Machine Design/Prototyping Software?

[Monolith2]

Let me begin by apologizing for my ignorance. I just followed a link here from mobileread.com to a topic on a book scanning device, and my knowledge of engineering is just about nonexistent. I feel a bit out of my league on these forums, but since you all seem quite knowledgeable, I suppose this is the perfect place to ask for some advice!

So, I have some tentative ideas which might help solve some of the problems that many DIY book scanning devices have. Unfortunately, my industrial design experience extends as far as stick figures and uneven lines drawn on scrap paper. Is there any sort of software available to let me design a digital representation of the device in my head? While I'd like it to be simple, I'm hoping for something a bit more engineering-oriented than photoshop. Photoshop can provide a nice visual, but I'd also like something that can keep track of various mechanical forces, power use, sensor placement, etc.

Basically, is there any engineering software that's abstracted enough for a layman to use?

[Alexires]

It has been a long time since I have used a CAD program, but I have had some success playing around with Rhino CAD. Not too hard to teach yourself how to do some cool things.

There is also Google SketchUp which is free, and allows for the making of simple models relatively easily.

[festergrump]

I never had any such luck with either of those programs, I'm afraid. The best way to do it is to do it right and get into ACAD. With 1/2 hour tutorial from a former coworker I was able to design just about anything I'd like in 2D. Setting up your tools is a major plus in this adventure, and once you understand what the tools do and how to utilize them... you're good to go.

3D is another adventure, sorry to say. It may require some schooling...

[megalomania]

I made the plunge to teach myself a 3D CAD software, and I ended up using SolidWorks because there was more training material available that for Autocad. If I would have known about Sketchup before I started learning SolidWorks, I may have used it instead. Sketchup has more “regular” users, meaning normal people with ideas, not professional engineers.

I now find Sketchup to be incomprehensible and underpowered compared to SolidWorks. I spent a lot of time and effort just figuring out the basics of SolidWorks because it has a VERY steep learning curve. I am not about to throw that away and start over. Besides, Sketchup pales in comparison to SolidWorks, feature wise.

Using SolidWorks to design something like a deck or home addition is a little overkill considering Sketchup has some handy presets for working with lumber. Of course anything Sketchup can do, SolidWorks can do better plus 10x more (albeit it is much harder to use).

I don’t know if 3D modeling software has the capacity to accurately reproduce features such as distances and part dimensions. That software is more for show than for substance. I find the feature of having SolidWorks measure the distances and angles of my parts to be invaluable when designing something. It really has helped me bring some ideas alive that I never would have been able to conceive of mentally or on paper.

I wish SolidWorks had a “dumbed down” interface that handled some of the more plausible designs a basic user would want to incorporate. I know this will never happen because SolidWorks is so expensive that there is no market for basic users. Sketchup, on the other hand, has basic users as its core market. I am sure given enough time, and the financial backing of a deep pocket like Google, that Sketchup will be more than a match for all other CAD software.

An active open source user community will insure Sketchup becomes a trendsetter, but only as long as Google keeps it free. If they try to monetize it, or restrict it, or otherwise hamstring it in any way, it will die a fiery death. It is unlikely that Google will continue to fund this software for free. Sooner or later they will only develop the expensive pro version, and that will be the end of Sketchup. Meanwhile SolidWorks will still be around, bigger and better than ever.