The word kernel really has nothing to do with CAD software.
The kernel is the essential center of a computer operating system, the core that provides basic services for all other parts of the operating system. A synonym is nucleus. A kernel can be contrasted with a shell, the outermost part of an operating system that interacts with user commands. Kernel and shell are terms used more frequently in UNIX and some other operating systems than in IBM mainframe systems.
Typically, a kernel (or any comparable center of an operating system) includes an interrupt handler that handles all requests or completed I/O operations that compete for the kernel's services, a scheduler that determines which programs share the kernel's processing time in what order, and a supervisor that actually gives use of the computer to each process when it is scheduled. A kernel may also include a manager of the operating system's address spaces in memory or storage, sharing these among all components and other users of the kernel's services. A kernel's services are requested by other parts of the operating system or by application through a specified set of program interfaces sometimes known as system calls.
Because the code that makes up the kernel is needed continuously, it is usually loaded into computer storage in an area that is protected so that it will not be overlaid with other less frequently used parts of the operating system.
The kernel is not to be confused with the Basic Input/Output System (BIOS).
The 'kernel' in regards to CAD software is not much different than that of the OS. It is the core around which the application is designed.
ACIS - owned by Dasault, makers of Catia and Solidworks. Neither of these programs use it. It is primarily used by Autodesk and their solid modeling packages, Inventor and Mechanical Desktop. Catia uses a proprietary kernel.
Granite One - owned by PTC, makers of Pro/Engineer. Used since the beginning of Pro/E, but only reently marketed as a kernel. Primarily used to integrate third party applications into your working environment that will allow you to read a Pro/E file without owning a seat of Pro/E.
Parasolid - owned by EDS PLM Solutions, makers of Unigraphics and Solid Edge. Used by Solidworks, MSC, Gibbs, and others. It has a export/import capability that will allow sharing of the solid model between any system that uses the Parasolid kernel. Ben Loosli
CAD/CAM System Analyst
Ingersoll-Rand
717-532-9181
ben_loosli@irco.com
