1 Tools, Features, and Capabilities

1.1 Fold Mirror Tool Fixes

Fold your system to fit within tight, space-constrained assemblies.

A legacy tool in need of maintenance, the Fold Mirror Tool offers users a way to simulate their environment and place fold mirrors that allow their optical product to fit in tight space-constraints. An overhaul of the tool addressed all known errors to make it less buggy for users. This important update also positions the Fold Mirror Tool for greater additional functionality in the future.

Fold Mirror Tool fixes include:

• Fold mirror uses “MIRROR” material instead of taking on optical properties from nearby components.

• Error messaging relating to the Fold Mirror Tool has been streamlined.

• Ensuring ray footprint boundaries are applied on all components when a fold mirror is present, and the Ray Footprint Boundaries tool has been chosen.

• Giving a correct preview that matches the applied final component placement when a mechanical sub-assembly is present.

• Setting a correct default fold mirror size (radius) to equal the referenced maximum clear aperture divided by the cosign of the tilting angle.

• Any crashes no longer occur when making changes to the fold mirror tool settings.

• Mechanical components are correctly assigned in the Optics Manager whereas previously they would sometimes be mistaken for optical components and moved to the wrong section of the Optics Manager.

• Ensuring that the Simulation feature will ray trace through a system that contains both a mirror from OpticStudio and a new fold mirror placed using the tool in OpticsBuilder.

1.2 Equation-Driven Import Option

Equation-driven import now allows you to expose the equations that create the lens surface.

OpticsBuilder imports lens geometries using their surface equation in the background and creates the parts using splines creating parametric part files. This new equation-driven import functionality will allow users to generate surfaces using these equations while exposing and tying the equation to the part file. This allows users to store their optical parts in a PDM and recall the equations used to create the part. The equation-driven surfaces now have more data and allow users to manipulate the surfaces, such as creating lens edges, with more ease. The equation driven import option is now available for standard, even asphere, odd asphere, binary 2, binary 2a, and off-axis mirror nonsequential component types.

1.3 Ansys Zemax Troubleshooter

Updated Ansys Zemax Troubleshooter.

In OpticsBuilder 2022 R2.02 we introduce an updated Ansys Zemax Troubleshooter that now allows an open text field for users to enter an explanation of their issue. This newly updated Troubleshooter tool also connects to the Ansys licensing to verify and eliminate any licensing issues which will speed up time to resolution.

2. Bug Fixes

OpticsBuilder 2023 R1 includes the following bug fixes:

• Off-Axis Mirror – The lens geometry did not change when the radius of the off-axis mirror was modified from 0 to another value through the Edit Optical Properties window.

• Detector Preview – The preview function was not showing the correct detector type after was changed in the Edit Optical Properties window.

• Optomechanical component appearance – If a user makes changes to an optical component using the CAD tools, it changes designation from optical to optomechanical. If the user then exported the .ZBD file and re-imported the .ZBD file, the appearance of this part was changed.

• Simulation precision – When changing the precision settings for a Simulation, the image on the detector was not updated.

• Boundary Rays – The Boundary Rays were hidden after closing and adding a new .ZBD file into Creo without using the Creo function “Erase Not Displayed” to clear the local workspace.

• Import stops occasionally – We have fixed an issue where, on occasion, OpticsBuilder would stop importing and would show a red “x”. The user would have to restart Creo to allow OpticsBuilder to import.

• Simulation Results not updating – Some users were experiencing a scenario where they would make modifications to the mechanical annulus, run a Simulation, and not see updated Results that accurately reflected the modifications. The Simulation tool now updates and displays correct results every time.

• Schmidt-Cassegrain sample issues – Our Schmidt-Cassegrain sample file was having an issue where the material would change upon .ZBD export from OpticsBuilder. It also caused random crashes when importing the sample file into OpticsBuilder. Both issues are now resolved, and the sample file has been updated.

• Optics Manager and Ribbon disabled – If a user removed an inserted optical assembly, the Optics Manager was disappearing, and the top Ribbon menu was grayed out. We have ensured that the Optics Manager remains and only the optics are deleted when removing an optical assembly. We have also ensured that the top Ribbon menu remains active.

• Creo stalls without OpticsBuilder license activated – If a user had installed OpticsBuilder but didn’t have an active OpticsBuilder license, clicking on “About OpticsBuilder” would cause Creo to stall. This issue is now resolved.

• Generate Report window – When opening the Generate Report window, it would hide in the background. The Generate Report window now stays open in the foreground.

• Update OpticsBuilder – In About OpticsBuilder, if a user clicked on “Check for Updates” an error message appeared. The “Check for Updates” button is now functioning correctly.

3 Announcements

ISX scattering will be deprecated after 2023 R1 release

The ISX scatter libraries will be removed from OpticsBuilder following the 2023 R1 release, as these libraries rely on obsolete Microsoft components that could potentially introduce IT or security vulnerabilities in the future. New BSDF scatter libraries will be made available in OpticsBuilder in a future release, based on a format that can be easily updated and maintained in a secure manner.