Pro/ENGINEER
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Pro/ENGINEER (commonly referred to as "Pro/E" or "Pro") is a parametric feature-based 3D Solid modeling CAD software created by Parametric Technology Corporation.
Pro/ENGINEER is a state-of-the-art mechanical design tool. It is an elaborate program for creating complex 3D models. Since the 2002 release of Pro/Engineer, called "Wildfire", the software has made great progress with the GUI, making it very easy to use. Some users of previous versions of Pro/E disagree that this is the case. PTC is notorious for making unfounded menu changes when new versions are released, often adding to the frustration of veteran users.
Pro/ENGINEER is one of a few CAD software products that is available for various Unix-dialects, Windows and Linux. All data is exchangeable between these platforms without conversion.
Any product and its entire Bill of Materials can be modelled accurately and fully associative drawings created.
Pro/E outputs consist of solid model data for tooling and rapid prototyping, CNC manufacturing, finite element analysis, engineering drawings, and revision control information.
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Modules
A typical Pro/ENGINEER software package is made up of different modules. It is highly customizable to the customer's specific needs. For example, if a company specialized in the design of wire harnesses for the automotive industry, they would want to purchase the Pro/CABLING and Pro/HARNESS-MFG modules.
Foundation Modules
- Pro/ASSEMBLY
- Pro/DETAIL
- Pro/ECAD
- Pro/LEGACY
- Pro/PHOTORENDER
- Pro/SHEETMETAL
- Pro/WELDING
Advanced Modules
- Pro/ASSEMBLY (Advanced)
- Pro/CABLING
- Pro/CASTING
- Pro/CMM
- Pro/COMPOSITE
- Pro/DIAGRAM
- Pro/DIEFACE
- Pro/HARNESS-MFG
- Pro/HULL
- Pro/MECHANICA
- Pro/MOLDESIGN
- Pro/NC
- Pro/NC-SHEETMETAL
- Pro/PIPING
- Pro/PROCESS for Assemblies
- Pro/PROCESS for MFG
- Pro/REVIEW
- Pro/SCAN-TOOLS
- Pro/SURFACE
- Pro/VERIFY
Pro/ENGINEER Options
Pro/E has many options that a user can configure. These options are invaluable in increasing the speed and convenience of Pro/E for a particular user or environment. The place where these options are set is a text file named config.pro located in ProE's default working directory which is fully documented with all possible options listed in the online documentation that comes with the software.
Pro/ENGINEER Users
Many online groups exist for Pro/ENGINEER users to get assistance and learn new tricks (unsupported commands or work-arounds not documented in the software's manuals). The largest online community is www.proe.com, an outgrowth of the 15 year old Pro/E: The Magazine paper trade journal, now published as an online Community. Several user groups, inlcuding PTC/USER, formerly Pro/USER also server the user community. The group maintains several different sub-groups where users can find help on a specific module. For example, if a user didn't know how to create a rip relief cut using the Pro/SHEETMETAL module, he or she could join the smetal group and likely find the answer from many knowledgable members.
External Links
- Parametric Technology Corporation's Official Site (http://www.ptc.com/)
- Pro/E Community (http://www.proe.com/)
- PTC User Group Site (http://www.ptcuser.org/)