ANCAcodingHelpDemo-2

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ANCA Demo-2 -- Introduction to Bdesign3d the three dimensional design program.

( Updated: May 4, 2008 )
Coders, please refer to the Bdesign3d Specification Level D2 available in the 'Specification' folder of the Bdesign3d Project.

Purpose: To introduce 3d modeling suitable for use in a metals manufacturing environment.

Requirements: Make sure that the latest help packages are installed.

Pre-Requisites: Do Demo-1 first.

Notes: This file contains some of the programming 'wish list' to be used by the programming team to create the 3d modeling tool 'Bdesign3d'. Please have a quick read before using the Tool so that you can grasp some understanding over what goes on behind the program's HMI ( human machine interface ). Do not worry if you cannot grasp all that is mentioned here as actual instructions on how to use the Tool will start in Demo-6. Take the advice that this is a work in an early state of development so follow each feature's introduction in the Demo's to come as announcement of their inclusion into the feature list! The Demo is presented as a simple two bladed airplane propeller and will have images of the working program included as it develops toward public release.

Overview of Bdesign3d:

Part manufacture and placement
Object Interface
Animations Interface -- Object Side
Actions Interface
Modal Commands
Animation Engine
Moving from Design to Manufacture

Notes on special type usage,

'SOME-ITEM' = command or word of special significance
'SOME-ITEM' = command or word of special significance that has been introduced which we would like you to remember.
command x,y,z = separating commas means all items are required, e.g. command 3 5 6
command x/y/z = separating slashes means items are optional, e.g. command XY
command x^y^z = separating up arrows means items that are exclusive of each other, e.g. command X or command Y etc. etc.

1 Part manufacture and placement

CAM packages differ from CAD in that apart from just computer aided design there should also be tools provided to turn out dies or molds of any part automatically along with the possibility of creating 'tool path' files for laser cutting, welding etc. Other advancements would include torsional, strain and fatigue testing along with total constructed weight and manufacturing cost estimation. Therefore the purpose of using a three dimensional CAM package is the graphical depiction of an object to be manufactured along with the tools to make that happen.

A design product 'object' ( called the object 'ALL' in this program ) is made up of an 'assembly' various 'parts'. These part 'objects' are built up of smaller 'geometrical shape' objects in an 'Object Factory' around the 'origin' of 0:0:0 or X=0,Y=0,Z=0. Once a 'part' object has been created by the graphic designer in the 'Object Factory' it would then be moved and rotated into the correct position using a process called 'assembly'. This collection of 'part' objects creates the product object 'ALL' also known as the 'model' because it is a small sized virtual replica of the completed product.

Following this 'object orientated' process the designer will 'animate' the final assembly of the object 'ALL' to view the possibility of any jamming or interference of one part with another. The designer could then proceed to make a small sized 'model' by 'RPP' or Rapid Prototype Printing ( the building up of parts on a 3D replication machine, one layer at a time ). The 'RPP' approach is often used because a design such as a motor car must be visually appealing to prospective purchasers as well as being mechanically functional. The approval process is enhanced because 'RPP' allows the designer to assemble the 'model' so that the complete design may be viewed 'with the hands'.

By using an 'object orientated' approach any part may be modified individually and placed back into the design. Options are provided to cause other parts to 'self modify' or 'morph' so that the modified part may automatically fit back into the design. I say optional because of the cost of morphing must include provision for making new dies or molds. Another option would be to morph the redesigned component to fit with existing parts.

Object orientated CAM design makes it easy to re-design things so that design and development may continue on for the life of the product. This makes it essential that standard CAD design procedures are enhanced by a built in design language which would include 'wizards' for creating standard parts such as ball race bearings, nuts and bolts etc. This design language would be textual and it would need to be 'embedded' within each 'part' object, making it much easier to understand the construction of a part at a later time.

Summary:

Part 'objects' are designed out of 'geometrical shape' 'objects' in an 'Object Factory' around the 'origin' of 0:0:0
Part 'objects' are then assembled into the object 'ALL' by a process of movement and rotation called 'assembly'.
The object 'ALL' is known as the 'model' because it is a small sized virtual replica of the complete assembly.
The designer should 'animate' the final assembly of the object 'ALL' to view the possibility of any interference of one part with another.
'RPP' allows the designer to assemble the 'model' so that the complete design may be viewed 'with the hands'.
By using an 'object orientated' approach any part may be modified individually and placed back into the design.
Parts can be 'morphed' so that a modified part may automatically fit back into the design.
A built in design language would include 'wizards' for creating standard object 'parts' such as ball race bearings, nuts and bolts etc.
The design language would be textual and 'embedded' within each part 'object'.

