Stage Ramp Solid Help

[MattG]

So I am trying to make a curved ramp. The idea being that I have a stage and above it there is a balcony or whatever you choose to call it. I want to have a sort of C shaped curved ramp go from level 1 to level 2. The key part is I want there to be flat surfaces at the start and end for the artist to get on and off of. I attached a file with a kinder cad representation of what I am trying to do, with out my curved thing.

Matt

[CraigCTC]

Can't open your file. JPG, PDF versions???

[ionw]

You need to go into Vectorworks and choose open, then select the file.

[CraigCTC]

Thank you for the suggestion Ion. As a user of Vectorworks for over 4 years now or a user of a computer for 20 years - I do know how to open a file.

However, the file extension is not recognizable in my version of VW - so I was asking Matt if he had any other visual way to show me what he is trying to do.

[michaelk]

Matt

This is a really quick do-not-build-from-this-drawing stab. Is this the idea?

Michael

[MattG]

It is a 2008 file extension I attached a 12 file

[MattG]

Michael

I think this is helpful, but the problem is this is not a smooth surface. This is for a potential large scale production and it cannot be something that falls at the end like that, if you showed that to an artist they'd freak. Just trying to figure out if there is a technique for a sweep or loft or something like that to create this.

Matt

[michaelk]

Matt

I created that with a loft. I obviously didn't spend any time worrying about smoothing out the bottom of the ramp. But it would be pretty easy to finesse the curve you're looking for.

I'm sure there are at least 6 other ways to do it. That just seemed like the fastest.

Michael

[MattG]

So if doing a loft what do you think is the best approach make a number of stair like nurbs that rotate around a central point and maybe align distribute vertically?

[michaelk]

Matt

I made a bunch of rectangular nurbs (6" tall by whatever wide) and distributed them. If it was for real I would have put more nurb rectangles at the bottom to smooth it out. It will probably take a couple of attempts to get exactly what you're looking for.

Michael

PS. Does anyone else find it funny that the spell check on this website highlights "nurb" as being misspelled?

[brudgers]

Matt

PS. Does anyone else find it funny that the spell check on this website highlights "nurb" as being misspelled?

That's because it is a misspelling.

one Nurbs curve

two Nurbs curves

All three are Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines (NURBS).

[michaelk]

Whoops.

Good catch. Thanks for the correction.

I've been saying that incorrectly for years!

Michael

[MattG]

i noticed that and though huh

[brudgers]

Whoops.

Good catch. Thanks for the correction.

I've been saying that incorrectly for years!

Michael

By nature I'm not that pedantic.

[Pat Stanford]

Try using a loft using the birail sweep mode.

I drew a rectangle on the lower vertical face and converted it to NURBS.

I then put two 3D loci on the upper vertical face spaced the distance of the rectangle.

Connect the corners of the rectangle with the 3D loci using the NURBS Curve tool.

Use the 3D Reshape tool to smooth the curves as necessary. Add additional points if needed.

Select the Loft tool and click on the two curve and the rectangle.

This should get you close to what you need. You may want to put some 2D/3D construction lines in so you can get the right plan shape of the ramp

Pat

[MattG]

Pat that looks just like what I am shooting to accomplish. However I am not sure what I am doing wrong I am not getting the same result. I attached a pdf with some screen shots trying to follow your instruction. I probably just did not understand correctly. Please help.

[michaelk]

Pat

I knew you would come up with at least one of the other 6 ways. (I'm still trying to find an 8th way to shorten a line.) Your way works with far fewer steps.

Maybe this should be on the wish list. Or maybe I'm not understanding something about lofts.

I love doing lofts. I just wish there was a way to go back and edit the "history" of a loft. But editing or ungrouping a loft gives you a bunch of nurbs surfaces. Not the original nurbs and rails you started with.

That's why I usually use the Loft with No Rails mode. (If that's what it's really called.) It helps me visualize the outcome before I execute the loft tool if I have a lot of cross-section objects hanging in space first.

Then I usually duplicate all of them and then loft the duplicates. That way I can go back to the original nurbs to make adjustments.

Am I missing something, or are lofts (like chamfers and fillets) less editable than other 3d objects because they are not solids?

Michael

[Pat Stanford]

I have done a quick movie showing the steps to create the sweep. It is available for download at http://vectortasks.com/Movies/Movies.html

Pat

[Pat Stanford]

Michael,

You are right, Lofts and other NURBS functions do not have the editable history that Solids operations have.

I usually check the box in the Loft dialog to Keep Curves. This will leave the original geometry so if it does not come out right, you just delete the loft and edit the original curves.

Each of the loft modes has its place. If you want to draw the "ribs", then the no-rail loft if great. I use it often.

But for something like this, it is much easier to draw the smooth curves and use the birail sweep to draw between them.

Pat

[michaelk]

Has that button always been there?!?!

Something new every day.

Michael

[MattG]

That's awesome thanks a bunch. I had been trying to loft using birail, but there is little explanation in the help menu so I had been just clicking my rectangle first. Really appreciate it.

Also, big fan of the podcast, keep up the good work! Hopefully there will be one out soon.

Matt

[vhector]

I do curved ramps, if it is not to complicated with round wall tool and reshape 3d

[mike m oz]

Using sweep for a curved ramp: http://architoshforums.forest.net/showthread.php?t=2372