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All of the computational power in the world is not useful if the
user cannot easily interact with the software. Because lens design is almost entirely done with sequential surfaces, most, if not all, lens design programs have adopted a spreadsheet interface. While this works for the intended task, it does not provide a natural platform for developing system models composed of assemblies and subassemblies (in other words, hierarchical models), and does not scale well when the system has thousands of components. (We have worked on a consulting job with FRED where the system had over 20,000 surfaces! This would make for a very cumbersome spreadsheet!) |
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Other software have built interfaces that are essentially editors; geometry is defined by user-defined scripts and macros. These are powerful, to be sure, but require a steep learning curve to come up to speed and do not lend themselves to interactive engineering; the user must edit the script, run the script, observe the results, and then repeat the process until the required results are obtained. In a complex model, editing and rerunning the scripts becomes tedious and time consuming at best.
When we were developing FRED, we looked at other engineering disciplines and were impressed with the power and usability of commercial CAD software. Much of this software allows the user to build hierarchical models composed of logically (and physically) related assemblies and subassemblies that duplicate how the hardware will be implemented in the “real world”. We realized that this approach would facilitate the user’s interaction with FRED and so a tree control structure was adopted. (Conicidentally the immensely popular and powerful CAD program SolidWorks™ has an interface almost identical to FRED!)
Another aspect of CAD software that impressed us was the visualization: the ability to create photorealistic views of the system. While such views are invaluable when trying to communicate complex optomechanical and packaging issues, they facilitate understanding with non-technical people such as investors and marketing agents. To this end, FRED has a powerful rendering engine (developed by Photon Engineering staff) capable of visualizing virtually any surface.
The combination of the tree control (CAD-like) interface and real time visualization allows the user to quickly construct, analyze, and edit the FRED model with confidence. Inexperienced and/or infrequent users gain confidence in their modeling and analysis efforts because they can see exactly what is going on at all times. Experienced users can quickly navigate the user interface to develop a true understanding of the light propagation characteristics of their system while at the same time producing powerful graphics that communicate concepts to their peers. No other optical engineering software combines power and ease-of-use like FRED.
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