We all have probably at one time or another wondered whether if it is possible to generate certain documents in our design. ADG (Automatic Design Generation), which is one of Ides’ products, includes an automatization function. For a manufacturer of products with options, automatization is a complex problem since it is important to be able to handle different solutions. Each solution depends on the choices made in the sales phase, and this affects the content and appearance of the equipment. By using a so called configuring tool you can easily handle these variants further on in the manufacturing phase. To Ides’ software you connect your tool for configuration and then you let Ides’ applications generate the design with the belonging documents.
ABB Drives in Finland has a web application as a configurator which generates an ADG XMLfile. The XML-file is inserted into Ides’ system, which consists of the CAD-application Design, the Explorer and the database. The results you get are drawings, reports and documents.
“The advantage of using ADG solutions is that you can reuse and copy different solutions. This will bring about increased quality, and you can compile work material quicker to your customers. Also from a costs aspect, using ADG solutions is an advantage since this handling demands fewer working hours when you do not need to redesign each new solution”, says Stig Hellholm, Vice President at Ides.
This is how it works
With the configuring tool the user is able to configure products or functions. The configuring tool handles all product information with respect to how the products is to be documented. Based on that information the configuring tool produces a standardized output file in XML-format. The XML-file is read and interpreted by the ADG generator which generates commands to the target system. The results in Master Concept are data in the form of project data, object structures, documents, drawings and reports.
The principle is mainly based on insertion of complete solutions consisting of different options. A solution may consist of one or several drawings. In a solution, those options are defined that are available for the current solution. You can also use parameters in the solution and in the options. Parameters are values which are replaced when a generation is made. Above this is also the possibility to directly generate values in the database, such as project- and object data. Since the functionality to handle solutions, options and data is general, it supports many different operation methods.
(idesNews January 2008)