<s>
Virtual	B-General_Concept
engineering	I-General_Concept
(	O
VE	O
)	O
is	O
defined	O
as	O
integrating	O
geometric	B-Application
models	I-Application
and	O
related	O
engineering	O
tools	O
such	O
as	O
analysis	O
,	O
simulation	O
,	O
optimization	O
,	O
and	O
decision	O
making	O
tools	O
,	O
etc.	O
,	O
within	O
a	O
computer-generated	B-Application
environment	I-Application
that	O
facilitates	O
multidisciplinary	O
collaborative	O
product	O
development	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Virtual	B-General_Concept
engineering	I-General_Concept
shares	O
many	O
characteristics	O
with	O
software	B-General_Concept
engineering	I-General_Concept
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
obtain	O
many	O
different	O
results	O
through	O
different	O
implementations	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
virtual	B-General_Concept
engineering	I-General_Concept
environment	O
provides	O
a	O
user-centered	O
,	O
first-person	O
perspective	O
that	O
enables	O
users	O
to	O
interact	O
with	O
an	O
engineered	O
system	O
naturally	O
and	O
provides	O
users	O
with	O
a	O
wide	O
range	O
of	O
accessible	O
tools	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Interaction	O
within	O
the	O
virtual	O
environment	O
should	O
provide	O
an	O
easily	O
understood	O
interface	B-Application
,	O
appropriate	O
to	O
the	O
user	O
's	O
technical	O
background	O
and	O
expertise	O
,	O
that	O
enables	O
the	O
user	O
to	O
explore	O
and	O
discover	O
unexpected	O
but	O
critical	O
details	O
about	O
the	O
system	O
's	O
behavior	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
key	O
aim	O
of	O
virtual	B-General_Concept
engineering	I-General_Concept
is	O
to	O
engage	O
the	O
human	O
capacity	O
for	O
complex	O
evaluation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
User-centered	O
virtual	B-Application
reality	I-Application
visualization	O
techniques	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
presented	O
in	O
a	O
familiar	O
and	O
natural	O
interface	B-Application
,	O
complex	O
three-dimensional	O
data	O
becomes	O
more	O
understandable	O
and	O
usable	O
,	O
enhancing	O
the	O
user	O
's	O
understanding	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Coupled	O
with	O
an	O
appropriate	O
expert	O
(	O
e.g.	O
,	O
a	O
design	O
engineer	O
,	O
a	O
plant	O
engineer	O
,	O
or	O
a	O
construction	O
manager	O
)	O
,	O
virtual	B-Application
reality	I-Application
can	O
reduce	O
design	O
time	O
for	O
better	O
solutions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Virtual	B-General_Concept
engineering	I-General_Concept
allows	O
engineers	O
to	O
work	O
with	O
objects	O
in	O
a	O
virtual	B-Application
space	I-Application
without	O
having	O
to	O
think	O
about	O
the	O
objects	O
 '	O
underlying	O
technical	O
information	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Usually	O
,	O
the	O
modules	B-Architecture
of	O
virtual	B-General_Concept
engineering	I-General_Concept
are	O
named	O
as	O
such	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
Computer-aided	B-Application
design	I-Application
(	O
CAD	B-Application
)	O
:	O
It	O
designate	O
the	O
capability	O
to	O
model	O
a	O
geometry	O
using	O
geometric	O
operations	O
that	O
can	O
be	O
close	O
to	O
real	O
life	O
industrial	O
machining	O
process	O
such	O
as	O
revolution	O
,	O
dressing	O
,	O
extruding	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
CAD	B-Application
module	B-Architecture
is	O
made	O
to	O
ease	O
the	O
generation	O
of	O
a	O
geometrical	O
shape	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
comes	O
usually	O
with	O
other	O
modules	B-Architecture
,	O
such	O
as	O
an	O
engineering	O
drawing	O
making	O
tool	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Computer-aided	O
manufacturing	O
(	O
CAM	O
)	O
:	O
Even	O
if	O
the	O
CAD	B-Application
provide	O
an	O
accurate	O
virtual	O
shape	O
of	O
the	O
objects	O
or	O
parts	O
,	O
the	O
manufacturing	O
of	O
these	O
can	O
be	O
far	O
different	O
,	O
just	O
because	O
the	O
previous	O
tool	O
just	O
dealt	O
with	O
perfect	O
mathematical	O
operation	O
(	O
perfect	O
point	O
,	O
lines	O
,	O
plan	O
,	O
volumes	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
To	O
take	O
into	O
account	O
in	O
a	O
more	O
realistic	O
manner	O
of	O
the	O
succession	O
of	O
manufacturing	O
operations	O
and	O
to	O
be	O
able	O
to	O
certify	O
that	O
the	O
end	O
product	O
will	O
be	O
close	O
to	O
the	O
virtual	O
model	O
,	O
engineers	O
make	O
use	O
of	O
a	O
manufacturing	O
module	B-Architecture
which	O
represent	O
a	O
tool	O
that	O
machine	O
the	O
parts	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Computer-aided	O
engineering	O
(	O
CAE	O
)	O
:	O
Another	O
aspect	O
is	O
integrated	O
in	O
a	O
Virtual	B-General_Concept
engineering	I-General_Concept
tool	O
,	O
which	O
is	O
the	O
engineering	O
analysis	O
(	O
finite	O
element	O
analysis	O
of	O
strains	O
,	O
stress	O
,	O
temperature	O
distribution	O
,	O
flow	O
etc	O
.	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
usual	O
that	O
the	O
CAE	O
modules	B-Architecture
software	O
dedicated	O
to	O
that	O
task	O
,	O
having	O
less	O
features	O
in	O
the	O
CAD	B-Application
aspect	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
modules	B-Architecture
can	O
exist	O
performing	O
various	O
other	O
tasks	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
prototype	O
manufacturing	O
,	O
product	O
life	O
cycle	O
management	O
,	O
etc	O
.	O
</s>
