Solid Edge – Community Edition

[IanTParticipant @iant]

Hello John,

I've been running Solid Edge 2020 for about 18 months and have been meaning to download the latest edition – assuuming it would be 2021.

I've just downloaded the latest Solid Edge Community Edition and was surprised (and pleased) to find it is the latest 2022 Edition – which was released by Siemens on October 6th!

I'm afraid I can't help with your problem – but would just ask if you are running Win10 (I use 'Home' ) and also if you downloaded from the link I provided in the first post or somewhere else?

Hi Graham – yes, I'm using Win10 'Home' on a nearly 6 year old i5 Laptop.

Regards,

 

IanT

 

Edited By IanT on 12/11/2021 17:29:49

[John HaineParticipant @johnhaine32865]

Yes, win10 home and the link on your first post.

[Grindstone CowboyParticipant @grindstonecowboy]

Currently downloading the 2022 version, having had the 2020 and 2021 editions (but admittedly not really used them much). One thing which is vaguely irritating is the fact that Siemens seem to be unable to remember me – every download results in me having to re-register, despite having one (possibly two) accounts and verifying my email each time.

This time, I'll make more of an effort to learn how to use the software properly.

Rob

[John HaineParticipant @johnhaine32865]

Cracked it (I tink). Turned out that my laptop didn't have enough room on its C drive because the makers in their wisdom decided to have a "permanent" partition into C and D (data). Found a process on the web to fix this and now Solid Edge is installing. So far so good!

This will also stop the machine giving me endless warnings about running out of space when it has 200 GBytes available…

[John HaineParticipant @johnhaine32865]

Installed and running…. Now a steep learning curve!

[Gerard O’TooleParticipant @gerardotoole60348]

Posted by IanT on 12/11/2021 17:29:33:

Hello John,

I've been running Solid Edge 2020 for about 18 months and have been meaning to download the latest edition – assuuming it would be 2021.

I've just downloaded the latest Solid Edge Community Edition and was surprised (and pleased) to find it is the latest 2022 Edition – which was released by Siemens on October 6th!

I'm afraid I can't help with your problem – but would just ask if you are running Win10 (I use 'Home' ) and also if you downloaded from the link I provided in the first post or somewhere else?

Hi Graham – yes, I'm using Win10 'Home' on a nearly 6 year old i5 Laptop.

Regards,

IanT

Edited By IanT on 12/11/2021 17:29:49

Posted by Grindstone Cowboy on 12/11/2021 19:17:58:

Currently downloading the 2022 version, having had the 2020 and 2021 editions (but admittedly not really used them much). One thing which is vaguely irritating is the fact that Siemens seem to be unable to remember me – every download results in me having to re-register, despite having one (possibly two) accounts and verifying my email each time.

This time, I'll make more of an effort to learn how to use the software properly.

Rob

Hi Ian, Rob

I am still using 2020 edition . I have downloaded 2022 edition but i have to delete 2020 edition before it will install.

Can you tell me if the 2022 edition has any significant improvements and is worth installing? More importantly , do i loose anything in the new edition?

On thing i cannot do now is create threads. I do get a simulation of a thread but that does not translate into a 3D printed part. .If that worked in 2022 i would feel it worthwhile updating.

I mainly use FreeCAD but it too has its' limitations

thanks

Ger

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

If you missed it Ian posted about a change to the "lifetime" of 2022 here

[IanTParticipant @iant]

Hi Gerard,

Yes, SE-CE 2022 now has a "Physical" thread option for 3D printing (now part of 'Thread' tool defintion) – although the system warns you that "implementing it may cause performance impact" – but it's there if you need it.

There are lot's of other small changes I've noticed but nothing that have caused me any problems and some that are helpful. I was disappointed in the apparent license change but then I've had 18 months free SE useage so far and will have another three years before this version "expires". Hopefully, the next update will extend this life again – we'll have to see. Siemens seem to be keeping the Community Edition in step with the commercial SE product and are updating annually it seems. SE2022 was released on Oct 6th this year.

Other than that, I'm still very happy with Solid Edge.

Regards,

IanT

PS Pleased to see you go your problem sorted John

[Rik ShawParticipant @rikshaw]

I made repeated efforts to download 2022 but each time the download failed. It was only when I clicked on "requirements" link I found that it will not install on my Win 10 home edition 64 bit.

