Apparatus and method for managing and distributing design and manufacturing information throughout a sheet metal production facility

A computer readable memory tangibly embodying a computer program, said computer program comprising instructions that are executable by a computer-based machine to perform a method for developing a sheet metal bending plan through the use of a graphical user interface, said bending plan being adapted for use in the production of a part at a facility, said method comprising:

• generating and displaying a bend sequence input window on a display device, said bend sequence input window comprising a 2-D flat image of said part;
• manually entering, in accordance with operation of an input device, a bend sequence based on said 2-D flat image of said part;
• generating and displaying tooling information on said display device, said tooling information relating to a plurality of tools;
• manually selecting, in accordance with operation of said input device, tooling based on said tooling information displayed on said display device;
• and
• storing, in a storage device, said bending plan for said part based on said entered bend sequence and said selected tooling;
• said method further comprising generating and displaying a plurality of images of said part on said display device based on said entered bend sequence, each of said plurality of images of said part relating to a representation of said part at a stage within said bend sequence.

A computer readable memory tangibly embodying a computer program, said computer program comprising instructions that are executable by a computer-based machine to perform a method for developing a sheet metal bend sequence through the use of a graphical user interface, said bend sequence being adapted for use in the production of a part at a facility, said method comprising:

• generating and displaying a bend sequence input window on a display device, said bend sequence input window comprising a 2-D flat image of said part;
• manually entering, in accordance with operation of an input device, a bend sequence based on said 2-D flat image of said part;
• and
• generating and displaying a plurality of images of said part based on said bend sequence entered in accordance with operation of said input device, each of said plurality of images of said part relating to a representation of said part at a stage within said bend sequence.