A data exchange framework for networked CAD/CAM

CAD/CAM systems are usually designed to work in isolated environment and not be able to communicate with each other. This causes waste of investment on both the hardware and software, and also causes inefficiency in product development. This paper proposes a framework to exchange data between different CAD/CAM users. The framework consists of four parts: client databases, an index server, a CAD data format translator, and a file sharing control module. The architecture can be either built on the Internet or on intranet of a company. The CAD data format translator is developed to translate files of different formats into the STEP format. Using this framework and the STEP translator, CAD/CAM users can share their design files in a convenient way. The networked CAD/CAM framework provides engineers a handy tool to implement concurrent engineering.