Lockheed Martin Atlas speeds visualisation by auto-generating JT files from Pro/Engineer
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Lockheed Martin’s Atlas rocket development programme is automatically creating JT format files from PTC Pro/Engineer CAD parts and assemblies stored in Pro/Intralink PDM (product data management) to improve the team’s model visualisation.
It’s using engineering automation software firm Etrage’s PSI (Plot Service for Pro/Intralink) for the purpose. “In addition to the ProductView format, PSI now supports the creation of JT format files by automatically monitoring Pro/Intralink for promoted parts or assemblies,” explains senior design engineer Richard Lawson.
“PSI will enable the program to have a visualisation model that is continuously updated with the latest parts and assemblies as they are released,” he adds.
And the impact of that is significant according to Dennis Hoff, manager of Atlas Engineering Services. “Previously, production of the entire JT model for visualisation was a manual effort that required several workstations. Now PSI can be used to create a JT model baseline of the rocket assembly overnight. Several of these assemblies approach a size of 8 Gigabytes.”
Incidentally, PSI also supports plotting or exporting Pro/Intralink objects to communication file formats such as native Pro/Engineer, IGES, PDF, DXF, HPGL, BMP, JPEG, EPS and TIFF files. PSI can process assemblies that are larger than the 2 Gigabyte Windows 32 bit operating system limitation,” says Ron Zabilski, Etrage director of sales and marketing.