Importing and Moving an Object

I am finding more and more I can do in Bobcad. I cannot figure out how to move and object after you bring it into Bob. It is a model in Obj format.I am doing some experimenting. I realize Bobcad is first a Cad program. Looks like CAM may have been added later and last is Art the one I will be using the most.I have compared features of Bob and Vectric and Delcam. Each program has its strong points. I have found I can do or maybe see a way of doing things in Bobcad that the others only offer in there Premium packages I can do most of the same stuff at a fraction of the price. So I will be asking a lot of questions Sorry .

Thank You
Don Murphy :violin:

Just use "Translate."

Move an object,,,,well there is translate,,,and that can be used many different ways.Then there is rotate,,,and that can be used many different ways.Then there is the UCS,,,and that can be used many different ways.Then there is 3D rotate.
The Help menus and this link http://www.cnczone.com/forums/bobcad...formation.html should get you to do what you need.


JSYK,a lot of people only use BoB for the CAM and BoBART.They will use others for Cad.Usually not the other way around.

I did use translate . I think I asked the question wrong. I import or bring in a model to Bocad. It is way off the center mark. I would like a button like many other programs that will center the model.

jrmach I understand there are more than one way to do something. I need to center the object first. I am sorry that I left that out. try rotating a model that is way off center and 50 times to big. LoL I did, try that is. I did get it to a smaller size and near the center. Still working on it. Is there a gallery of woodworking things done with Bobart. The links on that page 4 or 5 do not work . The videos I have found and am looking at them as I go. I still have not received the package from Bobcad yet so I do not have what manuals or training comes with the program yet.

Thank You
Don Murphy

There is no "button" to move things to ucs 0. You would have to use translate in concert with entity summary. It would be different depending on the geometry.

For solids, you will have to calc the center bounds from the min/max of the xyz's. If it is 2d planar stuff, there will be a center of the bounds in the summary readout.
Then you would use translate-sketch/enter-start enter, end enter, and enter the coords of the center in the start area and zero out the end.

For other corners and such, you can use pick points of objects, and use start-pick, to zero the part.

Fortunately, using Solidworks and Inventor I always consider moulds or parts at an early stage as to where X0Y0Z0 is going to be. Once imported there is no movement required.

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Originally Posted by Gallchobhair

I did use translate . I think I asked the question wrong. I import or bring in a model to Bocad. It is way off the center mark. I would like a button like many other programs that will center the model.

jrmach I understand there are more than one way to do something. I need to center the object first. I am sorry that I left that out. try rotating a model that is way off center and 50 times to big. LoL I did, try that is. I did get it to a smaller size and near the center. Still working on it. Is there a gallery of woodworking things done with Bobart. The links on that page 4 or 5 do not work . The videos I have found and am looking at them as I go. I still have not received the package from Bobcad yet so I do not have what manuals or training comes with the program yet.

Thank You
Don Murphy

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To center a dwg you import could require a few steps , depending how the file was saved when created. I got things that were located what seemed a mile away from center at times. I sometimes would get a file containing many parts in one file, and would need to make one of each part. First thing I would do is click fit to screen, at that point, you should see the objects , it might be tiny dots , but it will be there, then I would simply zoom on what I want, and then I would simply copy it, then paste it in its own file. If you only have one part in the file, you won't need to copy it. I would simply use translate, use the "pick" setting for start point, and then use x y z zero as my target option, then click on whatever corner you want located at zero. But just as an fyi, if your only camming the part, and not drawing anything, you don't need to move it at all, x can be located at 100 miles from zero,, and when you set up your stock and define the datum in the camtree, itwill see the part as being at x zero.

Hi force, just wondering, you do realize that using bobcam, or camworks, or pretty much any cam program, you do NOT need to have the part located at the screen zero. The cam side works independant of anything else. That allows us to set zero for g54, and g55, in different spots. I almost never set my drawing zeros, I just draw it, then when I cam it, I tell it what to origin from.

Is there a Gallery of Bobart or Bobcad work. I would like to see some of the things that people have made with Bobart-cad-cam. I did not find anything on the website.

Not that I know of.Sounds like a great idea for a new thread though.

