General questions

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Is a classification required?

No - SIMUFORM's search technology does not require any classification, structuring of the data or any sorting preparation. Thus, a heterogeneous data stock consisting of different CAD formats, inconsistent naming and incomplete master data can be searched very quickly without any problems.

You can find out more about this in our blog (click here).

Is the search dependent on the location of the components?

No - The search using SIMUFORM technology is coordinate, rotation and symmetry invariant. This means that the result of the search is independent of how the CAD models are positioned in space.

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What should be considered when introducing geometric component search?

We have compiled the essential points as a checklist for you:

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How does the CAD part search work?

The CAD part search is based on the Shape Indexing technology. This is described in detail under the following link.

Learn here what "geometric similarity search" actually is. (click here)

Does the search take place on my work computer?

No - The search always takes place on the central server. The workstation computer is used with the SIMILIA software to visualize the search result and to send the search request to the server via the intuitive interface.

Can a complete N:N match of all parts be made?

Yes - The Duplicate Search module can be used to detect geometric duplicates in the dataset.

Learn more in our blog "DATA CLEANSING - Capturing duplicates at the speed of light" (click here).

Can SIMILIA also caculate CAD data?

With the Classification Toolkit, CAD models can be structured according to geometric similarity and sorted by similarity. A material characteristics bar is not required for this. If available attributes from PDM / ERP are to be used for differentiation, e.g. according to material, size, etc. of the similar part structure, this can be set up. The processes can be automated in connection with SIMILIA AUTOMATION.

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Can assemblies be found as well?

Yes - With SIMUFORM's search technology, the geometric search or the geometric part search, can be done for single parts as well as for assemblies.

For more information, see our checklist for the introduction of geometric part search

How long does it take to create a 3D fingerprint?

This depends on the size of the part or assembly. Creating a 3D fingerprint takes about 5 seconds on conventional hardware for a component.

Do I need to design a 3D part to search for a similar part?

No, you do not have to draw or design a part in order to then have to/be able to search for similar parts first. In SIMILIA, a part or assembly can be selected as a reference from the inventory data at any time in order to then quickly find similar parts or similar assemblies. The selection of the reference model can also be done via a full text search, attribute search or filtering. The user can also use an external part, e.g. from a customer inquiry, directly as a reference for comparison.