Software Solutions Running The World

We as a generation are on the verge of another giant leap towards the dependence on software to run our lives through automation, computerization, etc. Already it is on a tipping point with the help of Artificial Intelligence and other technologies like additive manufacturing, virtual reality, advanced designing software with the capability of real-time simulations etc. The embracing of Industry 4.0 is going to be both smooth and difficult in different quarters. The technologically advanced quarters of the industries will see it as an added advantage for integrating new software and technologies to further their growth and traditional quarters will have the difficulty in adapting to the new methods. The difficulty will become more due to the speed at which the technology integration will happen, which will leave the unprepared reeling behind and playing catch up for a long-long time. Once the large-scale integration and shift happens then from then onwards it would be like the fall of domino for other developments to come knocking around. Thus, those who were left out of the first train might miss a lot of the share of the pie of the growing market share.

Engineering Software solutions –

The gift of software to the world is becoming less evidently appreciated by the people due to the fact of it being part of our daily life and a constant companion to which we as people have become indifferent. The appreciation for software and the innumerable lines of codes have become less and less appreciated by the people today than the generation who saw the benefits for the first time. The engineering design software for example has helped change the future through the benefits derived by the use of it in designing solutions at a much faster pace and with less error-prone than of the traditional ways. The engineering marvel of flight simulators helping the pilots learn to fly, learning new aircraft technology, etc is in itself made possible through software written for it. The ability of race cars to be monitored from the team’s stations when going around the track in 250 Km/h or more is another marvel of the technology, software, sensors, etc. all working in tandem for an end result. Engineering design software makes it possible to build these race cars and refine them through the inputs received from the different sensors mounted on the vehicle and the computational ability of the latest computers and the direction from the software code directing the whole show. The engineering design software helps in the ability to have a perfect design but without a proper system to control the entire process from the design to production and then delivery, it might become a failure as the design didn’t result in the actual utilization for benefit to the cause. Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) software comes into play in these scenarios to enable the required result through the ability to monitor and control the entire process system. A traditional system without PLM can do the work but the efficiency achieved with PLM is unsurpassed through the traditional operating procedures. PLM eliminates the errors occurring due to carelessness from the human part or most of the human errors that enable it to be effective. Or the PLM at least highlights the human errors making it possible for corrective actions.

Artificial Intelligence & Virtual Reality –

Artificial Intelligence & virtual reality has gained a lot of mileage and are here to stay for good. These have the potential of creating a revolution on its own with its computational & software prowess. There is a lot of software using these advances in enhancing the existing capability of the software and others who are building new ones around these capabilities. Engineering design software stands to benefit greatly from these inclusions as the simcenter, PLM software, etc. and other simulation, design, and product development software has the ability to increase their potential with these of the AI and virtual reality to their existing line of software and also
developing new ones based around the use of the same. These all form part of the elaborate software web that runs our day to day life to the most advanced developments at NASA. The present software solutions have already been taken for granted by us all and are depending on it for various things in our daily life. This dependence on it has acted as the trigger for further developments and the fast pace of these developments.

Software Apocalypse –

Apocalypse is a term and notion that cannot be removed from the human mind. The software that has become part of our daily needs in different aspects is also part of the fear of a software apocalypse. This fear has different prongs and directions of which two of the most talked-about is of the takeover of the machines and the failure of machines. Both these fears have a valid aspect and an absurd aspect. The absurd aspect would be those that have been seen through fictional books and movies. The valid aspects are founded fears but with solutions created
through the same problems. The loss of jobs due to the takeover of the machines has the effect of creating new jobs that cancels out of the fear. But to get to the new opportunities the up-skilling of the manpower is a requirement. The failure of the system is much more serious as the solution might appear only after the problem has arisen. One of the classical examples would be the failure of emergency 911 phone line systems of Washington State in the USA for six hours on the night of April 10, 2014. The failure was due to a small error in the coding of the software which was identified and rectified. Still, the error had to happen before it was solved. Now though there are new studies in respect of these fears and might bring forth solutions But ultimately every solution will put forward new challenges and the engineers and software coders are always in pursuit of resolution for these challenges.