Solid Works vs. Inventor

[Elizabeth Waters]

Our team has over the past few years used Solid Works as its design platform in regards to CAD models of robot components. This year, we're investigating Autodesk Inventor as a possible software to use. There are a few options that we need to weigh before even considering switching over at all:


Ease of design/user interface.

One of our sponsors who aids in manufacturing custom parts for us uses Solid Works to design/manufacture such parts.

Mentors who assist in the computer design process only know how to use Solid Works. Though it seems as if Solid Works and Inventor are quite similar...

We'll be attending a training session later this week for the Inventor software, hopefully making some of these issues clearer.

Any thoughts? What has been people's experience with either piece of software and are they even as comparable as they appear?

[Chris is me]

I'm by no means a CAD expert, but Solidworks is much more intuitive to me than Inventor. More potential sponsors use their files natively than Inventor as well. The main drawback for me is that the rest of my team knows Inventor a lot better. I don't think you can really go wrong with either software. Neither will make or break your season IF you are adequately trained in it.

[Siri]

Our team uses Inventor, though mostly out of inertia/experience. I started with it as a student on the team (though admittedly not very rigorously), but now use SolidWorks in college almost exclusively. I have to say SolidWorks is a lot more intuitive for me. They are pretty similar, and someone competent in SW won't get lost in Inventor (if they're patient). The learning curve can be pretty painful sometimes, though, especially during build season. SW is also much more ubiquitous in both industry and academia, and employers tend to prefer proficiency in it.
File transfer can be iffy depending on exactly what you're doing as well, so watch out for that. We're trying to get in the habit of sending our manufacturing sponsors a pdf/jpg along with the CAD format they request, in order to avoid mistranslations.

Given your situation and the considerations you listed, I'd recommend sticking with SW. Personally, I can't see much reason to switch from SW to Inventor (the other way is more compelling), but if you identified some possible advantages I'd be happy to see if I can provide further insight (though I can't guarantee the quality).

[EricH]

It never hurts to learn Inventor. I find that (at least for Inventor 8/SolidWorks 2008) they are similar enough to pick up one from knowing the other, and a few tutorials. (It's Pro-E that I have a hard time with...)

But, given that you guys work in SW already, you may want to stick with that for designing, and port over to Inventor for stuff like the awards or animation.

[artdutra04]

If your sponsors and mentors know and use SolidWorks, use it. Constantly switching between file formats is annoying and can lose functionality (some CNC CAM post-processors that ease manufacturing only work with with certain file formats; the machine shop might have to redraw your parts if you use other file formats).

[Aren Siekmeier]

If your sponsors and mentors know and use SolidWorks, use it. Constantly switching between file formats is annoying and can lose functionality (some CNC CAM post-processors that ease manufacturing only work with with certain file formats; the machine shop might have to redraw your parts if you use other file formats).

I couldn't agree more. Stick with the one you have experience with, can get help with, and can export for fabrication. Of course, it doesn't hurt to learn Inventor as well. Enough teams use it that it would be helpful to be able to go back and forth across the platform difference with them. And maybe it has some advantages over Solidworks that you can use sometime down the road.

Our team has used Solidworks for the last 2 years, and I like it a lot. As Chris said, it's intuitive. I tried AutoCAD 2011 (not sure how that differs from Inventor) just recently and it kind of threw me off.

[Cory]

If you already know and use Solidworks there's really no reason to even consider switching to Inventor. Inventor is vastly less common in industry. If you're already working with a machine shop that uses Solidworks you'd only be shooting yourself in the foot by switching to Inventor.

It can't hurt to know how to use it, however.

[kinghashbrown]

Stay with Solidworks. I personally like the inventor interface more however my team uses Solidworks because the schools we come from use it.

Going back and forth between Inventor and Solidworks is a big pain.

Stick with what you got for ease of use.


I couldn't agree more. Stick with the one you have experience with, can get help with, and can export for fabrication. Of course, it doesn't hurt to learn Inventor as well. Enough teams use it that it would be helpful to be able to go back and forth across the platform difference with them. And maybe it has some advantages over Solidworks that you can use sometime down the road.

Our team has used Solidworks for the last 2 years, and I like it a lot. As Chris said, it's intuitive. I tried AutoCAD 2011 (not sure how that differs from Inventor) just recently and it kind of threw me off.

AutoCAD and Inventor are totally different. just made by the same company.
You should think about downloading Inventor 2011 and trying it. the 2011 release has many new features and I find it nice to work with.

Just my 2 cents.

