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    [Plugin][$] Curviloft 2.0a - 31 Mar 24 (Loft & Skinning)

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    • fredo6F Offline
      fredo6
      last edited by

      @jason_maranto said:

      Hey Fredo, I have a file here with some geometry that gave me a hard time -- and I also have some examples of how I got it to work to a tolerable level but certainly not what I had envisioned.

      I'm sure user error was responsible to a degree but I though I'd share it with you if it helps debug at all.

      Best,
      Jason.

      Jason,

      Thanks. This is a good example which shows some limitations of Curviloft (and it's not your errors at all!).

      You probably have to do it in 2 parts, as you did. First part should be with the option 'Line junction' and second part with Cubic Bezier, but you should simply skip the last profile before the rear face of the hull.

      Alternatively, you can take some inspiration of what it could give with the two other methods: Skinning and Loft along Path.
      Jason Hull2.gif
      In any case, I would suggest that you redraw the long profile to show more continuity at the junction(maybe with a single piece of spline).

      Fredo


      loft issue - Fredio.skp

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      • jason_marantoJ Offline
        jason_maranto
        last edited by

        Thank-you again... that was very helpful and led me in a different direction that worked much better.

        I have another file for you -- I suspect this is asking for too much ๐Ÿ˜‰

        Best,
        Jason.


        Interesting_loft.skp

        I create video tutorial series about several 2D & 3D graphics programs.

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        • fredo6F Offline
          fredo6
          last edited by

          @jason_maranto said:

          I have another file for you -- I suspect this is asking for too much ๐Ÿ˜‰

          Jason,

          This is definitely too much for Curviloft. The only way to achieve it on this kind of model is to draw intermediate profiles and use Skinning.

          Indeed, you have to figure out how these intermediate profiles should be. But anyway, there are so many solutions to skin your shape that any program would need some guidance.

          Fredo

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          • jason_marantoJ Offline
            jason_maranto
            last edited by

            Thanks Fredo, this is all magic to me -- so many of the things Curviloft can do didn't seem possible in Sketchup to me just a few weeks ago... I might have gotten a bit carried away by your wizardry ๐Ÿ’š

            I did get it to skin in a few configurations but nothing I was completely satisfied with.

            BTW I have noticed on my system that has an ATI Firepro (workstation video card) the vertex matching function is very temperamental -- when I switch to my system that uses a Nvidia Quadro it is very smooth.

            Best,
            Jason.

            I create video tutorial series about several 2D & 3D graphics programs.

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            • thomthomT Offline
              thomthom
              last edited by

              @jason_maranto said:

              BTW I have noticed on my system that has an ATI Firepro (workstation video card) the vertex matching function is very temperamental -- when I switch to my system that uses a Nvidia Quadro it is very smooth.

              Visual glitches?
              If so - screenshots?

              Thomas Thomassen โ€” SketchUp Monkey & Coding addict
              List of my plugins and link to the CookieWare fund

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              • jason_marantoJ Offline
                jason_maranto
                last edited by

                I'll record a video example when I get to the studio.

                Best,
                Jason.

                I create video tutorial series about several 2D & 3D graphics programs.

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                • A Offline
                  ale 3D
                  last edited by

                  hi! your plugs are really more than better and usefull ๐Ÿ˜‰ many THANX!

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                  • jason_marantoJ Offline
                    jason_maranto
                    last edited by

                    Here's a video showing the issue:

                    Took down the link to conserve bandwidth

                    Best,
                    Jason.

                    I create video tutorial series about several 2D & 3D graphics programs.

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                    • W Offline
                      wfiinch
                      last edited by

                      Just installed Curviloft into my SU8 and am excited as all hell about the possibilities!

                      One question: I need to apply a directional material (wood grain) to the new surface. It applies the pattern to each individual facet, sometimes in the wrong direction. How do I change the pattern direction on a Curviloft surface?

                      Okay another question: what exactly is the Sketchup structure of a curviloft surface? Can I explode it?

                      Thanks!...and good job on the plugin!

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                      • GaieusG Offline
                        Gaieus
                        last edited by

                        It comes in as a group and yes, you can explode it. Turn on hidden geometry (View menu) to se the structure.

