Summary/Reader Response Draft 4

 The webpage “Lifesaving drones designed with CAD software” (Siemens, 2019), introduces the use of Siemens NX CAD software to design lifesaving drones. Among its many features, the NX CAD software is designed to optimize the design, testing, and manufacturing processes. In terms of design optimization, the software allows its users to use virtual product models rather than the more costly physical prototypes to test the effectiveness of a design. This leads to shortened design time, which lowers the development cost and improves product quality (Siemens, 2019). According to Siemens (n.d), the Syncrofit feature of the NX CAD software “allows users to make well-informed design decisions for an overall smoother path to design realization”. The article mentions that the NX CAD software's simulation function in designing lifesaving drones can perform virtual test flights while simulating the characteristics or properties of the different components. The article also states that the software can quickly perform thickness and stress assessments of the design and determine which parts should be made of higher or lower-grade materials, which will reduce the overall weight of the drone. The NX CAD software is better suited for use in product design compared to SolidWorks in terms of its better design optimization, potential project management, and simulation capabilities.

One of the key features that make the NX CAD software better than SolidWorks is its design optimization. This feature allows the user to automate the creation of new design prototypes from an original product without the user having to modify the design by hand. For example, while Zipline was designing its lifesaving drones, it used NX CAD to perform structural optimization, which allowed them to reduce the drone's mass while maintaining its stiffness and strength goals (Siemens, 2019). Product optimization is performed by generating many versions of a design using rules that were set and run multiple times (Digital Design Solutions, n.d). While SolidWorks has a similar feature called topology optimization, which optimizes the design based on the optimization objective set by the user, such as reducing the mass of the design (Kurowski, 2022), this process finds the best material allocation to have the best stiffness to mass ratio or minimize displacement (Kurowski, 2022). Compared to SolidWorks, which is only able to optimize a singular design from its original design, it is not able to create multiple variations of the original design, while NX CAD software is able to create many design prototypes from an original design.

Another advantageous feature of the NX CAD software is its ability to assist in project management. This feature is the bill of materials (BOM) updates, which allows the user to generate the list of materials required to manufacture the product during the design phase. Zipline was able to utilize this feature to create a bottom-up BOM list that gave an accurate mass build-up, which allowed them to optimize the design (Siemens, 2019). On one hand, this feature is helpful as the user will be able to foresee if there is a lack of raw materials for production and inform suppliers to acquire more materials beforehand to be able to start production successfully (Siemens, n.d). On the other hand, the user can also use the BOM updates to verify if the product design meets the design requirements and changes that need to be made. Additionally, during designing, while defining thousands or millions of parts in a complex assembly such as an aircraft, NX CAD software ensures that every specification of the design is present (Siemens, n.d). So this function of the NX CAD software will ensure that the user will be able to produce a design that meets the requirements and not be hindered by the lack of materials.

Another feature that makes the NX CAD software better compared to SolidWorks is its ability to perform more detailed and advanced simulations. In the case of Zipline designing its lifesaving drones, it was able to use the heat transfer analysis of NX CAD software to “simulate the heat characteristics of the battery during the flight, or the thermal performance of the drone in the climate of Rwanda” (Siemens, 2019). One of the capabilities of the heat transfer analysis module is the ability to simulate heat conductivity, convection, and radiation separately or all at once (Goncharov et al., 2014). Additionally, the module can simulate heat transfer with the environment without the need to model the specific environment by defining specific conditions (Goncharov et al., 2014). Furthermore, the user can specify the thermal properties of a specific material used in the design, and the software and even create multi-layer materials while still maintaining the accuracy of the simulation (Goncharov et al., 2014). In contrast, SolidWorks can simulate the same types of heat transfer and analyse an assembly of different material properties (Kurowski, 2022). However, SolidWorks is unable to simulate heat transfer with the environment. Hence, the NX CAD software has more advanced simulations compared to SolidWorks.

One problem with the NX CAD software is its cost. According to the Siemens website(n.d) the basic NX CAD software costs, around US$ 3093 per year and 10 additional modules range from US$ 1866 to US$ 8359 per year. Compared to NX CAD, the premium version of the SolidWorks software costs a one-time fee of US$ 7995, which includes the base version of the software and all its additional modules and an annual maintenance fee of US$ 1995 (Engineering Clicks, 2021). However, the higher cost of the NX CAD software is likely due to its higher number and more advanced features compared to SolidWorks.Therefore, with the higher number of advanced features available with the NX CAD software compared to SolidWorks, the benefits of using NX CAD software compared to SolidWorks outweigh the cost for use in product design. 

References

Digital Design Solutions. (n.d). Nx Design Automation.

https://www.ddsplm.com/products/nx-design-automation/

EngineeringClicks. (2021). The Ultimate SOLIDWORKS Price Guide – All Options!

https://www.engineeringclicks.com/solidworks-price-guide/

Goncharov, P., Artamonov, I., Khalitov, T., Denisikhin, S., & Sotnik, D. (2014). Engineering Analysis with NX Advanced Simulation. Lulu Press, Inc.

https://books.google.com.sg/books?hl=en&lr=&id=8FZcCAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP15&dq=%22nx+capabilities%22&ots=E4wNjwOxZO&sig=vMv9nrAec5c0IFS7gJdlfV7LCYc&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=%22nx%20capabilities%22&f=false

Kurowski, P. M. (2022). Engineering Analysis with SOLIDWORKS Simulation 2022. SDC Publications.

https://books.google.com.sg/books?id=uptXEAAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=solidworks+heat+analysis&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiS6pCqvrf6AhWuTmwGHb8xDPwQ6AF6BAgLEAI#v=onepage&q=solidworks%20heat%20analysis&f=false

Siemens. (2019, March). Lifesaving drones designed with CAD. https://new.siemens.com/global/en/company/stories/industry/lifesaving-drones-designed-with-cad-software.html

Siemens. (n.d.b). Syncrofit.

https://www.plm.automation.siemens.com/global/en/products/nx/syncrofit.html

Siemens. (n.d.a) NX Cloud Connected Products.

https://www.dex.siemens.com/plm/nx-cloud-connected-products?viewState=ListView&cartID=&portalUser=&store=&cclcl=en_GB