I am just wondering if it would be somehow feasible to write a script to provide an enhanced version of the section object that would be extremely useful for the architectural work flow:
the object would not only create a spline for the cut lines but also an additional spline for the projection of objects edges visible in one direction, on a “hidden line removal” basis.
Anybody has any thoughts that could point me in the right direction?
Many thanks in advance.
Do you know about Cebas Scalpel?
http://www.cebas.com/index.php?pid=product&prd_id=6&feature=4
I think this is what you’re looking for.
It’s not something that can be easily scripted, especially if you want it to be a modifier.
Yes Marc, I know scalpelMax but it does not do what I am looking for :shrug: sm is more like an enhanced slice modifier. I am looking for an object that would draw projected lines in addition to cut lines, basically what you usually see in architectural sections. I would like to write a script for this. It would somehow vectorise edges as seen in the viewport with a camera set on orthogonal projection and the viewport on hidden line visual stile.
I think I understand. You want to slice the scene and then convert the visible wireframe in “hidden lines” mode to a spline?
Let me ask you one question, is there some way to do it manually right now? Then it should be easy to automate.
I’m not aware of a way to convert the viewport wireframes to a spline. And the “hidden lines” representation looks fishy to me anyway, not really useable.
What you’re trying to do is writing a vector renderer, that’s not exactly easy. I wouldn’t know where to start…
In the past, I have been basically tracing over rendered images… In fact I think that what I am looking for would be very difficult to achieve. That’s way I am posting, hoping that some of the gurus will come up with some magic… I thought about using the .ps output of mental ray contours but it does not seem feasible 🙁
I thought also that since the hidden line edges of viewports are in origin vectors there was a way to bypass the screen visualization and grab the vectors from the same source used by the viewports… :curious:
you could try using the section spline shape to convert a slice to splines and then export them.
Is this what you are asking out?