[ThaineP]

I personally think that Inventor is better, but I only have experience with AI, so it may be a tad inaccurate.

I like the menu setup and view control in AI, but putting parts into assemblies is a bit complicated. (This is coming from someone who has only used Sketchup)

Anyway, Inventor is free, so I recommend it for new teams that are unlikely to get a sponsorship from Solidworks.


Thaine

[kstl99]

I really think that you should get Inventor. I assume you are a student and as such you have an opportunity you may not get later. You can get it free with tutorials and have support from the FIRST community even if your mentors are not familiar with it. I have seen more companies that use Solidworks but there are still plenty that use Inventor so knowing it may come in handy in the job market. The more you know the more valuable you become.

[R.C.]

Ease of design/user interface.

One of our sponsors who aids in manufacturing custom parts for us uses Solid Works to design/manufacture such parts.

Mentors who assist in the computer design process only know how to use Solid Works. Though it seems as if Solid Works and Inventor are quite similar...



A) Personally I like Solidworks interface, but both are equally nice depending on who are you. This should be decided by your team.

B) If one of your main machine shops already uses Solidworks, why shoot yourself in the foot like Cory stated earlier? We have a shop that does a lot of machining for us and its just nice being able to send them a Solidworks file.

C) If your mentors know Solidworks and are proficient at it, why are you bothering to switch?

A CAD program is relatively easy to pick up with prior CAD experience. If your looking at something to play around with, then sure why not get a free copy of Inventor. But it seems like your team has mentors that know solidworks and a shop that uses Solidworks. So I would stick with Solidworks if at all possible.

-RC

[Akash Rastogi]

A CAD program is relatively easy to pick up with prior CAD experience. If your looking at something to play around with, then sure why not get a free copy of Inventor. But it seems like your team has mentors that know solidworks and a shop that uses Solidworks. So I would stick with Solidworks if at all possible.

-RC

I too recommend Solidworks. My department at work is Pro/E based but is now switching over to Solidworks for all files (lucky for me, I hated using Pro/E).

Also, I completely agree with what RC stated here. The switch between Inventor and SW isn't really a big deal, and the new versions of Inventor are pretty similar in interface. The only one that really took me a while to learn after SW was Pro/E, but Inventor is a quick change.

.

[mplanchard]

I must disclose that I work for SolidWorks, before that I used SolidWorks in industry and in college along with 10 other cad software packages. I spent 5 years working for Computervision/Prime (now owned by PTC). CAD software changes - even SolidWorks changes from year to year. First, learn one cad system well, then it will be easier to adapt to others.

Let industry be your guide as to what cad tool to use.
Who are your mentors? What about the machine shop?
Try looking at Monster.com and the colleges and universities in your area.
Check out a local SolidWorks users group, there are 170+ http://www.swugn.org/ talk to other designers in your community.


If you would like to continue your SolidWorks sponsorship this year go to www.SolidWorks.com/SponsoredDesignContest. All teams will receive SolidWorks SustainabilityXpress - what other software allows you to determine your carbon footprint of a robot part in the same user interface?

And if your really want to focus on engineering don't forget about the math.

Marie

[Elizabeth Waters]

A) Personally I like Solidworks interface, but both are equally nice depending on who are you. This should be decided by your team.

B) If one of your main machine shops already uses Solidworks, why shoot yourself in the foot like Cory stated earlier? We have a shop that does a lot of machining for us and its just nice being able to send them a Solidworks file.

C) If your mentors know Solidworks and are proficient at it, why are you bothering to switch?



In reality, we have only one mentor who helps us with CAD models for the robot, and he comes from the sponsor corporation (Oceaneering) that helps manufacture our parts; this year, they actually manufactured nothing for us as it was not needed. Yet, after the Inventor training that we attended last week, it does seem as if SolidWorks is an overall better platform (and as many have previously stated, more widely used in industry). At this point, the only issue that we're concerned with is award submission being exclusively Autodesk; thus, we'd like to be proficient in Inventor for that reason. Still, with the basics down in Inventor and knowledge of SolidWorks, shouldn't be too bad to "transfer" our final design into Inventor.

Thanks for all the input!

[AdamHeard]

Please people, when someone makes a post like this they are asking for factual help.

I personally think that Inventor is better, but I only have experience with AI, so it may be a tad inaccurate.

I like the menu setup and view control in AI, but putting parts into assemblies is a bit complicated. (This is coming from someone who has only used Sketchup)

Anyway, Inventor is free, so I recommend it for new teams that are unlikely to get a sponsorship from Solidworks.


