ZCorp has just released two new 3D printers that are amazing…

• ZPrinter 150: Most affordable automated office 3D Printer.
• ZPrinter 250: Most affordable color 3D Printer.
• High Resolution: Output precise, 450 dpi 3D models and prototypes.
• Fast Print Speed: 5x-10x faster than competing printers at half the cost.
• Easy to Use: Automation simplifies printing and takes less time (40% less touch time)
• Office Friendly: Office-safe build materials, active dust-control, zero liquid waste.
• Ideal for education, architecture, and basic MCAD applications.

Check out our overview video:

I ran across this on the SolidWorks forums. Someone was needing to create a helical blade and then flatten it with sheet metal tools. I thought that this could not be done but they gave an example of how to do this. I will share their instructions and a sample of this as well.

First you need to open a sketch and create a circle of 5″. From this make a helix constant pitch and the pitch being 25″ and 1 revolution. Now create another sketch with a circle of 20″. From this create another helix with the same numbers as the first.

Now create two 3D sketches converting one helix per sketch.

Now you have two profiles that you can use for a Sheet Metal Loft Base. From the Sheet Metal tool bar Lofted Bends or the Insert>Sheet Metal>Lofted Bends. Select to start the feature then select the two 3D Sketches and what thickness you want to use. There you have the helical sheet metal part that will give you a flat pattern.

View a sample part here.

Recently, one of our SolidWorks Education customers was featured in a local news story. Steve Higley, engineering teacher at Maranatha Christian Academy (a close neighbor to Symmetry Solutions’ new facility in Brooklyn Park), facilitated a project with about a dozen engineering students. The project involved designing a bridge to replace a bridge in desperate need of repair on the Superior Hiking Trail, where the students from Maranatha take regular hiking trips. Before the manual labor began, the students designed the bridge using SolidWorks. Tom Denecke, a local engineer, volunteered to help the students. The new bridge they designed was 36 feet long and 10 feet high.