[Plugin] TrueTangents v3.0

jeff hammond

@simon le bon said:

I'm a little bit disappointed by the fact that depending on the radius is, the tangent lines cannot join perfectly ( certainly due to segmentation of the circles)

but that's the whole point
the cpoints are placed in the correct place so you can the draw (or redraw) the arcs at the true position. Hence - true tangents

TIG

Here's v1.8 that fixes the missing menu item glitch - there are now 5 !
http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=160780#p160780

My latest tool "Fillet Arc [Arc+Line|Cline]" should now appear in the Plugins menu at the end of the rest
At the last moment just before I uploaded v1.7 I changed that item's text to read "Fillet Arc [Arc+Line/Cline]" forgetting that a '/' in a menu name stops it appearing - at least on PCs...
Note that typing filletarc in the Console also runs it...

Sorry for the confusion...

TIG

@simon le bon said:

filletarc tool: what a good idea

@unknownuser said:

filletarc
Select an arc/circle and a cline/line (aka guide-line)
Run filletarc

unfortunately, it doesn't appear for me in the plugin menu
(what am I doing wrong?) simon

There should be a group of 4+1 tools in the Plugins menu with TrueTangents et al the last one is FilletArc... Alternatively select an arc/circle and a line/cline and type filletarc in the Ruby Console - it should work... If not, then there might be a problem with the install...

utiler

Thank you TIG, your generosity is greatly appreciated!!!!

pilou

@Tig
Why not make a submenu?
because I have yet hundred of plugs and a big list screen

And have you somewhere a list of your different Ruby plugs?

TIG

Pilou

Just what I was thinking... It started as one item and grew... I'll make a sub-menu and add the 5 into it in the next release...

jeff hammond

[V1.9 submenu & individual tools are working well on mac]

Bep

folding req.skp

Hallo Tig

I noticed your keep on working to make this plugin perfect.
The problem I would realy like to get solved with this ruby is that when you have got a drawing of an unfolded 3D structure where only faces are field-surveyed it is impossible to accurately fold it to a 3D model.

It would be an addition to your true Tangents Ruby, and the true intersections ruby
this time ,to find the true intersection points of two circles in 3D .

Once these points are found you would have I interference point to rotate the faces to.
And it would be possible to measure the angle of rotation these faces should be rotated .

I hope you wil find time to look into this.

Thanks for all your efforts.

Greetings ,Bep van Malde

jeff hammond

i did around 15 hrs of modeling this weekend and used truetangents 9-10 times..
man, it's waay better doing certain things with this plugin.. way better!
thanks again for this one

TIG

v1.9 now has a sub-menu in Plugins 'Tangent-Tools...' that accesses the 5 tools...

http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=160780#p160780

simon le bon

Hi Tig,

Thanks to reply so quickly each time
But sorry to disturb you with my small problem.

@unknownuser said:

There should be a group of 4 tools in the Plugins menu with TrueTangents et al the last one is FilletArc...

Well.. if I make the account:
%(#0000BF)[>truetangents

commontangents
trueintersections
tangentialarcs
filletarc]
There should be a group of 5 tools isn't it?
but you produce so many tools that you may lose the account

@unknownuser said:

Alternatively select an arc/circle and a line/cline and type filletarc in the Ruby Console - it should work...

Yes it does!

I'm a little bit disappointed by the fact that depending on the radius is, the tangent lines cannot join perfectly ( certainly due to segmentation of the circles)
(please clic the pic to zoom)

Thank you dear Tig to be so kind and generous with S'Up Community...
++simon.

simon le bon

@tig said:

v1.9 now has a sub-menu in Plugins 'Tangent-Tools...' that accesses the 5 tools...

this tool is a ruby!

@unknownuser said:

@simon le bon said:

I'm a little bit disappointed by the fact that depending on the radius is, the tangent lines cannot join perfectly ( certainly due to segmentation of the circles)

but that's the whole point
the cpoints are placed in the correct place so you can the draw (or redraw) the arcs at the true position. Hence - true tangents

I'm not sure to understand right to be correct !!

Is this the right way?

Am I correct if I follow the tangent inference this way?

The possibilities are very numerous

simon

jeff hammond

the const. points show where a real, non-segmented circle would cross at key points.. these are basically layout tools for people that need real world measurements when building arcs and if your use of SU is mostly to draw things that are organic and/or don't need to be 100% precise then you probably have no real need for TrueTangents (ie, if you're drawing a building simply for representational purposes then it doesn't matter if a wall is 3/4" too thick.. if you're drawing a building that is going to be built in real world using the SU print, then it better be exact or there's going to be a lot of cussing on the jobsite)

if you really had a need for this plugin then i don't think there would be any question about it's usage.. you would see its benefits immediately.

jeff hammond

[btw, it's the top of a pool.. a down&dirty render of what's happening with that drawing]

jeff hammond

for example ---
without using truetangents, modify this SKP to correspond with this jpg.. the stuff in red is missing in the attached .skp.. (and it is possible to do without TrueTangents but it's a major headache)

if you decide to do this with TrueTangents, you would use the 4th addition.. Tangential Arcs [Arcs+Line]

tt_quiz.skp

jeff hammond

here's a video showing how you might use truetangents to finish that skp.. (fwiw, i'm using didier bur's arc ruby to draw my arcs.. included in that is a 'center + two points' option in which you select the centerpoint and the two ends of the desired arc.. all of these points are given to me via truetangents)

[flash=680,378:1hkwq6mh]http://www.youtube.com/v/OWsg1q4HcKU&hl=en&fs=1&" type=[/flash:1hkwq6mh]

pilou

Cool video!
Yes that is tricky and thanks to Tig for this new true gem!

TIG

@unknownuser said:

here's a video showing how you might use truetangents to finish that skp.. (fwiw, i'm using didier bur's arc ruby to draw my arcs.. included in that is a 'center + two points' option in which you select the centerpoint and the two ends of the desired arc.. all of these points are given to me via truetangents)

Thanks for your tutorial - your are better at explaining my tools than I am !
FWIW, You can draw various Circle and Arc formats with my 2D Tools - similar to the one you describe... but perhaps more SUp-like ? The TrueTangents' Cpoints suit 3-point Arc/Circles...

simon le bon

Thank you Jeff for your explanations.
Things are much clearer to me now.

One of the points which was missing to me was the necessary tool: arc by three points

This Didier Bur tool can be found on Ruby Library Depot under: Geometry - DrawingHere or in french Here.
We can find on the same place auto_centerpoint_v10.zip by Jim Foltz or the one you are using:Arc Centerpoint by jim

And also:

@tig said:

FWIW, You can draw various Circle and Arc formats with my 2D Tools - similar to the one you describe... but perhaps more SUp-like ? The TrueTangents' Cpoints suit 3-point Arc/Circles...

[Plugin] 2D Tools v3.6
and 2D Tools Guide
(Dear TIG, I still not have found time to watch this exciting tools set)

@unknownuser said:

if you really had a need for this plugin then i don't think there would be any question about it's usage.. you would see its benefits immediately.

I hadn't thought yet with the problem of "true" tangents. You have opened my eyes on this. On the another hand, it is not easy to think and draw a predictable tangent (true or "false") with SketchUp. So, this set of Tig's tools is a gift, even for drawing "organic shapes".

simon.

jeff hammond

@simon le bon said:

right! that's it