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3D object (extruded shape) only appears as lines in "Top/Plan"


brettSF

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Title says it all. I've created a few countertops by creating an outline and then using the Push/Pull to create a solid surface.

 

  • Current View is set to "Top/Plan"
  • Visualization Style is set to "Wireframe", however... Wireframe doesn't necessarily always make objects appear as lines. For example:
  • My walls are set to show a gray fill, and are displaying correctly
  • I can create a shape and assign it a fill, and it will display with the selected fill color

 

So my question is -- why does a 3D object with an assigned fill color only show up as linework?

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  • Vectorworks, Inc Employee

Yes, Extrudes are 3d-only objects, they are not hybrid objects that have a 2D and a 3D appearance like Doors, Windows and Walls. You can however create the 2D geometry you want to use for the countertops, select the 2D and 3D components, then use Modify > Create Symbol to create your own custom hybrids if you like.

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For countertops a lot of people like using Floor Objects.  

 

Draw the 2D shape > AEC > Floor Objects… then set the height to the bottom of the countertop and the thickness of the countertop.

 

The advantages are:

1.   Countertop appears solid in 2D

2.   Add / Subtract Surface commands still work on Floor objects.

3.  You can still give the top and sides different textures if you need to.

 

hth

 

mk

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Jim,


I've always wondered why extrudes are 3d only objects.  They are kind of fundamental to working in 3d. 

 

Is it because they are used as modifiers for other types of 2d - 3d objects? Or is it because the tool is very old and it hasn't been updated in a while?

 

Or do you feel like these functions are better represented elsewhere in the program?


cb

 

 

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  • Vectorworks, Inc Employee

I suspect the main reason is their age, yes, they have not had any serious reworking in a long time.

 

I feel they should be enhanced to behave similarly to Slabs or AutoHybrids, where it attempts to generate a 2D representation automatically. To keep with legacy workflows this appearance should be controllable per-extrude, something simple like:

 

Display:
2D + 3D
3D Only

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I agree that extrudes are the fundamental VW 3d object, and it would be great if one could assign a fill to extrude surfaces, especially so they can be seen in Top/Plan like many other objects.

 

While we are wishing, I would like the 2d "primitives" of extrudes to be more context-sensitive so that they can be edited more powerfully.  Specifically, when entering an extrude edit space the 2d object should present itself in "screen orientation" instead of, sometimes, from the sides, regardless of the current view orientation.  Also, if the viewpoint is aligned to the extrude's original working plane orientation, the 2d primitive should be presented in exact relation to the objects around it, instead of some arbitrary location that is no longer relevant if the extrude has been moved, mirrored, etc.  This would allow us to edit the primitive accurately in relation to surrounding objects.  Say a contiguous object has been reshaped, and we want to edit the extrude to still be contiguous.

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On 07/12/2016 at 6:40 PM, brettSF said:

Title says it all. I've created a few countertops by creating an outline and then using the Push/Pull to create a solid surface.

 

  • Current View is set to "Top/Plan"
  • Visualization Style is set to "Wireframe", however... Wireframe doesn't necessarily always make objects appear as lines. For example:
  • My walls are set to show a gray fill, and are displaying correctly
  • I can create a shape and assign it a fill, and it will display with the selected fill color

 

So my question is -- why does a 3D object with an assigned fill color only show up as linework?

I raised a similar issue a little while ago, where the source geometry becomes faceted in viewports. Would really like it to be intelligent enough to draw the source polys instead of the low/medium/high 3D interpretations of them.

 

makes dimensioning holes very tricky, as you need to overlay the vp with circles and the like to use radius dims and centre lines.

 

+1 on making extrudes more clever

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2 hours ago, RussU said:

I raised a similar issue a little while ago, where the source geometry becomes faceted in viewports. Would really like it to be intelligent enough to draw the source polys instead of the low/medium/high 3D interpretations of them.

 

makes dimensioning holes very tricky, as you need to overlay the vp with circles and the like to use radius dims and centre lines.

 

+1 on making extrudes more clever

 

I was modeling in a box gutter then turning it in to a auto hybrid the other day and while it was an improvement it also felt like it could be so much better along the line of this discussion. I think 60% of my frustration with BIMish workflows is I have to model thinks from a plan perspective to get the section view I want that could indeed by more easily defined in section to get the plan/3d we want. The next 20% is defining things in model and not being able to get any representation out of that modeling at all but that is for another discussion.

 

So basically yes a sketch / primitive hybrid object so we can draw the drafted representation on any plane we deem most important then push/pull out to length or better still along a path and the Auto Hybrid system takes care of other planes and 3D would be a very welcome improvement. 

 

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What about the creation of Extrudes that are extruded in views other than Top or Top/Plan. EG: the profile of a rafter (or roof truss) that becomes the 3d rafter. A very powerful feature! I'm not sure (I'll need to think about it) if I want those to have solid fill in their primal view. However I would want to see solid fill for rafters in Top/Plan view, even it they were created by extruding from a Front or Side view. Interesting.

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Extrudes do not have this ability.

 

You can use Roof Faces, Slabs, Floors objects which to offer a filled Top/Plan view.

 

Or you can convert your Extrude to an Auto Hybrid object (AEC Menu in the Designer workspace, Create Auto Hybrid) to provide the Filled Top/Plan view. You can enter the Auto Hybrid the same way you enter a group or symbol to edit it and the Top/Plan view is automatically regenerated based on the changes you make to the 3D (Layer Plane or 3D Plane) parts of the object.

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This wish is till on a list.... why?....  😭 In the world when efficacy is a key. Every additional little step, every fraction of a second accumulates into waisting of time.

Ok, let's take only one step converting into auto hybrid, but then it does not show all (see picture below). ALSO it adds more steps, because it does not allow quickly change something, tweak it a bit, push/pull somewhere. Why.... this limitation is not taking seriously yet?

 

image.png.d89d49d3e40773b0a1bd8b4740f58dc3.png

 

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17 minutes ago, Vitute said:

converting into auto hybrid, but then it does not show all (see picture below).

 

It will display as you want in Top/Plan if you set the cut plane above the object or you enable 'Display Extents Above Cut Plane'.

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