Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Local Code Venice / Ecology of Strangers workshop


Local Code Venice / Ecology of Strangers is a workshop, seminar, and design charrette to be held in the Venetian Lagoon and at the US Pavilion of the 13th Venice Architecture Biennale from September 21-23, 2012, as part of the US Pavilion exhibit Spontaneous Interventions: Design Actions for the Common Good.

The workshop agenda will be to re-engage the historic interdependence between the city of Venice and the greater Venetian lagoon, by proposing a programmed, ecological redevelopment of the many dozens of abandoned islands that litter the lagoon’s outer horizon. Such work may be essential to Venice’s future, even as it mirrors the city and the lagoon’s historic interdependence.

Up to 20 participants will join Nicholas de Monchaux, a featured exhibitor in Spontaneous Interventions, workshop co-director Sandro Bisa, and a range of local architects, landscape ecologists, and urbanists for three days together in the lagoon. As well as background information on the lagoon, its changing ecology, and landscape of abandoned territory, the workshop will involve an introduction to the parametric urban design software —Local Code and the Finches plug-in for Rhino/Grasshopper — developed by de Monchaux and his collaborators at UC Berkeley (the use of this software by participants is encouraged, but by no means required).

Participants will have the opportunity to have design work leading from the workshop exhibited at the pavilion, (as part of a rotating display) from October 25 until November 25.

A part of the Bienalle’s scheduled activities, the workshop is free of charge to participants, including boat transport around the lagoon, and one night of lodging in the lagoon islands (subject to confirmation). Participants are responsible for their own transportation to Venice, as well as local lodging outside of the field visit. The primary language of the workshop will be English.

Applications are open to any interested partipant, and will be considered on a rolling basis until September 15, 2012, or until all slots are filled.

To learn more, and to apply, visit http://venice.localco.de/

GTeam: online 3D collaboration






Gehry Technologies has launched a free preview of GTeam™, a new cloud-based 3D, file management and project collaboration platform with support for Rhino. GTeam enables project teams, including architects, designers, engineers, contractors, consultants, and building owners, to easily collaborate and share project and 3D design information online.  Read more...


Thursday, July 26, 2012

VisualARQ 1.6


VisualARQ is an architectural software that runs as a fully integrated plugin in Rhinoceros.

Speed up your modeling workflow with its set of parametric objects (walls, windows, doors, stairs...) and get the project documentation (plans, sections, elevations, areas, volumes, components tables) on the fly.

What’s new in VisualARQ 1.6:
  • Realtime Plan Views in page Layout details
  • Customizable wall joints
  • Wall components wrapping
  • Hatched section views (video)
  • Tables with area, length, and volume of VisualARQ objects

Monday, July 23, 2012

VSR Tutorial: Class A Modeling


VSR is pleased to announce the release of the tutorial "RHINO + VSR: ONE STEP FURTHER TO CLASS A (MODELING A BEACH BUGGY)".

Discover methods and possibilities to design and analyze Class A surfaces in a few steps. Optimize your design and engineering processes concerning quality and quantity with the products of Virtual Shape Research.

We would like to provide our tutorial "RHINO + VSR: ONE STEP FURTHER TO CLASS A" as an access to Class A surface modeling. At the end you will have a good understanding  for the capabilities and power of VSR-Shape Modeling 1.1 and VSR-Shape Analysis 2.1.

From background sketches you will see how to design the basic body of a beach buggy in a very comfortable way. Also, we allocate Rhino 3DM files for all the intermediate steps which will let you skip certain parts or to go directly into the area relevant for you.

Download it for free (registration is needed) at http://www.virtualshape.com/en/download. Available in English and German!

Saturday, July 21, 2012

JCK Toronto: August 12-14, 2012

JCK Toronto is the premier Canadian jewelry event. More than 150 designers and manufacturers meet with Ontario's most influential network of retailers to discover the products and ideas that define, challenge, and excite the jewelry marketplace.

JCK Toronto is where the jewelry industry comes together in Canada to buy, sell, and network.

August 12-14, 2012
Metro Toronto Convention Centre
South Hall
Toronto, Ontario

Schindler Technologies Corp., Booth 929, is where to see Rhino, RhinoGold, Solidscape wax printers, and Roland mills.



Thursday, July 19, 2012

Free Clayoo workshop in Barcelona


TDM Solutions invites you to a free Clayoo workshop in Barcelona (at McNeel Europe office):
  • Thursday July 26, 9:30-13:30h
    or
  • Thursday July 26, 14:30-18:30h

Rhino 5 public beta - new build

Rhino 5 is now very stable and ready to put into production. 

Timid owners of Rhino 4.0 are now invited to download and use the Rhino 5 beta. We still have a few tune-ups and minor bugs to fix. Plus, the documentation, translations, and marketing materials need to be finished.

Meanwhile, don't wait to try Rhino 5.

New Rhino 5 public beta builds are available almost every week. Rhino 5 automatically downloads and notifies you of updates when they are ready.

64-bit Windows Supported:
The 64-bit version of Rhino 5 allows you to open and edit models that are much larger than you could in Rhino 4.0. The 32- and 64-bit versions of Rhino 5 can be installed and run on the same computer at the same time.

