Solid Modeling Solutions: Difference between revisions

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{{Short description|American 3D graphics software company}}

{{Multiple issues|

{{Promotional|date=March 2021}}

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==History==

{{Verification|date=June 2023}}

The development of ''[[non-uniform rational B-spline]]'' (NURBS) originated with seminal work at [[Boeing]] and Structural Dynamics Research Corporation ([[SDRC]]) in the 1980s and 1990s, a company that led in mechanical [[computer-aided engineering]] (CAE) in those years.<ref>[http://isicad.net/articles.php?article_num=14940 "NURBS and CAD: 30 Years Together"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121107013247/http://isicad.net/articles.php?article_num=14940 |date=2012-11-07 }}, Ushakov, Dmitry, isicad, December 30, 2011.</ref> Boeing's involvement in NURBS dates back to 1979, when they began developing their own comprehensive [[computer-aided design]] (CAD) and [[computer-aided manufacturing]] (CAM), termed CAD/CAM, system, TIGER, to support the diverse needs of their aircraft and aerospace engineering groups. Three basic decisions were critical to establishing an environment conducive to developing NURBS. The first was Boeing's need to develop its own in-house geometry ability. Specifically, Boeing had complex surface geometry needs, especially for wing design, that was then not in any commercially available CAD/CAM system. Thus, the TIGER Geometry Development Group was established in 1979 and has received strong support for many years. The second decision critical to NURBS development was removing the constraint of upward geometric compatibility with the two systems used at Boeing then. One of these systems had evolved due to the iterative process inherent to wing design, while the other was best suited for adding to the constraints imposed by manufacturing, such as cylindrical and planar regions. The third crucial decision was simple but essential: adding the ''R'' to ''NURBS''. Circles were to be represented precisely, with cubic approximation disallowed.

By late 1979, there were five or six well-educated mathematicians (PhDs from Stanford, Harvard, Washington, and Minnesota). Some had many years of software experience, but none had any industrial, much less CAD, geometry experience. Those were the days of an oversupply of math PhDs. The task was to choose the representations for the 11 required curve forms, which included everything from lines and circles to Bézier and B-spline curves.

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In 1984, Robert M. Blomgren established Applied Geometry to commercialize the technology. Subsequently, [[Alias Systems Corporation]]/[[Silicon Graphics]] purchased Applied Geometry. Robert Blomgren and Jim Presti formed Solid Modeling Solutions (SMS) in early 1998. In late 2001, Nlib was purchased from GeomWare, and the alliance with IntegrityWare was terminated in 2004. Enhancements and major new features are added twice a year.

SMS software is based on years of research and application of NURBS technology. Les Piegl and Wayne Tiller (a partner of Solid Modeling Solutions) wrote the definitive "The NURBS Book" on non-uniform rational B-splines, with aids to designing geometry for computer-aided environment applications.<ref>Piegl, Les & Tiller, Wayne. [https://www.amazon.com/NURBS-Book-Monographs-Visual-Communication/dp/3540615458/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1351272003&sr=8-1&keywords=the+nurbs+book ''The NURBS Book''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230220233842/https://www.amazon.com/NURBS-Book-Monographs-Visual-Communication/dp/3540615458/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1351272003&sr=8-1&keywords=the+nurbs+book |date=2023-02-20 }}, Springer 1997</ref> The fundamental mathematics is well defined in this book, and the most faithful manifestation in software is implemented in the SMS product line.

== Philosophy ==

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*[[Non-uniform rational B-spline]] (NURBS)

*[[Solid modeling]]

*[[ComputerComparison of computer-aided design software]]

==References==