Vector provides two advanced new design software tools

Vector Fields announced the availability of two advanced new design software tools which reduce the entry costs to powerful electromagnetic CAE (computer aided engineering). The CAE packages open up the potential of virtual prototyping to much smaller electronics companies in the high frequency and RF sectors. It is said that typical benefits include shorter design cycles, lower manufacturing costs, and superior performance.

Both of the packages are variants of the company's new Concerto 6 software.

The first design tool, Concerto AS, is optimized for designing rotationally symmetric structures such as coaxial connectors. It simulates in two dimensions.

Concerto AS will simulate a coaxial RF connector's electromagnetic characteristics in typically less than five seconds. It achieves this speed by simulating an axisymmetric 2D slice from the 3D model of the component. This approach maintains compatibility with the full capabilities of 3D simulation software, allowing users to upgrade at any point in the future as the benefits of CAE are realized.

The second new tool, Concerto ES provides a generic 3D electromagnetic design capability. It comes with a three-dimensional finite difference time domain (FDTD) solver. This has broad ranging applicability and is suitable for applications ranging from the design of complex microstrip and waveguide devices, to developing portable communications products with multi-band operation or antenna diversity, to understanding signal propagation. The design flexibility of the package is not restricted. The low entry price is achieved merely by limiting the size of model that can be simulated, to half a million cells.

Kevin Ward, CEO, Vector Fields, said, "Investing in CAE is a step that can help companies to make revolutionary progress in design, rather than smaller-scale evolutionary steps. With entry prices now as low as under $5,000, we believe this opens up virtual prototyping to everybody-even enterprises as small as one."

Vectorfields