2 Object Interface

The 3d design is stored in 'Bdesign3d' as an 'OBJECT TREE'. All Objects are children of the Object 'ALL' which is the complete 3d design. The first level below 'ALL' is called the 'BASE LEVEL' and on opening the program the 'OBJECT EXPLORER NOTEBOOK' will show the object 'ALL' and it's children the 'BASE OBJECTS'. There must be at least one 'Base Object' left in the 'Object Tree', even if it is empty. Base Objects can have their own children objects so you will find an 'expander-arrow' to click on to see them. Bdesign3d has three operational 'MODES' they are 'INTERACTIVE' mode, 'ANIMATION' mode and 'RE-DRAW' mode. Let us take a look at what happens when Bdesign3d enters 'INTERACTIVE' mode on start-up. On opening a 'bd3' file the program sets up the 'object tree' for object 'ALL' and displays it in the 'Object Explorer Notebook' as in figure-1 below where our test sample file is loaded. The file describes a two bladed airplane propeller project with three 'base objects' ( 'RightBlade' with it's 'child' object 'BalanceWeight', 'LeftBlade' and 'PropHub' ) as children of object 'ALL',

Fig-1 Bdesign3D showing Object Tree structure for object 'ALL'

Notice in figure-1 that 'ALL' is in the 'Explorer Notebook' tab and 'base objects' always start in the first column ( as 'children' of 'ALL' ).
Notice that 'RightBlade' has an 'expander arrow', left click on the arrow to see the object's 'children',
Also notice that each 'child' of an object starts one column further to the right.

Try moving the objects around by holding down the left mouse button and dragging an object onto another and then releasing the button.
You can make one object the 'child object' of another object.
Notice that when you move an object you also move all of it's 'children' objects.
Try making the object 'RightBlade' the 'child' of object 'LeftBlade' as in figure-2 below, then 'drag' them back to the 'state' shown in figure-1 above.

Fig-2 Bdesign3D, moving 'RightBlade' to be 'child' of 'LeftBlade.

Try 'inserting' a child object ( it will be called 'NEWobject' by default, right click on 'BalanceWeight' and left click on 'Insert' in the 'popup menu' as in figure-3 below,

Fig-3 Bdesgn3d, Inserting a 'child' object into the Object Tree.

Try 'deleting' an object, right click on 'NEWobject' and left click on 'Delete' in the 'popup menu'.
Note: You can 'Promote' a 'Child Object' to be a 'Base Object' by dragging it to the bottom of the Object Tree.
Try to 'Demote' a 'Base Object' to be a 'Child Object' by dragging it to be a 'child' of another object.
Try adding a new 'Base Object', right click on any object and left click on 'New' in the 'popup menu' as in figure-4 below,

Fig-4 Adding a New 'Base Object' into the Object Tree.

Note that new 'Base Objects' are inserted into the bottom of the Object Tree.
You can then drag 'objects' wherever you wish, 'Demoting' or 'Promoting' them as you go.
Try adding another 'New Object', it fails because 'NEWobject' is already in the Object Tree, we will need to 'rename' 'NEWobject' before adding another.
Right click on 'NEWobject' and left click on 'Edit' in the 'popup menu' to bring up the 'Object Inspector' window as in figure-5 below,

Fig-5 Bdesign3D Object Inspector

Note there is an 'Action-List' and an 'Animation List', and the 'Object Name' entry shows 'NEWobject'.
Change the object name from 'NEWobject' to 'Propeller', click on 'Apply' and then 'Close'.
Notice that the object has changed from 'NEWobject' to 'Propeller' as in figure-6 below,

Fig-6 Rename an 'Object Tree' 'object'.

Now 'drag' the 'objects' around until they are all 'children' of 'Propeller', as in figure-7 below,

Fig-7 Re-ordering to make object 'Propeller' parent of other objects.

Note: By adding 'Base Objects' and making existing 'objects' the 'children' of the new 'object', you can make very large 'models'.
For example you could add the object 'engine' and make 'propeller' a 'child' and you could add 'airframe' and make 'engine' a 'child' and so on....

Try deleting all of the objects in the 'Object Tree', by deleting 'Propeller' ( CAREFUL 'Delete' deletes an 'object' and ALL of it's 'children' ).
You will find that at least one 'Base Object' must remain as a child of 'ALL', even if it is just a 'NEWobject'.
If you delete objects, one object at a time, you will get the error message ( or something similar ) shown in figure-8 below once you reach the last object in the 'Object Tree',

Delete the Last object in the Object Tree

Fig-8 Bdesign3D Error Window with an error
on trying to delete the Last Object.

2.1 Objects

Well, what is an 'Object' then?

An 'object' is an item, for example an automobile ( motor car ) is an object.
A car is made up of smaller objects ( it's 'children' or 'child objects' ) such as an engine, gearbox, wheels, headlights etc.
These 'child-objects' are said to be 'members' of the 'parent-object'.
These 'child objects' are ( more than likely ) made up of a collection of smaller 'child' objects', for example a gearbox would contain gears, shifting mechanism, housing, bearings etc.
Objects have 'Properties', for example the fuel tank would have the 'property' of 'fuel-level-remaining'.
Object properties are not directly 'visible' from other objects and cannot be directly 'accessed' by another object.
Objects also have 'Methods', for example the fuel tank would have a 'method' to read the fuel level remaining, if asked.
Objects 'call' another object's methods to 'set' or 'get' a 'property' or initiate an 'action' by the called object. For example, in the case of a car driver increasing the vehicle's speed by pressing down on the accelerator peddle, the 'method, of 'setRPM' of the engine object [ engine.setRPM(newRPM) ] would be 'called' by the accelerator peddle object of the car object. In time the gearbox object may respond to it's 'speed-changed' 'callback signal' and react by calling the speedometer object's method 'speedo.setCurrentSpeed(newSpeed)'.
'Actions' taken by objects may be 'immediate' ( take place as soon as they are 'called' ) or be 'event driven' ( when something specific happens the object will 'emit' a 'callback-signal' that calls a specific 'callback-handler' function.
An object's 'methods' are made 'public' by 'declaring' them in some way.
If an 'object' is removed then the 'methods' it has 'declared' must also be removed or a 'dummy' set of objects/methods put in place to prevent 'error handlers' becoming active when another object 'calls' a non-existent object's method/s.
Objects must have 'unique names' to prevent situations where the wrong object is called.
In computer programing an object's methods become distinctive by using the addressing technique of 'object_name <> object_method_name' as in 'starterMotor.turnCrankshaft'.
An object/method/property name should be descriptive, that is anyone can clearly understand what the object is, what a method does and what sort of data a property represents.
An object 'inherits' from it's 'child' objects their 'properties' and 'methods', this allows for some very useful ideas,

