workflow. Freeform 2016 products include enhanced feature size analysis and print alignment tools to enable quality and repeatability in 3D printing. Integration with 3DSPRINT™ enables direct support of 3D Systems’ suite of 3D printers, including print monitoring and queue management. Geomagic Freeform 2016 solutions also offer simple tools to repair faulty and low-grade 3D data for 3D printing, traditional manufacturing or a wide range of file format exports.
• New Wrap® for Freeform Plus, enabling an enhanced workflow of improved CAD surface output for use downstream. Existing Geomagic Freeform Plus customers on current maintenance now also have access to a version of Geomagic Wrap® at no charge.

Geomagic Freeform products work exclusively with 3D Systems Touch™ haptic devices to deliver the physical sensation of sculpting in a virtual environment. This intuitive mode of interacting within the digital space reduces learning curves, speeds the design process and helps deliver high quality 3D data.

“Geomagic Freeform shifts your horizons regardless of whether you are an artist, industrial designer or engineer,” said Scotty Ziegler, international artist, designer and user of Geomagic Freeform Plus. “Digital design becomes tangible with these tools, allowing you to achieve that perfect design and immediately bring it to life via 3D printing or traditional manufacturing processes.”