SolidWorks is investigating the future of technology and the CAD interface.  In the Partner Pavilion, they have a Microsoft Surface table set up with a basic 2D sketcher and eDrawings running on it.  I spent a little time this afternoon playing around on it and talking to Kirk Haller, Director of Research at SolidWorks.
Kirk and his team at SolidWorks wrote the code for the sketcher in 3 weeks.  For the eDrawings implementation, they worked with IdentityMine Inc. and stripped out the eDrawings UI, replacing it with a Surface UI.  The …

SolidWorks Labs has posted an article detailing the upcoming release of a SolidWorks add-in for exporting assemblies to COLLADA.  COLLADA is an acronym for COLLAborative Design Activity, whose mission is to create an open standard for interactive 3D applications.  The COLLADA project was begun by Sony to create a standard for exchanging 3D digital data.  There are several other big-name companies participating in the alliance.
There is a video at the SolidWorks Labs blog showing the new COLLADA export in action.  The COLLADA add-in is expected to be available for …

The I-Ball is a camera designed with new technology that will enable UK soldiers to toss it anywhere into the battlefield to gain insights into what awaits them before putting themselves in harm’s way. The I-Ball camera “…can be fired from a grenade launcher – or thrown into a room – giving troops vital information of who – or what – is on the ground or around the corner.”
The camera houses two sensors and fisheye lenses that capture image data of it’s surroundings, and a transmitter that sends the data …