Simplify Geometry

Hi everyone,

I am trying to create a 3D model of a fishing net, by creating a net structure as a line drawing and then using '_FlowAlongSrf around a volume. While doing this I am encountering troubles, because the line geometry is too heavy for Rhino too process. Does anyone have any input as to how I could simplify my line geometry so that it will not be too heavy to work with?

Originally I wanted to use the '_Pipe command and create polysurfaces, which I then '_FlowAlongSrf. This turned out to be completely unrealistic in terms of file size. I have tried using blocks, joining and grouping geometries, but have not succeeded in making the geometry easier to handle.

Thanks in advance.

Dear Julius - for which purpose do you need the data afterwards ? for production or just for rendering ? - if for rendering you might want to experiment with textures. (maybe even with alpha-Channels and Bump-/Displacement Maps)
If Mesh-Data is also valid for your purpose, try _flowAlongSrf with an input Mesh. Reference Surface and Target both have to be Nurbs.
kind regards -tom

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Hello - what you show, if just curves, should not give FlowAlongSrf any trouble… I would flow the curves and then either ApplyCurvePiping or Pipe

Please post a file if that does not sort it out.

-Pascal

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Thank you for your quick responses!

First and foremost I am going to use the model of the fishing net to make line drawings (_Make2D). But if I were able to visualize the fishing ropes three dimensional (either as polysurfaces or as textures) I would also hope to render the model later on.

Tom_ : After your advice I tried using an input mesh, but it seems as if the _FlowAlongSrf does not work with Nurbs, unfortunately. Is there a similar command I could use for meshes?

Pascal : I was able to _FlowAlongSrf the curves, but that was already borderline possible. As soon as I try to _Pipe, the file crashes. Do you think it would possible to rebuild the geometry in some way to reduce the number of points?

Fishing Net.3dm (9.7 MB)

Hello - can you, instead of making each cell in the net as a closed cell, simply make lines, from edge to edge on the bounding rectangle, that intersect?

Like so:

That reduces the number of curves to 850 or so rather than thousands- Flow works quickly - piping might still be a challenge.
But… that makes an extremely dense mesh on that shape…

Just for what it is worth, you could make a far cleaner and more natural shape to map onto by drawing a new simple curve:

-Pascal

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Those are some great tips and working quite well! In regards to the cleaning the curve, how can I make the ‘raindrop’ form three dimensional? Originally I had used a sphere, which I _Rebuild and then inserted knots to fit the raindrop kind of shape.

Hello - use the Revolve command to make your shape from a clean curve.

-Pascal

Thank so much for your kind help!