freeform modeling webinar Q&A - T-Splines

Learn freeform modeling in 2010 T-Splines webinar with Kyle Houchens, 4 February 2010 Watch a recording of the webinar at tsplines.com/learnfreeformmodeling

Selected Q&A Q: does the mac version support T-Splines? A: Rhino for mac doesn't currently support plugins. We're planning on porting T-Splines to mac as soon as the plugin SDK is available. Q: how do i switch from smooth to box mode? A: There's a command (smooth toggle) that will switch modes. There's also a hotkey (tab) Q: can we change the smoothness level? A: you can change the display mesh settings to be smooth or coarse (similar to changing the display mesh settings in Rhino) Q: but is there more smoothness levels? besides just smooth and coarse mode? or do we have to control that with adding more vertices

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T-Splines, Inc.

A: Things work a little differently in T-Splines than in subdivision modelers, mostly because we're always compatible with NURBS. You can get different display quality by changing the display meshing option, but the display mesh always snaps exactly to the final surface. Q: Box mode means you are introducing Control Points for NURBS-surfaces, istn't it? A: Right, box mode is just editing the control points as if they were a mesh. Sometimes it's useful to see the topology more clearly. Q: Sorry, what is this "heads-up display" he mentioned?? Stereoscopic display glasses? A: The heads-up display is the rectangle in the top-right of the perspective viewport that shows information about the manipulator and selection. Q: how to open material box? A: That's a separate plugin called AuxPecker. There's no special functionality for TSplines, they just work the same as any other Rhino surface. Auxpecker is available at http://www.jewelslab.com/index.php/software/auxpecker11 Q: Is there a way to construct a 3d solid t-splines mesh from this cool surface representation? A: The T-Spline is always compatible with Rhino's polysurf b-rep. You can export to an iges or step file at any time, and any Rhino commands that take a polysurf will work on a T-Spline. Q: is it possible to detail the model entirely with tsplines? or is it intended to work together with the standard rhino tools? A: Great question. Depends on your model, but in general, T-Splines is intended for the main form of the model. Kyle will use Rhino tools to add final details and trims. Q: How do t-splines handle faces that aren't four sided? A: T-Splines handles n-sided faces well. When you convert to nurbs the polysurf will split on an n-sided face, but that's the only unusual part. In more technical term, our surfaces are compatible with catmull-clark subdivision surfaces. Q: What is the cost of T-Splines? A: T-Splines for Rhino costs $599 ($199 educational) Q: is there a way to set the tolerance on what verts are welded, when all the vertices are selected? A: Right now we just use the document absolute tolerance, although the ability to more easily set the tolerance is on the wishlist. Q: Does Pro/E "like" T-Splines?

Learn freeform modeling webinar Q&A

T-Splines, Inc.

A: Great question. T-Splines has a push-button export to become a watertight polysurface, so PRO/E will read in a T-Spline surface just like any other .3dm surface. The fact that TSplines are watertight, though, means that you won't have to deal with tolerance issues that sometimes come into play when passing models between programs. Q: how do you get the 'insert point' out again? A: If you insert a point that you want to later take out, just select the point or edge and hit the DELETE key Q: Do t-splines have smoothing issues on poles (3 sided/5 sided verts), like subdivision surfaces? A: Yes, the surfaces are compatible, so you have the same types of issues. Our conversion to NURBS does guarantee that the surface is G1 at poles (we call them star points). Q: Do t-spline surfaces thicken and shell easily, in say Solidworks? A: Yes. We actually did a webinar about this: look at the "modeling a joystick and exporting to Solidworks" webinar at http://www.tsplines.com/support/rhinotutorials.html Q: Does the T-Splines plug-in work within Matrix? A: Yes, we have several users that use T-Splines within Matrix, and we work with the developers of Matrix to make sure that the software is compatible. Q: Are there any known issues with it not working properly in Matrix? A: Not that I'm aware of. There were some issues in the past, but if you're using the latest version of Matrix and T-Splines, they should behave properly. We also have a 30-day trial that you can test within matrix, to see if it works on your models. Q: Can you provide notes from the semainr to review all the attendees questions? and Is there a hotkey index for us to have? A: There's a hotkey index in the manual, which you can download at tsplines.com/usermanual, or you can pull it up in tsOptions Q: Does Pro/E "like" T-Splines? A: Loves em! I use this all the time and it works grrrreattt!! Q: Everything I have seen with T Splines is great. This demo is also impressive. BUT. All of my current work is to produce scale models of aircraft. As such I have to create NURBS surfaces that fit very precisely to a set of cross section curves and longitudinal curves. I have never seen a demo for T Splines that satisfies this requirement. Do you have any suggestions for me in the U.K.? A: This is something that NURBS is well-suited for. There's the tsLoft command that might be useful, or there's a command tsMatch that works similar to Rhino's match command.

