View Full Version : Tutorial request : spiral staircase
Hi, everybody
New to Cheetah 3D, i am looking to evaluate it's capability to do some CAD work, although it's not a CAD software.
I was unable to build a stair from a "real" spiral staircase.
I guessed I may ask to the active community to do a tutorial that would help many others ...
Here are the points I am looking for : see image.
Anyone to meet the challenge ? :smile:
Thanks
frank beckmann
01.03.2010, 17:50
Hi and welcome.
Do you have seen this spiral stair case (http://www.cheetah3d.de/forum/showpost.php?p=19269&postcount=2) ?
Cheers
Frank
Actualy,
building a whole spiral staircase is not what I am looking for. One of the steps would be fine. :icon_thumbup:
Most of the tutorials I have already done are about very geometric / symetric projects or very humanoid / rounded model, and lack any kind of architectural / precision constraint (very hard for me to explain in english).:frown: See image to get an idea of the precision I am looking for ...
It's obvious I should start from a cylinder. A second would be needed to get a well rounded border (delete all uneeded face). How to join those 2 first blocs ?
Maybe it's not a good idea to start this way. If I Extract some faces from my first cylinder, the other extremity is too flat... And border ARE raduis. If I move the border, I break the well rounded cylinder ! And so on ...
It's a kind of "The better way to achieve this" I am looking for ...
I am aware I do have to practice a lot to be able to "build" this stair by myself.:redface:
frank beckmann
01.03.2010, 21:41
Hi.
If you have access to a vector drawing app you could draw the outline of the winder, export to pdf/svg and load into Cheetah3d. Put it in the extrude creator, adjust height - done.
Cheers
Frank
Perhaps you can save some steps...
Start with your cylinder, and make it editable.
Select some of the faces, then in polygon tools, use "cover" and then "move".
Now, switch to "edges", select the top and bottom edges, and use the "bevel" tool.
For a rounder look, try again as above, but without the bevel. Ring select the sides, and inner extrude a little, preserving group (a couple of ring cuts would do the same thing). Now, drop a subdivision modifier into the object, and see if it gets you closer.
When you render, add a bump map to the texture for the pits and roughness.
Bill in MN
Hi,
I lost my Internet connection for 20 days !! :frown:
Thanks for those tips.
Frank > when I import an SVG from Illustrator I get all those circles path that does not seem to exist in the Illustrator file (invisible markers ?). I do make compound paths before export
I draw a rectangle that is 1200 mm (1m20). Imported in Cheetah it is 34.016
Is there any ratio during import ?
BillG > sorry, can't find Belvel Tool. It seem to be only a properties of the extrude tool.
Ok for subdivision and crease.
frank beckmann
12.03.2010, 10:50
Hi.
These circles are an odd behavior of Illustrator. They seemed not to export into PDF so I recommend to try PDF instead.
Scale can be adjusted in the Import/Export section of Cheetah3dīs preferences.
You can have a bevel with the extrude creator.
Or with an editable mesh in point/edge/polygon mode.
Cheers
Frank
Still looking for a good ration beetween Illustrator / export / Cheetah :redface:
What is the "world" size ?
On this picture, a 100 square start to be cliped ...
frank beckmann
12.03.2010, 12:59
Still looking for a good ration beetween Illustrator / export / Cheetah :redface:
Are you telling you canīt figure out how to or want to be spoon fed?:tongue:
Try the following: draw a rectangle of 10cm x10cm in Illustrator and export to SVG.
Set the SVG import scale to 1.0 at Cheetah3d preferences.
Import the path, put it on a polyplane creator, make editable - use the ruler tool to read out the result. Now calculate 10/result=import scale-factor.
Go preferences again and type in your findings, close the file without saving and import it again.
Your rectangle should now be as big as one standard Cheetah3d box - if you like.
And if you want it a 10th of it you know where to put in the digit - right?
What is the "world" size ?
On this picture, a 100 square start to be cliped ...
World size? Didnīt get the meaning of this.
Clipping can be adjusted at camera properties.
Cheers
Frank
You are right : it's time to have lunch :tongue:
Just before I go eating, here are problems I got :
With a 10 cm square in Illustrator the ratio I got is 0,035277848. Cheetah seem to be 3 digits precision.
So I type 0,035 in preference and I got a 9.921 square after re-import.:frown:
Clipping plane was the problem : thanks
frank beckmann
12.03.2010, 13:54
So I type 0,035 in preference and I got a 9.921 square after re-import.:frown:
Three digits are just for the GUI - you can type in 8 digits - that worked for me as you can get from my screen grap.
Cheers
Frank
You are right : it's time to have lunch :tongue:
Just before I go eating, here are problems I got :
With a 10 cm square in Illustrator the ratio I got is 0,035277848. Cheetah seem to be 3 digits precision.
So I type 0,035 in preference and I got a 9.921 square after re-import.:frown:
Clipping plane was the problem : thanks
type all this: 0,035277848 into the c3d svg pref scale, honest it works.
Work great !
one more thing (last one ? :wink: )
The very small offset : svg does not start at 0,0.
Any pref, or setting to avoid that ?
Anyway to move the gizmo "object coordinate" to the exact point position ?
frank beckmann
12.03.2010, 16:14
That depends on how Illustrator handles its arbitrary origin (and the printing space sometimes).
Cheers
Frank
Transform is a good tool to move the coordinate gizmo to the proper center of the stair axe. Needed for easy rotate.
But the model does not render as soon as I clic elsewhere ?
frank beckmann
12.03.2010, 17:47
Hi.
Youīre using it in the wrong course. Modifiers have to be add to an object and not vice versa.
Cheers
Frank
PS: is your Cheetah3d help somehow broken?;-)
BillG > sorry, can't find Belvel Tool. It seem to be only a properties of the extrude tool.
Ok for subdivision and crease.
If you are using Cheetah v5.x, make a cube, make it editable. Go to edge mode and select one or more edges. Under "Tools / Polygon" select the "Bevel" tool. Click on the drawing surface and drag your mouse. You will see how it works.
If you don't have V5, do like I suggested otherwise - two ring cuts on the side, one near top, one near bottom. Drop a subdivision modifier into the object. Done.
Bill
I have just downloade V5 ! Sorry not to be working with the latest version ; silly I am :rolleyes:
Some tools already make the difference like the "Go into pivot mode".
Frank, I swear I read the documentation twice ! Maybe I should read it a hundred more times :smile:
Cheers
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