Click here to view the embedded video.

Based on actual scientific data, the objective is to teach both children & adults about animal vision by immersing oneself into a 3D visual interactive simulation. Beyond individual differences (nearsightedness, color-blindness, etc), all human eyes see the same. However, our binocular vision is very different from that of most animals: indeed, eyes are not always even placed in the same way in the animal kingdom – or even designed to see the same things humans see. You will be able to experience what they see, what they feel, and what are their constraints in a real time 3D evnironment, moving around Place Vendôme (coming from our Paris3D experience ), one of the most prestigious square in Paris.

This 3D Experience comes with two modes:

• A simulation part, where adults and teachers can learn and explain better, switching back and forth from animal to human vision
• Mini-games for each animal, where players have to circumvent the constraints of animal vision to get the best scores

A Scientific committee led by Dr. Didier Schmidt-Morand, Veterinary Ophthalmologist, is behind this project to provide data and studies enabling a scientific simulation and validate the real life conformity. To learn more and answer all your questions, we invite you to join the dedicated social community to discuss and interact with the subject matter experts.

Play now the AllEyesOnParis 3D Experience. It’s online, fun, and free! Enjoy!

If you think Milan then the word that comes immediately after that is “Fashion”.  And then the thrill starts with names like Armani, Valentino, Versace, Ferrè, Prada, Moschino, Fendi, Trussardi, Missoni, Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana or Krizia. And the list can go on. While walking on the streets of Milan you come to the very cozy library Biblioteca della Moda, where “fashion fans can view, buy or sell books, magazines, trend books, prints and catalogues dating from 1850 to the present day”. It was only natural that Dassault Systèmes chose Biblioteca della Moda in Milan for its 2013 “Technology defile”. 

Guests were welcomed in the trendy auditorium of the Biblioteca and enjoyed a presentaton by Mrs Michela Ornati (@mornati), a long-time fashion and luxury industry executive, consultant and lecturer.

Opportunities for value creation exist at every stage of the value chain, as shown by the success stories of Ermenegildo Zegna, Edun or Brunello Cucinelli” says Mrs Ornati.

“Enterprises need to involve relevant stakeholders but also to establish the necessary processes and choose the right tools to extract that value” concluded Mrs. Ornati.

The experience continued around 4 different corners:

• The “Body Scan” corner. Imagine! Your body in 3D! Thanks to our Partner Unocad
• My Collection is Dassault Systemes’ Industry Solution Experience for Fashion brands and retailers.  A true collaborative innovation experience that enhances your brand identity!
• Who buys what, when, where and why? “My analytics” provides a 360° visibility to better understand consumer demand and response.
• Seeing your collection in “Perfect shop” by our Partner H-UMUS

Finally, all guests could enjoy other 3DEXPERIENCE examples such as Paris 3D Saga project.

The event was well received by famous attendees such as Prada, Moschino, Gucci, Accenture, Deloitte, Mapro, Vhernier and Pomellato who shared with us their positive comments about the format as well as the location – “real house of fashion”.

Ciao and see you next time in Milan for our next Defile! 

Inspired by this theme? Grab your 3D CATIA app, imagine the seat of your dreams, and post it on the CATIA Creative Design Community. Don’t have CATIA and you’re a student? We’ll be happy to provide you with a one year free CATIA license. 

The winner will receive the brand new WACOM Cintiq 13 HD!

Enter the competition and find more information here: http://www.3ds.com/design-contest

Click here to view the embedded video.

We were excited to announce earlier today our intent to acquire of Apriso, a leading provider of manufacturing software solutions. More precisely, Apriso’s expertise is into Manufacturing Operations Management (MOM). To learn more about it, we asked a couple questions to Tom Hennessey, VP Marketing for Apriso.

1. First, could you let us know about Apriso’s expertise and how you see fit with DELMIA?

APRISO Corporation develops, markets, services and supports software used in manufacturing.  APRISO delivers on-premise global manufacturing software platform which provides visibility into, management of, and synchronization across a network of manufacturing plants.  The platform includes but is not limited to “Manufacturing Executions System” (MES) software.

APRISO extends the current DELMIA offering in MES into new industries as APRISO has targeted manufacturers in the automotive, life sciences, packaging, high tech and consumer goods industries in addition to aerospace & defense which DELMIA (via its Intercim acquisition) currently supports.  APRISO also extends the DELMIA application footprint to Quality Planning & Execution specific for fabrication processes, Plant Maintenance, Material Logistics and Warehouse Management System not currently offered by DELMIA. This whole domain is referred to by some analysts as Manufacturing Operations Management (MOM). And, APRISO has focused on the global, enterprise-wide deployments across a manufacturer’s supply chain, providing multi-site organizations with supply chain visibility, benchmarking capabilities and best practices management.

