Open Source CAD Software Investigation

Posted by Ravi Kandula to Information & Communication Technologies, 04th May at 6:47 PM


Dear IT Knowledge Hub Members,

I'm a Field Volunteer, currently on placement with Medical Technology Transfer & Services, in Hanoi. Since 2007 MTTS has used AutoDesk Inventor as its primary CAD platform, currently using the 2010 release. The issue however is the software is unlicensed and funding is not available to purchase licenses, which cost in the region of ~20k + annual maintenance fees. Of course, unlicensed copies cannot be updated to include the latest patches and upgrades. I would like the IT Knowledge Hub to investigate the most prevalent and proven open source CAD packages that are currently available. One of the main considerations in conducting the search is to find a package that can translate the existing CAD data without losing the parametric information contained within the files - i.e. does not turn exisiting models into featureless solids. This would save a significant amount of time in the changeover from Inventor to the new package. If you have any queries at all in relation to this request, please do not hesitate to contact me via e-mail: kandulatron@gmail.com. I look forward to to your response/s.

Posted 1 Year ago by Lexi Randall-L'Estrange

Hey - here is a comment I got back from a friend, I hope it's a good starting point for you

"It might come down to what their Inventor files contain as to whether they will lose information when going to a different product. If its basic 2D CAD drawings there should be a few options out there, DraftSight comes to mind - I think
it's free but not open source. If they have complex 3D model utilising inventors more powerful features, the options may be more limited. Don't take my word for it though, this is really a long way from my domain."

Posted 8 Months ago by Alex Webster

kandulatron,

what information are you storing in CAD? I am familiar with GIS software packages which can read CAD files. Depending your application, an open/free GIS package might met your requirements. If you are still looking for software, email me alexander.webster@gmail.com

Cheers.

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