I\'m looking for software similar to SolidWorks and CATIA for the Mac. I have tr

Question

I'm looking for software similar to SolidWorks and CATIA for the Mac. I have tried Cinema 4D R14 and Rhino (Mac OS beta release), but I'm a bit disappointed on the lack of parametric modelling (not sure if that's the right term).

For example: in SolidWorks I can define a hole depth and diameter which I can change later on without a problem. Same with fillets. Also I can make assemblies out of parts by adding constraints to surfaces, centre lines and edges.

I didn't manage to get similar behaviour in Cinema 4D or Rhino. While objects can be solids in Cinema 4D it lacks precise entity placement (I can not add constraints easily). Rhino does not use solid models, but relies on surfaces. While parametric modelling is possible using the plugin Grasshopper, it's only availabe for Windows.

So to summarise, I'm looking for a 3D modelling tool that can:

Add precise geometric constraints to entities
Add constraints between different parts
Precise modelling that is editable later on

It doesn't have to be free, but preferably it is of course.

Explanation / Answer

While Blender was a nice suggestion I found it quite similar to Cinema 4D. The parametric modelling features were based on plugins and not fully developed.

I did find FreeCAD which looks far more promising. The full feature list can be found here, but it looks very much as an open source SolidWorks. As this is a project in development there are probably quite some bugs (I did not encounter one yet) and underdeveloped features. However I hope this will be improved in future versions.

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