AliasDesign :: Surface Construction: Series Introduction

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SurfaceConstruction: Series Introduction
Posted February 17, 2009, 3:17 pm by , Barry Kimball

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Introduction
My name is Barry Kimball. I would like to layout out the foundations for a series of tutorials that will discuss some theories of Surface construction. To begin I would like to inform you of where my theories originate. Over the past 20 years I have been working in the field of automotive surface modeling. Those years have provided me the opportunity to work with some very knowledgeable people from around the world. The surface construction fundamentals that I will convey are not based on one companys standards, one persons ideas, or even from one culture. Here is my background (20 years in one paragraph is as short as I can make it)I began working at General Motors building door inner and body side sheet metal. (A body side panel is the sheet metal structure the door hinges mount on) That experience allowed me to work with exterior surface data from GMs Styling group and eventually work in the Cadillac styling department. During that time I also realized the technical complexities of exterior and interior surface development. I had the opportunity to learn many software tools for analyzing and creating surface models. Over that time I became aware that I had a passion for developing software tools that aided in class-A surface development. I moved from GM to Alias|wavefront. My time at Alias sent me to Italy, German, England, and all over North America. Some trips would be for sales or training and some for benchmarking against competitive products. From Alias, I moved to Ford Motor Co. and developed training materials and mentored AutoStudio users in the creation of production and conceptual surface models. The last 18 months at Ford I spent working on the Ford GT production car in the Living Legends studio. Since then I have worked At Nissan Design America as a digital designer creating some concept cars (Nissan Azeal) and many production vehicles. During this time I have made a few discoveries. I have found that the basis for surface construction is not documented somewhere in a book or with an organization like the S.A.E. Many people would even insist that there are no fundamental rules, build what looks good. Contrary to that belief I would say that a community of users has established a set of criteria that defines acceptable surface data from a technical and aesthetic standpoint. This is not a list of tolerances, specific levels of continuity, degree of a surface, or even if the surface is NURBS or Bezier. Highly qualified surface modelers would identify proper surface construction based on a very short investigation of a 3D model, no matter what software was used to create the data.

Surface Layout
I would like to begin our discussion of surface theory with one of its fundamentals, surface layout. Here are some basic guidelines for surface layout. Surface Layout Guidelines: - Attempt to base the surface layout on the shape of features - Features should define areas of equal curvature - Areas of equal curvature (Features) should be represented by a single surface - Feature definition should include where features begin/end & merge The following example shows a conventional surface layout extracted from STL data for a golf club head. The basic guidelines previously described were used to layout where individual surfaces begin, end and merge.

http://aliasdesign.autodesk.com/learning/tutorials/details/Surface%20Construction:%20Ser... 8/28/2011

AliasDesign :: Surface Construction: Series Introduction

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Some users might suggest trying and develop such an organic shape using one surface, or only a few. This method may work and achieve the same end result. The surface community will not consider the model technically correct. The technically correct methods may seem picky or too time-consuming to many users. Over the next few tutorials we will discuss the methods used for the surface boundary construction for the surface model and why it is important to lay out surfaces correctly.

This is another example of surface layout that indicates various users could define a set of surfaces. The left and right multi-colored surfaces show two different surface layouts. The center is a sky-textured polygonal mesh the structures are based on...

The structure on the left has more surfaces. This means that the users must control more boundary continuity conditions. The surface layout on the right has fewer surfaces that are more complex individually. I would recommend looking back to the original guidelines, dont attempt to do too much with one surface. This example shows that a surface modeler can change the design/shape of a part. Notice the differences between the left, middle, and right ears. The right hand models ears are much pointier than the scan. Highly complex NURBS surfaces can also be more difficult to modify and enhance. While neither of these models would be considered class-A the left model is more technically correct in many ways. I will show ways to identify surface to scan deviations and diagnose surface models over the next few tutorials.

Pay attention to where features begin, flow, and end. This example shows the differences between two users interpretations of surface layouts extracted from scanned sections.

http://aliasdesign.autodesk.com/learning/tutorials/details/Surface%20Construction:%20Ser... 8/28/2011

AliasDesign :: Surface Construction: Series Introduction

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The left example indicates a blend that flows from left to right. The right example indicates a blend that stops and starts in an area divided by another feature (an air intake). Neither example is specifically correct. When possible consult the designer to capture the correct flow of each feature. If the design is yours feel free to define the shapes that are most pleasing to you. Based on experience I would say the left model is correct. I will discuss how to identify where features begin and end over the next few months.

Theoretical intersections are extremely important to surface structure. Here are two examples that show how theoretical intersections can influence the shape of a model.

The top example has a fully defined theoretical, the bottom has a partially defined theoretical. (As shown by the exposed CVs and Hulls) By a partially defined theoretical I mean to say that the wall surfaces do not meet at the theoretical along its entire length. This may allow the fillet to bias itself to one side or the other of the part. This can cause the highlights to sag or constrict in areas that should flow or be consistent. Over the next few months, we'll delve into greater detail. In the next few tutorials, we will look for methods to analyze surface shape.

-Barry

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http://aliasdesign.autodesk.com/learning/tutorials/details/Surface%20Construction:%20Ser... 8/28/2011