3-D design software gets real — real enough to replace a year of expensive prototyping with 12 weeks of virtual prototyping:
Welcome to the cutting edge of product design. At its heart is the same kind of computer programs that architects and industrial designers have used for years to create 3-D models of their projects. But a new generation of software has added physical dimensions such as mass, friction, and tensile strength so designers can see not just what their projects will look like but how they will actually work.