                        As for texturing it, you need to apply the texture to the surface itself (groups with curved geometry cannot be textured from outside without the texture being applied chaotically). Even on the surface, most probably you need to turn on hidden geometry, apply the texture on one facet; position it then sample and apply on the other facets. Depending on the complexity of the shape, it may take a while - or you can use some UV mapping tool for it.

                        Gai...

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                        • fredo6F Offline
                          fredo6
                          last edited by

                          By the way, I normally fixed this issue of coplanar contours on the horizontal plane in Curviloft 1.1.

                          This was signaled by Pilou with a workaround by Diego-Rodriguez

                          Fredo

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                          • T Offline
                            tulacong
                            last edited by

                            thank goodluck

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                            • EscapeArtistE Offline
                              EscapeArtist
                              last edited by

                              Fredo,

                              I don't know if this has already been discussed, but there seems to be an issue with "loft junctions following two paths". I create a shape using bezier curves and then convert them to polyline dividers. The script does a really nice job making the overall shape, the problem is along the seam where the profiles meet. It may be due to a mismatch in the number of segments in the edges from one side to the other, but Curviloft creates extra faces that are "folded" into the geometry and are essentially invisible until one goes in and starts moving verts around. The cause a visible seam to show up when shaded smooth. The only solution I know of is to go through and find each face and reconnect/rebuild each edge and face to remove them. Any suggestions on how to better avoid this extra work? Is it as bug or simply an issue with my modeling?

                              The seam is visible here
                              Grabbing and moving a vertex on the seam reveals reversed faces that are otherwise not visible.

                              Thanks for all your hard work!

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                              • fredo6F Offline
                                fredo6
                                last edited by

                                @escapeartist said:

                                Fredo,

                                I don't know if this has already been discussed, but there seems to be an issue with "loft junctions following two paths". I create a shape using bezier curves and then convert them to polyline dividers. The script does a really nice job making the overall shape, the problem is along the seam where the profiles meet. It may be due to a mismatch in the number of segments in the edges from one side to the other, but Curviloft creates extra faces that are "folded" into the geometry and are essentially invisible until one goes in and starts moving verts around. The cause a visible seam to show up when shaded smooth. The only solution I know of is to go through and find each face and reconnect/rebuild each edge and face to remove them. Any suggestions on how to better avoid this extra work? Is it as bug or simply an issue with my modeling?

                                Would have the model so that I can have a look.
                                This seems strange, but Curviloft algorithms have some shortcuts for performance reasons which may explain a few issues like this one.

                                Thanks

                                Fredo

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                                • mitcorbM Offline
                                  mitcorb
                                  last edited by

                                  @EscapeArtist:
                                  That second image looks like rather than "extra" reversed faces, you have pulled the mesh somewhat inside out because additional edges need to be placed. The additional edges would be placed only in order to get additional vertices. Adding edges will avoid seam ripping which is what appears to be happening here.
                                  I am just saying this from my experience with detail "knitting" on meshes.
                                  Of course, I am probably wrong.. again ๐Ÿ˜‰

                                  I take the slow, deliberate approach in my aimless wandering.

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                                  • EscapeArtistE Offline
                                    EscapeArtist
                                    last edited by

                                    @mitcorb said:

                                    @EscapeArtist:
                                    That second image looks like rather than "extra" reversed faces, you have pulled the mesh somewhat inside out because additional edges need to be placed. The additional edges would be placed only in order to get additional vertices. Adding edges will avoid seam ripping which is what appears to be happening here.
                                    I am just saying this from my experience with detail "knitting" on meshes.
                                    Of course, I am probably wrong.. again ๐Ÿ˜‰

                                    The model is as-is Curviloft output, the pulling was done in order to reveal the extra edges and faces. The face isn't visible until the vert is pulled out of alignment because the edges are so close together as to appear to be a single edge. I did re-stitch the seam and it looks OK but for the slight ripple created by my inability to precisely match the desired curvature by hand.

                                    Fredo, the model and curves are attached.


