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sk8nmike
12-10-2011, 03:01 PM
I've recently started using Daz3D for create patterns with and have made some nice 3D models. I've been saving them as a Wavefront object and converting them to STL then in to the Pattern editor.

Problem I'm having is the loss of detail. If I compress the STL it flattens the entire pattern losing the fine detail.

Anyone have a solution to this?

jpaluck
12-10-2011, 08:25 PM
Can you post a pic of before and the after import.

sk8nmike
12-11-2011, 07:36 AM
And I've found one solution, that is the unlink the scale factor on the STL importer and set the z axis to the depth I want to carve, .5 on these. I still lose detail but not as much. Still looking for ideas..


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jpaluck
12-11-2011, 01:22 PM
sk8nmike

I think I see your issue. I hope I explain this right..lol..self taught so I might butcher the terminology up but you should get the idea of what I'm trying to explain. You have to use a viewports reference plane as the end point and start point of your model. Modeling for cnc carving ie 2.5d as it's reffered to sometimes gets a hair tricky. You have to look at thhe plane or reference plane in say the top viewport as the back of your board you going to be carving on. Also you will be looking straight down on the model in EXACTLY 90 degree angle so under cuts and spaces will chopped straight down.

I have attached a few pictures to help give you an idea. The first model of Mickey mouse is a good 3d model. Renders nice. But for carving it will lose all detail for the most part. The reason is, it was modeled in full 3d space - meaning no back reference point. It was not intended to be a cnc carving so hence no back reference.

The other model of woody was done to be a carving...this should give you an idea. LOL pic worth a thousand words

mtylerfl
12-11-2011, 02:55 PM
I think you did a fine job explaining that, John. A lot of folks don't realize that they need to "switch gears" from a design/layout standpoint, when creating models for 2.5D vs. full 3D. A full 3D model often does not translate well for a relief carving as demonstrated by your photos. More to the story, but I like how you kept it to a simple, illustrated explanation!

bergerud
12-11-2011, 05:09 PM
Sk8nmike, I have used Daz 3D to create models. My Miss Curvewright was made in Daz 3D and imported into 3ds max and converted to gray scale png. (before the STL importer). I think your problem is simply that you want to make your 3D model too big. You only get 3/4 of an inch of depth and the other scales have to stay linked or you lose the shape. You can push it a little when you get into Designer. Scale it up a bit, make the depth 0.8 and increase the height. That is as big as your cat can get in a single carve. Other than that, you have to go for layers using the STL importer.

Jpaluck, The back plane problem is one of the problems that the STL importer takes care of. You import the whole 3D mesh, orient it any way you wish and move a slicing plane where ever you want the back plane to be. For anyone who wants to convert 3D meshes into carving patterns, it is hard to beat the STL importer. I think that sk8nmike's problem is simply the 3/4" depth limitation.

sk8nmike
12-11-2011, 05:54 PM
jpaluck,

I can see where getting from 3d to 2.5d would be a better method, but I'm not sure Daz will do that. What program are you using?

bergerud
12-11-2011, 06:09 PM
In Designer when you make the x and y scale larger while keeping the z scale fixed, is that not converting 3D to 2.5D? Am I missing something here? Do you want 3D or a flattened relief?

jpaluck
12-11-2011, 06:26 PM
sk8nmike

I gather your trying to get a releif...why I posted pictures. Full 3d bergerud is right no problem with stl importer - just slice up and glue up. But if your looking for a releif carving out of a 3d model you are going to lose detail unless it was modeled for cnc.

I am using modo, moi3d zbrush and 3d coat. However when you say your using Daz3D are you using one of their modeling software's like hexagon or Carrara or bryce? ...if you are, then you can model just the same as modo..meaning all are polygon modelors. When I model something for carving, I start with the plane as my end point or back...nothing goes past the plane. Other thing I keep in mind are no under cuts and how my shapes will "flow" back into the plane.

If your trying to take a full 3d model and "squish it" down to 3/4 in the Z..you gonna lose detail most of the time. That Mickey photo I posted would make a terrible relief. I could tweak eveything to go agaisnt the plane - but that would be a boatload of work...it would be faster to re-model for cnc relief. The shoes for example stick out in front way too far, arms would have to be adjusted.

Sometimes I think full 3d models aree easier from the standpoint you have more room to model. The limited depth of a relief carving makes it challenging...hope this helps.