What's Up With Russia And Modeling Kernels?

Looks like Russian CAD vendor ASCON, developer of KOMPAS-3D, has decided to follow Dassault Systemes by letting other software developers license its home grown modeling kernel. According to this press release:

The main feature of ASCON kernel is that it is complete. The core of C3D combines everything necessary for the development of application solutions, as follows:

• C3D Modeler is the geometric modeler with functions for 3D solid and hybrid modeling, sketching, and 2D drawing
• C3D Solver is the parametric constraints solver with functions for creating and solving parametric constraints on 2D and 3D geometry
• C3D Converter is the translator module that reads and writes geometric models in all primary exchange formats

Here is a video that gives a very brief overview.

Actually I initially confused this piece of news with something I read about recently. Something about a “Russian National 3D Kernel”. According to this isicad post by Dmitry Ushakov:

…the Ministry of Industry and Trade and of the Russian Federation announced a tender for research and development works on “Developing Russian Licensable Software – a Mathematical Kernel for 3D-Modeling as a Basis of Computer Systems for Computer-Aided Design of Complex Engineering Products”.

The article continues…

The tender was won by “STANKIN” Moscow State Technological University – a Federal State Budgetary Educational Institution of Higher Professional Education, and LEDAS became one of subcontractors.

So if I understand this correctly, LEDAS is going to help build a completely new “Russian” modeling kernel and ASCON has just started licensing their own C3D modeling kernel. Looks like the Russians have finally woken up to the world of 3D software component technology.

KOMPAS-3D