ASCENT Blog

NEW Home for the ASCENT Blog

We truly enjoy writing blog posts and sharing them. But that’s not all we do. Our new blog site lives on the ASCENT Resource Center.

The ASCENT Resource Center offers on-demand webcasts, sample chapters, brochures and more.

Content from our amazing technical team will continue! We hope you’ll join us: https://resources.ascented.com/ascent-blog

ASCENT Offerings at a Glance: Part 4: eLearning Bundles

When it comes to employee training, many options exist. Some companies prefer classroom training, while others prefer online education. No matter what flavor of training your organization wants to use, ASCENT can help. If self-paced, online learning is attractive to your team, ASCENT’s eLearning bundles are a great solution.

With our eLearning bundles, content from ASCENT training guides is aggregated into an online learning platform. Through an annual subscription, students have the ability to complete fundamental through advanced level courses from any location that has Internet access. ASCENT offers eLearning bundles for users of Dassault Systèmes’ CATIA, PTC’s Creo, and Autodesk’s AutoCAD, AutoCAD Civil 3D, Autodesk Inventor, and Autodesk Revit Architecture software.

Online learning is ideal for end-users and instructors, as well as many different types of learners, including new users, experienced users who want a refresh, self-paced learners, and students who can’t spend time away from the office to participate in classroom training. When students use ASCENT’s eLearning bundles, they benefit from:

• Multi-version courseware. If an eLearning bundle is updated to the next software release during a user’s annual subscription period, he or she will automatically receive access to the latest version of courseware once it becomes available. Since ASCENT develops its course content in-house, updates are completed quickly after new software releases are issued.
  
  
• Search functionality. This makes it easy for students to find topics and keywords.
  
  
• Exercise datasets and interactive review quizzes. Datasets are included for each exercise, so students can practice what they’ve learned. In addition, interactive quizzes enable students to answer chapter review questions at the end of each section and instantly receive their score.
  
  
• Transcript reports. These reports show users how long they have spent on each section. In addition, managers can generate usage reports for employees.
  
  
• Course certificates. Every student who receives a passing grade at the end of a course receives a Certificate of Completion.

ASCENT’s eLearning bundles expand the training options available to organizations, while guaranteeing the same quality content that is available through ASCENT’s classroom training materials. In our next blog post, we will explore how eLearning can be enhanced through the use of videos.

Should you Customize your Learning Materials?

As authors of training guides for users of Autodesk, Dassault Systèmes and PTC software, it’s our job to help people learn how to use their CAD software in the best way possible- whether it’s through our printed books, digital eBooks or online eLearning courses. These off-the-shelf options are ideal for most individuals and organizations, but often, students may benefit from curriculum tailored to their specific environment or project. Imagine learning from a training guide that is tailored precisely to the material you need!

 At ASCENT, we can make this happen by tailoring our curriculum to meet your specific organizational training needs. We offer 5 different levels of customization to provide you with the best learning option for your situation.

Watch this short video and spend 3 minutes with Paul Burden, ASCENT’s Director of Product Development, as he explains ASCENT’s 5 Levels of Customization:

 

Choosing between standard or custom courseware ultimately depends on the learning experience that you wish to partake in.  To find out which option is best for you and your organization, please contact an ASCENT representative:

Email: [email protected]
Toll Free: 1.877.726.3243
Web: www.ASCENTed.com

 

Sheetmetal Enhancements in Creo Parametric 2.0

In Creo Parametric 2.0, most sheet metal tools have been restructured into a ribbon style interface with tabs.

Many of the enhancements improve the functionality efficiency in the sheet metal mode. Most commands now in sheet metal also use the standard interface to create the geometry.  Some of the commonly used enhanced features include Unbending, Bend Back, Flat Pattern Preview, and the Bend feature. These tools are easier to use and have helped to improve the performance.

When unbending a sheet metal part, Creo Parametric now picks a surface to remain fixed by default, which makes the process much faster and easier to use.  This helps to maintain a consistent fixed surface or edge. A different surface can also be selected to remain fixed by clearing the default surface. This allows the user to pick a fixed surface. When using the Bend Back command, Creo Parametric also picks a surface to remain fixed by default. You can accept the default fixed surface or remove the default fixed surface, and select a new fixed surface.