an object such as a 'fuel tank' that holds liquid fuel is very different from a tank holding hydrogen gas but the 'method' to read them can be made to look the same to the calling object. This means that a car's 'fuel-gauge' 'object' need not know the make-up or internal workings of it's 'child object' 'fuel-tank' to understand how much fuel remains.
objects can be made to be 're-usable' e.g. the same fuel tank may be used on different cars or bigger fuel tanks could be used depending on whether the car is for town or country use. This is possible because 'methods' 'hide' any differences that you do not want other 'objects' to 'see'.
'objects' will not interfere with the operation of 'un-associated' 'objects'.
using objects allows for 'compartmentalisation'. This allows big projects to be handled easily with many workers building in functionality through an agreed interface ( 'methods' ).
customers will always be able to use a product because while the internal workings may be different, the controls can remain similar to other familiar products.
objects can be 're-used', for example the program 'Bdesign3D' uses many sections of code borrowed from the 'side4linux' IDE saving time, money and effort!
object based projects can be made flexible, it is no longer necessary to be exactly precise first up. Build the top level object first and add, subtract or modify child objects as progress is made.
object based products are never 'finished'! You can keep making alterations to repair bugs or to upgrade as required, ...... forever.
object based projects can be customer friendly because customers need not be engineers to be involved in product development. Customers often know what they want and technical detail can be 'hidden' at a lower object level ( this is called 'abstraction').
because objects can be re-used it becomes possible to build up a library of test functions to iron out bugs, this makes the object more robust.

In Bdesign3D a design is built up either from the top ( 'top down methodology' ) or from the bottom ( 'bottom up methodology' ) or both. This design paradigm creates a 'model' of the real thing which we then call the 'set' of 'ALL' ( notice the use of the 'set' terminology, e.g. to drill a hole one could use an 'invisible' cylinder 'object' and 'subtract' it from another 'object' ). The 'children objects' objects of the 'set of ALL' contain all that is needed in the way of methods and properties to be drawn on screen. This is possible because each 'object' may contain an 'Action-List' to call 'methods' to do something or alter a 'property'. Each object may also contain an 'Animation List' to allow objects to be moved around on screen either on their own or linked to other objects. Some Object types are simple e.g. the object 'POINT' while most objects are complex and made up of many other objects. Objects are kept in an 'OBJECT TREE' and during the 'RE-DRAW' phase the parsing mechanism firstly travels down to the bottom of the tree branch of the first object drawing the object's 'children objects'. Once the base level object is fully drawn the parser will move onto the next base level object until the end of the object tree is reached and the object 'ALL' has been completely drawn. After the 'RE-DRAW' mode has ended the program returns to 'INTERACTIVE' mode. During object creation the program ensures that only 'unique object names' are entered into the tree of object 'ALL'. Notice in figure-2 above that we have used both upper and lower case letters for object names ( we could have used numbers and the 'under-bar' symbol as well ), this prevents any clash with reserved words which only use upper case letters and the 'under-bar' symbol as in 'RESERVED_WORD'.

In Bdesign3d, 'objects' can be of three 'class' types,

OBJECT_ENTRY ( the object names you see in the Object Tree, such as 'RightBlade' or 'PropHub' etc.
COBJECT_ENTRY ( the object names you see in the Object Tree, such as '$RightBlade' or '$PropHub' etc. represent a 'Compounded' group of 'objects'. These object groups are created by an 'Object-Wizard' and cannot be edited in the normal 'Object-Inspector' window, they must be re-submitted to the relevant 'Object-Wizard-Inspector' window for editing.
GEO these are geometrical objects ( e.g. 'LINE' or 'CIRCLE' ) and appear only within an 'OBJECT_ENTRY's, Action List', however 'POINT' objects can be 'referenced' from an external object's 'Action-List' by pre-pending the external object's reference name with '@' and appending the external point reference name preceeded by a 'dot',

GEO Point example: GEO,POINT,@RightBlade.P1,@RightBlade.P2

Summary:

Object names must not contain punctuation marks ( such as full stop or comma ) only upper and lower case letters, numbers and the 'underbar' symbol.
Object names must start with an 'alpha' character, not a number or an underscore.
Object names starting with the dollar mark '$' are 'Compound Object' entries handled by the program's 'object wizards' and cannot be entered manually.
Object names prefixed with an 'at' character '@' are references to external geometry POINT objects such as '@blade.p1', ( go to the 'Action-List' of object 'blade' for the geometry 'POINT' object 'p1' and read the XYZ co-ordinate values found there ).
Object referencing using '@' is only allowed from within an OBJECT_ENTRY's 'Action' or 'ANIMATION' List.
OBJECT_ENTRY names must be unique within the object 'ALL' and should be made up of upper/lower case alpha letters and/or numbers and/or the 'underscore' character.
GEO 'POINT' names are required to be unique only within the OBJECT_ENTRY where they are declared and are referenced from outside using the 'at' '@' and 'dot' '.' symbols.
All object names must be in 7 bit ASCII format, UTF8 or 'wide' encodings are not recommended.
examples follow...

