TraceParts supported Purdue University for their Mechanical Components Benchmark (MCB) research

Researchers at Purdue University’s School of Mechanical Engineering have used TraceParts API to have unlimited access to more than 120 million CAD models.

Saint-Romain, France, 8th January 2021 – A talented team of mechanical engineers from Purdue University in the United States has created the first comprehensive open-source annotated database of more than 58,000 3D mechanical parts, designed to help researchers apply machine learning to those parts in actual machines.

Ramani’s team experimented with visual search for parts in the early 2000s, but computing power and machine learning techniques were not yet sufficiently advanced. In the years since, researchers have learned that building a solid dataset is all about both quality and quantity.

The team started by partnering with TraceParts, one of the world’s leading providers of 3D digital content for engineering, in order to get unlimited access via TraceParts API to a extremely comprehensive data vault containing more than 120 millions of 3D CAD models from industrial parts. The team collaborated with the University of Texas, Austin assistant professor Qixing Huang to scour other databases for similar 3D models. They ended up compiling a database of 58,696 mechanical components.

Ramani’s team organized the parts by establishing a hierarchical taxonomy of 68 classes, based on the International Classification for Standards (ICS), a system of technical standards created and maintained by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).

The researchers have just recently published their open-source database, inviting computer vision and machine learning researchers to access it and create their own experiments. They showcased their work at the 16th European Conference on Computer Vision in August.

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a top public research institution developing practical solutions to today’s toughest challenges. Ranked the No. 5 Most Innovative University in the United States by U.S. News & World Report, Purdue delivers world-changing research and out-of-this-world discovery. Committed to hands-on and online, real-world learning, Purdue offers a transformative education to all. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue has frozen tuition and most fees at 2012-13 levels, enabling more students than ever to graduate debt-free. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap at https://purdue.edu/.

About TraceParts

TraceParts is one of the world’s leading CAD-content platforms for Engineering, Industrial Equipment and Machine Design, totaling 5.3 million registered members from 1.3 million companies actively sourcing product information and technical data from over 195 different countries.

As part of the Trace Group founded in 1990, TraceParts brings highly targeted marketing exposure to more than 800 customers of all sizes and from all industries, via powerful cloud-based API and SaaS applications such as CAD part libraries, product catalogs and configurators.

TraceParts’ comprehensive Digital Marketing Services help part manufacturers and distributors, 3D printing & rapid-prototyping suppliers, CAD/CAM/CAE/ECAD software and computer hardware vendors promote their products and services and generate highly qualified sales leads.

Available free-of-charge to millions of Engineers & Designers worldwide, the TraceParts CAD-content platform provides access to over 1.730 supplier-certified product catalogs and billions of 2D drawings & 3D CAD models and product datasheets that perfectly match the digitalization needs of Design, Purchasing, Manufacturing and Maintenance processes & operations, in virtually any industrial sector.