What’s New in DriveWorks 17

By Ralph Gillis on

DriveWorks Version 17 Update

DriveWorks is a powerful design automation and configurator software that gives companies a competitive advantage when offering customized products. Engineering departments can save significant time on repetitive tasks and sales teams can generate more sales by delivering quotes even faster.

Since its release, DriveWorks continues to take customer feedback and provide exciting enhancements to make the software more powerful and easier to use. DriveWorks 17 is no exception! Here are some of the exciting new features available now.

Usability & UX

New open group and open project buttons have been added to the Today Screen command bar for easier access.

Open Group & Open Project buttons

A new popup dialog box warns users that changes will be lost when clicking cancel in Documents to help you protect your information.

Popup Cancel Document Warning

Navigation output Connection Points can now be used to trigger other Task Nodes.

Specification Macro Task
Specification Macro Task

For example, an email can be sent (when using DriveWorks Autopilot) if a task is successful, or a different email can be sent if any warnings or failures were encountered.

Specification Macro Nodes can be resized by dragging the lower right corner.

DW16 DW17
DW16 DW17

Design Automation

Using the reset button you can rerun Model Insight. The generation sequence can now be restarted without having to close and reopen the command. You also have the option of overwriting or reusing any pre-existing files that are found when running Model Insight.

Reset button to run Model Insight
Overwrite or reuse any pre-existing files

There are now filter and search Model Rules with preset filters! Just right-click the search bar, select ‘Project Filters,’ then select from the predefined list. You can even create your own Personal Filters!

Preset Project Filters

You now also have a model preview when selecting items in Model Rules.

Model Rules

Interactive 3D Preview

DriveWorks also made some enhancements to take your 3D previews to the next level in version 17. New Bump render property lets you add a bump texture to your 3D appearance. Bump maps, also known as normal maps, are a special kind of texture that allows you to add surface detail such as bumps, grooves and scratches to a model which catch the light as if they are represented by real geometry.

Without and with normal texture
Normal texture examples

Specular Mapping delivers realistic lighting of different materials.

Diffuse color without and with normal texture

Depth of Field is a camera effect and can now be added to the Default Camera or any Camera Entity added to a 3D document to enhance realism.

No depth of field and a depth of field

3D Text Entity allows you to create 3D text in your DriveWorks 3D document.

3D Text Entity

3D Viewer now supports GL Transmission Format Files (.gltf) and GL Transmission Format Files (Binary) (.glb).

GL Transmission Format Files

Scalability

The update includes cloud support and enterprise deployment. The following cloud hosting platforms are supported: 

 

Azure Amazon1 Cloud1

The Connections task shows all DriveWorks Modules connected to any Shared Group hosted by the service.

Current Connections

DriveWorks Live Integration Theme hosts the DriveWorks Live Web API enabling you to embed your DriveWorks implementation in an existing web site or application.

Live Integration Theme

DriveWorks License Manager now manages DriveWorks Live Licensing. New on-demand licensing is now available to increase efficiencies and eliminate downtime caused by a lack of Centralized Licenses.

DriveWorks License Manager

These are just some of the many enhancements available now in DriveWorks 17! Download DriveWorks 17 now at https://hub.driveworks.co.uk/software/.

To obtain your new DriveWorks 17 license codes and gain access to these many great features, please reach out to TriMech at 888-874-6324 or email us!