Object Name	Comment
RightBlade_3	OK.
RightBlade:3	Invalid use of 'colon' ':' between 'RightBlade' and '3'.
RightBlade-3	Invalid use of 'dash' '-' between 'RightBlade' and '3'.
RIGHT_BLADE	Works but not recommended, use more than uppercase alone.
Right3Blade	OK.
Right Blade	Invalid use of space ' ' , spaces are not allowed anywhere in user input except for comment lines.
3RightBlade	Invalid, object names must start with an 'alpha' character.
#RightBlade	Invalid use of hash '#' character reserved as start of a 'comment' line.
@blade.p3	OK, as a reference value. It says "read object 'blade' to obtain the 'POINT' value of 'p3' ".
@bladep3	Invalid, must have a decimal point to separate OBJECT_ENTRY from GEO ( @blade.p3 )

2.1.1 Object Entry

Objects are 'declared' into the 'Object File's 'Object Tree' as,

'OBJECT_LIST_START, '
'OBJECT_ENTRY,objectName, '
.... various 'Properties' added to the object e.g. an 'Action List' or an 'Animation List'.
'OBJECT_ENTRY_END,objectName, '
'OBJECT_LIST_END,

Note: 'objects' can also be affected by 'modal' commands such as 'Show' or 'Hide', see 'Modal Commands' further down for more information.

2.1.2 Geometric Object Inclusions

'GEO's are 'declared' into the 'Action' list of an object, this is the graphical representation part of the Bdesign3d modeling interface with a geometric include command such as,

ACTION_LIST_START,
# a line from point 'Start' to point 'End' of 10.0 along the X axis,
GEO,POINT,PointStart,50.0,8.4,3.2,
GEO,POINT,PointEnd,60.0,8.4,3.2,
GEO,LINE,PointStart,PointEnd,
END_ACTION_LIST,

'GEO' names must be unique within the 'OBJECT_ENTRY's 'Action' list and follow the specified object naming criteria outlined above.
'GEO' 'POINTS' must be declared in the 'Action-List' before they are locally referenced.

'GEO's can be 'referenced' by the 'Action-List' of another object using the '@' 'reference prefix' however the 'object' to be referenced must have been 'declared' previously in the 'OBJECT_ENTRY' list, look at the following two objects,

OBJECT_ENTRY,RightLine,0,
#,
ACTION_LIST_START,
OBJECT_MATERIAL,STEEL ,
GEO,POINT,p1,50.0,8.4,3.2,
GEO,POINT,p2,60.0,8.4,3.2,
GEO,LINE,p1,p2,
END_OBJECT_ENTRY,RightLine,
#,
#,
#,
OBJECT_ENTRY,LeftLine,1,
#,
ACTION_LIST_START,
OBJECT_MATERIAL,STEEL,
# ======== the next line will reference another object's points,
GEO,LINE,@RightLine.p1,@RightLine.p2, <-------------<< External Referencing
# mirror across the 'Y' axis,
MIRROR_OBJECT,Y,
END_ACTION_LIST,
END_OBJECT_ENTRY,LeftLine,

Object 'RightLine' was declared previous to Object 'LeftLine'.
You can see that object 'LeftLine' is 'referencing' some of object 'RightLine's 'POINT' 'GEO's.
This means that any alteration to the value of 'RightLine's 'referenced' 'POINT's will dynamically affect 'LeftLine'.
Notice that all lines are terminated with a comma and a space, even 'comment' lines. Comment lines always start with the 'hash and comma' '#,' characters in the first character position of the line followed by some text then terminated in the usual way of 'comma and space', E.G. '# this is a comment line, ' or a blank comment line '#, '
Note: If you are looking to 'reference' all of the points of an object it may be a lot quicker to 'copy' it, refer to the 'Action-List' commands for details.

