Cubify Invent - Tutorial 16: The Power of Reference Objects

Planning is an important part of design.  This is especially true if you plan on printing that design on a 3D printer, like the Cube.  It's also imperative if that design must interface with a real world object.In this tutorial we cover making just that.   We plan to print at least 100 pieces of the design and that design must fit firmly onto the end of a PVC pipe.The object that we will be demonstrating will be used in an outdoor Christmas display.  It's a cap that holds a Christmas light and that cap fits onto a piece...

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Cubify Invent - Tutorial 15: Feature or Bug? Extend, Move and Rotate Explored

No software program is perfect.  And, this is especially true of the introductory version.Cubify Invent is remarkably bug free.  But, it does have some behaviors that might have to be addressed in future versions.Using EXTEND, MOVE, ROTATE we explore some behaviors that are a bit puzzling or surprising.  We make an attempt to determine if these behaviors constitute a purposeful feature or a potential bug.So far, there are no "Show Stoppers" that we've identified.  In fact, almost all of the questionable behaviors that we have...

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Cubify Invent - Tutorial 14: Extend, Intersect, Filet & Chamfer

For the most part, Cubify requires sketches to be closed perimeters with no intersecting lines.In this tutorial we show how the Sketch Tools EXTEND and INTERSECT, along with ANALYSIS can work together to ensure that we create compliant designs.FILET and CHAMFER are also demonstrated.   These two commands are also available for edges on 3D objects.  The work very similarly, with the difference being that FILET rounds corners and CHAMFER cuts a straight line across corners.We also demontrate the two PATTERN Tools.  LINEAR PATTERN...

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Cubify Invent - Tutorial 13: Trim & Project to Sketch

One of the surprises about the sketch to object process is the fact that once a sketch is used, that particular sketch appears to not to be able to be used for a second 3D feature.Fortunately, a sketch design results in a FACE and that face CAN be projected onto a NEW sketch.  This allows us to reuse a particular shape as often as we like.We demonstrate how powerful this feature can be by designed an ornately arched doorway with a matching hallway.The above design combined SWEEP, EXTRUDE and MIRROR, with the help of TR...

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Cubify Invent - Tutorial #12: Sweep Boss & Cut

We do a little bit differently in this tutorial.  We include a brief demonstration of how Moment of Inspiration (MOI) handles the SWEEP command before looking at Cubify Invent's SWEEP.   The difference is that MOI allows us to use TWO paths or RAILS along which to SWEEP our primary shape.  As of right now, Cubify Invent only permits us to use a single path or rail. But, as we shall see, while that presents some challenges, Invent's SWEEP still allows us to do amazing things.HOW SWEEP WORKSI like the term that Moment of...

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Cubify Invent - Tutorial #11: Helix Boss

Talk about fun!Helical Boss is just downright magical.Come back to this post over the next few days from the origical posting date.  Because, I am sure that we'll have some very cool images of applications using Helical Boss.In this initial video tutorial we explore various combinations of shapes, reference line angles and Helix properties.  Hopefully, it will whet your appetite for more.So, let's just jump right in and take a look at the...

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Cubify Invent - Tutorial #10: Bolt with Helix Cut

Before attempting to learn how to create a bolt using the Helix Cut tool, I scoured the Internet to see what it takes in other bigger name CAD packages.  I also scoured the Internet for information about bolts and thread specifications.  So,  others unwittingly helped me as I tacked learning Cubify Invent's techniques for creating a bolt using actual specifications.What I learned is that designing a bolt in Cubify Invent is actually...

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Cubify Invent - Tutorial #9: Revolve & Circular Pattern

If there is one command, beyond EXTRUDE, that is probably among the most used, it would be RESOLVE BOSS.  There is a good reason for the popularity of this command for both novices and experts.For novices, it allows us to create very nice, useful designs with just a simple sketch and one command.  But, the power of RESOLVE goes WAY beyond being able to create cups, wine glasses and vases.It is especially useful for those designing for 3D printers.  In one pass we can create extremely complex multi-part designs with outside and inside...

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Cubify Invent - Tutorial #8: Adding features to our sample Airplane

It's one thing to learn how to do something and quite another to actually put it into practice.The immediate goal of these tutorials is to provide those who are evaluating Cubify Invention to be able to do some useful things within the 14 day trial period that allow them to decide if Cubify Invent is the right product for their needs.  This involves showing some practical and not-so-practical examples... like our airplane.In this tutorial, we add a canopy to the fuselage using an offset axis that we created using two points.  Then we...

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Cubify Invent - Tutorial #7: Points & Axis

Planes, Axis and Points may not be part of a printed object.  But, they are the infrastructures that allow us to create those parts.  Everything we created in Cubify Invent has some relationship to a plane, axis or point.Points are unique in that we can create them outside of any existing plane.  They can exist in space with no seeming connection to the other aspects of our drawing until we make a connection by using those points to create an axis or an entire new plane having no previously existing relationship with a previously...

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Cubify Invent - Tutorial #6: Angled Planes

Being able to precisely work from different angles when creating sketches and objects from sketches is very powerful.  If we could only precisely work from front/back, left/right and top/bottom views, we'd be severely limited in what we could create. Fortunately, Cubify Invent provides us with a lot of flexibility to work from just about any angle of our choosing by providing us with the means of creating new planes at an angle to existing planes or surfaces of our objects.We can create a normal plane simply by selecting one existing reference...

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Cubify Client - Important Update

Thank Cube owner Chris Crowley for this one.He alerted me in an email to an important new feature in the latest update to the Cubify Client software.  I'm as excited to see it as he was!Previously, the only file types that we could upload into the Cubify Client were .CREATION and .STL files.  We can now IMPORT a THIRD file type into the Cubify Client!!  And, that is a .CUBE file..CUBE File Type Added to IMPORT.And, the importance of...

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Cubify Invent - Tutorial #5: Just Plane Fun With Planes

OK.  That is NOT a misspelled word.   I couldn't resist.  That play on words was just T-O-O-O good to pass up!So, we are going to use planes to create a plane.  And, I think you will be quite surprised at how simple it is!In the video I do something a little bit different.  I begin by using a different plane than my usual starting point.  That is because a REVOLVE ends up creating the very same object no matter which plane I used for the sketch.  So, by avoiding using the XY plane, it made it easier to see...

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