There are many differences between AutoCAD and Autodesk Inventor software. We’re going to take a look at five of the biggest and most apparent differences between the two products to make sure we’re off to a good start.

AutoCAD is "geometry-driven design"; Autodesk Inventor is "dimension-driven design." (A)
In AutoCAD, we create our geometry and then place our dimensions. If we make changes to the existing geometry, the associated dimensions update (hopefully!). Wouldn’t it be nice if you could change the value of the dimension and drive the shape and size of the part?

Well, that’s exactly how Autodesk Inventor works. You roughly sketch the part you want to create, and then you control the exact size and shape of the part with dimensions. Imagine how easy it would be to make changes to your part later by simply changing the dimension values. Need to change the length of a plate from 30 mm to 35 mm? Simply change the dimension! Why does Autodesk Inventor work this way and AutoCAD does not? Autodesk Inventor has the added intelligence of being a parametric modeler.

Autodesk Inventor is a feature-based modeler.
As you create your 3D parts, each extrusion, hole, chamfer, fillet, and so forth, is stored as an independent feature in the Autodesk Inventor browser. This makes it extremely easy to make changes down the road. If you decide that hole should have been 10 mm instead of 12 mm, it’s not a problem to make the change. In AutoCAD we often find ourselves deleting and re-creating a specific feature. Such changes in Autodesk Inventor are as easy as changing the dimension value.

Autodesk Inventor supports adaptivity.
One of the features that separates Autodesk Inventor from other 3D modelers is the ability to create adaptive parts. These smart parts maintain a physical relationship so that if you modify the geometry of the base part, the adaptive geometry knows to update as well. This could be as simple as creating a hole that adapts to the size of a rod. As you change the size of the rod, the hole gets larger or smaller to accommodate the new diameter of the rod.

Autodesk Inventor doesn’t use layers!
There, I said it—and if you can handle that concept, you’re a prime candidate to learn Autodesk Inventor. Let’s face it, none of us really likes dealing with layers in AutoCAD, but we’re forced to because of linetypes, lineweights, and so on. What if you could set up all your parameters once and have Autodesk Inventor automatically assign them to your parts from that point forward? Let the software do those tedious chores for you so you can focus on the important aspects of your design.

Autodesk Inventor was built specifically for the manufacturing industry. (B)
AutoCAD was built (nearly 20 years ago) to be all things to all people. It must take into consideration the needs of all disciplines: AEC, Civil, FM, Plant Design, and so forth. Autodesk Inventor was created with one and only one industry in mind—Manufacturing. From the ground up, Autodesk Inventor was built to think the way you think and act the way you expect it to act.

Last but not least—repeat after me—Autodesk Inventor is not AutoCAD! You will have a much happier life if you realize this early on and don’t try to equate the AutoCAD world and processes to Autodesk Inventor technology.

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