GEO's	Description	Active

ARC,point_objects,	-- a radial curved line segment (startvertex,center_vertex,end_vertex).
CIRCLE,point_objects,	-- a closed radial curved line segment (center_vertex,radius_vertex).
CLINE,point_objects,	-- a construction line segment(start_vertex,end_vertex). ( used to help build other GEOS )	N
COMPLEX (complex extrusion) E	-- start POLYGON, end POLYGON, start vertex, end vertex, No. of segments, spiral_diameter, pitch, rotation_point, twist, dragline1, dragline2, dragline3, dragline4, 'OPTIONAL-ITEMS', END.	N
DIEMOLDC,point_objects,	-- circular multi part die block, ( center vertex,radius vertex ) as the set subtraction of objects.	N
DIEMOLDR,point_objects,	-- rectangular multi part die block, ( corner1,corner2 ), as the set subtraction of objects.	N
DIMANGLE,point_objects,	-- a dynamic angular measurement at angle A ( start_vertex,center_vertex,end_vertex with text offset vertex ).	N
DIMENSION,point_objects,	-- a dynamic linear measurement at ( start_vertex,end_vertex with text offset vertex ).	N
DISC_HOLLOW,point_objects,	-- flat circular disc with center hole ( center_vertex,radius_vertex,hole_radius_vertex ).	N
DISC_SOLID,point_objects,	-- flat circular disc without center hole ( center_vertex,radius_vertex ).	N
EXTRUSION ,sPy,ePy,sPt,ePt,N,S,D,T,E,	-- startPOLYGON, endPOLYGON, start_vertex, end_vertex, No. of segments, sweep, droop, twist, 'OPTIONAL-ITEMS', END.	N
LINE,point_objects,	-- a line segment(start_vertex,end_vertex).
LOOP,point_objects,	-- a line loop of line segments where the last segment joins the first segment.	N
LOOPS,point_objects,	-- a line loop of splined segments where the last segment joins the first segment.	N
POINT,name,X,Y,Z,	-- a vertex definition in floating point numerical format.	N
POLYGON,point_objects,IVAL,	-- a regular polygon of connected POINTS of size P1 + P2 and IVAL number of sides.
POLYHEDRON,point_objects,IVAL,	-- a regular polyhedron of connected POINTS of size P1 + P2 and IVAL number of sides.	N
RECTANGLE,point_objects,	-- a rectangle of Length ( P1 ) by Breadth ( P2 ) point_objects.	N
SPHERE,point_objects,	-- s sphere ( center vertex, radius_vertex ).
SPLINE,point_objects,	-- a spline curve ( start_vertex,....,vertex_n ) with control points.	N
SWEEP spline_object,SA,EA,So^Si^N	-- a sweep of line ( start_vertex to end_vertex ).	N
SWEEPL loop_object	-- a sweep of a line loop ( start_vertex to end_vertex ).	N
SWEEPLS loop_object	-- a sweep of a spline loop from Start Angle to End Angle.	N
SWEEPOLYGON,polygon_object,point_objects,	-- a circular extrusion of a polygon, vertex-1 is the center, vertex-2 is the diameter, vertex_3 is the orientation.	N
SWEEPSL spline_object,SA,EA,So^Si^N	-- a sweep of a splined line from Start Angle to End Angle.	N
TEXT,text_string,S,point_objects,	-- a block of text of Size starting from start_vertex and extending in the direction of end_vertex plus size vertex.	N
TRI,point_objects,	-- a series of 3 points that describe an irregular triangular surface.

2.1.2.1 EXTRUSION and COMPLEX 'OPTIONAL-ITEMS'

Extrusions can have a number of 'OPTIONAL' items added after the 'MANDATORY' items and before 'END' as follows,

Type	Description	Active

'WITH-RIBS' poly_object	-- Wing ribs instead of segment wire frame. Wing ribs can have access holes for pipes and tanks added as required by attaching 'children' objects.	N
'WITH-BULKHEADS' poly_object	-- Bulkheads instead of segment wire frame bulkheads can have door and other objects added as required by attaching 'children' objects. The poly_object is the cross section of the bulkhead from center.	N
'WITH-FORMERS' poly_object thickness	-- Formers instead of segment wire frame formers can have holes added as required via the poly_object.	N
'WITH-STRINGERS' poly_object R^P	-- Stringers instead of segment wires, the shape of stringers is determined by the poly_object and remain the same size if the 'P' flag is set or can reduce in proportion to the extrusion if the R flag is set	N
'WITH-PATH' spline_object	-- If the end point of an extrusion is equal to the start point then this option must be used, it replaces a straight line with a B-spline curved line object to follow.	N
'WITH-OUTER-SURFACE'	-- Adds an outer SURFACE to the wire frame extrusion.	N
'WITH-START-SURFACE'	-- Adds a start SURFACE to the wire frame extrusion.	N
'WITH-END-SURFACE'	-- Adds an end SURFACE to the wire frame extrusion.	N

The use of wing ribs allows extrusions to describe a built up airplane wing structure.
The use of bulkheads allows extrusions to describe a ship hull.
The use of formers allows extrusions to describe an airplane fuselage.
The use of stringers allows extrusions to describe a framework either open or covered.

Note: 'DRAG-LINE' is a line of points. Drag lines are used to hold editing points of the extrusion allowing the extrusion to be manually changed in cross-section, twist etc.

2.1.3 Pre-Built 3D Objects ( all pre-built objects end with 'V,V' which is 'start_Vertex,endVertex'. ) [ this is a wish list, your wish not here? THEN ASK NICELY! ]

Type	Description	Active

BOLT_CAPHEAD,S,V,V,	-- Describes a Standard cap headed screw.	N
BEARING_BALLRACE,S,V,V,	-- Describes a Standard radial ball race bearing.	N
BEARING_COLLAR,O,I,N,C,T,V,V,	-- Describes a bronze bearing with thrust collar of Outside diameter,Inside diameter,Collar diameter,collarThickness.	N
BEARING_PLAIN,O,I,W,N,V,V,	-- Describes a plain bush type bronze bearing of Outside diameter,Inside diameter,Width.	N
BEARING_ROLLER,S,V,V,	-- Describes a Standard roller bearing.	N
CENTER_DRILL_POINT,S,,V,V,	-- Describes a center drill hole of Standard size ( 0 -> 6 ).	N
GEAR_SPUR N,I^M,P,B,F,V,V,	-- Describes a Spur Gear type of N teeth,Imperial or Metric ( 'dp' or 'module' ), Pitch, Back axis_vertex, Front axis_vertex.	N
HOLE_CIRCULAR,D,V,V,	-- Describes a circular hole of Diameter.	N
HOLE_FLAT_SIDED,S,V,V,	-- Describes a flat sided hole with number of Sides.	N
HOLE_SPLINED,S,V,V,	-- Describes a Standard splined hole.	N
NUT_FASTENER,S,V,V,	-- Describes a Standard hexagonal threaded fastener nut.	N
SPLINE_LENGTH,S,V,V,	-- Describes a Standard splined length.	N
THREADED_LENGTH,T,V,V,	-- Describes a length of metric threaded rod of Thread size.	N

