LEDAS and Visual-Dream to Exhibit RhinoDirect and RhinoAssembly at EuroMold 2010

Exhibit to showcase new RhinoDirect 0.5 with parametric editing of many kinds of solid, surface, and wireframe models in Rhino, with full control over design intent

Novosibirsk, Russia: December 1, 2010 -- LEDAS Ltd. today announced that it will be exhibiting the latest versions of RhinoDirect and RhinoAssembly at EuroMold 2010, the annual world fair for moldmaking, tooling, design, and application software. This year it will be held December 1-4 in Frankfurt / Main, Germany.

The two software plug-ins will be demonstrated at the Visual-Dream booth, #F120 in Hall 11.0. The latest beta of the RhinoDirect plug-in module (for Rhinoceros 3D modeling software from Robert McNeel and Associates) will be featured. RhinoDirect allows Rhinoceros users to modify 3D geometric shapes parametrically using geometric constraints and driving dimensions. Version 0.5 of RhinoDirect is available as a free* download at www.DrivingDimensions.com/labs.

The newest version adds the ability to parametrically control solid, surface, and wireframe models that contain non-canonical faces and edges. It introduces a new Options dialog box, and adds many improvements in performance and reliability.

RhinoAssembly will also be demonstrated. This Rhino plug-in, also developed by LEDAS, is for users who need to assemble products from rigid parts and simulate the motion of their mechanisms.

"EuroMold is a place where many European Rhino users traditionally meet each other and with resellers and development partners of Robert McNeel & Asssociates," explained Dmitry Ushakov, LEDAS’s Director of Product Management. "Visual-Dream is our exclusive reseller in Germany, and we appreciate that they will be demonstrating our Rhino plug-ins at their booth."

"It’s our pleasure to show LEDAS's plug-ins in our booth, because in the past, many have looked for a way for Rhino to control parts through constraint solvers. Both of their packages have the potential to become must-haves for Rhino users," added Ioannis Zonitsas of Visual-Dream. "LEDAS has a proven track record in developing stable solutions for parametric design. With both plug-ins, Rhino is entering the ‘non-history-based-arena’ without sacrificing extreme accuracy."

New Features in RhinoDirect 0.5

Previous versions of RhinoDirect allowed users to edit 3D models composed only of planar, cylindrical, and spherical faces. With v0.5, users can now edit models containing arbitrary (non-canonical) faces. While these faces cannot be deformed due to a limitation in the current version, the faces are moved automatically when adjacent canonical faces change their shapes.

RhinoDirect computations are now performed as a separate thread, and they can be interrupted by users pressing the Esc key.

Version 0.5 introduces the new RhinoDirect Options dialog box, where users can change options related to automatic recognition of design intent, including the special case where cylindrical and spherical faces have equal radii. The options are stored with the model's .3dm file.

The spinner button behavior now handles the case when the plug-in fails to update dimension values. The user can now easily restore the model to its initial state. In addition, spinners now automatically adjust their step increment to match the size of the geometric model.

RhinoDirect 0.5 is based on the newest version of the LGS 3D geometric constraint solver, which provides behavior for angular dimension constraints that is more natural.

The performance of the design intent recognition algorithm is significantly improved. A new design intent heuristic allows RhinoDirect to automatically fix a base planar face of the initial position of the model.

About RhinoDirect and RhinoAssembly

RhinoDirect 0.5 and RhinoAssembly 1.1 are both compatible with Rhinoceros 4.0 SR5B (and higher), and run on the 32-bit versions Windows XP, Vista, and 7. The beta version of RhinoDirect can be freely downloaded at http://DrivingDimensions.com/labs, where visitors will also find detailed on-line help, step-by-step tutorials, video tutorials, and a set of sample examples to play with.

RhinoDirect is an extension of LEDAS' RhinoAssembly plug-in, the ultimate tool for assembly design and kinematic simulation of mechanisms composed of rigid parts. It is commercially available from http://DrivingDimensions.com/store/Rhino for EUR 395,00 in Europe and for US$395,00 in the rest of the world. Both RhinoDirect and RhinoAssembly belong to the LEDAS Driving Dimensions product line.

About Driving Dimensions

Driving Dimensions are end-user applications developed by LEDAS as plug-ins for popular 2D and 3D modeling systems. They provide advanced parameterization capabilities for programs like SketchUp and Rhinoceros. Driving Dimensions are based on the LEDAS' Variational Direct Modeling technology for history-free editing model elements that preserve design intent, and are expressed by explicit and implicit driving dimensions (linear, angular, radial) and geometric constraints.

Simultaneous satisfaction of geometric and dimensional constraints is achieved through LEDAS' LGS 3D geometric constraint solver, technology developed by LEDAS since 2001 and available for licensing to all CAD developers. More information about Driving Dimensions portfolio of applications can be found at www.DrivingDimensions.com

About LEDAS

LEDAS Ltd. is an independent software development company founded in 1999. It is based in Novosibirsk Scientific Centre in Akademgorodok, the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Science. A leader in constraint-based technologies, LEDAS is a well-known provider of computational software components for PLM (Product Lifecycle Management) solutions: geometric constraint solvers for CAD/CAM/CAE, optimization engines for project management, work scheduling and meeting planning as well as interval technologies for knowledge-based engineering and collaborative design. The company also provides services for PLM markets: software development, consulting, reselling as well as education and training.

More information about LEDAS is available at www.ledas.com

About Visual-Dream

Visual-Dream has been an authorized Rhino reseller since 2001. The firm is a training provider for Rhinoceros software in Germany and Greece. Since 2004, Visual-Dream has performed consulting projects on 3D modeling with Rhino. In 2010 Visual-Dream became at the exclusive reseller of LEDAS RhinoAssembly plug-in in Germany.

More information about Visual-Dream is available at www.visual-dream.eu

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Driving Dimensions, RhinoAssembly, RhinoDirect, and LGS are trademarks of LEDAS Ltd. Any other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

*Limited time offer. RhinoDirect is available at no charge during the beta testing stage.