Home >> Latest ArtCAM News >> Delcam to launch new version of ArtCAM JewelSmith at Vicenza Oro
Delcam will launch a new "design-only” version of its ArtCAM JewelSmith software at the Vicenza Oro exhibition to be held in Vicenza, Italy, from 14th to 21st January. The new JewelSmith Designer version, which can be used for the creation of jewellery items such as rings, broaches, cufflinks, earrings and bracelets, is aimed at users that want to take advantage of the powerful design features within the software but that do not need the system’s machining options.
Delcam anticipates that the new version will be particularly attractive in three cases. Firstly, most larger companies with a number of designers find that they need more design seats than they need machining seats. By purchasing a mixture of full JewelSmith and JewelSmith Designer seats, these companies will be able to obtain the software they need at a lower total cost.
The second group that will benefit from the lower price of the new option will be those companies using rapid prototyping rather than machining to manufacture the waxes needed to cast their designs. JewelSmith Designer includes STL output and so can supply design data to RP machines.
Finally, JewelSmith Designer will allow the creation of decorations that will be wrapped onto product or tooling designs created in the PowerSHAPE CAD system, using Delcam’s Total Modelling techniques. The combined models created in this way can then be machined using the PowerMILL CAM system.
JewelSmith Designer includes all the enhancements in the recent version 9 release of ArtCAM JewelSmith. Most important of these improvements is the ability to create and edit designs as a series of layers, rather than always having to work with the complete model. The use of multiple layers is most advantageous when working on a design made up of different types of relief, for example a combination of a 3D shape, a texture and some lettering. Placing the elements of each type onto separate layers makes it easier to edit the individual parts of the design and to manage the complete model.
The ability to switch layers on and off makes it easier to create a series of designs based on a common template. For example, class rings could be prepared for a number of colleges or universities, using a common design with separate layers for each of the institution’s logos. To create a ring for an individual student, the basic design would simply be scaled to the required size and the layer for the appropriate college switched on.
In a similar way, the use of layers also makes model management simpler when different elements of the design intersect with each other. It is much easier to change the positions and relationships between overlapping elements, allowing a series of complex design variants to be developed more quickly and easily.
Dividing a model into layers can also speed calculation times, especially for complex models. This is possible because the relief can be edited layer by layer, rather than having to undertake a re-calculation for the whole model after every change.