Comparison of AutoCAD and Autodesk Inventor

Document Type:Research Paper

Subject Area:Engineering

Document 1

On this research paper, we will compare features of Autodesk AutoCAD against AutoCAD Inventor and their various applications. The paper would also suggest the best software for use in the use in the industry. Autodesk AutoCAD is an all-in-all suite for a technician and design engineer which was created in December 1982(Ryan and Dan, 266). Autodesk Inventor was created in September 1999 and it works opposite of the AutoCAD. AutoCAD has focused on many things for different kinds of users and for a large number of domains. In fact, Inventor has some capabilities that are far beyond those of the AutoCAD. AutoCAD has numerous limitations compared to the inventor. The fact that Autodesk AutoCAD was initially a 2D software and was fine-tuned into 3D software, it lacks tools that most of the other 3D modeling software incorporate.

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AutoCAD lacks some modeling capabilities found in the inventor, CATIA or Solid Works. It does not have dynamic simulations or harness and cable modules. File handling "All-in-one" file Distinguishes between assemblies, parts, and 2D drawings Usage Example Creates a machine Simulates how the machine actually moves The following is a guide on which software among the two to use in various applications Although the inventor may seem superior to AutoCAD, one requires the basic knowledge of drafting in 2D which is best acquired when practicing with AutoCAD in order to be able to draft a 3D model using inventor efficiently (Boboulos et al. Np). The other disadvantage that goes together with the inventor is that it is more expensive than the AutoCAD. The licensing fee for the Inventor is a bit high than that of AutoCAD.

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This can be noted from the following table derived from Autodesk web page. It is displayed at the top of the drawing window—one can choose either to place it vertically on the right or left of the drawing window. There is a command window located at the bottom of the window. Here, one can execute any command by typing the command and pressing Enter. For example, when drawing a line, you can simply type LINE or L in the command window. On actual drawing, AutoCAD comes with a variety of basic geometrical shapes that one can use in 2D sketches. On the other hand, Learning Autodesk Inventor involves understanding the principles, the interface, and the operation of the software, which is a 3D computer aided modeling software for 3D mechanical design, product simulation, and documentation.

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This normally covers the concepts of 3D design and the functions of the Inventor including 2D geometries, 3D parts modeling, assembly techniques, associative detailed drawings, animated sequences for assembly instructions and exploded views. Some of the most commonly used commands together with their keyboard shortcut in Autodesk Inventor include: KEYBOARD SHORTCUT COMMAND FUNCTION CTRL-H REPLACE COMPONENT Replaces one component with another component SHIFT-TAB PROMOTE Removes a part from a subassembly and makes it an individual part in the parent assembly CTRL-D OPEN DRAWING Opens a drawing CTRL-SHIFT-N NEW SHIFT Inserts a new drawing CTRL-SHIFT-T LEADER TEXT Adds notes with leader lines to a drawing CTRL-A SELECT ALL Selects everything on screen CTRL-F COPY Copies selected items The following is a 2D model with its corresponding 3D model drawn using Autodesk Inventor For industrial use, using inventor is better since it has more advantages than AutoCAD especially in the manufacturing sector.

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Some of the admired advantages are that the Autodesk inventor is simple and more powerful, since you can just sketch a raw form for the object, before adding its dimensions. Another good quality of Autodesk Inventor is the ability to differentiate features from a part and store them as individuals in the part or feature browser. This can be noted from the following table derived from Autodesk web page. It can also be noted that AutoCAD has many vertical integration programs for discipline-specific enhancements. Work Cited Boboulos, Miltiadis A. CAD-CAM & rapid prototyping application evaluation. Bookboon, 2010. ACM, 2012. Shih, Randy. Parametric Modeling with Autodesk Inventor 2014. SDC publications, 2013.

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