CAD Viewer

Overview

CAD Viewer offers two layers for 3D model and assembly visualization: (1) an external viewer registry that launches enterprise PLM/CAD viewers directly via URL/context (KISTERS, PTC Creo View, Teamcenter Visualization, 3DEXPERIENCE/3DPlay, Autodesk Viewer, SOLIDWORKS eDrawings, Onshape, and in-house viewers), and (2) a native 3D viewer where you drag a CAD file straight into the browser and view it through a HOOPS Exchange SDK based conversion pipeline.

Key Concepts

• Viewer registry — the list of supported external viewers; each is defined with a category, an integration mode (WebViewer API, file/URL launch, platform context) and the identifiers it supports (part number, revision, CAD document ID, PLM item ID). The "None / Data analysis only" option lets you run BOM reconciliation without using a viewer at all.
• Conversion job — the process of converting an uploaded CAD file into a browser-viewable format (GLB/glTF); tracked with staged progress (upload to server → geometry processing → format generation) and status polling.
• HOOPS Exchange converter — a real, working SDK integration (not a placeholder) that converts JT, CATIA, NX, STEP and other neutral/native CAD formats into browser-renderable GLB.
• Evidence snapshot — a visual record captured inside the viewer in the context of a part/issue; shared with Issue Management and BOM Intelligence.

Typical Workflow

1. Open CAD Viewer from the left-hand menu.
2. To connect to an external PLM viewer, select the relevant tool (KISTERS, Creo View, Teamcenter Visualization and so on) and launch it with the part/revision context (viewer launch).
3. Or upload a CAD file (JT, STEP, IGES, Parasolid, CATIA, SolidWorks, Inventor, Rhino, IFC, STL, OBJ, FBX, PRC) straight into the native viewer by drag and drop — for a SolidWorks assembly, drag the .sldasm together with all of its .sldprt files.
4. Follow the conversion stages (upload → geometry processing → format generation) on the progress bar; the model opens automatically when it is ready.
5. Select parts on the model; the selection synchronises with the corresponding row in the EBOM/BOM panel.
6. If needed, create an evidence snapshot or link the issue to Issue Management.
7. To try it quickly, load the demo assembly (Biodapt MOTO KNEE AND VF2 FOOT, SolidWorks) with one click.

Feature Reference

• External viewer registry: 9 viewer/integration options, launched with part/revision/CAD document/PLM item context
• Native viewer: broad CAD format support (JT, STEP/STP, IGES, CATIA, Parasolid, SolidWorks, Inventor, NX/JT, Rhino, IFC, STL, OBJ, FBX, PRC)
• Server-side conversion based on HOOPS Exchange: native CAD → GLB/glTF + metadata.json
• Staged conversion job tracking (job progress, SDK status polling)
• Demo assembly loading (one click, no conversion needed)
• Part selection ↔ EBOM/BOM row synchronisation
• Evidence snapshot creation and listing
• CAD loading from a path (load-from-path) — the integration point with PDM Vault

Constraints / Known Limits

• The external viewer integrations (Creo View, Teamcenter Visualization, 3DEXPERIENCE, Onshape and so on) are at URL/context template level; a real live connection requires the organisation's own viewer infrastructure and licence.
• Conversion time and memory usage grow with large assemblies; an LOD/caching layer should be added in the production phase.
• The HOOPS Exchange licence and SDK installation depend on the server environment; when the SDK is unavailable, conversion is disabled (check with sdk-status).