About

Semantics is the study of meaning. In computer science, a “semantic gap” frequently occurs whenever ordinary human activities, observations, and tasks are transferred into a computational representation.

In a very similar way, engineers designing 3D models using CAD systems are facing a problem when searching for similar parts in a database and using alphanumeric-based search systems. This method is so unproductive that today, designers prefer to create a new part instead of using one that is already in inventory, for lack of being able to find it easily. The designer is facing a semantic gap; he search for SHAPE but has to provide ALPHANUMERIC characters to the search engine, hoping the model name will contain some and bring a few results. In order to find similar parts the designer has to become a database administrator.

3DSemantix has filled the gap and created semantics that allow one to search for similar parts using a 3D MODEL as input to the search engine, not alphanumeric characters. Our first product using this new semantics is a shape-based search engine: 3DPartFinder.

Operating 3DPartFinder is even simplier as any text search engine such as Google™, Bing™, or Yahoo™. You don’t have to find for the right key words to launch your research. A CAD file of a current part or a quick 3D sketch of the part you have in mind will do to launch you initial search. That’s it!