3D text on curved surface

Rhino Rhino for Windows
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1

Hi everyone,
I want to make a star for the Christmas tree at my dorm. To personalise the 3D model I found on thingiverse, I want to add my roommate’s names on it (cut out or in 3D). However, I do not manage to find any way to do it. Does anyone have any tips?
I tried working by an UV mapping, and trimming the mesh, but I’m afraid the mapping was not precise enough. I then tried to extrude these curves and cutting the mesh, but it caused again problems for some of the letters.

Thank you guys! :slight_smile:

image
image572×650 16.2 KB

star_names.3dm (3.7 MB)

2

Dear @EmmaRMB
converting a mesh to a nurbs surface for further editing is not the best / fast forward approach.

instead of uv mapping flowAlongSrf is the command you should target in any workflow…

(1)
to get a fast result - check how your slicer is handling intersecting meshes - most slicers will handle them, as if they where boolean-union"ed".
if so i recommend, that you use outward font as separate closed meshes, and use the initial mesh.
you will need a single nurbs-Surface (not a polysurface) to help you deform the font to 3d. - a target surface.
_loft might to this job. the most tricky part to get the curves.
…maybe a cone for the lower part is a good approximation. but you have to _rebuild it.

you may want to _offsetSrf inward to make sure everything is intersectining properly.

how to get the font:
draw it as solids
_textobject

now you need a base / referance for this textobject
_boundingBox
_plane (redraw the lowest surface)
_delete (the boundingbox)

_flowAlongSrf
to get the Textobject deformed.
(make sure, to target a single nurbs surface, if cirular ( a cone), you need to rebuild it first)

_mesh
convert to mesh
export as stl

(2)
if you want to do it more proper you need to re-model (at least) the socket.
_mergeAllCoPlanarSrf will clean up the starpart
this will allow you more satisfaction, more lerning and enables inward text.
the socket is a loft between a square and a circle…
some of the workflow will be similar to above.

the main difference is a final Boolean Union / Boolean Difference

a satisfying closed polysurface, a proper single mesh to export…