Another enhancement in Creo Parametric is using the Flat Pattern Preview command in the Graphics toolbar or in the View tab to preview the flat state of the model. This saves time and makes sure unwanted unbend features are not created. Click  (Flat Pattern Preview) to open a preview window. Using the Flat Pattern Preview command enables you to avoid needing to create an unbend feature followed by a bend back feature in your model tree, which can cause regeneration problems.

The Bend feature functionality has also been enhanced and is now created using the ribbon interface. The bend line for the bend feature no longer has to be sketched by default.  This is a very time saving improvement. The bend line can consist of an edge or curve. When a bend line is selected, the Offset option is available to offset from an existing curve or edge. If a surface is selected, the Bend Line tab becomes available. You can then create the bend line by using drag handles to specify references and offset distances.

Another favorite tool among users, is the Sketched Form command. This enables you to create punching, piercing, and depth options.

Use the following steps to create a sketched form:

1.  Expand  (Form) and select Sketched Form in the Model tab. The tab activates.

The available selections are:

   Creates a punch

    Creates a piercing

    Flips the punch or piercing direction

   Flips the material thickness

2. Select a sketching plane and create a sketch for the Form feature.

3. Specify additional options in the Options panel.

4. Specify the depth and flip the direction, if necessary.

5. Complete the feature.

All the tools mentioned help to make the design of sheet metal parts easier, quicker, and requires fewer mouse clicks. Take some time to try some of the new tools in Creo Parametric 2.0.

New Interface and Tools in Creo Parametric 2.0

Many user-friendly changes have occurred in Creo Parametric 2.0 and the new interface has improved the software's ease of use, accessibility, and efficiency.  There is a more intuitive and consistent interface, which results in fewer mouse clicks and options for many tasks.

The software now uses a ribbon-type interface, which enables you to toggle between tabs and
perform operations without canceling the current operation. This can be very useful when creating a feature. Commands in Creo Parametric 2.0 have been relocated to related tabs. The ribbons can be easily customized by adding and removing commands and tabs to improve performance to suit a specific need.  Ribbons can also be minimized to maximize the view window.    

Many tasks in Creo Parametric 2.0 require fewer mouse picks, fewer selections, and are overall faster than in previous versions of the software. For example, a cross-section no longer requires you to select a planar surface or datum plane.  The cross-section tool is now more interactive and uses the ribbon interface. You no longer need to create datum planes to create the cross section. You use the directional cross-section and select the X-, Y-, or Z-direction to create the cross-section. 

You can specify an offset value to locate the cross-section or dynamically change the location using the cursor to drag the arrow. You can also toggle on the 3D dragger to dynamically translate and rotate the section. In previous versions of the software, a datum plane would need to be created to achieve a specific position. 

Many additional options are available in the Section tab. You can dynamically detect any component interference in an assembly while creating the section and components can be excluded from the section. A separate window can be toggled on to display the 2D profile. 

Cross-sections also now display in the model tree. The cross-section automatically displays and the hatching can be toggled on using the visibility options in the contextual menu.

Creating a cross-section is one of the many tools in CreoParametr ic 2.0 that minimizes the mouse clicks and increases the ease of use. The interface and enhanced tools help make the experience of using Creo Parametric 2.0 easier and also increases productivity.  

 

 

Citius - Altius - Fortius

By Elvis R. Sverko

With the start of the Games of the XXX Olympiad today, let’s take a look at a way to make your CAD usage Faster - Higher - Stronger.

With many designers using various 3D solid modeling software packages to create their designs, it would be nice to be able to bring any of them into one package to create 2D drawings. With the latest release of AutoCAD, you can directly import various 3D types of files, such as Autodesk Inventor, SolidWorks, CATIA, Pro/Engineer, NX, Parasolid, Rhino, IGES, and STEP. Simply use the Import button on the Insert tab of the Ribbon. You can then freely modify the data using standard editing tools. It’s a great way to bring models of all different types to play together.

 

To create your 2D drawings Faster, if your design team uses Inventor to design in 3D, you can create the 2D drawings automatically in AutoCAD using the Base View From Inventor command found on the Layout tab of the Ribbon. With this command, you place a base view of any orientation of the 3D model.

Taking this command Higher, you also can select a specific Representation of the Inventor model, and then create projected views (right, top, isometric, etc.) of the same model. All instantly. All automatically. You can even create other drawing views from these initial views, including section views and detail views.

Even Stronger, these drawing views in AutoCAD can be automatically updated if the original Inventor model is modified. Simply use the Update commands on the Layout tab of the Ribbon, and all drawing views (base, projected, section, detail) update to show the modifications, and any annotation updates along with it. Now that’s a win-win for everyone.

