Design Integration Laboratory

Architecture 222, 410/510, and 610

Project Notes -- 2D -> 3D by Object PICT

Objective

These notes are intended to help translate drawings prviously made in a Macintosh-compatible 2D drawing application into DesignWorkshop® for 3D model layout and contruction. .

2D --> 3D Drawing Translation Process

Create the Object PICT drawing in your 2D drawing/drafting application:

1. As for any 2D to 3D export, elimintate any unneccesary objects in the source drawing before exporting.

2. In the source program (such as PowerCADD or Blueprint) draw an unfilled rectangle of known dimensions which just surrounds the other objects in the drawing. Note the dimensions of this outer rectangle.

3. Export the objects to PICT format. (In PowerCADD, use the Save As... command.)

   (Note: This exported file must be an object PICT, not a bitmap PICT. In DesignWorkshop 1.x, bitmap PICTs can only be opened with the File menu Background > Open... command, for viewing or tracing. )

Then bring the PICT drawing you have prepared into DesignWorkshop:

1. Open a new DesignWorkshop model file in DesignWorkshop 68K-FPU or DesignWorkshop Universal. (Object PICT Import does not work in DW PPC 1.2.)

2. Import the object PICT file into DesignWorkshop, using the File menu Import > PICT command.

3. Select all the objects, including the outer rectangle.

4. Group these objects.

5. Use the Object Info box to set the overall size of this group to match the intended dimensions of the outer rectangle, as noted in step 2.

6. Ungroup, and save the new DesignWorkshop file, which now contains the imported PICT objects as scaled 2D entities in the 3D modeling world. (This file can now be used in any version of DesignWorkshop.)

Note Also...

Alternatively, drawings made in most 2D drawing/drafting applications can be brought into DesignWorkshop using the DXF format, which (unlike the PICT format used here) is inherently scaled. Follow the first step above (simplification before translation) and also see the DesignWorkshop User's Guide. for instructions.

Over the next several months, these multi-step procedures will probably be superceded by more elegant translations using the "QuickDraw 3D Metafile" (3DMF) standard recently introduced by Apple Computer, Inc. This format will be supported in DesignWorkshop 2.0, and by most other Macintosh modeling programs.