I have long felt that desktop RP was to 3D product design as desktop laser printing was to 2D graphics design. Like graphics design, 3D product design would only really take off when you could print a proof at your desk.
Sure, 3D WYSIWYG is also a key part of the solution, but we are there now. With all the new near real time renderers it is nearly impossible to tell a rendering from a photo.
One of the last big barriers to an explosion in 3D design has been affordable desktop 3D printing. The new uPrint Personal 3D Printer from Dimension breaks that barrier.
Of course, as soon as you finish setting up your uPrint Printer, you will be able to print directly to it from Rhino.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Desktop RP for under $15,000
Grasshopper to/from Excel tutorial
Damien Alomar has been kind enough to post a nice tutorial on his new blog, Liquid Tectonics, on how to connect Grasshopper and Excel.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Rhino 4 SR5 released
Rhino 4.0 Service Release 5 is now available to download. Owners of Rhino 4 are encouraged to download and install SR5 today. SR5 contains dozens of stability and crash fixes, as well as enhancements to many commands, including:
- Printing
- DWG file import and export
- OBJ file import
- STEP file export
- SolidWorks file import
- Smart Tracking
- UnrollSrf
For a complete list of changes, and to download, visit http://download.rhino3d.com/whatsnew.asp?rel=452
Rhino OS X - New Build
There is a new build available, Wenatchee 2009-01-28, with many new features, enhancements, and bug fixes.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Computation Design Workshop - details updated
Daniel Cardoso has a new web site that provides more details about the Computation Design Workshops that he, Kenfield Griffith, and Skylar Tibbits are doing. The next one is scheduled for January 28 - February 1 in Bogotá.
Bombardier's Street Machine
In the January 2009 edition of Develop 3D Magazine learn more about how Bombardier developed the Can-Am Spyder, their first on-road vehicle.
Shape to Fabrication 3 - details updated
When: 15 April 2009
Where: Lecture Theatre, London Metropolitan University, 16 Goulston Street, London E1 7TP
The Shape to Fabrication event is the place to learn all the details about how the most cutting edge architectural projects were designed and built.
Industry leaders from architecture, landscaping, urban planning and engineering will present and share projects from around the world highlighting issues of design, use of technology and methodology from concept forms and shapes, through to complex engineering analysis and final manufacturing.
Also, you will see the latest developments in Rhino modeling technology, with a look ahead to Rhino 5, plus updates on Grasshopper, the graphical algorithm editor for Rhino 4.0, the popular V-Ray for Rhino rendering technology, the terrain modelling and analysis solution RhinoTerrain and more.
Confirmed industry speakers include: EDAW, Zaha Hadid, Studio Mode, Buro Happold, Expedition Engineering, NEX Architecture, Adams Kara Taylor and Reid Jubb Brown.
Space is very limited. Reserve your space now.
New Grasshopper Primer
Andy Payne, LIFT architects, has just published the first edition of the 75-page manual he has been working on to help people get a basic understanding of Grasshopper.
You can download the pdf and the source files from his web site www.liftarchitects.com.
Friday, January 23, 2009
Rhino User Meeting Barcelona 2009
McNeel Europe is pleased to announce the 1st Spanish Rhino User Meeting that will take place on February 16, 2009, at the IED Barcelona.
During the same week, we have organized a series of 3D modeling workshops for students in the areas of design, jewelry, architecture, digitalization, and milling.
Project nears completion
“Even the domed roof, a shape chosen not just because of its appearance but because it possesses inherent strength, presented a host of technical issues we needed to overcome,” explained Alastair Bell, Director, Reid Judd Brown Architecture. “One of our architectural engineers, Luca Biselli, is a recognized expert in the use of the very latest 3D modeling software technology called Rhino and has been able to design the highly complex roof which only a few years ago would have been technically impossible to achieve."
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Marine User Meeting at Seatec
Seatec is the only exhibition in Italy exclusively focused on boatyards and shipyards suppliers.
It takes place on the 5-6-7 February 2009 in Carrara, Italy.
Visit the Design Systems & Technologies / NDAR booth (D 28 - 857) to learn more about Orca3D and Rhino.