Educators and instructors should also be aware of these capabilities with AutoCAD, because your students might come from various places using various 3D design software packages, and these AutoCAD tools, like the Olympics, brings all people together.

With some competitions, everyone is a winner, including all the spectators who are in attendance at some events. Because of AutoCAD, spectators are able to truly enjoy the events at the National Stadium Brasilia, which was designed by Castro Mello Architects using AutoCAD. (I know it’s not the Olympics, but the World Cup is just as much a friendly competition among all countries around the world).

 

So remember to use AutoCAD to make your designs Faster – Higher – Stronger.

“The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well.” - Pierre de Coubertin (founder of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1894)

 

September.... the Time for Personal Development

By Jennifer MacMillan

Wow, September already! Wasn’t it just March with all the new 2012 software being released?

What amazes me about September is that after so many years being out of school (No Hints!), September still always feels like the start of a new year. It gives us a second chance to look at things or set another New Year’s Resolution and start off fresh again. I started September by cleaning my desktop (actual and computer) and even that gave me a renewed sense of energy. Okay, maybe it is that I have started drinking coffee. Hmmm...there is my next resolution. I will save that one for January.

The idea of September and starting a new school year got me thinking that new beginnings should also be considered in the working world. Why not! We love learning. We are all back from holidays, are refreshed, and in a lot of cases our managers are looking at spending the rest of their budgets so they don’t lose them. To me this is the perfect time to focus on personal development. When was the last time you had training? I am not talking about the YouTube video you watched. It is really incredible to think how far training has come in the last 10+ years. There are so many training options available. Here are some ideas:

• Open enrollment training classes with a professional trainer and curriculum.
• Personal one-on-one consulting with a consultant.
• Live over the web training classes.
• Purchasing a hard-copy or e-book training guide for self-study. (Highly recommend ASCENT, great company! Had to say it!)
• Purchasing an on-line training course for self-study. (Again, ASCENT material rocks!)
• Accessing learning content through a searchable learning management system. (Wouldn’t you know, ASCENT offers this as well!)
• YouTube videos (I know, I kinda slammed this earlier, but it really is a great, economical way to learn something new. I wouldn’t recommend it for learning new software as there is a lot of smoke and mirrors included in these videos to help sell software, but there is some great information.)
• Custom classes for an entire company or team. (ASCENT is starting to get lots of requests for these. It gives companies the opportunity to create a course that is geared to only them. It can cut down on the number of days, focus on a specific workflow, or be written with the companies own models. I always tell customers “the sky’s the limit”.) 

So... along with cleaning off your desktop, get a good idea of where you want to be in the next 6-12 months with your software skills and get some training. Have fun learning and have a great September!

Jennifer

ASEE - 118th Annual Conference and Exposition

By Paul Burden

I am just back from beautiful Vancouver, British Columbia where we attended the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) Annual Conference and Exposition. ASCENT was one of over 100 exhibitors in the Exposition Hall this year. Thank you to everyone that stopped by to speak with us – there were some familiar faces and a lot of new faces for us at this year’s event.

Here are a few observations I gathered while speaking with attendees of the conference this week:

• There is a wide variety of CAD software being used by schools and institutions providing engineering education. Among the software being used by people we spoke to are AutoCAD, Inventor, Pro/ENGINEER, CATIA, SolidWorks, NX, Revit Architecture, Civil 3D, MicroStation, and the list goes on.
• The educators we spoke with are passionate about ensuring that the curriculum they use when teaching courses involving CAD software provides students with usable skills and modeling strategies.
• Courseware that is modular is preferred so that topics can be reorganized to fit the scope of a class.
• Some educators develop their own tutorials for CAD software, but find it very time consuming to keep up to date.
• Interest in using digital versions of textbooks, such as eBooks, is growing.

In a number of sessions and events, I also saw incredible cooperation between corporations and schools to ensure that those enrolled in engineering programs are developing the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in industry. To continue this theme, educators should feel welcome to provide feedback to us and other publishers of textbooks and training courseware so that these offerings can address the unique requirements of academic institutions.  So at events like this conference and anytime in between, tell us how we’re doing and what you need. Within the realm of CAD software, we want to ensure that the engineers of tomorrow can graduate with skills that will enable them to use these tools immediately.

Finally, we had a lot of fun passing out our Brain Age Testers. Hopefully, it reported an age you were happy with.  

By Paul Burden