2.2 Object Properties

Property Name	Hue	Description
ALLUMINIUM		-- Silvery color non transparent material with high reflectivity.
BOLTSTEEL		-- Silvery/Purple color non transparent material with high reflectivity.
TITANIUM		-- Silvery/Blue color non transparent material with high reflectivity.
STEEL		-- Grey/Blue color non transparent material with high reflectivity.
CARBON		-- Dark Grey color non transparent material with medium reflectivity.
COPPER		-- Reddish color non transparent material with high reflectivity.
BRASS		-- Yellow/Brown color non transparent material with high reflectivity.
BRONZE		-- Reddish/Brown color non transparent material with high reflectivity.
GLASS		-- Clear color with light blue tinge transparent material with some reflectivity.
PERSPEX		-- Clear color with sky blue tinge transparent material with some reflectivity.
NOTHING		-- Background color used for set subtraction, e.g. for 'drilling' a hole.
FLAME		-- Red color semi transparent material with no reflectivity and high emissivity.
HOTFLAME		-- Orange color semi transparent material with no reflectivity and high emissivity.
BIRCHWOOD		-- Light Brown color non transparent material with medium reflectivity.
BALSAWOOD		-- Very Light Brown color non transparent material with medium reflectivity.
PINEWOOD		-- Yellow Brown color non transparent material with medium reflectivity.
OAKWOOD		-- Medium Brown color non transparent material with medium reflectivity.

2.3 Object Colors

Color	Hue
BLACK
BLUE
BROWN
DARKBLUE
DARKGREEN
GREEN
GREY
INDIGO
ORANGE
RED
SKYBLUE
VIOLET
WHITE
YELLOW

2.4 Clipboard Interface -- Objects

Objects may be 'Copied' or 'Pasted' into/from the 'Object Clipboard'.
When an object is 'Copied' into the 'Object Clipboard' two copies are made, the original 'untouched' copy and the other copy is modified depending on commands contained in the 'Action List' of another 'object', these 'actions' take place during the 'ReDraw' phase.
Note that each 'object' copied remains in the 'Object Clipboard' until it is 'removed' by an 'Action List' command, this allows an object to be modified and then kept for later reference.
The Objects remain 'current' in the 'Object Clipboard' until 'removed' or until the next 'ReDraw' when the entire 'Object Clipboard' is 'removed'.
Refer to the 'Action List' section for commands that work on the 'Object Clipboard'.
Objects need not be 'drawn', if you just want to 'declare' an object then set the 'modal' 'hide' command at the start of the 'Action List' and reset to 'show' afterwards.
Object names copied into the 'Object Clipboard' must be unique or an error message will be issued and the 'ReDraw' operation will stop.

2.5 Set Commands -- Object

Set commands are used to either 'SET_ADD', 'SET_SUBTRACT' or 'SET_UNION' one object with/from another. The set methodology is very useful, for example to 'drill' a hole in an object you could 'SET_SUBTRACT' a cylinder object from a cube object. For these commands to work properly the two objects should be previously 'declared' and then 'hidden'. If an object is not 'hidden' then you will have the confusing state of the objects being drawn and then the results of the set command drawn over the top. One idea for testing is to set both objects to be drawn in 'WIREFRAME' mode and then change to 'SURFACE' mode before the set operation. The result of the 'set operation' is copied to the 'Object Clipboard' for later use.

Note: 'set operations' will slow the 'ReDraw' significantly so performance can be expected to vary depending on the number of 'set operations' and the power of the computer used.

Note: Objects being used in 'set operations',

Must contain only one 3D object that is fully 'closed'.
'Construction lines' may be included in the specified 'object' but will be ignored.
Once 'pasted' objects are entered permanently into the 'Object Tree' as a 'COBJECT_ENTRY'.
Set operations only appear in an object 'Action List'.
Set operations will be stopped if 'object_name_3' aready exists in the 'Object Tree'.
Set operations can be 'forced' using the 'SET_FORCE_ON' and 'SET_FORCE_OFF' 'modal' commands.
During set forcing mode, if an object already exists in the 'Object Tree' it will be over written if it is the 'destination' of a set command..

/// enter drill hole example here and then add some pictures to show the result

2.5.1 Set Commands available

SET_ADD,object_name_1,object_name_2,object_name_3,	Add together the spaces of the two objects and place the new object into the 'Object Clipboard'.
SET_SUBTRACT,object_name_1,object_name_2,,object_name_3,	Remove from an object that part of another object that shares the same space and place the new object into the 'Object Clipboard'.
SET_UNION,object_name_1,object_name_2,,object_name_3,	Combine only those parts of two objects that share the same space and place the new object into the 'Object Clipboard'.

