Any plugins useful for architecture viz?

[yog]

The only modelling plug-in I use is the bridge tool found in David Ikeda's Power Tools (http://www.davidikeda.com/)

I've changed my technique somewhat in the last year. I used to have my windows and doors in a background layer with a bounding box for each, then I would boolean subtract the bounding boxes from the main walls and then copy the windows and doors over.
Now I still have the windows and doors in a background layer, but instead of a bounding box I use a cutting plane for each win/dr. I then use the knife tool to cut horizontally through the main walls for the top and bottom of the windows (the top of the door is most often the top of the window), Then use the cutting plane to stencil vertically down through the walls. From here I use the bridge tool to punch through the win/dr openings. It takes a little more work than boolean'ing, but you end up with a better polygon layout that often renders quicker/better.

[CTRL+X]

I just do all my model work in autocad and bring it into LW

[pygoh]

Thanks for the replies guys. Yeah it does sound a LW can do with a few tool geared towards architectural viz, a good spline/line tool is probably top of my list. Find it quite tough actually coming from Max after using for two years doing architectural viz.

More comments on workarounds would be great please. Thanks.

[pelos]

how can you bring it to LW, as .obj?
can you mantaine the layers?
walls in layer 1
windows in layer 2
doors in layer 3
etc...

and the materials?
because pasing to 3d viz, the automatly have multi-materials

[CTRL+X]

I bring it in as parts of the whole,, each layer out of autocad on its own layer in LW Modeler

I export out of Autocad as OLD .DXF format or as .3ds as the new.DXF format is proprietary.

Once in LW with a .3ds I run Merge, then Merge Trigons, then unify......sometimes it needs to be edited further.....

[CTRL+X]

There is also a slew of plugins from Pictrix I would not live without since doing Arch and Civil viz

HERE (http://plaza17.mbn.or.jp/~PICTRIX/index.html)



Also this is useful at times (http://www.ats-3d.com/dxf2curve/dxf2curve.htm)

there is also traslators out there like form Right Hemisphere but they cost and I have never used them

[yog]

Hi CTRL+X

When you say you bring it across from Autocad, are you refering to straight Autocad or one of the Desktop products (i.e. Architectural Desktop) ?

Even though I use Autocad everyday (acad + ADT), I've not built a 3D model in Autocad since my days with 3D Studio-4. Even with ADT I still find it much faster to build the 3D model in LW (you don't need milimeter accuracy after all).

This is in part because the Architects I work for still do all their working drawings in 2D (despite having ADT), some still even use a drawing board. So at most I just bring across a 2D floor plan, put it in a background layer and use it as a base for building the model.

I found that when building in MAX I kept getting over concerned with extremely small details (at the mm level), and it was becoming more of a technical exercise. Building in LW though I find it more like sketching out the model, OK it might not be milimeter accurate (cm accurate maybe), but when the virtual camera is a couple meters away nobody could tell the difference.

[pygoh]

Coming from an architectural background and having used ACAD for five years b4 Max, i find it quite tough in LW to model architecture. I suppose that's partly due to the fact that i've only used LW the past month.

I reckon a dwg import would be awesome in LW. Also very curious just how many wavers are actually using LW for architectural viz.

[faulknermano]

Dont forget AbsoluteSizer (the lscript that comes with lw). great at sizing "selection primitives."

here are some snapping tools if you need any:

http://thespread.ghostoutpost.com/SnapSets.zip

[Arte]

Originally posted by pygoh
Thanks for the replies guys. Yeah it does sound a LW can do with a few tool geared towards architectural viz, a good spline/line tool is probably top of my list. Find it quite tough actually coming from Max after using for two years doing architectural viz.

More comments on workarounds would be great please. Thanks.

LW has enjoyed arch tools from Lw3 onwards with Macroform. Not sure if that is still sold? Cman has some similar stuff as does Pictrix. With Rounder Arch in Lw has really come of age.


X

[BeeVee]

Showing your age there Arte... :) Macroform stopped working well under LightWave 5.x and stopped being sold before that was out IIRC... :)

B

[pelos]

can you explain step by step how you do it?
and what do you do with the surfaces, you have to select each poly and give a surface inside LW or you can do it from Autodesk?

i ask because in the school we use from autodesk (cad) to 3dviz, but i dont like the light and the render (i am a LW user jaja) so i want to bring my project to LW and do all the renders an materials in LW

Thanks

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