Autodesk Inventor

Introducing Autodesk Inventor category

Autodesk Inventor are perfect for: engineering companies and organizations, mechanical designers, product developers, manufacturers

With Autodesk Inventor  you can:

• Design and test 3D parts and elements
• Create drawings for assembly and production
• Build and analyze complete mechanical systems with integrated simulation

Main benefits:

• Comprehensive visualization, illustration, and animation tools.
• Rules-based design and automation tools that speed up the workflow.
• Extensive support of file translation allowing opening 3D models’ files created in 3rd party software.
• Customizable interface to fit the look of the program to your needs.
• Highly efficient process of getting data from design to manufacturing thanks to the possibility to include fabrication instructions directly in 3D models.
  
  

Please note: The Inventor products that we offer can differ as newer releases usually come with additional features and improvements of the already existing ones. The following description focuses on one of the latest perpetual products – Inventor 2020.

Introducing Autodesk Inventor 2020

Autodesk Inventor 2020 allows you to create, simulate and visualize 3D product designs with professional-grade engineering tools. It helps you build highly accurate virtual models and validate the form and functionality of your design as you work, which minimizes the need for testing by using physical prototypes.

This Autodesk Inventor release has been chosen as a sample product, so that you have an idea what is possible to do with the program. It is important to note that the availability of Inventor versions and editions changes a lot, so we can’t guarantee you will be able to find this particular product in our current offer.

With Autodesk Inventor 2020 you can:

• Enjoy professional-grade 3D parametric, freeform, and direct modeling  for different types of designs
• Preview how will your designed product behave in real world thanks to motion simulation  and stress analysis  tools
• Directly import non-native CAD and BIM data  without the need for file translation
• Generate exploded views  that decompose an object, so that every used element is clearly visible
• Make use of dedicated tools for sheet metal  and structural frame design

What’s new in Inventor 2020?

Improved User Interface (UI) and workflow
Streamlined part modeling, smart sketch profile detection, multi-monitor workflow support, new light theme and more!

User Experience Improvements
Frame Generator, Solid Sweep, surface unwrap and flattening command, Inventor Read Only Mode, Enhanced Migration Utility and several more features which were implemented based on community feedback.

New functionalities for existing tools
Faster import, navigation, patterning, Tube & Pipe route edits, and expanded Express Mode functionality, now including Skeletal modeling workflows.

Multiple additional fixes for improved stability and quality.

Minimum hardware requirements

Processor: 2,5 GHz
Memory: 8 GB
Hard Disk Space: 40 GB
Graphics: DirectX 11 graphics processor; 1 GB GPU; 1280×1024 screen resolution
Operating system: Windows 7 SP1, Windows 10 (64-bit only)

Please keep in mind that the minimum hardware requirements differ significantly between Autodesk Inventor versions, that’s why you should always check this information in the product detail of a specific product.

What is the difference between Inventor and Inventor Professional?

The differences between Inventor (Standard) and Professional remained roughly the same over the years. You can see a basic overview of some of the main ones in the table below. If you would like to learn more about the mentioned features, just click the one you are interested in and the link will take you to the feature description.

Feature	Inventor	Inventor Professional
Finite Element Analysis
Dynamic Simulation
Electromechanical design
Complete Plastic Mold Design
Cable & Harness Design
Tube & Pipe Design

Inventor vs Inventor Professional – feature details

Finite Element Analysis (FEA)
FEA helps to predict how a product will behave in real-life conditions. That way you are able to see how your designed product will withstand the test of time. The FEA feature can predict reactions to e.g. heat, vibration, mechanical stress, electrostatics, or fatigue of materials, allowing you to take all these elements into consideration even before turning your product into a real physical object.

Dynamic Simulation
Preview and analyze how your designed assembly will move by defying mechanical joints and by adding forces (both internal and external) on required parts of the tested object. That way you can discover issues that you otherwise wouldn’t be able to notice, or find new ways to make your design even more efficient.

Electromechanical design
Combining electrical and mechanical designs can be quite challenging, especially if the electrical and mechanical designers need to work on both simultaneously. The Electromechanical design feature in Autodesk Inventor Professional enables importing electrical schematics from AutoCAD Electrical to your 3D models and synchronizes data in real time, allowing everyone working on the same project to always see the latest version of the design.

Complete Plastic Mold Design
Use intelligent tools and catalogs of mold designs to create accurate product designs for manufacturing. The comprehensive set of tools allows you to not only use pre-defined molds, but to create your own while providing many different features and analysis to ensure the proper usability and endurance of your product once it’s transferred from a virtual model into a real, physical item.

Cable & Harness Design
Cable & Harness Design brings the possibility to place and edit wires and cables, define their routing paths, or document the whole harness assembly including drawings, connectors etc.

Tube & Pipe Design
With Tube & Pipe Design feature you can make use of special tools for routing rigid pipes, bent tubes, or flexible hoses that are available in the assembly environment.

Autodesk Inventor vs AutoCAD

What is the difference between these two products?

AutoCAD  is the best choice for industry professionals looking for general-purpose software to create 3D models and 2D drafts. Inventor  is meant for engineers and designers who create parts, assemblies, and drawings for mechanical design and manufacturing. If you’re still not sure which product better fits your needs, have a look at the following table to help you decide.

* Depending on the Inventor edition