3D Input devices integration in CAD environment

Abstract

Virtual Reality (VR) technologies are becoming commonly used tools in the product development process, starting from the styling review in the conceptual design phase, until to the Digital Mock-up (DMU) validation in the advanced stages of the design process. What has not yet been sufficiently investigated is the possibility to interact with the DMU directly inside the CAD environment using 3D input devices. Although few CAD systems, like CATIA V5, have an additional module to support VR devices, in most cases it is still necessary to customize the application to obtain the functionalities desired by the user. The present paper discusses difficulties and advantages related to the integration of VR techniques and 3D input devices in CAD systems. The work has been conducted analyzing and testing the potentialities of the Unigraphics NX3 CAD environment and implementing a software plug-in that allows the user to perform such interaction tasks employing 3D input devices.