grant_PD Posted December 15, 2005 Share Posted December 15, 2005 As far as I know: Nope. Quote Link to comment
quigley Posted December 16, 2005 Share Posted December 16, 2005 Dean, For 3D modelling power VectorWorks will struggle against FormZ. Both are very quirky modellers, but FormZ is built for 3D and has a wealth of features that VectorWorks cannot match. If you can make use of VW hybrid modelling tools (eg wall, floor slab, roof, column, and the plug ins etc) then VW is more productive. If you are modelling from scratch and for high end visuals then FormZ will be a better, more flexible, option. Quote Link to comment
Dean Posted December 16, 2005 Author Share Posted December 16, 2005 In my ongoing debate with a Form?Z addicted colleague, one argument I can't seem to counter is Form?Z's ability to unwrap a 3D object onto a 2D surface with one command. This is handy for creating a flat elevation of a curving wall of inconsistant height, or determining the shape of a graphic to be applied to a compound curve. Can anyone enlighten me if this something that's possible in VW so I can thumb my nose at my colleague? db Quote Link to comment
islandmon Posted December 16, 2005 Share Posted December 16, 2005 Yup... 3D unwrap in VW requires sufficient knowledge of sin&cos translations to do it manually. A hassel but doable. I'm going to check out FormZ. KQ...Thanx for the tip. Quote Link to comment
Peter Huggins Posted December 16, 2005 Share Posted December 16, 2005 You could also check out: http://www.touchcad.com/. Quote Link to comment
Dean Posted January 4, 2006 Author Share Posted January 4, 2006 Well, thanks all for the input. I guess I'll just have to continue the translation battle into CD's. Quote Link to comment
Kaare Baekgaard Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 This should be on the wishlist. I manually unwrap items at least once a week by translating an object into 3D polygons and rotating them in succesion. I start by selecting all polygons minus one and then deselect them one by one as they are folded into place. I have a calculation method for dealing with bends in sheet metal, so I can alocate the right amount of material for these. Touchcad seems to be too expensive for this one feature, unless you need it on a daily basis. Quote Link to comment
ludesign Posted April 11, 2006 Share Posted April 11, 2006 I normally do both 3D modeling and unfolding directly in TouchCAD and export the respective results to VectorWorks The point of using TouchCAD for both 3D modeling and unfolding is that it is five-dimensional by nature. formZ is not. This gives the distinct advantage of instantly seeing changes done directly in the Unfold view. In this way, the unfolding becomes an integrated part of the design process. TouchCAD's unfolding features are also far more extensive, parametric and directly controllable than formZ's features. It is also designed to process very complex free-form shapes. Quote Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.