Thaine

If you only have experience with inventor, how could you possibly accurately say it's better?

My team has always received SW whenever we have asked, in fact, they give us more licenses that Autodesk has (although I've never asked Autodesk for more). I believe this year we asked for 35, and were given 35 a few days later with no hassle, questioning, etc.

I really think that you should get Inventor. I assume you are a student and as such you have an opportunity you may not get later. You can get it free with tutorials and have support from the FIRST community even if your mentors are not familiar with it. I have seen more companies that use Solidworks but there are still plenty that use Inventor so knowing it may come in handy in the job market. The more you know the more valuable you become.

All the same advantages exist for Solidworks; even more so actually (in the job market).

Personally, I prefer Solidworks (I've used inventor for 2 seasons, Solidworks for 2 season, and both for quite some time); it also clearly lines up better with your teams resources and structure.

[JD Mather]

... they give us more licenses that Autodesk has (although I've never asked Autodesk for more).

Virtually any student anywhere can download Inventor Professional for free from http://www.autodesk.com/edcommunity as well as most other Autodesk products. Almost 2 million members of the Autodesk Student Community.

[Mike Schreiber]

Virtually any student anywhere can download Inventor Professional for free from http://www.autodesk.com/edcommunity as well as most other Autodesk products. Almost 2 million members of the Autodesk Student Community.

Anyone with a .edu email can get a free copy of either software, they give them out like candy for "educational purpose" *cough* advertisement. Both companies are also willing to give teams enough licenses that everyone interested will be able to have their own copy.

I'm partial to Unigraphics (UG) NX5 (VERY similar to solid works), but it's not used a ton in FIRST because you can't get free licenses without doing any work like with solid works and inventor.

In my opinion UG & CATIA are used much more than solid works, although this is based on personal experience.

I'd be interested to see if anyone has any data on market share of different CAD softwares

Correct me if I'm wrong with this, but here's what the big 3 use:
GM: UG
Chrysler: CATIA as of now, but with their work with FIAT they've decided to switch to UG causing MANY suppliers to jump ship as well
Ford: CATIA, but uses Siemens (makers of UG) Teamcenter software for file management

As far as suppliers I've worked for:
Delphi: UG
American Axle & Manufacturing: UG

Stick to Solid works don't even bother with inventor. Inventor is rarely used for anything. I've really only even heard of it through FIRST. If you can, pick up UG or CATIA they're most likely to land you a job (more so than Solid works even)

[Chris is me]

Virtually any student anywhere can download Inventor Professional for free from http://www.autodesk.com/edcommunity as well as most other Autodesk products. Almost 2 million members of the Autodesk Student Community.

When you add that up, just counting the estimated number of students in FRC, Autodesk has donated the equivalent of $270 million in Inventor licenses. :yikes:

Thanks to both Autodesk and Solidworks Corp for their amazing generosity that makes inspiration possible. Just think of how hard your build season would be if you had to pay for either of these programs.

[JD Mather]

Anyone with a .edu email can get a free copy of either software....

Edu email will not be required when the student community comes back on-line. (actually an edu email was never needed, but did make it easier to join the Autodesk student community)

[mplanchard]

For SolidWorks software; you must apply for sponsorship at www.SolidWorks.com/SponsoredDesignContest

You have to fill out a form - we ask questions about your team. We ship DVDs to a school address, verify your FRC number, and supply all our analysis tools and access to take our CSWA certification exam to help in future job placement.

SolidWorks is extremely valuable and we do not have internet methods to download the student edition. We need to control these licenses and where they are installed for security.

I would review Monster.com and Aerotek.com and search by CAD company software. In school, you should know many types of software. I used to teach my student ProE, Autocad, and SolidWorks. If you want to work for Boeing or Ford, then I would learn CATIA. If you want to work for a consumer design company, biomedical company or industrial machinery compaa ny, I would be learning SolidWorks. With SolidWorks and CATIA software in your portfolio, you can quickly learn the others.


Marie

[Alex Whipple]

Personally, i'm an advocate for inventor. One basis for my opinion is that freshman from our school pick it up with ease, and get skilled with it quickly. Considering they give you the 2011 version in this years kit of parts, i would recommend giving it a try.

