Unfold tool for SU models

[sepo]

It does the same thing as that Japaneese software. BTW Is there a way to refold the forms after unfolding?

[Gaieus]

@sepo said:

BTW Is there a way to refold the forms after unfolding?

Not that I know of - I bet you are thinking of a texturing possibility of it

[sepo]

Hehe...yes ...Gai you know me too well

[kwistenbiebel]

I am thinking the same thing

[TIG]

How soon you all forgot Jim's Unfold script... http://sketchuptips.blogspot.com/2007/08/plugin-unfoldrb.html

[Gaieus]

I've never forgotten it (what's more, when wabe came in, the first thing I remembere was Jim's script).
Jim also tested waybe and contributed quite valuably as I remember.

[ton baeten]

Well, my first thought about 'Waybe' was alike Tig's.
Glad to hear that Jim contributed to 'Waybe'. Let's hope he was/gets payed for his contribution.
Oké, 'Waybe' seems to be more elaborated, has more tutorials and (maybe) more usefull functionality.
I have used Jim's plugin quite frequently this year, not to make papermodels, but to break SU models into parts
to make 3D polystyreen models, aswell to scale as full-size as super-oversize (A SchetchUp tutorial/workdescription
to create a real football with a diameter of more than 2 meter).
I have just downloaded the trial-version of 'Waybe'. Now I have 15 days to see if it is worth the money or whether
I will stick to Jim's free version.
At least, we have a choise between a free and a payed version.
At first site, I am not sure the new payed version will win. Jim really created a very nice and usefull ruby some time ago.

[sepo]

Tig we have not forgotten Jim's unfold script....It is refold we are after

[Psyco_BoB]

Looks interesting.
How effective is it with high polygon models?
Can it be used for laser cutting?

[Edson]

@psyco_bob said:

Looks interesting.
How effective is it with high polygon models?
Can it be used for laser cutting?

it does not work if you try to unfold a whole model. you have to proceed by steps, unfolding groups and/or components.

[Psyco_BoB]

Grouping complex models will be tedious work.
I'll give it a go anyway.

[TIG]

@sepo said:

Tig we have not forgotten Jim's unfold script....It is refold we are after

Surely there is no difference. The model doesn't know if it was previously folded or unfolded at the point you start ?

[sepo]

I am not sure if I understand.

[xrok1]

its in ver. 1.3 now i'm go'in in!

[xrok1]

wow, that seized sketchup pretty good. it won't even start with that plug installed, maybe its not SK7 friendly?

[xrok1]

try this instead, supports google earth, 3ds, obj ... http://www.tamasoft.co.jp/pepakura-en/download/designer.html

so you can use it with all your modelers and its $38

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[lewiswadsworth]

There is a more professional piece of software available called Lamina which is also designed to unfold geometry. It allows you to input the real thickness of the material being unfolded, and then it prepares a cutting sheet with numbers and even tabs if you want them. You can save the output as a DXF cutting path for use with laser or plasma cutters or a waterjet/waterknife.

(laminadesign.com)

It's pricy...$395, but it's aimed at fabricators and rapid prototyping shops. I bought a copy after learning that some sculptors were using it for preparing sheetmetal for assembly...it does a nice job making complexly curved surfaces developable (not that's a situation you often see with SketchUp models...with Rhino, it's inevitable).