3 Animations Interface -- Object Side

Animations are embedded rules to allow the 'ANIMATIONS ENGINE' an ability to move objects in a linked way.

Example: If there were two 'GEAR' Objects meshed together, 'GEAR-ONE' with twenty five teeth and 'GEAR-TWO' with fifty teeth, the 'ANIMATION COMMAND' of 'AN-ROTATE-A GEAR-ONE X 5 10 3' would rotate 'GEAR-ONE' ten degrees at a time for five rotations at three R.P.M anti clockwise. The signal 'EMITTED' by 'GEAR-ONE' for every ten degree step would be 'HEARD' by 'GEAR-TWO'. 'GEAR-TWO's callback function would divide this signal by two and therefore 'EMIT' the 'AN-ROTATE-S GEAR-TWO X 10' rotate GEAR-TWO by ten degrees 'ANIMATION SIGNAL' for every two rotational steps of 'GEAR-ONE'.

3.1 Declare the 'ANIMATION' list of an Object

ANIMATION_LIST_START,	-- the Object's 'ANIMATION_LIST'.
ANIMATION_ AXLE,point_object,X/Y/Z,	-- point of rotational axis & degrees of freedom.
ANIMATION_SIGNAL,signal_name,	-- signal list emitted by action.
ANIMATION_CALLBACK,signal_name,	-- connection to handle 'SIGNAL' from another object.
END_ANIMATION_LIST,	-- end animation list.

4 Actions Interface

Actions do things to objects during the 'ReDraw' process.
NOTE: All 'Action Lists' in 'Objects' must have at least one 'entry', that is there must be at least one line in the 'Action-List'.
This line need only be a 'comment line' such as, # this line is just a comment,

4.1 Declare the 'Action-List' of an Object

ACTION_LIST_START,	-- the Object's 'ACTION_LIST'.
ASSEMBLE,object_name,p1,p2,p3,p4,	-- Move 'object' into 'model' from 'Object Factory' by vector derived from point_1 to point_2 and rotate around point_1 by vector derived from point_3 and point_4.
COPY_OBJECT,object_name,	-- Place a dynamic copy of another previously defined object ( in the 'Object Clipboard' ) into the 'Object Factory'.
GEO,geo_type,	-- Include a geometric object as defined in 'Geometric Object Inclusions' above into the 'Object Factory'.
MIRROR_OBJECT,object_name,point_1,point_2,	-- Mirror copy of specified object ( in the 'Object Clipboard' ) by vector P1->P2 in the 'Object Factory'..
MOVE_OBJECT,object_name,point_1,point_2,	-- Move copy of object ( in the 'Object Clipboard' ) in space from P1 to P2 in the 'Object Factory'..
OBJECT_MATERIAL,MVAL,	-- e.g. if MVAL = 'COPPER' then this object is made of the metal copper. ( Default = 'STEEL' ).
PAINT_OBJECT,object_name,MVAL,	-- e.g. if MVAL = 'RED' then paint object red, the 'paint' covers the color of the 'MATERIAL' selected.
PASTE_ORIGINAL_OBJECT,object_name,	-- Paste specified object ( in the 'Object Clipboard' ) into the 'Object Factory'.
PASTE_MODIFIED_OBJECT,object_name,	-- Paste 'modified copy' of specified object ( in the 'Object Clipboard' ) into the 'Object Factory'.
REMOVE_CLIPBOARD_OBJECT,object_name,	-- Remove a previously defined object from the 'Object Clipboard'.
ROTATE_OBJECT,object_name,point_1,point_2,	-- Rotate 'modified copy' of specified object ( in the 'Object Clipboard' ) around P1 till it meets P2 in the 'Object Factory'.
END_ACTION_LIST,	-- end's the Object's Action list.

5. Modal Commands

Commands so far listed are actioned in 'immediate' mode, but in this section we will discuss 'modal' mode commands. The difference between the two are that 'immediate' commands are acted on immediately and last for just the one 'Action-List' command line, 'modal' commands however set up modal 'conditional states' that 'may' be acted upon now or later and remain 'active' until 'de-activated'. An example of a 'modal' command is the 'WIREFRAME' and 'SURFACE' commands. When 'WIREFRAME' is declared in an object's 'Action-List' it tells the renderer to draw all further objects only in 'WIREFRAME' mode ( the default setting at startup is 'SURFACE' mode ). This condition remains in force until a 'SURFACE' command appears in either the same object or in a following object further down the 'Object Tree' of 'ALL'. The 'HIDE' command is also 'modal', it hides all objects until 'de-activated' by the 'SHOW' command.