Learn freeform modeling webinar Q&A

T-Splines, Inc.

There are a few discussions about modeling aircraft in T-Splines on forum; here's one link: http://www.tsplines.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=29484 Q: how did the designer (im sorry i didnt get the name) first made the squares? A: use the append face tool, pick four points and right click to close the patch- designer is Kyle Houchens, www.theoutside.biz Q: Is there a way to set partial creasing of edges? Like Sub-D's in Maya A: Not exactly, but this is something we're working on. Right now the best way to get a similar effect is to use the tsInsertEdges with simple insertion. This adds verts, but gets a similar surface. Q: once the tspline surface has been converted to rhino and subsequently trimmed and booleaned etc. is it possible to move back to t splines and easily edit the form? A: We currently don't support converting a trimmed surface to a T-Spline, so the best way to handle this is to keep a copy of the untrimmed T-Spline in another layer/file Q: Kyle, Do you use T-Splines to start all of your models? If not, then what is the criteria for "non-T-Spline models? A: This really depends on the shape of the model and how freeform it is. Q: is there a way to make geometry of the box-model? i kind of like he chunkeyness. A: tsConvertToRhinosurf will convert to a Rhino mesh when performed in box mode. You can then use Rhino's "MeshToNURB" command to get a polysurf Q: the manipulator + alt to extrude did not work. vers. 2.1 A: Yes, this is a new feature in 2.2. You can get a free update at http://www.tsplines.com/latestversion.html Q: How do t-splines compare to the imagine and shape technology in CATIA? A: We don't have a copy of imagine and shape to evaluate, but our understanding is that they're also based on subdivision surfaces. Other than that, we can't make much of a comparison, the Catia folks might be able to answer this question better. Q: how I can control the radius of smooting when make a t-spine surface? A: Right now the best way to do this is simply by moving the control points/edges of the model. We're working on more direct control methods. If you need precision, you can also crease the edge in question, convert to NURBS, and use the advanced NURBS filleting tools that are available in many packages. Q: Sorry but have to sign off, just like to say thanks Kyle and Matt for these free webinars. A: You're welcome!

Learn freeform modeling webinar Q&A

T-Splines, Inc.

Q: If I am creating a exact dimensional model how is this done in TSplines? Is there a way to type in the dimensions like in Rhino? A: Exact dimensions are not our main goal, it's more organic shapes that most of our tools target. However, there are a few techniques that are useful. You can convert any NURBS into a T-Spline exactly, and the tsMatch command will match position (and optionally tangency) within tolerance to any other polysurf or curve. Q: Hi, thanks for the webinar. Would you recommend T-splines for architekture models, such as statues on historical objects etc? Thank you for the answer A: With architecture, if you have curvy shapes (like statues) then T-Splines would be a good candidate. Square buildings, of course, don't need T-Splines. Q: can you convert an existing rhino nurb surface (not done throuth t splines) into a t spline geometry? A: If there are no trims, then you can left-click the convert button and it will convert exactly from a degree-3 nurbs surface to T-Splines Q: is there a way to set the manipulater to an objects uv´s? A: If change the dragmode with Rhino's dragmode command, you can switch to UVN mode, and manipulate things along U, V, and the normal. You can also click the HUD to get to UVN mode. Q: in Zbrush for reverse engineering, the polygpns by default are triangles when scanned in...what problems does that pose? A: Triangles can be a problem for T-Splines.. a lot of triangles means that your final polysurf will have many more nurbs patches then you want. I'm not sure what tools ZBrush has for remeshing or retopologizing. The rule of thumb is that you want as few triangles/ pentagons and star points when converting to T-Splines, because then you will get better final NURBS Q: any general tips about going from high detail areas to low detail A: Yes--watch this webinar for details: http://www.tsplines.com/vehicularwebinar.html Q: My intention for this product is for use in Solidworks. I have imported Rhino files either created by myself or someone else more "gifted" to create things problematic in SW A: It's certainly possible to create things with T-Splines that are problematic. In my experience, most of the problems are with trimmed surfaces, and T-Splines produces completely end-to-end surfaces with no trimming curves, so they tend to transfer well to other packages. Q: Is it possible to import IGES surfaces and manipulate them? A: yep! keep in mind that you will lose trim data upon conversion. untrimmed 4-sided patches are handled very easilyLearn freeform modeling webinar Q&A

T-Splines, Inc.

Q: Is any way to convert a mesh to t-spline surface? grate job guys! A: check out this video: http://media.tsplines.com/meshwebinar.mov Q: Could you please dedicate one of your future webinars to architecture? Thanks a lot for this one! A: Sure! Let us know if you'd like to see something specific.

Learn freeform modeling webinar Q&A