**LINK**

Rik

[John HaineParticipant @johnhaine32865]

That's funny, it installed for me yesterday on exactly that! It is not supported on Win10 Home but it will install and run quite happily. Others here have also installed in on Home.

You may be having a disc space issue which is what I had at first. The installer is compressed using 7zip which doesn't check that the destination folder has enough space and give you a warning. See my post at 12.44 yesterday.

The download is over 3 Gbyte and it decompresses to 6.7.  I found that initially it wouldn't download until I created a bit of space, and when it did it wouldn't decompress, so I had to take more radical action (which incidentally fixed a problem I've been having for some time).

Edited By John Haine on 14/11/2021 13:29:44

[IanTParticipant @iant]

Yes, i'm running it on Win10 'Home' too Rik.

Regards,

IanT

[Gerard O’TooleParticipant @gerardotoole60348]

Thanks Ian, Jason. I didn't know it expired so i might wait until that happens before updating.

I too am running it on Wiin 10 Home edition

[Lee RogersParticipant @leerogers95060]

Why is it refered to as 3D ? It's flat so is it not isometric projection? Another dumming down by techies in ''Merica ?

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

Posted by Lee Rogers on 14/11/2021 17:17:53:

Why is it refered to as 3D ? It's flat so is it not isometric projection? Another dumming down by techies in ''Merica ?

Naw, techies never get anything wrong!

The display may be 2D, but 3D models have X,Y and Z coordinates. The coordinates can be manipulated mathematically to put isometric or perspective views of objects on screen, or sliced to produce sectioned 2D drawings, or output as 3D to drive the tool movements of a CNC machine. Or create holograms.

3D CAD tools are multidimensional in another sense. Once an object's coordinates are defined, the volume is also known. And if the material is defined, the weight, strength, colour and other properties of the real object become available and can be mathematically modelled too. Internal stresses when the object is subjected to forces can be calculated, as can thermal flows when it's heated or cooled. 3D CAD is much more than an isometric projection.

Dave

[Rik ShawParticipant @rikshaw]

Thanks JohnH & IanT, Finally managed to download and install it but only after turning of Windows Defender Firewall. I thought I might have to upgrade to Win11 so run a MS requirement app. It informed me that my CPU was not suitable !!!!! I put this PC together thinking that I had a fair bit of age redundancy built in but it seems that Bill Gates has stopped my gallop.

Rik (peeved)

My DIY PC is:

AMD Z170-Gaming K3 MB

Intel Core i7-6700 @ 4.00GHz CPU

Internal Samsung M.2 2TB SSD

External Seagate 4TB HDD

32 GB RAM

AMD FirePro W7100 graphics card

[Lee RogersParticipant @leerogers95060]

Posted by SillyOldDuffer on 14/11/2021 17:48:46:

Posted by Lee Rogers on 14/11/2021 17:17:53:

Why is it refered to as 3D ? It's flat so is it not isometric projection? Another dumming down by techies in ''Merica ?

Naw, techies never get anything wrong

Dave

Dave , your spot on with your patient explanation in response to my mini rant. Just don't get me started on router or airplane.

[Gary WoodingParticipant @garywooding25363]

I downloaded SE-CE2020 a few months ago, and it installed OK on my Win10 Home system. I've just downloaded the 2022 version, but it won't install – something about a problem with my system. I then tried to install it again in order to get the exact words of the failure, but it installed OK after I'd removed the 2020 version.

???

[NealebParticipant @nealeb]

One minor moan is that because you have to uninstall SE2021 to install SE2022, you also lose any custom settings – like where you keep your files on disk. Didn't investigate whether there is a config file somewhere that you could manually save across uninstall/install, but it's shame that it does not do this for you. I expect that comes with the £2K/year version!

I'm currently using SE2022 to create my models, then exporting via STP format to F360 to use its CAM. So far, it's worked well.

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

Posted by Gary Wooding on 15/11/2021 13:39:01:

I downloaded SE-CE2020 a few months ago, and it installed OK on my Win10 Home system. I've just downloaded the 2022 version, but it won't install – something about a problem with my system. I then tried to install it again in order to get the exact words of the failure, but it installed OK after I'd removed the 2020 version.

???