5.1 Modal Commands available

A_PREC,IVAL,	Angular measurements, the number of numbers after the decimal point ( Default = 2 ), e.g. A_PREC,2, = 123.12 and A_PREC,0, = 123
CLINE_HIDE,	Hide all following 'construction' lines ( reverse of 'CLINE_SHOW' ).
CLINE_SHOW,	Show all following 'construction' lines ( Default ) ( reverse of 'CLINE_HIDE' ).
HIDE,	Hide all following objects or parts of objects ( reverse of 'SHOW' mode ).
IMPERIAL,	Set to 'IMPERIAL' mode, that is feet and inches, 'DP' for gears instead of 'MODULE' etc. ( reverse of 'METRIC' mode ).
L_PREC,IVAL,	Linear measurements, the number of numbers after the decimal point ( Default = 2 ), e.g. L_PREC,2, = 123.12 and L_PREC,0, = 123
METRIC,	Set to 'METRIC' mode ( default, IVAL = 'mm') ( reverse of 'IMPERIAL' mode ).
MIRROR,point_1,point_2,	Mirror following objects across implied axis by vector P1->P2.
MIRROR_STOP,	Reset 'MIRROR' ( Default ).
SCALE,FVAL,	Scale all following objects or parts of objects by floating point number 'FVAL'
SCALE_STOP,	Reset 'SCALE' so that all objects are drawn at the default scale.
MOVE,point_1,point_2,	Move following objects across by vector P1->P2.
MOVE_STOP,	Reset 'MOVE' ( Default ).
ROTATE,point_1,point_2,	Rotate all following objects around P1 till it meets P2.
ROTATE_STOP,	Reset 'ROTATE' ( Default ).
SET_FORCE_ON,	Force all set operations from this position in the 'Object Tree' ( reverse of 'SET_FORCE_OFF ).
SET_FORCE_OFF,	Stop the forcing of all set operations from this position in the 'Object Tree' ( reverse of 'SET_FORCE_ON ).
SHOW,	Show all following objects or parts of objects ( Default ) ( reverse of 'HIDE' mode ).
SURFACE,	Draw all following objects or parts of objects in 'SURFACE' mode ( Default ) ( reverse of 'WIREFRAME' mode ).
UNITS,IVAL,	Set the basic measurement unit to 'IVAL' e.g. feet or inches or meters etc. ( see table below )
WIREFRAME,	Draw all following objects or parts of objects in 'WIREFRAME' mode ( reverse of 'SURFACE' mode ).

5.2 Modal Measurement Units ( default measurement unit is milli Meters )

Unit	Example	IVAL
Miles	100 M	1
Yards	100 Yds	2
Feet	100 '	3
Inches	100 ''	4
Thou	100.001	5
kilo Meters	100 km	100
Meters	100 m	101
centi Meters	100 cm	102
milli Meters	100 mm	0
micro Meters	100 um	104

6 Animation Engine

The 'ANIMATION ENGINE' is a tool that holds the 'CALLBACK' functions declared in an Object's 'ANIMATION LIST'. The 'ANIMATION ENGINE' 'LISTENS' for signals 'EMITTED' by Objects when they move. The 'CALLBACK' functions contain the commands to be issued in sequence that affect the Object to which the 'CALLBACK' is attached. The 'SIGNALS' and 'CALLBACKS' are declared in the 'ANIMATION' list of affected Objects. Animations can be either in 'IMMEDIATE' or 'RECORDER' mode. 'IMMEDIATE' mode is used for simple things like manually moving a robot arm to simulate a production task via buttons on the 'ANIMATION BAR'. Or animations can be actioned in 'RECORDER' mode which runs automatically to generate a set of moving picture frames to be played back as a
demonstration visualization.

6.1 Animation Commands

AN_ROTATE_A object X^Y^Z A^C 5 1 3	-- rotate object at axle point by axis, direction, number of rotations or 0 for continuous, degrees per rotational step, rotations per minute.
AN_ROTATE_S object X A^C 10	-- rotate object at axle point by single axis, direction, number of degrees.
AN_ROTATE_M object A^C 1 2 3	-- rotate object at axle pivot by multiple axis, direction, by X/Y/Z number of degrees.
AN_MOVE object 1 2 3 4	-- move object X,Y,Z at rate of mm's per minute
AN_BUTTON_SIGNAL 1 'LABEL' C^H	-- 'SIGNAL' and 'LABEL' attached to an animation button on the 'ANIMATION BAR' at the bottom of the display. The number is the button number from the left to right and 'C^H' is clicked or held down.
AN-CALLBACK 1	-- Callback animation command list that is actioned when the numbered button is clicked or held down.

7 Moving from Design to Manufacture

Once a 3d design has been built up from child objects it may need to be manufactured! Usually one starts with a 2d plan and then does the 3d modeling but 'Bdesign3d' does it the other way round. Why? Well the authors of the program think in 3d and so design that way as well. Having stated that design is done in 3d one will find that this will not be acceptable to the workshop foreman! That person will still require a 2d plan with dimensioning, material list and other features left out of Bdesign3d such as mold die pin locations etc. To this end Bdesign3d has a wizard which allows visible parts to be projected onto a 2d plane that can then be printed out onto plan plotters/printers. Remember to set suitable 'HIDE' flags for your part/s to be projected onto the 2d plane where you can add dimensions and other annotations. This wizard is setup to do one part per plan. You can send this plan to a laser cutting contractor or cut them out in-house. You can do a 3d subtraction of a 3d model and a rectangular cube to create die molds. Another wizard will produce an ANCA style G-code 'ANC' file that can be included into a G-code program for machining die molds or parts from solid billet. Because we are dealing with the real world there will be a 'png' file import feature. This feature will display a scalable image as a background to allow the designer to build up a model in the foreground as a copy of the image.

In Demo-3 we will simulate machining a connecting rod for an engine using GCODE and Bmach2d.

We will provide other demos as 'side4linux' develops to cover integration into a real world machine controller.