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Home : EvalViewer : Reference : Menus :
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Displays information about the visible polygon(s) on the prompt line, for example:
0 Visible Quads of 0, 240 Visible Triangles of 240, 720 Vertices,1 Visible Objects
Builds an approximate spline surface from a set of selected lines. For the surface to be meaningful, the lines must lie more or less parallel to each other. You are prompted to use the left or middle mouse button to select the lines (or curves). When you are finished click the right mouse button. An intermediate polygonal skin surface is produced and a window appears where you can specify the fit tolerance as well as U and V degrees for a spline surface. If the polygonal surface is incorrect, click Cancel. If you click OK, a spline surface is built.
In typical usage, you will get 3 new objects after each Skin. The first object is a copy of the selected lines in the order you selected them. The second object is a polygonal object that shades like a surface, but is a polygon-only object. The third object is created when you choose OK and it contains the surface fit. To lighten up the surfaces and produce fewer CVs, increase the error tolerance as much as possible.
This tools behaves as Select Lines to Skin above but acts on all currently selected curves. This option is often handy after the first attempt at skinning some data since you can edit the copy of the selected lines only and reskin.
Builds an approximate spline surface from four lines. You are prompted to pick four lines (or curves) in turn. You are then prompted to map square mesh vertices to data surfaces. If you click OK, EvalViewer tries to create a surface (based on the four curves) that closely matches the nearest other polygonal mesh. You are then prompted to enter a vertex update search size distance. This value controls the speed of the surface-to-mesh mapping. The smaller the value, the faster the mapping takes place.
For example, if you have a polygonal mesh and want to create a surface over a part of the mesh, you would first create four curves on the mesh representing the borders of the surface (Curves > Create Curve On Polygons). You would then create a square surface based on those four curves, and map the square mesh vertices to data surfaces.
Gives you the option to combine duplicate polygonal vertices. This is handy after reading an STL file. (Previously, vertices were combined when read in from an STL file but this took too long.)
Verifies that polygons are solid. This tool displays green lines around holes or non-manifold geometry (such as polygon flaps) to highlight problem areas.
Adjusts the pixel size of polygon centers for improved visibility.
For downstream processes such as plastic injection molding and sheet metal stamping, it is helpful to see the variations in surface normal direction relative to a die pull or mold vector direction (draft angle variations).
To view a color map showing draft angle variations, along with the estimate of a parting line, choose Polygons > Draft Angle/Parting Line. A window appears where you can enter the X-, Y-, and Z- coordinates for the die-pull vector, and the minimum allowable draft angle. The given angle is used to compute lines on the shape showing the parting line and any draft angle violations.
To use this tool effectively, you may want to view the model from the die pull direction. To do this from specified tip angles, choose View > Key in View Parameters.
Produces an offset surface from a polygonal surface. Offset surfaces are required for Numerical Control (NC) manufacturing techniques such as milling.
After selecting this tool, you are prompted to enter the offset distance in millimeters.
The offsets appear on one side of the surface. This side is the same as the side that is shaded for one-sided shading. (Choose Surfaces > One-sided shading to see one-sided shading.)
Deforms a region of space. Any polygon meshes within this region are then deformed the same amount.
When you choose Polygons > Polygon Deform, an option box appears containing the following options.
X, Y, Z of Deform Center: the location of the center of the deformation region.
X, Y, Z of Deform Amount: the magnitude of the deformation at the Deform Center. The magnitude of the deformation decreases toward the edges of the deformation region.
X, Y, Z of Deform Extent: the distances from the Deform Center to the edges of the deformation region.
Sub-samples polygons and reformats the set of points as a point cloud. If you enter 1, you get one cloud point per polygon vertex. If you enter 2, you additionally get the polygon centers as cloud data.
Creates an XY plane through a Z-coordinate that you are prompted for.
Creates a YZ plane through a X-coordinate that you are prompted for.
Creates a ZX plane through a Y-coordinate that you are prompted for.
Creates a plane from three points. You are prompted to click each of the three points. Cloud points, line points, curve CVs, polygon points (vertices) and surface CVs are all valid choices.
Creates a plane from two points. You are prompted to click each of the two points. The plane will pass through the first point and will be normal to the line defined by both points.
This tool is useful if you know the mathematical specification of a plane and want to plug it in. Most designers will not want to use this option.
You are prompted to specify A, B, C, and D values to meet the mathematical formula: Ax+By+Cz=D. (A, B, and C values determine the vector that the plane is normal to, and D represents its offset from the origin.)
Extends a plane from a polygon. You are prompted to click the polygon's center.
Creates a plane at a polygon's vertex. You are prompted to click a vertex of a smooth shaded polygon. The smooth shaded (Gourand) normal at the vertex is used to define the plane's normal. In the case of a polygon created from tessellating a surface, this normal corresponds to the normal of the underlying surface. Otherwise, it is computed as the equally weighted average of the surrounding facets normals.
Creates a plane based on the picked line. You are prompted to click the line. If the line is not planar, the plane that best fits all the points on the line is used.
Creates a plane normal to the tangent of the line at the point where you selected the line. You are prompted to click the line.
Allows you to select active plane. You are prompted to use the left or middle mouse button to select the active plane and to use the right mouse button to cancel the procedure.
Smooths a polygon mesh. This tool is similar to the Vertex Smooth tool in EvalViewer.
You can now smooth a polygon mesh (without increasing the number of triangles) or reduce the number of triangles in a polygon mesh. For example, you may want to first smooth a polygon mesh, then reduce the number of triangles, then smooth it again, and so on.
This feature allows you to try to restore shape that is smoothed out during the smoothing operation. For example, whenever you smooth a mesh contained a high curvature (low radius of curvature) convex fillet, the curvature of the convex fillet will generally decrease (the radius of curvature will increase) and the smoothed convex fillet will shrink inwards.
Reduces the number of polygons in a polygon mesh by retessellating the star of a vertex (the set of neighboring triangles surrounding a mesh vertex) whenever the deviation of the center vertex is within the 3D tolerance value of the planar fit to the other star vertices. When you choose Reduce Tris by 3D-Tol, an option box called Polygon Decimation Tolerance appears containing the following option:
This algorithm is applied two or three times to a dense mesh to lighten the mesh. The output mesh for a given application of the algorithm is only dependent on the input mesh, not on the original cloud data.
Reduces the number of polygons in a polygon mesh by removing a specified percentage of the total number of polygons. When you choose Reduce Tris by Percent, an option box called Polygon Decimation Percentage appears.
Creates a polygonal "skinned" surface between either all cross-section curves TriMesh All Lines or cross-section curves that you choose TriMesh N Lines. This option provides an alternative to Skin N Lines or Skin All Lines when you only want a triangle mesh output.
Groups the selected objects/components into a new object with a single triangle mesh. This differs significantly from Group Pgns/Surfaces in the Surfaces menu, which maintains separate polygon meshes. This option allows the integration of multiple meshes into a single mesh without writing an STL file, reading it back in, and welding/combining vertices.
Indicates triangles that intersect other triangle in a given mesh. The operator may indicate some false alarms that are easily evaluated visually, but it should never miss two triangles in a mesh that actually intersect.
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