Sorry I took so long to get back to this. When I said the idea of doing a surface from a 3-view was interesting, I had no idea where it would lead. I found a nice 3-view and loaded it up. Attachment 202902

The basic plan was to trace the relevant side and top-view curves, then extrude the side-view curves into surfaces. Then I'd rotate those surfaces beneath the top-view curves, project the curves onto the surfaces, and thus arrive at a 3D wireframe of the hull. So far, so good. All of that went very smoothly. Next, I just used the Cross Section tool on the resulting 3D curves, and boom, instant hull.

The problem was, the hull wasn't faceted, like the drawing. It looked really good, but it was a continuous curve, as if the boat were fiberglass. The drawing is of a plywood boat, and the hull very clearly looks like it was made from 6 flat boards, bent into shape and joined. Like an idiot, I decided that wasn't good enough, and set about making a CAD version of the same thing. After trying everything I could think of, and learning a lot about what does and doesn't work when playing with surfaces, this is where I'm at right now. It's close...Attachment 202904

I hope somebody will have a look at the .bbcd file and point out where I'm missing something. The first chine down from the gunwale is the one that annoys me the most. Oh, and the transom is still in a separate layer, I think. I forgot to consolidate that. Once I feel better about it, I'll throw together a tutorial, but I want to be sure I've got a good handle on it before I start. This one will take some 'splaining. Not exactly a beginner tutorial, once I got down and dirty with it, I'm afraid... :)

Luke

Your FAR from an idiot and I for one,look forward to your tutorial.Speak as loudly as you want,lol

Thank you for doing this. You say an advanced tute,I am still at the beginning level. When the tutorial does come I may be able to draw a box. Lol.
Thank You
Don

Yeah, I sort of went down a rabbit hole on this one. The first result I got was very quick and easy, and for decorative purposes, it would have been fine. I'll definitely make that one its own tutorial. It shows some fairly straightforward things that should be helpful to the beginner. It's when I went off into the Hell of Many Compound Surfaces (tm), that I got into the fiddly bits. :)

As I've said in the past, this is why I make tutorial videos. Yes, I enjoy helping folks, but in the process, I learn a LOT of stuff that I otherwise wouldn't. You never realize how little you know until you face getting up in front of a crowd and trying to explain something complicated. :confused:

Luke

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Originally Posted by bobcad guy

Hi force, just wondering, you do realize that using bobcam, or camworks, or pretty much any cam program, you do NOT need to have the part located at the screen zero. The cam side works independant of anything else. That allows us to set zero for g54, and g55, in different spots. I almost never set my drawing zeros, I just draw it, then when I cam it, I tell it what to origin from.

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Yes, I did realise this aspect but we do not use G54, G55 etc on our machine. I also have a slight case of OCD to everything, items must sit square on a table, shoes lined up, books run tallest left, shortest right........so X0Y0Z0 must be on the datum and its very easy to arrange.

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Originally Posted by Trotline

Yes, I enjoy helping folks, but in the process, I learn a LOT of stuff that I otherwise wouldn't

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Hey Trot. Nice hull surface. A hull is first a calculation of "stations". The stations define the "waterline". So to reconstruct your boat hull from your nice waterlines, you'll want to define the stations. So the best way for you to simulate the faceted, plywood look, will be to define the station spacing and then generate some "staight" line continuous lines from top to bottom on your waterlines at the station points, then you can delete the smooth waterline curves and run line continuous again from bow to stern. Surface the straight line sections will simulate paneling.

Here's a file. Your stations would have to be designed as to allow the size of the plywood sheet to "fit" any given section.

Burrman, I started to go that route, but got stymied and went in another direction when I couldn't figure out what operation to use to generate those points. I could come up with intersection lines using a sectioning plane, but I'd rather use points straight off of the original 3D curves, as you show. How did you generate the points off of curves intersecting a plane? Once that piece falls into place, I think I'll have the thing sewed up. :)

Luke

Hey trot. So for the example I posted, I used another program I have which has an isect command that will generate a point for the intersection of a plane and the curve. If I had to do it in BobCad only, I would use your previously generated surfaces with the section planes and generate intersection curves, then BobCad has a "point-intersection" command, that will get you the same points, to use for the planar drawing... Let me know if that's not descriptive enough.

Gotcha. I'll go with <Surfaces> [Intersection Curves] and work from there, then. Thanks, Burrman :)

Luke