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Creating a flat of a vase

Creating a flat of a vase

Creating a flat of a vase

(OP)
I am trying to take the surface profile of a vase and make a flat, but it is giving me heck.

RE: Creating a flat of a vase

I'm almost sure that you can't get a flat pattern for formed parts. It's OK if you have just regular bends in one direction only.

im4cad
Pro Design Services, Inc.
http://www.cadproe.com/pds/home.asp

RE: Creating a flat of a vase

(OP)
I'm not trying it in sheetmetal though.  I am using surfacing.

RE: Creating a flat of a vase

Really, what you are trying to do is not mathematically possible in terms of simple unfolding to a flat.  A vase with toroidal surfaces is a non-Gaussian surface that can not be flattened without distortion.

A Gaussian surface is any surface which can be unfolded to a flat.  Basically, this means cones and cylinders and flats joined in any combination along tangents.

There are programs that stamping toolmakers use to develop flats for non-Gaussian forms.  They are not part of any CAD package.  Toolmakers used to develop such flats experimentally, using sheetmetal marked with a pattern so that the deformation can be charted and back-solved.

All this machinery making modern music can still be open-hearted.

RE: Creating a flat of a vase

(OP)
With Pro/Engineer, I was able to take half of the vase and make a flat surface.  Whether it is mathematically correct or not, it was good enough for the customer.

RE: Creating a flat of a vase

What was the shape of the vase?

All this machinery making modern music can still be open-hearted.

RE: Creating a flat of a vase

(OP)
It is shaped kind of like the curve of a hot chick, if that makes sense.

RE: Creating a flat of a vase

Interesting.  I would double-check what sort of assumptions Pro/E is making to develop this.  I would be wary of the results.  It is not a simple flat development.

It's been 2 years since I was on Pro/E.  I do like to lurk in this forum to see what's up.  Please excuse me if I'm a little behind the times.

RE: Creating a flat of a vase

I was asked to do a somewhat similar task:  have a flat pattern, with a hole pattern in it, and then form it to a complex surface.  it was for a speaker grill.

Pro/E did not accurately form the hole pattern into the new complex shape.  Rather it made the complex shape, and then projected the hole pattern onto it.

I don't know if this is relavant to your task, but it was interesting.  Makes me less confident in flattening complex-shapes and getting an accurate hole pattern in the flat pattern.

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