3d to 2d

[don62]

2d guy here venturing into the world of 3d: want to draw an item in 3d, then break the item into its 2d parts. for example, a guitar body - comprised of a top and bottom and curved sides. actually the sides are made of a flat piece of wood that is cut to a particular shape then bent along the curve defined by the edges of the top and bottom. will artcam pro, or for that matter any other 3d program allow me get a 2d representation of the sides of the guitar so that i can then cut this side out on my shopbot? thanks, don

[hippo]

Artcam doesn't quite do that kind of thing, if I'm understanding you right.

A CAD program like Rhino3D will "unroll" the sides into a rectangle so you can see the length etc.

You'll always need to make some small adjustments by hand though, because the real material bends/stretches a little differently than the virtual, but it can get you very close.

Different programs have different strengths, so the more detail you can describe what you'd like to make, the better we can all tell you what to do ;) or at least offer our advice.

-Dan

[Brady Watson]

Don,
Yes. You can get both a cross section of (loft curves) of the 3D body itself, as well as a 2D perimeter of the body outline. You can easily calculate the length of the strip needed to wrap the sides of the body by getting a perimeter length of the body outline. There are few things that you cannot do in this program.

-B

[kenz]

This might be what you are looking for:
http://www.touchcad.com

[don62]

first, once again i am impressed with the shopbot forum.
sent an email to Dan, but not sure he received it. you are all on the right track and after looking at the touchcad video, i think that is what i am looking for. i have a mac so i downloaded the demo program and will play with it. just how much is touchcad? am impressed with artcam pro, but the 7.5k is way above budget. rhino ($900?) fits the budget better, but it seems touchcad has better features. can you point me to a rep or someone who has pricing?

[hippo]

Don, got your email. It went in the spam. Sorry. I haven't used Touchcad before, so I can't comment, but in either case you can probably find a reseller who can give you a better price (at least a little)

-Dan

[don62]

Dan, sent you another email - my big thanks for your outstanding help, don