                                    example.skp

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                                    • T Offline
                                      teoj
                                      last edited by

                                      Dear Fredo6. I use curviloft extensively (for boat design purposes) and am very grateful for it. But there is an issue that I would like to address: When making hull sides for boats, I create two compound curves. You can see it in the attached images. The upper line is the deck- line, the lower one is the so- called chine. The left side is where the transom is, the right side is the stem. In the middle, there is a line that defines a flare in the bow- sections of the boat. Ideally, Curviloft would create a smooth panel from these lines, but no matter how I do it (skinning, path or lofting), Curviloft seems to do it in a different way than expected, the result being a dented surface.

                                      For example, if I selected the middle line first or last, I would expect a different outcome then when it is selected subsequently from left to right or vice versa. Curviloft seems to think of it like two surfaces instead of one, just like the colors indicate. Occasionally the color is the same for the whole panel, but it still appears to be dented.

                                      I may be asking too much of Curviloft, but if there is a way that I have not detected yet, then I would appreciate that.

                                      PS I have installed latest (January 2011) versions of Curviloft and Libfredo

                                      Best regards Teo


                                      Lofting.png


                                      Lofting result.png


                                      Hull side lines.skp

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                                      • D Offline
                                        deanlegg
                                        last edited by

                                        Hi All
                                        Been using this for only a few days and its great
                                        Now i'm trying some more tricky shapes with odd results
                                        On a simple shape i click on each line and it comes up 1,2,3,4 and skins
                                        Then sometimes I click and it comes up 1 with an orange line, next line 1 again and orange and so on. When I click the green tick all the lines turn purple
                                        Does this mean its too much for CL?
                                        Thanks

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                                        • fredo6F Offline
                                          fredo6
                                          last edited by

                                          @deanlegg said:

                                          Hi All
                                          Been using this for only a few days and its great
                                          Now i'm trying some more tricky shapes with odd results
                                          On a simple shape i click on each line and it comes up 1,2,3,4 and skins
                                          Then sometimes I click and it comes up 1 with an orange line, next line 1 again and orange and so on. When I click the green tick all the lines turn purple
                                          Does this mean its too much for CL?
                                          Thanks

                                          When contours are contiguous, you need to click in the empty space to separate them. Otherwise all portions are taken as part of the same contour.
                                          When contour are not contiguous, then the 'separator' is not necessary.

                                          Fredo

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                                          • Whiteowl77W Offline
                                            Whiteowl77
                                            last edited by

                                            I have to say this is one of the Coolest PlugIns I have seen for SketchUp!
                                            BRAVO Fredo6 ! โ˜€

                                            I am using CurviLoft 1.1, Loft along Path, and I am creating some geometry that is amazing. It took several tries to get the exact geometry I envisioned. I'll keep working with the Tool.

                                            One Problem I am having is when I use the INTERSECT with Model tool to intersect the Fin Top I created with Curviloft with the Dome Shape I created using sketchup followme tool, the Shape I created with Curviloft gets weird (after intersect with selected), and adds extra Lines and distorted geometry. I need to trim the Shape, and then Hide lines, but the geometry gets funky using the intersect process in SketchUp. How do I only select the countor Lines on the END of organic geometry w/o selecting the entire mesh face? I would like to HIDE the Lines/etc. Do I need to use "Tools on Surface" in order to work with created shapes in Curviloft? I'll be painting it soon as well.
                                            Basically, I Need to Trim a Shape!

                                            I am really digging this Organic Modeling Tool for SketchUp Fredo6
                                            Thanks - Andrew Telker
                                            http://twitter.com/AndrewTelker


                                            Curviloft Created Geometry with Dome - Needs Trimming


                                            ![Curviloft Shape Cut - After "Intersection"](/uploads/imported_attachments/nXPq_ConcreteDome_Curviloft_TelkerDesign_Image2.jpg "Curviloft Shape Cut - After "Intersection"")


                                            ![Curviloft Shape Cut - Before "Intersection"](/uploads/imported_attachments/wIC9_ConcreteDome_Curviloft_TelkerDesign_Image3.jpg "Curviloft Shape Cut - Before "Intersection"")

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