3D CAD Software recommendations?

Chuck U F4rley · 08-01-09, 02:26 PM

Just wondering if any of the modelbuilders on this board have a suggestion on a (preferrably Open Source) 3D Cad Software to use on a new project I am about to start. To make it short: I need a way to design the actual structure of a ROV/AUV.

Here is some background information to show you what I am thinking about:

I have build somesmall and simple ROVs in the past, but quite frankly the whole tether/umbilical(sp?) thing is soooo 20th century... :-)
For those ROVs I mainly used pens, papers and lots of trial-and-error tinkering in the construction process, and quite frankly they could not do much besides submerging (and most of the time) re-surfacing.

Since I am a passionate SCUBA Diver myself, the next logical step (err, for me. Logic can be subjective I guess...) would be an AUV that can follow me around, collect data on my dives and take video footage. I am thinking of using a simple image recognition that just tries to keep a blinking light on my Tank in its field of view. Alternatively it should be able to free roam in a give area and return to a starting point, so I can fetch the data and maybe decide on a new dive spot. I am fairly certain the software part will be quite a challenge but I think I can handle that. I will have to see which hardware plattform to choose that provides enough processing power while running on limited power. I have some experience with FPGAs and the odd prallax propeller platform, and I will need some experiments there. Right now my main issue, however, is build a versatile plattform and not the electronics package...
I have no doubts that this will be quite an expensive project, but then again I estimate years until completion, which will make the financial part manageable.

So, back to my original Question: Any suggestions on 3D CAD software?

08-01-09, 02:26 PM	#1
Chuck U F4rley Watch Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 25 Downloads: 2 Uploads: 0	3D CAD Software recommendations? Just wondering if any of the modelbuilders on this board have a suggestion on a (preferrably Open Source) 3D Cad Software to use on a new project I am about to start. To make it short: I need a way to design the actual structure of a ROV/AUV. Here is some background information to show you what I am thinking about: I have build somesmall and simple ROVs in the past, but quite frankly the whole tether/umbilical(sp?) thing is soooo 20th century... :-) For those ROVs I mainly used pens, papers and lots of trial-and-error tinkering in the construction process, and quite frankly they could not do much besides submerging (and most of the time) re-surfacing. Since I am a passionate SCUBA Diver myself, the next logical step (err, for me. Logic can be subjective I guess...) would be an AUV that can follow me around, collect data on my dives and take video footage. I am thinking of using a simple image recognition that just tries to keep a blinking light on my Tank in its field of view. Alternatively it should be able to free roam in a give area and return to a starting point, so I can fetch the data and maybe decide on a new dive spot. I am fairly certain the software part will be quite a challenge but I think I can handle that. I will have to see which hardware plattform to choose that provides enough processing power while running on limited power. I have some experience with FPGAs and the odd prallax propeller platform, and I will need some experiments there. Right now my main issue, however, is build a versatile plattform and not the electronics package... I have no doubts that this will be quite an expensive project, but then again I estimate years until completion, which will make the financial part manageable. So, back to my original Question: Any suggestions on 3D CAD software?