To avoid accidentally trashing computers, software installers usually do some form of pre-flight checks, such as:

• Operating system compatible
• Permissions OK
• Processor Compatible and fast enough
• Graphics Card & display good enough
• Sufficient RAM and disc space
• Network connection available if needed
• Compatibility with other software on the machine
• No Licence or Registry conflicts
• Software and hardware dependency checks

A package refusing to install might be a very good thing. Manually cleaning up after an inappropriate install is an awful job.

Noting that SE is a big beast (7.5Gb) expecting an up-to-date platform, not a simple low impact install on a domestic computer, I suspect removing the previous version did one or more of: releasing enough disc space for the install to complete safely; cleared out incompatible libraries, stopped a service, cleaned up the registry, or solved a licence issue. We shall never know.

I recommend checking there's enough disc space before attempting a monster install. Also, eyeballing the vendors minimum requirements might show its not worth trying because the machine needs more RAM, or an O/S upgrade, or a different graphics card. No point trying to load a package on a Celeron based Windows-XP machine if the vendor says it needs W10-Pro and an 11th generation CPU!

On the other hand it is worth ignoring 'Not Supported' warnings. These usually mean the vendor has no idea how well or badly his software runs on your antique, and doesn't want to know. Your problem if it goes wrong, not his! However, quite often new software works OK on older kit with only minor bugs – worth trying, but don't bet the farm on it!

Dave

[John HaineParticipant @johnhaine32865]

Well, I managed to generate a "Daisywheel" cam in CamBam (which has tool for generating cycloidal reducers), import the profile into SE22, and extrude it as a part 1.6mm thick. Not bad for me considering I only started viewing the tutorials yesterday…

[NealebParticipant @nealeb]

Not just for CNC machining – I needed a helical gear, 14T but odd pitch, to use with the thread dial indicator on my metric leadscrew lathe. I actually generated the outline using an online tool as a DXF file as I had not seen that SE can generate involute gear forms directly at that point. Only problem was thinking that the "helical" function was the right one to generate a helical gear. Oh no it isn't! You actually need "loft" to extrude the profile sketch, and this allows you to add a twist at the same time to give the helix angle on the teeth. Great subject for 3D printing – low loads/speed/wear expected – so exported an STL file to print. It made creating the keyway a simple job as well.

It's interesting that while almost all users will use the same small subset of the modeling/sketching functions, what you do with the other 95% of the application's capabilities depends a lot on what you are looking for – most people won't need the gear generation or frame creation facilities, for example, so it's easy to miss the fact that things like that exist.

[Nigel Graham 2Participant @nigelgraham2]

An interesting problem, developing and printing a helical gear, but from a purely manufacturing aspect would a straight-tooh wheel work just as well if the indicator is canted at the helix angle? It is transmitting neglible power so putting negligible load on the lead-screw thread.

[John McNamaraParticipant @johnmcnamara74883]

Hi Nealeb

The link below may possibly interest you?
Gearotic is a suite of tools used to create all sorts of gears standard and exotic!, Clock escapements, Bolts and and other parts.

Developed by Art Art Fenerty and Bob Landry, Who created Mach 3 CNC.
It is not free and costs 120 US dollars. (For a lifetime licence with free updates forever)

**LINK**

I have no connection with the company apart from having bought my copy maybe ten years ago and updating it as new versions come along. What I can say is it works well. a bargain if you have a use for it.

[NealebParticipant @nealeb]

Thanks for note about Gearotic – it's always looked interesting but a bit too expensive for a toy! I have plenty of toys on the list to get first…

Helical gear needed because the TDI body is fixed – and this is a Smart and Brown machine, built like a battleship (the TDI body is something like 2x1x1 cast iron) so no chance of swinging it. And it was an interesting exercise, even if a friend did point out that for this job, a bit of brass sheet with rough teeth round the periphery would have done it. Now I have the 3D model, even if it does wear, it's only minutes to make another one with negligible effort.

Coming back to SE – I did have a play with the gear generator afterwards, although it took a bit of doing. Seems that you actually have to generate a pair of matching gears (so it's done in the "assembly", not "part", environment), and then it starts getting complicated. In an effort to be useful, the process gets bogged down in tooth load calculations, so it sits and sulks until you put in a combination of gear material, speed, and power transferred, that it believes to be acceptable. Printed PLA is not on the list of materials, I was astonished to see. I did figure out in the end that miniscule power at quite a high speed lets you concentrate on useful data like non-integer module pitch…

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