This describes an older ST-Developer release (2015). You can find the details for the latest release here

Service Pack 3 Overview — 2015-09-23

This release is the latest service pack with cumulative patches for ST-Developer v16 and new features to simplify work with CAD, CAM, and BIM data. Contact us at info@steptools.com to get the latest updates.

This service pack includes new features and improvements in the following areas:

Visual Studio 2015

Beginning with Service Pack 3, we now include libraries and DLLs for use with Visual Studio 2015. ST-Developer for Windows continues to support older versions as well, with libraries for Visual Studio 2013, 2014, 2008, and 2005. We plan to retire support for Visual Studio 2005 in the next full release. Please contact us if this will affect your development. Set your library link path to one of the following to use the new libraries.

STEP Check and Browse

STEP Check

The new stpcheck combines checking and browsing in a single tool. It can analyze STEP file contents and print reports like previous AP checkers, but now you can move beyond batch operation to interactive viewing using the built-in web server.

This tool is integrated into the Windows file explorer, so you can just right click on a file and select "Check STEP File" from the pop-up menu. It will start a local web-server and launch your browser. From there, you can build instance graphs, follow links forwards and backwards between objects, see the range of types in the file, look at the EXPRESS schema definitions, and browse STEP files that are hundreds of megabytes in size!

The stpcheck tool fully recognizes all common STEP schemas (AP242, AP214, AP203, STEP-NC) and can read and recognize the common parts of unusual STEP files. Since the user interface is just any web browser, the tool works on all ST-Developer platforms!

Geometric Tolerances

STEP Tolerance
A Simple Flatness Tolerance

STEP CAD models now hold geometric tolerances associated with faces. The release of AP242 updated the tolerance definitions with many more options and extra parameters. We are working hard to help you easily navigate the details to create or analyze tolerances.

The latest libraries have a new API for simple handling of tolerances. The API has several functions for creating them, finding their type, getting, and putting all of the extra parameters that they can have. This is much simpler than trying to use the ANDOR C++ classes for each type.

The previous approach for working with tolerances was not practical because it required classes for each of the 259 possible AND/OR combinations, plus code in your application to pick between them. The class libraries now have only a few basic ANDOR combinations for modifiers and datums.

STEP Tolerance
Surface Profile with All Possible Extra Parameters

Other STEP Enhancements

IFC
Faceter
AP242 Tesselated Model Saved from Mesh
Mesh created by STEP-NC Simulator

We continue to improve the STEP Faceter library with better AP242 handling, more geometry, and faster speed. We also have the latest definitions in our STEP CAD and STEP Manufacturing AP libraries!

IFC BIM Faceter

IFC Faceter

We are adding a new IFC Faceter library that makes viewable meshes from IFC data, just like our STEP Faceter does for STEP. We have also improved the IFC BIM library to move between IFC2x3 and IFC4 with greater ease!

We are also working on a new .NET API for building IFC tools. It has the same power as our C++ API, but can be used directly from C# or Visual Basic. Contact us if you are a customer who wants early access for testing!

IFC Check and Browse

STEP Check

The new ifccheck is a combined checking and browsing tool for IFC files. Like stpcheck, it can analyze IFC file contents and print reports and do interactive viewing using the built-in web server.

This tool is integrated into the Windows file explorer, so you can just right click on a file and select "Check IFC File" from the pop-up menu. It will start a local web-server and launch your browser. From there, you can build instance graphs, follow links forwards and backwards between objects, see the range of types in the file, look at the EXPRESS schema definitions, and browse very large IFC files!

Math Library

ROSE Math Library

The ROSE Math Library is a new addition to ST-Developer that contains functions for working with vectors, transforms, meshes, unit conversions, and other operations common to engineering data. There is nothing in here that is specific to an information model (STEP, IFC, CIS/2, DSTV, etc) so it can be used in any program that uses the ROSE library.

This library gathers together and documents math code that existed in the STEP Tools® libraries for STEP, IFC, and other engineering data and then removed depencencies on specific EXPRESS schemas. The result now contains the base definitions for the for mesh structures used by the STEP and IFC Faceter libraries. It also has a full range of vector arithmetic and coordinate system transform functions, unit conversion, and bounding box resources.

The STEP Faceter, IFC Faceter, and STEP helper function libraries now use the mesh, transform, bounding box, and unit data types provided by the ROSE Math library. As a result, you may need to change some symbols when updating code that used the earlier definitions.

General Updates

The core ST-Developer APIs are stronger after stress tests with thousands of the most abusive files that Microsoft and our corporate customers could make. We are also preparing for the future third edition of the STEP file format!

Service Pack History

The changes described above are cumulative to date. The details of earlier releases are archived below for historical reference.

The sub-package versions used in the current release are as follows:

Package		SP1	SP2 	SP3
-------		---	---	---
ifcbim		v16.0	v16.2	v16.4
ifccheck	  - 	  - 	v16.2
ifcmesh		  - 	v16.3	v16.6
p28lib 		v16.0	v16.0	v16.1
roselib		v16.1	v16.2	v16.5
rosemath	  -	  - 	v16.5
sdailib		v16.0	v16.0	v16.1
stix		v16.1	v16.3	v16.5
stixmesh	v16.9	v16.13	v16.21
stpcad		v16.1	v16.5	v16.8
stpcheck	  - 	  - 	v16.10
stpman		v16.1	v16.5	v16.8