Meet also the Orca3D and McNeel marketing and development team and expert users at the special Marine User Meeting we have organized for this event:
- When: Friday 6 February, from 10 am to 5 pm
- Where: Administration Building, Carrara Fair
- Preliminary program:
- 10am-12pm: Orca 3D presentation and technical workshops covering the different modules. (Nick Danese - NDAR)
- 12-12:30 pm: Questions
- 12:30-14 pm: Lunch break
- 14-15 pm: New technology in Rhino, including RhinoLabs and more... (Bob McNeel, Steve Baer, Carlos Pérez - McNeel)
- 15-15:45 pm: User presentation: "Using Rhino to design and build a boat of 85 feet completely", by Umberto Petricich (3DW Moulds)
- 15:45-16:15 pm: Rhino NC and Mosaix, by CIMsystem
- 16:15-17 pm: Questions, tips & tricks, round table. Meet the McNeel staff. (Bob McNeel, Steve Baer, Carlos Pérez - McNeel) - Attendance to this meeting is free (you might need to pay the entrance to the Seatec show).
- If you want to present or have any questions, please contact Carlos Pérez or Nick Danese.
Friday, January 16, 2009
VisualARQ for Rhino - Beta 5
VisualARQ for Rhino beta 5 is available to download, including some bug fixes and new features of the architectural tools. This beta version is near feature complete, so it's your chance to contribute.
3DPaintBrush adds Rhino 3DM support
The latest version of 3DPaintBrush now directly imports Rhino's native 3DM files.
Roland JWX-30 includes Rhino
The Roland JWX-30, a complete jewelry model making solution, now includes their Rhino-based jewelry design software, JewelStudio.
The JWX-30 is a high-speed high-precision production milling machine, specially designed to meet the needs of the most demanding jewelry designers.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
ArrayCrvPLUS - new version
Jarek Bieda has just posted version 2.0 of ArrayCrvPLUS for Rhino 4.0 SR4.
ArrayCrvPLUS enables new ways to distribute items along path curves or path curves on surfaces ( polysurfaces, meshes ). It will array any number of items along any number of curve paths. Parameters can be adjusted with preview functionality. In addition, while arraying curves or points, ArrayCrvPLUS can automatically create Loft/Sweep1 surfaces or InterpolatedCurves based on created array of profile items.
Grasshopper fabrication project
Zach Downey, a Digital Design Specialist at SHoP architects in New York City, has just posted the details on how he did another fun project for fabricating a panelized surface using Grasshopper in Rhino.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Computational Design Workshop
Universidad de los Andes, MIT, and McNeel Latinoamérica have organized a 5-day workshop on computational design for architecture professors.
Where: Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia
When: January 28 - February 1, 2009
Instructors: Computation Group, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Daniel Cardoso Ll. (Ph.D. II)
Kenfield Griffith (Ph.D. III)
Skylar Tibbits (SMArchS I)
The workshop will offer participants hands-on experience on programming as a tool for formal and spatial exploration. The objective is to provide the students with conceptual and technical tools that will allow them to decide when and how programming could turn into an ally on the design process and fabrication of architectural projects.
The workshop will provide a solid programming knowledge in RhinoScript. The participants will explore the possibilities of this language through a series of guided exercises and through the development of some working group projects. At the end of the workshop, the participants will be able to transmit spatial ideas generated algorithmically, they will also be able to develop computational solutions to their structure and assembling problems.
Space is very limited. Email Jackie Nasser if you are interested in attending.
Note: Another computational design/RhinoScript workshop is planned for Portland, OR, at the end of March. Details will be posted shortly.
New Paneling Gallery Page
Check the new Paneling Gallery page where users may share their projects and experiments using PanelingTools.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Rhino 4 SR5 Release Candidate 2 available
Rhino 4.0 SR5 Release Candidate 2 (8-Jan-2009) is now available to download. This is pre-release software. If you are not comfortable running pre-release software, please do not download this build. This release candidate has been tested by our internal testing staff and is believed to be stable, reliable, and suitable for use in production. As with all release candidates, however, there may be problems that we didn't uncover in our own testing. We expect several thousand people to download and test this Service Release and report any problems they have. When we are satisfied that there are no major problems with this release, we'll release the Service Release officially. Please report any crashes you experience using the McNeel Error Reporting dialog box that will appear. Report any other problems to our support team.
Bug Fixes:
- Crash Fixes: Fixed several crashes that were reported in SR5 RC1.
- Pipe command incorrectly created pipes twice the diameter expected when using Diameter mode and picking the diameter point with object snaps enabled.
For a complete list, and to download, please visit http://download.rhino3d.com/whatsnew.asp?rel=444
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Rhinophoto 1.0 - Shipping
Rhinophoto is a photogrammetry plugin for Rhino that provides automatic accurate 3D digitizing from a set of photographs.