[NXTGeek]

I've used both pretty extensively, and I actually started with Pro-E. I have been to conferences that endorse one, not the other, for both Inventor and Solidworks. I will probably write this post with a bias, since I like Autodesk's marketing better, ao beware! :D For this post I am going to focus on Inventor.
I like Inventor's more extensive array of constraints during sketch mode, and how intuitive it is to make another dimension come off of another (ie (D42-31)/3) and have that dimension change with the appropriate variables. Also Inventor's sheet metal part is great to use, and full featured in a non-cluttering way. Inventor is great for looks, and hooks up with plenty of other products including iPad apps (this setup helped my team win Engineering Excellence last year) and renderers from Autodesk's suite. While many teams (the teams whose mentor knows Solidworks usually) have argued, both on CD and on person that Inventor "is less full featured and more dumbed down", I would argue that Inventor is more featured, and as Autodesk's flagship product it is paid much attention. Also, for job opportunities, right now the top dog is Solidworks. Before it was Pro-E. Before then were more lower-generation products that crashed often and were difficult to use.

On the other hand, Inventor crashed for me 10 times for every time Solidworks crashed, and this is on an i7 with 8GB memory and discrete graphics. Solidworks also runs smooth on older, less powerful computers. SolidWORKS. It isn't flashy, but it works. I think Solidworks is polished, well optimized, and simple to use for most of your assembly tasks. It is easy on the computer, no-nonsense interface that gets every part done as promised. Solidworks has a suite too, and while some of it I wish came with Solidworks integrated (looking at you, full-featured stress analysis software), the other part of it is more for enterprises than anything else.

I am using Solidworks to virtually build our robot this season. I am using Inventor for 2D sketches, and use it to virtually "design" our robot. I find it e trembly convenient to open up Solidworks files lossless and with mates/constraints in Inventor. Sadly the other away around (Inventor files -> Solidworks) doesn't work the same way, as the parts become unconstrained, solid IGUS part bodies. I see Inventor set to fulfil the spot as the next generation design tool for engineers because of the company's innovation to get CAD more about designing than drafting. I know I sound terribly pro-Inventor. If I where you, I would learn Solidworks if you are using Inventor right now. It's common sense to learn a very widely used product. Solidworks is taught in college and many many companies like it. But check out some of Inventor's next-gen features, like it's modeling-like sketching tools, it's gearing generator, it's analysis tools. Autodesk actually is developing this product, making it closer and closer to what they envision to be the future. Solidworks was bought by CATIA (the 500lb car company CAD gorilla), and less attention is being paid to it than to Autodesk's Inventor.

So that's my stance on Solidworks VS Inventor. I want to use a CAD solution that WORKS, and one that helps me design, rather than just model. At this moment, I would suggest this: learn Solidworks, and learn about Inventor's features (on YouTube, whatever) and decide wether you like them and can use them like I use them. Inventor is not "dumbed down," it's just that you need to know where the button is, and actually LEARN how to use the software. Learning Solidworks is not hard, but using Inventor without the hazy vision bias earns people IS hard. Luckily you don't have to choose now.

[Eaglesdrb]

Our team uses SolidWorks had has for the past 2 years with Inventor being our program of choice before that. Having used both I personally prefer SoildWorks just because of how it handles especially in Assembly.

They are both insanely powerful CAD programs so I really feel it is down to what fits your situation the best and personal preference. If your mentors know it and your sponsors work with it, keeping it will probably make your life easier.

While I am happy we switched to SolidWorks the first year using it was a bit of a hurdle especially as all our mentor and student experience up to that point was with Inventor. If you guys know SolidWorks well and are happy using it I'd stick with what you know.

Best of luck!

[TedG]

When you add that up, just counting the estimated number of students in FRC, Autodesk has donated the equivalent of $270 million in Inventor licenses. :yikes:

Thanks to both Autodesk and Solidworks Corp for their amazing generosity that makes inspiration possible. Just think of how hard your build season would be if you had to pay for either of these programs.
Here Here!!!
We use Inventor to design and build our robot, and it certainly makes a big difference on how efficiently and effectively we can work. I've heard Solid Works is similar but different. A lot of large manufacturing companies use Solid Works.

Search AUGI on the subject, and you'll get even more comparisons.

But yes, thanks to both companies for donating their software!

[Chris Fultz]

i would base the decision on these factors:

What does the school have and use that the students may already have access to and be learning? This may be Inventor if the school has PLTW.

What do the mentors leading the design team know and use. It is a program that can be downloaded for the team?

What does your primary machining source use (if you have one)? Do you need to be compatible?

There is not one solution that fits every team.

(We use inventor because it is on every machine in the school lab, the students are already using it, and we can easily download it on laptops where needed.)