2. Wait, talking about Intercim and MES, isn’t there an overlap here?

No, there’s no direct overlap between the two companies’ technologies and product offerings. While there are some common customers, for the most part the install base is distinct. While there is some overlap on paper between APRISO (Flexnet) and DELMIA Operations Velocity (Intercim) in that they are both Manufacturing Execution Solutions, the business problems and customers served are different enough that the overlap is only in name. Inside DELMIA Operations, Velocity will still focus on the assembly of complex products that requires exceptional traceability for regulation and quality purpose; while Flexnet will bring additional capabilities to cover the need of high throughput fabrications in aerospace industry but also in the consumer goods, packaging, life sciences, automotive and industrial equipment industries.

Moreover, DELMIA Operations Intelligence prescriptive analytics is a perfect complement to all APRISO customers aiming at faster new product and process introduction (NPPI) and continuous process improvement.

3. Could you let us know more about the underlying technologies of the FlexNet product?

APRISO’s product line is the FlexNet Global Manufacturing Platform which utilizes a proprietary Business Process Management (BPM) technology to configure execution applications in manufacturing. The BPM tool has been configured to deliver MES (production), Warehouse Management System (WMS or material logistics), plant maintenance, Time & Labor, Quality and supply chain visibility processes.  The Platform also includes 3 applications that run above the plant to synchronize and coordinate the manufacturing network:

1. Global Process Manager to distribute and manage best manufacturing processes across locations
2. Manufacturing Process Intelligence to provide for real-time analytics and visibility across manufacturing and
3. Global Traceability and Genealogy to manage “As-Built” and “As-Manufactured” histories across manufacturing networks.

FlexNet is built on .Net technology from Microsoft and supports the Oracle and SQLserver databases in production, and SQLserver enterprise edition for analytics.  All compiled code is in C#.  Solutions as implemented include customer specific processes configured via the BPM tool that can include JavaScript, stored procedures, etc.

Thanks to Tom for the great explanations and again, a warm welcome to all Apriso employees! 

Click here to view the embedded video.

After the success of the 2012 edition, our contest Project Of The Year is back for 2013!

This contest is open until June 21st for every student worldwide who have produced a project made with Dassault Systèmes’ solutions. To participate, students have to join the POTY 2013 Facebook app, and then simply enroll on 3DS Academy in order to post the project.

11 projects will be awarded, divided in 2 categories:

• Public Prizes: The first ten projects which will receive the highest number of likes will be awarded.
• Jury Prize: One project will receive the jury prize, awarded by a panel of professionals on the basis of content published on 3DS Academy.

To win the Public Prizes, students can increase their chances by sharing their project using Twitter & Facebook with dedicated tabs to get votes from friends!

So… may the best project win!

Click here to view the embedded video.

We were thrilled to open last week our own FabLab at the 3DS Paris Campus! The FabLab is open to all employees, as well as our visitors to the Campus, with an interest in making things, in design, in DIY, in home made stuff, or simply testing a new project…

The FabLab leverages our software (CATIA, SolidWorks, 3DVIA and 3DSwYm) as well as hardware from our partners:

2 Desktop 3D Scanners from NextEngine:

• #1 selling 3D Scanner
• The NextEngine 3D Scanner captures objects in full color with multi-laser precision
• Everything you need to digitize 3D models Exports to STL, OBJ, VRML and other formats

2 Cubify Cube 3D Printers from 3D Systems with different plastic colors:

• Voted by MAKE magazine as “easiest to use” and “most reliable” 3D printer, also quite affordable
• Print anything up to 5.5″ x 5.5″ x 5.5″
• Print in ABS and PLA material
• The Cubify Cube uses material cartridges in 16 different colors including vibrant colors, neutral colors, metallic silver and glow in the dark.

CATIA and SolidWorks as design software:

• Voted #1 design software of course 
• To design, output STL (input format for the Printer), and retrieve the 3D Scans

3D Experiences:

• Access to 3DVIA content warehouse
• Sculpteo online 3D printing service
• MWOO art toys experience
• Tom Dixon D3 hacking design competition
• 3D Printed Objects exhibition

See more pictures from the FabLab opening, and talk to you soon on the MadeIn3D Community! 

But wait a minute. How many product variants do Industrial Equipment (IE) companies have to manage without sacrificing margin and ultimately their longevity? Just how many types of products do they have to produce to satisfy different customer preferences? These are complicated questions for companies still struggling with an Engineered To Order (ETO) approach that has them spending too many hours developing individual products. It is simply not sustainable.