- Contactless digitalizing
- Fully automatic, a one-button process
- No special equipment needed
- Works with most digital cameras, and also includes camera calibration software
- Accuracy between 5/1,000 and 5/10,000 according to the camera
- No part size limitation
WANTED - Rhino/Matrix expert
Emily Armenta needs a CAD assistant based in Texas.
Desired skill set- 2-4 years of experience in working with Rhino or Matrix. Knowledge of creating jewelry at the bench. Knowledge and use of operation of perfactory and Revo mill. Interest in engineering and strong problem solving skills.
Friday, January 9, 2009
Using VB.NET in Grasshopper
Rajaa has posted six examples of how to use VB.NET in Grasshopper, each with increasing difficulty starting from simple expression all the way to using functions. Mutiple methods are used for some of them to show various ways to get same result.
Rhino OS X - New Build
There is a new build available, Wenatchee 2009-01-07, with many new features, enhancements, and bug fixes.
Rhino Training for Marine Designers
Rhino Modeling for Marine Designers is a six-week online course instructed by Cliff Estes. Begin by learning to work with curves, then surfaces, and finally move into fairing a simple chine hull, followed by a simple sailing schooner hull. Finish with a self-directed project of modeling a complete hull/deck/superstructure of your own design.
Required reading...
Essentials of Interactive Computer Graphics should be required reading for every undergraduate computer graphics student. This computer graphics text provides the student with conceptual and practical insights into how to approach building a majority of the interactive graphics applications.
Steve Baer is a member of the Rhino core development team.
PanelingTools for Rhino 4.0 Updated
A new release of PanelingTools plug-in for Rhino 4.0 is available for download. New in this release:
- Fixed crash bug in ptGridSeam.
- Added X_Length and Y_length options to ptOrientToGrid command.
- Added preview to selection of reference points in ptOrientToGrid command.
- Added new option to flat faces to select specified set of points to calculate the plane.
- Posted two new video tutorials
Shape to Fabrication 3 - London, April 15
The Shape to Fabrication event is the place to learn all the details about how the most cutting edge architectural projects were designed and built. This is the one event where architects and engineers are willing to share their latest tools and techniques.
Many of these details are never published anywhere else. And it is a great place to meet and visit with the designers that are behind the scenes solving the most challenging design, engineering, and fabrication problems.
Space is very limited. Reserve your space now.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Grasshopper project and tutorials
Zach Downey, a Digital Design Specialist at SHoP architects in New York City, is kind enough to share the details on how he did a fun fabrication project using Grasshopper in Rhino.
You will also find many Grasshopper tutorials on his designalyze blog.
Rhino job in London
ChauhanStudio, a London-based product design company is looking for experienced, competent Rhino modelers/visualizers to work on industrial design projects.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
RhinoGold at Print'Or and IberJoya
Don't miss the following events to learn more about RhinoGold and Roland DG milling machines:
- January 11-13, Print'Or, Lyon (France)
Roland DG Mid Europe - Hall 9/10 Stand E16 - January 14-18, Iberjoya, Madrid (Spain)
Roland DG Iberia - Pab. 14 Stand 14.0E23A
Rhino User, Carlo Borer, wins award
Carlo Borer, long-time Rhino user, recently won the prize for Sculpture of the State of Solothurn / Switzerland 2008.
Sculpture, the leading American magazine for Sculpture also features here an article about Carlo Borer called Peculiar Geometries.
New Rhino Book by Michiel van der Kley
The new book Working with Rhinoceros 4.0 by Michiel van der Kley is now available both in Dutch and English.
This book will teach you, step by step, to use Rhino 4. The book describes drawing in 2D, building in 3D, editing in 3D, materials, light, rendering, the export possibilities, scripting, and a lot more with a lot of examples.
276 pages, over 450 illustrations.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
V-Ray for Rhino Training
In January, ASGvis will kick off the first two courses in our V-Ray Training Program in Baltimore, MD. The beginner two-day course costs US$695 and the advanced two-day course costs US$795. Both include breakfast and lunch.
Rapid Prototyping Expo - LA
Dimension World Expo ‘09, a one-day expo in Anaheim, CA, is an opportunity to learn how to use 3D printing and rapid prototyping technologies with Rhino to improve and streamline your design process.
See the Dimension BST (Breakaway Support Technology). One of the lowest-priced office-friendly machines of its kind, priced at $18,900.
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