CATIA V5 vs. SolidWorks

By: Matthew Sjoren

Introduction:

In today’s world of engineering, 3-D modeling is vital to the successful design of any product. There are many different types of 3-D modeling software available; each having their strengths and weaknesses. I will be comparing CATIA (Computer Aided Three-dimensional Interactive Application)V5 and SolidWorks with basic modeling and assembling to create engineering drawings that are required when designing a product or part.

Methods:

To make sure that there is a fair chance between the software’s the basic design will be created with:

• Multiple Parts • Assembly of the Parts

Each software will be compared to the other for:

• Navigation • Ease of Use

• Cost

The test was conducted between the two products on 3/20/2013 using a desktop computer, which needs a fairly fast processor and video card in order for the software to work efficiently. The computer that was used was in the computer lab located in room GJ 115 in the Gauss-Johnson Laboratory building located at the University of Idaho.

Results:

Navigation and Cost:

First, navigating within the software’s 3-D space is different for CATIA and SolidWorks. In CATIA the easiest way to navigate your part in the 3-D space is by using a “3-D Mouse”. A 3-D mouse is made by 3DConnexion which sells different models with prices ranging from $100 to $400 depending which model are used. A regular mouse can be used to navigate in CATIA but is not very intuitive and is very difficult to use.

Figure: 3-D mouse used in the computer lab in GJ 115

Figure: SolidWorks sketch with dimensions.

Figure: CATIA sketch with dimensions

In SolidWorks, a regular mouse is used to navigate in 3-D space. It is very simple to use and works well. SolidWorks also has the ability to navigate using the same 3-D mouse as in CATIA with similar results to CATIA.

Sketching and Ease of Use:

The tools that are used for sketching a part in both CATIA and SolidWorks are fairly simple and straight forward.

CATIA has most of their modeling tools on a bar that is on right-side of the screen while SolidWorks has their modeling tools on a bar that is on the top of your screen. When sketching your part in either CATIA or SolidWorks, it is important that your sketch is fully defined with the correct dimensions. This is critical later on when these parts are being produced so that there isn’t any clearance or constraint problem that a part might have with other parts. As seen in the screenshots to the left, SolidWorks background color is white and the sketch and dimensions are black while CATIA has a screen background in blue with the sketch and dimensions in green. I have found that the black and white of SolidWorks is easier to see and read while the blue and green of CATIA can make the part that is being worked on difficult to see and read.

SolidWorks was also easier to use when dimensioning the part. The method of dimensioning the part was the same between SolidWorks and CATIA. However, CATIA can be picky on which parts needed to be dimensioned and seems to be less intuitive in order to have the part fully defined.

Once the sketch is fully defined, the next step in the process of designing the part is to extrude the sketch into a 3D dimensional part. In each case for this function to work the sketch needs to be highlighted and then the extrude button in the tool box is clicked. Both CATIA and SolidWorks have put the extrude feature in a logical place that is easy to find. Once you have entered the extrude option, both CATIA and SolidWorks give you the option in what direction you want to extrude your Figure: Extrusion of the sketched part in

SolidWorks.

part, the distance needed to extrude, and even at what angle it can be extruded. I have found that the experience to be about the same in both CATIA and SolidWorks. It wasn’t difficult and both software’s prompted you on what you needed to do in order to have your part extruded. Both softwares also give you a preview feature so you can review the part before finishing. Once I had achieved the specifed extrusion length, both sofwares gave me the ability to click okay and exit out automatically. This places the part into a isometric view, which I found to be very helpful in visualizing the part. They also both give you the option to either go back into the sketch or the extruded workbench to edit your part if for some reason there was a mistake or an oversite.

Assembly and Ease of Use:

Once all the parts are modeled up and saved into a specfied file on the computer, I can begin to assemble the parts into a much more complex part or parts. In many complex designs there can be subassemblies that can be assembled into a final assembly if needed. In my case both software’s gave me the option in the assembly workbench where I can import that parts that are needed to make the assembly. The method of importing that part into the assembly workbench are different between CATIA and SolidWorks. In Solidworks, you have the option to import multiple parts simultaniously while in CATIA you can only import one part at at time.

Once all the parts are imported into the workbench it is time to “mate” the parts together in the their desired postions. In CATIA it gives you four options to constraint your parts: Coincidence Constarint, Contact Constraint, Offset Constraint, and Angle Constraint. In order to use these constraints you need to know what constraint you are wanting to use and once the constraint is selected you then click on a certain postion on one part

and then click on a specific postion on the other and then the parts will move together. I found it very difficult to click on the correct spot on a part to do what I wanted to do. This is a pretty steep learning curve but after some time I was able to get the hang of it and be proficient.

Figure: Assembly of parts in SolidWorks

Figure: Extrusion of the sketched part in CATIA.

Figure: Assembly of parts in CATIA

Solidworks assembly workbench was easier to use. By selecting the two part that you wanted to assemble together, it would assume how you wanted them to be mated together. SolidWorks pays attention where you click on the parts and then would make the decision for you. I found it more efficent and saved a lot of time in assembling parts together.

Conclusion/Recommendations:

Each of the solid modeling software achieved the same end result, but the journey to the end is very different. CATIA is complex and more detailed on how you model your part while SolidWorks has a simpler design set up and is easier to use and read. It also does not require the use of a 3-D mouse. However, when it comes to very complex projects with lots of diverse parts, CATIA is much more stable and will not crash as will SolidWorks with the same amount of parts. The draw back with CATIA ($24,000) is that it is three times more expensive then SolidWorks ($8,000). CATIA is used by its most well-known customer, Boeing in designing and building their airplanes. Finally, a little irony, CATIA and SolidWorks are both owned by Dassault Sytemes.

So if you are building airplanes or the like with a vast amount of parts you probably would want to go with CATIA. However, if you are modeling up more modest parts SolidWorks is probably the better option for navigation, ease of use and cost.