Backward Compatible:
Rhino 4.0 Plug-ins will load and run in the 32-bit version of Rhino 5. Plug-ins will need to be recompiled for the 64-bit version of Rhino by the plug-in developers. Until they're ready, you may need to run the 32- and 64-bit versions of Rhino 5 side by side.

Rhino 4.0 and 5 can be run on the same computer without a problem. Also, you can SaveAs 4.0 files from Rhino 5.

System Requirements:
  • Windows XP (32-bit), Windows Vista (32- or 64-bit) or, Windows 7 (32- or 64-bit)
  • Rhino 4.0
  • 500MB of disk space
  • 2GB RAM (4-16GB recommended for 64-bit systems and very large models)

Generative Jewelry Design (GJD3D) launched


Generative Jewelry Design (GJD3D) is a community of like-minded jewelry designers who are exploring new shapes using generative algorithms with Grasshopper. GJD3D is the place to learn, teach and share new methods of digital jewelry design and fabrication.

Grasshopper is a graphical algorithm editor tightly integrated with Rhino’s 3D modeling tools. Unlike RhinoScript, Grasshopper requires no knowledge of programming or scripting, but still allows designers to build form generators from the simple to the awe-inspiring.

Generative Furniture Design (GFD3D) launched


Generative Furniture Design (GFD3D) is a community of like-minded furniture designers who are exploring new shapes using generative algorithms with Grasshopper. GFD3D is the place to learn, teach and share new methods of digital furniture design and fabrication.

Grasshopper is a graphical algorithm editor tightly integrated with Rhino’s 3D modeling tools. Unlike RhinoScript, Grasshopper requires no knowledge of programming or scripting, but still allows designers to build form generators from the simple to the awe-inspiring.

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

iRhino 1.3 - new version available

iRhino 3D
Share your insight and inspiration

On the iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch
There is nothing like showing your designs and ideas in 3D. Pan, zoom, and rotate with a tap or drag of your finger. The handy navigator lets you scroll through thumbnails, so you can quickly jump to any model you want. Load Rhino models from web sites, Google Docs, Dropbox, email attachments, or from iTunes. Save views as images for mark-up and emailing.

New in version 1.3

  • Retina display support
  • Layer visibility control
  • Background color control
  • Larger thumbnail previews
  • iOS 4.2 or above is required
  • Minor bug fixes

Weekly CAD tips at cadjunkie

Film designer Scott Schneider is posting weekly tips at cadjunkie. The tutorial series "Rhino's Tip O' the Horn" are about 3 to 5 minutes each, so check them out:

Saturday, July 14, 2012

Workshops at Facades Conference



The Facades Conference is just around the corner. Have you signed up yet? Workshops are filling quickly. Register today!

Collaboration: The Art and Science of Building Facades
Facades Conference & Workshops
July 26-27, 2012

All workshops will take place on July 27th at California College of the Arts.
Sessions include:
  • Parametric Envelopes with Grasshopper with Andrew Kudless
  • Composite Facades in Architecture with Bill Kreysler & Joshua Zabel
  • Responsive Building Facades with Jason Kelly Johnson
    Using Grasshopper, Firefly & Arduino micro-controller
  • Scripted Facades with Chris Lasch
    Using Grasshopper, RhinoPython scripting
  • Parametric Facade Tectonics with Kevin McClellan & Andrew Vrana
    Using Rhino, Grasshopper, PanelingTools
AIA credits are available depending on the workshop chosen (either 8 LUs or 8 LU/HSWs).  See the workshop site for details.

Friday, July 13, 2012

Digital Fabrication workshop, July 24-25




Digital Fabrication: Strategies for Design
July 24-25, 2012
Ilan Dei Studio - Venice, CA

Using Rhino 3D modeling and CAD/CAM software participants will explore the various methods of digital fabrication and how it affects the design process based on those guidelines. The five scenarios that dictate the fabrication process are Slice, Fold, Tile, Skin, and Carve.


This two-day workshop will cover the various types of digital fabrication and what advantages each process can offer. It will detail the proper setup techniques, both in the field, and on the computer, as well as basic software and formatting tutorials.

Grasshopper workshop, July 21-22

Screening: Pattern + Prototyping with Grasshopper
July 21-22, 2012

Conducted by Studio Mode|modeLab, this design and digital fabrication workshop will focus on the performance capacity of screening devices to regulate light and view while simultaneously producing both ornamental as well as material effects. The workshop will make extensive use of modeLab's digital fabrication equipment, coupled with parametric patterning techniques in Grasshopper.

Location: modeLab - Greenpoint, Brooklyn, NY

SIGGRAPH: August 7-9, 2012, Los Angeles


The 39th International Conference and Exhibition on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques

SIGGRAPH 2012 = you + more than 20,000 creators and users of computer graphics and interactive techniques, in Los Angeles for five full days of world-class technical presentations, creative exploration, and the industry's largest marketplace of products and services: the SIGGRAPH 2012 Exhibition.

You can see Rhino in partner booths: AMD #709, and Imagination Technologies #522.


Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Grasshopper workshop in Germany

Grasshopper workshop
Haus der Bildung
Volkshochschule Schwäbisch Hall (Germany)
July 19-21

There are only a few days left to join this special Grasshopper workshop by Peter Mehrtens (Authorized Rhino Trainer).

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Rhino events in South Africa


SimplyRhino South Africa kindly invites you to join the following Rhino User Meetings:
  • July 18 - Rhino User Group - Cape Town
     
    This is a free two-hour networking and information-gathering event aimed at those in the boat building industry who either want to learn more about Rhino or are users of Rhino. Presentations will be done by experts from the marine industry on using Rhino for boat design.
     
  • August 30 - Rhino User Group - Johannesburg
     
    This is a free two-hour networking and information-gathering event aimed at those in design industry and architecture who either want to learn more about Rhino or are users of Rhino. Presentations will be done by various experts from the industry on using Rhino.

RhinoPiping 0.9.11


RhinoPiping is a new plugin, developed by NAVINN Software, that allows creating piping networks in a 3D environment and forwarding information to people working in engineering offices, purchasing, subcontracting, manufacturing, assembly, and testing.

RhinoPiping 0.9.11 has been released. See the release notes and download the beta version.

Saturday, July 7, 2012

RevUp Render, Cloud Rendering



This scene rendered in minutes, not hours.

RevUp Render Cloud Rendering with V-Ray 2.0 for 3D Artists and Architects

RevUp Render announces a new cloud rendering service supporting V-Ray 2.0 rendering software from the Chaos Group. With the RevUp Render cloud computing platform, 3D graphics professionals can use the power of massive render farms and high-end production workstations via the cloud—allowing studios and artists to easily scale processing power up or down as needed.

With V-Ray 2.0 rendering software running as part of the RevUp Render platform, artists and studios employing 3D software with distributed rendering capabilities, including Rhino, and other packages that integrate V-Ray and its distributed rendering (DR) feature can now work completely in the cloud—from beginning to end.



Thursday, July 5, 2012

New book for Jewelry designers

Logis3D just announced a new book addressed to Jewelry designers: "Progettare la gioielleria in 3D con Rhinoceros"

With more than 300 pages and 40 step by step tutorials, this book teaches advanced modeling and editing techniques, rendering and also how to introduce Grasshopper into your workflow.

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

VSR Shape Modeling update

Virtual Shape Research (VSR) announces the availability of the service releases Shape Modeling 1.1.1 and Realtime Renderer 3.1.1. Both releases are free for existing customers and work with the 1.1 resp. 3.1 license.

For more information please visit http://www.virtualshape.com/en/news

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Recent Robot news

The news was a bit slow in the past months, as Robots in Architecture was busy organizing the upcoming ROB|ARCH 2012 conference. Here’s what happened recently:

Red Bull Arch



On June 1st, artists C. Neugebauer and M. Köhldorfer unveiled their huge 17x23m aluminum arch sculpture for the Red Bull Circuit in Spielberg/Austria. The robotic fabrication of the 83 positive foam molds was done using a customized version of KUKA|prc on a KUKA KR150-2 robot, which the artists purchased from the automotive industry for this particular project. The Association helped them set up the robot, customized KUKA|prc for their particular needs, and developed a workflow for efficiently producing all parts of the arch. Neugebauer and Köhldorfer will look at that project in-depth at our ROB|ARCH conference in December.

KUKA|prc new release

We are proud to announce a new version of KUKA|prc based on a fully rewritten robot engine, opening up a huge range of new possibilities. First and foremost, KUKA|prc is no longer limited to linear toolpaths, as needed, e.g., for milling, but can work with a wide variety of motion commands with adjustable speeds: linear motions, Point-to-point motions, and direct axis commands. Correctly using these specialized movement commands can greatly optimize robotic jobs. More...


New STF4 video


This video showcases a 4-day intensive workshop experience held at RoboFold during the last Shape To Fabrication in November 2011. During the course over 25 tutors, working professionals from the UK and abroad mentored around 25 students in using digital tools with contemporary software and hardware:

1. RoboFold // Kangaroo/Lobster: (Gregory Epps/Daniel Piker/Jeg Dudley)
2. Archiwaste // SMART Form: (Rupert Maleczek/Sam Joyce/Al Fisher)
3. Cutting Edge // Evolute Tools: (Kevin Hoy/Florin Isvoranu/Mathias Hoebinger)
4. Cordek // Grasshopper/Galapagos: (Lawrence Friesen/David Rutten)


More details here...

Jukbuin Pavilion Barcelona


Jukbin is an experimental pavilion with an innovative constructive solution, seeking efficiency in cost and energy. The pavilion had a very tight budget (1.500€). The structural system is a technological adaptation of traditions of weaving and basketery: inter-weaving a network of very flexible elements to achieve a rigid “structural fabric”. The proposal demonstrates alternatives to the current building systems. In the pavilion there are 15 standardized panels only, without generating any waste.

The stand was part of the eme3 architecture festival in Barcelona last weekend.

The project was designed by CODA (Enrique Soriano and Pep Tornabell), and built with students of ETSAV, and colaborators. The space hosted festival activities and a series of debates organized by the student community.