Not too long ago, when drawings were still done on paper, engineers used a combination of slide rules, calculators, and handbooks, as well as their years of training and experience, to formulate engineering solutions. As drawings migrated to the computer, a lot of these engineering tools didn't. Sure, FEA and motion-analysis programs have answered some engineering needs. But software with the "intelligence" to help solve design problems in engineering has not really existed. Recently, however, a number of new CAD tools have been introduced that handle some of the thinking that goes into the design process. Here's a representative sample of the new "smart" programs that can help engineers solve problems across virtually all phases of the design process from conceptual design to final tooling.
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