In a recent Tip of the Week video over on our YouTube channel (https://youtube.com/eacpds) I talked about a new feature in PTC Creo 5.0 – Topology Optimization. Topology optimization has been around for about 20 years, but primarily as stand alone solutions. In spring 2018 PTC announced they had fully embedded a solution from the folks over VR&D into their flagship CAD tool.

This is big news because it allows every user to easily optimize designs in new ways; whether designing for traditional manufacturing or additive manufacturing / 3D printing. Light weighting a part or assembly while maintaining structural integrity is an important part of modern product development. Optimizing topology reduces shipping weight and costs, may improve user experience, and lowers material costs. I’m sure there are other benefits, but those alone can help companies compete in today’s global economy.

After talking with some of our technical resources and engineers, it sounds like the built in Creo 5.0 tool does a fantastic job shrink wrapping/finalizing the optimized geometry to ensure the surfaces can be solidified and don’t have any weird overlapping surfaces or gaps. Most topology optimization tools kick out facetted surfaces that still need to be smoothed out in another tool. Creo turns the optimized geometry into a Creo Freestyle surface that can be easily solidified. This is especially important when optimizing parts for 3D printing.

We’d love to show you this Creo functionality live. So, after you watch the tip of the week video, head over to our contact page to request a demonstration.