By now you've heard about much of the exciting new functionality in AutoCAD 2007. But what if you don't even have AutoCAD 2006 or AutoCAD 2005 yet? Or worse yet, what if you have them but you aren't using them to their full potential? Quoting a clever slogan from NBC (with a slight modification) , "if you haven't seen used it, it's new to you!" If you are using older releases of AutoCAD (or using AutoCAD 2006 like an older release), be sure to investigate ALL the new-to-you functionality in AutoCAD 2007.
The AutoCAD 2007 New Features Workshop is available online (or from the Help menu in AutoCAD 2007). You can use this interactive tool to learn about AutoCAD functionility that was added as far back as AutoCAD 2005! To further help with your AutoCAD investigation, I've provided links to older Preview Guides under the Documents section on the sidebar of this blog.
When you get your hands on this new and exciting release of AutoCAD, one of the first things that you’ll probably want to do is start modeling! However, the first tools you choose to create your 3D solids, may not be the most efficient for your situation. Before AutoCAD 2007, how you created your solids wasn’t much of a concern because AutoCAD basically considered all solids to be created equal. They were virtual lumps of mass with minimal editing capabilities. That is no longer the case! In AutoCAD 2007, solids are not created equal. Some are considerably more flexible than others and the more you understand about solids editing, the better choices you will make when creating them!
Consider six different methods for creating a simple 3D solid. All six methods produce a single object type called 3DSOLID. However, the options for editing the resulting solids vary considerably.
In four of the six examples, I began by creating a box. In the first example, I selected the upper right edge of the box and dragged it to the right. In the second example, I used the SLICE command to cut and remove the part of the box that I no longer wanted. Both of these methods produced solids with minimal editing capabilities. If you select either of these solids, you get one grip whose only purpose is to move the solid. Fortunately, however, you can Ctrl-pick on any face, edge, or vertex to further edit the solid.
In the third and fourth examples, I created wedges in addition to the boxes and then used Boolean operations (Subtract or Union) to produce the final solids. At first glance, the resulting solids appear to be the same as those produced with the first two methods. Like the first two examples, selecting each of these solids displays only a single Move grip. However, if you press the Ctrl key and pass your cursor over these solids, the original primitive solids will highlight. If you pick one of these core primitives (Box or Wedge), you will have full editing control over that core object. You can use any of the grips as well as the Properties palette. In addition, you can Ctrl-Pick again to select a face, edge or vertex to further edit the primitive solid.
The fifth and sixth methods that I used to create the 3D solid didn’t include any primitive objects. Instead, I began with 2D profiles and then used the EXTRUDE and PRESSPULL commands to produce 3D solids. Selecting these objects displays multiple grips enabling you to stretch any of the vertices on their current plane and stretch the height along the vertical axis. You can also edit the height of these objects using the Properties palette. In addition, you can Ctrl-Pick on any face, edge or vertex for further editing.
Although I’ve focused on box- and wedge-shaped objects in these examples, the same principles apply to other shapes. For example, you might create a bottle or other circular object by revolving a 2D profile around an axis, lofting 2D profiles or by creating multiple primitives and then using UNION, SUBTRACT, and FILLET to create a composite solid.
So many ways to create solids, how do you choose which method to use? Well, I can’t guarantee that I have the right answer, but I can tell you what I do. I always consider primitives first. Primitives aren’t always the obvious solution and they don’t necessarily provide the fastest method for creating solids. However, they do provide the most flexibility and efficiency when it comes to editing. And we all know that editing is where you spend most of your time!
The first time I created the floors in my house model, I did the obvious. I used PRESSPULL to extrude the 2D profile. This method used existing geometry, was very fast and worked great.
However, when I wanted to add different floor materials to the various rooms, I needed to separate the large extruded solid into different objects.
I could accomplish this by using the SLICE command but, given the complicated shape of the various floor areas, I would have to slice and union many times and those sliced solids would have limited editing options.
Instead, I recreated the floors using a combination of boxes and wedges. It sounds like a lot of work, but it was actually very easy thanks to dynamic UCS and primitive grip editing. Now I have composite solids that I can easily manipulate moving forward. For example, if I want to move a wall or separate the existing floors into smaller areas, I can grip-edit the primitive sub-objects, erase existing ones or add new ones.
The best method for creating solids depends on your situation but I encourage you to consider using primitives. You might be surprised how handy they are!
Good luck and happy editing!
Grip tools are interactive 3D icons that enable you to move or rotate objects (and sub-objects) in 3D space within the constraints of a specified axis or plane.
For example, use the Move grip tool to move objects (including vertices, edges, faces, and sub-objects) along a selected axis regardless of where you drag the cursor.
Use the Rotate grip tool to rotate objects around an axis by placing the grip tool at a point on the desired axis of rotation and then graphically selecting which axis to rotate around. You don’t have to think about X Y Z!
Yah, Yah, I know, “Funnest” isn’t a word… but it should be!
During my 14+ years with Autodesk, I’ve participated in the launch of many versions of AutoCAD including the “most powerful” AutoCAD ever and the “fastest” AutoCAD ever. Every release of AutoCAD has offered exciting new functionality such as Tool Palettes in AutoCAD 2004, Sheet Sets in AutoCAD 2005, and Dynamic Blocks in AutoCAD 2006. But I have to say, the soon-to-release AutoCAD 2007 is my favorite AutoCAD ever! Why?
AutoCAD 2007 is fun… it really is! I know work isn’t supposed to be fun (you don’t have to tell your boss), but AutoCAD 2007 has a ton of new functionality centered on conceptual 3D design. And, who doesn’t like conceptual 3D design?
AutoCAD 2007 is easy… it really is! The dynamic 3D creation, editing, and visualization functionality enables you to draw the way you think, offering a natural transition from your familiar 2D tools.
Okay, maybe it is easy to create 3D conceptual designs in AutoCAD 2007, but you create 2D construction documents and don’t need that 3rd dimension, right? Are you sure? After all we are living in a 3D world. Your contractors and manufacturers may understand and require the 2D construction drawings but what about the client and other stakeholders in the project?
My husband and I met with two kitchen contractors last fall to get estimates for remodeling our kitchen. The first contractor gave us a 2D plan of his design and described some of the options from which we could choose. Even though my husband and I both have architectural backgrounds and are familiar with reading floor plans, we had a hard time imagining how our expensive, new kitchen was going to look. The second contractor showed up at our house with his computer and after several hours of interactive designing, he left us with a set of 3D conceptual designs of our new kitchen. We liked both of the contractors and their estimates were very similar. So, which one do you think got the contract?
The 2D drawings were necessary to build the kitchen…
But it was the 3D conceptual drawings that sold the design and awarded the contract!
Can you afford *not* to produce conceptual designs in this 3D world?
As our kitchen remodel nears its end (finally!) there are still design decisions for us to make. Fortunately, AutoCAD 2007 has come at the right time! We’ve been able to quickly create conceptual designs to help us decide tile patterns, wall colors, and more.
Practical, efficient, easy and the “funnest” AutoCAD EVER! But let’s just keep that between us. My manager doesn’t need to know how much I’ve been enjoying my work!
The word is out! You can learn more about AutoCAD 2007 from the links provided by Shaan Hurley and of course there will be more to come here as well!
Have fun!!!
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