New release

Cortona3D releases RapidAuthor 11.0 with new publishing and authoring functionality for learning courses and with smart automatic update

6 September 2018

Cortona3D announces the latest release of leading authoring software in the areas of Spare Parts Catalogs, Assembly Work Instructions, 3D interactive Learning Courses, and Maintenance Manuals. RapidAuthor Version 11.0 upgrades not only the existing features for 3D and 2D graphics authoring and a better 2D image generation, but includes significant new features for authoring of S1000D learning courses and change management in technical publications.

Extended authoring functionality for S1000D learning courses

The out-of-the-box S1000D specifications support learning.XSD schema. It allows for authoring and editing of data modules specified for the learning plan, overview, content, summary, and assessment of the training.

Another extended authoring functionality for S1000D learning courses is included in new out-of-the-box specifications “S1000D 4.1 SCO” and “S1000D 4.1 SCORM Content Package”. The SCO data module allows compiling of one lesson of a training course based on references to fragments of any other S1000D 4.1 data modules. The reference to an illustration and a document fragment of another data module is created with a preview of the referenced fragment. The SCORM Content Package data module describes the training course and consists of a sequence of lessons.

The new RapidAuthor suite is enhanced with RapidPublisher functionality

RapidAuthor enables authors to compile and generate a learning course package compliant with SCORM  for use in an LMS as well as publish interactive training as a plugin-free HTML5-based publication. RapidPublisher v.1.0 functionality is applicable for the new specifications “S1000D 4.1 SCO” and “S1000D 4.1 SCORM Content Package”.

The latest version of the standalone RapidAuthor has a smart automatic update that enables synchronization of changes in engineering data with technical documentation

Smart Automatic Update enables companies to keep their parts catalogs, manuals, and work instructions up-to-date and create rapidly configuration-specific product documentation while spending fewer resources. The smart update algorithm compares and automatically defines the difference in initial and updated revisions of the assembly. The Update Wizard in the standalone version of RapidAuthor notifies the author about the changes and allows him/her to review, accept or reject them. The engineering changes are accurately reflected in technical publications – in 3D graphics, in a DPL table, in 2D graphics, in callouts, explosion views, and animations. All former manual edits made by the author remain unchanged.

Other important changes:

• The RapidAuthor for Teamcenter user interface is localized and delivered in 7 languages – English, German, French, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Russian.
• New authoring functions in RapidAuthor for Teamcenter – Get ICN, Reuse Illustration, and Insert Data Module Reference was added to the out-of-the-box S1000D 4.x specifications, allowing re-use of illustrations and document fragments from other technical publication projects in Teamcenter.
• 2D illustrations are generated with better quality by using normal-per-vertex information from CAD geometry.
• Improvements in parametric object editing include faster access to the settings and support of different shapes and text alignment in PanelText, PanelIMG, and Callout objects.
• Support of new CAD formats:  Catia V5 V5_6R2018, NX 12, Creo 5.0, Parasolid v. 30.1, Acis 2018 (R28), AutoCAD 2019, all versions of  Autodesk 3DS, Autodesk DWF, and others.
• Text-encoded CGM files can be also opened in Cortona3D software.

For more information about the product

Full list of new features →