Creationtwentytwo Posted February 3, 2011 Share Posted February 3, 2011 Hey all, Having a bit of a problem figuring out how best to approach a project I'm just about to start. Iv'e got some DWG's for the project, and normally I'd just trace right over them in Max/SketchUp, but for this project in particular, it's proving tricky. The problem I'm having is that the building is curved, and obviously this makes snapping a line to it pretty difficult. Not only this, but cutting windows in etc is becoming very difficult since the edges aren't 'aligned' on the inner/outer wall faces because of the curve. I'm sure some of you have experienced similar designs before so I'd love to know how you massed out the building shell/windows from DWG's with this kind of curved structure. Here's a shot of the GF of the building in question: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ismael Posted February 3, 2011 Share Posted February 3, 2011 Do not see any curves although not orthogonal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Creationtwentytwo Posted February 3, 2011 Author Share Posted February 3, 2011 The long front/rear walls are curved. I know they look straight between the windows but obviously I'd draw out the wall as one long curve and cut the windows out rather than model the wall in sections and build around the windows. The windows are all in fact straight, but the walls have a very definite curve. If you imagine a line running from the lower left corner to the opposing right corner, the arc is pretty apparent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Creationtwentytwo Posted February 3, 2011 Author Share Posted February 3, 2011 The long front/rear walls are curved. I know they look straight between the windows but obviously I'd draw out the wall as one long curve and cut the windows out rather than model the wall in sections and build around the windows. The windows are all in fact straight, but the walls have a very definite curve. If you imagine a line running from the lower left corner to the opposing right corner, the arc is pretty apparent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Thomas Posted February 3, 2011 Share Posted February 3, 2011 Using 2.5d snaps, I would just draw your arcs over the whole stretch of wall, then add an edit spline modifier and use refine to create the vertices for the windows. Repeat this method then attach your splines and extrude. You should now be able to use a combination of connect edges and the bridge tool to create your window openings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creasia Posted February 3, 2011 Share Posted February 3, 2011 If you can extend lines to create a pivot point at the radius of your arc this should help out a lot. Create all your goemetry in the center, and then rotate any cut objects and windows all using that pivot point. Use Adjust pivot/affect pivot only to adjust this, and then clone and rotate to your heart's content. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padre.ayuso Posted February 3, 2011 Share Posted February 3, 2011 I guess I'm OLD school on this, but I use box and trace over it, using the extrude method when I top a window. Then bridge over the two planes of the box (inside and outside) and geometry is perfect, no hassle. And I see the sketch and it does not seem to be a huge thing to do with box tracing, I have done worse. Anyhow, that's just one idea if you want to go that route. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Creationtwentytwo Posted February 3, 2011 Author Share Posted February 3, 2011 All great ideas, really appreciate the help, thanks guys. Padre.Ayuso; could you elaborate a little? I'm not 100% sure on what you're suggesting. Thanks again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padre.ayuso Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 Sorry, here we go. On the CAD Plan, I import it into one layer in my 3ds Max scene, usually a brand new scene. Then I go into wireframe mode and from the top view I create a box and convert into editable poly (this is now my walls). From there, I trace through the space plan, extruding and connecting edges where I meet a new wall or come across any windows. Then, when the walls are now all traced, I make horizontal lines across the walls to delineate the doors and the windows, then open them up. I feel I have to do some kinda of tut on this or give you some pictures cause I might not make myself fully clear (English is my third language...), so send me a private message to remind me when I have a few minutes. Cheers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Creationtwentytwo Posted February 4, 2011 Author Share Posted February 4, 2011 Thanks so much, that explains it perfectly. I just tried this method and it works great, the best thing is I can keep the geometry clean as I go and keep edges parallel through walls so pushing windows/doors through is simple. What I was concerned about was that the wall may become faceted using the box method but using autosmooth actually gets nice results. Thanks again for all the help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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