Tutorial Information & Registration
Information
Be sure to sign up for a
FRED
Tutorial! Spaces are filling quickly!
Click here to find information on our European Tutorials.
Click
here,
to find out more about the new Stray Light Short Course!
Click
here,
to find out more about the new Illumination Engineering Short Course!
Click
here,
to find out more about the new
Coherence in Optical
Engineering Advanced Tutorial!FRED
U.S. Tutorial Course Description
This course is a hands-on tutorial that is intended to provide new users
with an understanding of how to construct
FRED®
models, execute the raytrace, and analyze the results. In so doing, many
of FRED’s
extensive features and capabilities as an analysis tool will be demonstrated.
Examples will be constructed in real time and will include discussions
of both imaging and non-imaging (illumination) applications. This tutorial is the first three days of the
intensive 4 day tutorial course. The
fourth day is optional and costs an additional $495 and can be attended
separately. Please contact your Photon salesperson for more information.
Topics covered during the 3-day tutorial include: (Cost: $1400 for three full
days.)
- The
FRED Philosophy – Visualization is key to
understanding optical engineering problems
- Navigating the user interface including interface customization
-
Using
visualization features to create technically meaningful, visually stunning
graphics
-
Building
and modifying geometry using
FRED’s interface
-
Importing
geometry from lens design and CAD programs
- Exporting geometry and traced rays to CAD
programs
- Working with surface attributes including
coatings, scatter models, and raytrace controls
- Creating coherent and incoherent sources
- Using raytrace tools
including single, targeted
raytrace; sequential/non-sequential raytracing
- Constructing analysis surfaces and ray
filtering
- Computing irradiance, intensity
distributions; image formation; illumination analyses; power (throughput)
calculations; color images; polarization analyses; ghost image formation;
stray light analyses; thermal radiometry
- Digitizing coating transmission/reflection
plots, geometry, spectral weighting, and refractive index data
- Extending
FRED’s
capabilities using its compiled BASIC scripting language
- FRED
as automation client/server
Topics covered during the optional 4th day tutorial
include: (Cost: $1895 for four full days.)
- Relationship between
FRED and BASIC
compiler
-
Accessing
data with nodes and structures
- Reading and manipulating data
-
Basic
and advanced raytracing
-
Using
ray buffers
- Performing energy calculations
- Using pre-update and post-update scripts
- Mastering automation w/COM:
FRED as client or server
- Rastering calculations
- Using scripted entities

Instructor:
Richard Pfisterer, president of Photon Engineering and co-developer of
FRED optical engineering software. Richard has nearly 30 years of experience
using and teaching optical design and engineering software. With this much
experience to draw on, Richard can customize the tutorial content to the
specific interests of the attendees.
- These tutorials have been
crafted to help you get the most out of the
FRED
software. If at all
possible, schedule your travel plans so that you can attend all days!
- The optional scripting
tutorial offered on the 4th day is limited to attendees who are
proficient in the BASIC programming language.
- Attendance at each
tutorial is limited to 6 to 12 participants.
- Participants are
strongly urged to bring their own laptop computers. (Please let us know
if you need to rent a laptop from us so we can plan our resources
accordingly.)
- Hotel accommodations and
meal expenses are not included in cost of the tutorial. You are responsible
for those arrangements, but upon request we can help with suggestions.
- Depending on projected
attendance, we reserve the right to reschedule or cancel a tutorial up to
two weeks prior to the tutorial.
To make room reservations:
Call the CourtYard by Marriott, Tucson Williams Center at 520-745-6000 and
ask for Sales (ext 602). Please tell them that you will be attending the Photon
Engineering tutorial, and they will give you the
Williams Center rate.
Tutorial Dates for 2009:
Intensive 4 Day Tutorial in Tucson, AZ (attendees can optionally attend only the first 3 days
for $1400) - May 18th-21st, 2009
Intensive 4 Day Tutorial in Tucson, AZ (attendees can optionally attend only the first 3 days
for $1400) - July 27th-30th, 2009
Intensive 4 Day Tutorial in Tucson, AZ (attendees can optionally attend only the first 3 days
for $1400) - September 21st-24th, 2009
Intensive 4 Day Tutorial in Tucson, AZ (attendees can optionally attend only the first 3 days
for $1400) - November 9th-12th, 2009
Contact our Sales Department for details at 520-733-9557, and ask for Donata.
"Fantastic Course! Having a small group of
students and an expert instructor was great. Rich Pfisterer also brings
a lot of general optics (modeling) industry info which was interesting
to me."
Andy Huibers - Texas Instruments
"This (the FRED tutorial) was an outstanding introduction to FRED's
capabilities. After only 3 days, I'm able to build and import optical
systems, perform significant analysis, and output the results. FRED has
the shortest learning curve of any optical software I've ever
encountered!"
Beth Sornsin, Ph. D. -
Raytheon SBRS
"Most Straight Forward optical software ever. Think, draw, then
simulate results in FRED."
Yong Xie - NASA
© Photon Engineering LLC. All
Rights Reserved.