There are, however, companies that have recognized the need to switch gears, from an Engineered To Order approach to a Configured To Order (CTO) philosophy. And they are doing this by embracing modularity. You will want to read the interview of Alex von Yxkull, president and CEO of Modular Management, and Johan Källgren, partner, from our first issue of Compass magazine, to understand the challenges and rewards of modularization.  If you prefer a live explanation, check out the video below in which Colin de Kwant, a consultant from Modular Management explains that in a world in which we want it all, customization forces manufacturers to address two conflicting objectives – simplify complexity and amplify variety. The companies with an ETO approach risk failing to deliver.

How to switch from ETO to CTO? Watch this:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Modularity is the answer for IE companies that are looking for ways to ensure that product assortment meets customer requirements without inflating the number of managed parts. By reorganizing and rethinking the way products are developed and using common and interchangeable modules with predefined variants, modularity can pave the way to more innovation and timely delivery. 3DEXPERIENCE’s Simple Solution Selection helps IE companies diversify their product offering while minimizing the cost of complexity.

Keep your ears open; you haven’t heard the last of modularity…

Tom Dixon gives to participants an access to as many files as tubes of different lengths and different types of junctions, and challenge contestants to re-configure and remix these 3D pieces into different functional objects.

Dixon’s design uses a simple, elegant system: aluminium tubes arranged into a functional form by interconnecting junctions. These junctions are created in additive manufacturing using 3D printing technology, provided by our partner Sculpteo.

Launched at MOST Salone in Milan during Design Week, the competition is accessible via a Dassault Systèmes online community. Through this online community, participants will get access to software to assemble and experience their design project in 3D, share projects, media and ideas, and interact with other members.

The winning entry, chosen by a jury including Tom Dixon, will receive an iPad, his concept being 3D printed and assembled, and be awarded and featured at “Maison & Objet” trade show in Paris, September edition.

Want to join the competition? Go to www.mostdisruptingdesign.com, register today to the online community and make sure to submit your contribution by June 30, 2013! Enjoy! 

Click here to view the embedded video.

Remember good olde animated GIFs of the 90′s, like the one above? The New York Times says they made a comeback in 2012, and even made a foray into art, as unexpected it may seem.

GIFs are chic! Dance and Virtual Unreality too !

Just discover our new unexpected project when engineers met with artists to reinvent a discipline … Watch our sneak preview below for yourself!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Last but not least in our series about IF WE Challenge dreamers, here comes our great winner Geoffrey Cooper. His IF WE Dream was “IF WE design a rolling tree planting robot, we can send them out to replant forests and restore a desertified land. Let’s make it happen!!“. Geoffrey is anindustrial designer coming from Canada and lived in Los Angeles at the time of the challenge.

So without further ado, watch the video below to see Geoffrey’s brilliant idea illustrated:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Q: Could you let us know where the idea of a rolling tree planting robot came from?

The tree planting robot idea was inspired by my step-brother, who worked as a tree planter in Canada for many years. From him, I learned how difficult it is for people to plant and maintain trees in remote areas, and how important it is to keep our forests alive. That topic lingered in my mind for a long time, and I also looked into the topic of desertification. I discovered that many deserts and plains around the world were once thriving forests, but turned into barren land because of the impact left by man, animals, and climate change.

While I was an Industrial Design student in college, I came up with the idea of designing a rolling tree planting robot that would tackle this problem. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to fit the project into my curriculum, but I have thought extensively about it, and would like to pursue it.

Q: More specifically, how would you see the rolling planting robot actually work?

I envision a group of autonomous tree-planting robots sent out into a deforested area, that would work together to achieve the tasks necessary for planting and ensuring the growth of trees. These tasks would include navigating natural terrain with the use of sensors, coordinating with other tree planting robots working nearby, loading saplings from a larger vessel, boring holes into the ground for the saplings, and cutting away the weeds around planted trees to ensure their growth. The robots would also be able to scan the elements in a landscape to determine the most habitable areas for the trees. After several weeks, the robots would return to the same location to maintain and check the status of the young trees.

The robots would be small (maybe the size of a wheelbarrow), would traverse terrain on wheels, and would be powered partially by solar panels on top of the robots. The robots would work alongside a human operator who would oversee a fleet of tree planting robots. The operator would plan out the operation, and could be on-site in case anything goes wrong.

Q: How would you like to see this idea developped?

I am very interested in making this idea a reality, and would be interested in working with Dassault Systèmes on it if possible. I currently work as an Interaction Designer, and have a background in Industrial Design, so I am confident with my abilities to design systems and physical devices that could work cohesively. The area of the robot project that I am not so familiar with is the robotics, programming, and manufacturing of such a robot. As with any project, I believe that strong teamwork creates big changes, and I believe that such a team could be assembled for the tree planting robot project.

Stay tuned to see how we helped Geoffrey get started with his project