‘Time’ for May’s Inventor of the Month
Published Thu 28 May 2009
As many as 400 moving parts are contained within a Ulysse Nardin watch, producing the complex movement now takes half the time using a 3D model in Inventor.
It used to take the Swiss manufacturer of fine mechanical watches four years to develop the complex insides of a new watch. However, the process has been cut in half using Autodesk Inventor software, winning Ulysse Nardin Autodesk’s Inventor of the Month title for May.
Few products pack so much mechanical complexity into such a small area as fine watches. Working with a 3D model in Inventor, Ulysse Nardin designers can visualise how the gears and springs fit with other components as they design. This capability makes it much easier to identify and fix interferences early in the design process.
“Having a clear 3D view is a significant advantage,” said Loic Pellaton, technical manager at Ulysse Nardin. “Autodesk Inventor helps us to place parts and explore different options very quickly. It has significantly accelerated the most complicated aspects of watch design.”
To help refine its watch cases, Ulysse Nardin designers also use Autodesk Showcase software to create accurate, photorealistic images of digital prototypes created in Inventor.
