The simplest form of a surface in AutoCAD is a 3DFace. 3DFaces
are flat surfaces with 3 or 4 straight edges. The 3DFACE command
is used to create 3DFaces. The following tutorial shows you how
to create such surfaces and how to fix the edge problems with
the EDGE command.
Note:
This tutorial is designed for AutoCAD 2004 though might be
applicable for other releases.
1.
Download
r16_3d_faces.dwg.
Note:
If you are using AutoCAD 2002 or an earlier release download
r15_3d_faces.dwg.
2. Open the drawing
in AutoCAD. It contains a square, a hexagon, and a Wireframe box
[Figure 1].
Figure 1 -
Click on image to enlarge
3. Invoke 3DFACE
(Draw > Surfaces > 3D Face).
4. Click the
corners of the square (clockwise or counterclockwise).
5. Press Enter to
exit the command. The square is covered with orange lines
[Figure 2].
Figure 2 -
Click on image to enlarge
Note:
After invoking 3DFACE by clicking the first 3 corners a
triangular surface will be created. If you press Enter the face
will appear. You can specify the forth corner to create a
quadrilateral flat face. Still you have the chance to continue
with the command. If you continue the last two corners of the
previous face will be considered as the first two corners of the
current face. Therefore you need to specify one or two corners
to create the new 3D face. Press Enter to halt the command.
6. Alter the shade
mode to Flat Shaded [Figure 3].
Figure 3 -
Click on image to enlarge
7. Invoke 3DFACE.
8. Click all the
corners of the hexagon in clockwise or counterclockwise
direction. The hexagon is covered with a surface [Figure 4].
Figure 4 -
Click on image to enlarge
Note:
Actually the hexagon is covered with 3 separate faces.
9. Alter the shade
mode to 2D Wireframe. The edges of faces are visible inside the
hexagon [Figure 5].
Figure 5 -
Click on image to enlarge
10. Invoke EDGE
(Draw > Surfaces > Edge).
11. Select the internal edges to toggle their visibility.
12. Press Enter to
exit the command. The internal edges are not visible anymore
[Figure 6].
Figure 6 -
Click on image to enlarge
13. Cover the side
faces of the box with 3D Faces. Try not to use more than one
3DFACE command [Figure 7].
Figure 7 -
Click on image to enlarge
14. Alter the shade
mode to Flat Shaded [Figure 8].
Figure 8 -
Click on image to enlarge
Alireza Parsai is the founder of cadpanel.com. He is a
mechanical engineer with more than 12 years experience with
AutoCAD. Alireza is an Autodesk Authorized Author, the AutoCAD
consultant for Al Khawarizmi Institute, a contributing editor
for Augiworld magazine, a writer for CAD Digest, an instructor
for AUGI Training Program, and an elected speaker for Autodesk
University 2002. He has written 7 books in Farsi, 3 booklets in
English, and more than 30 articles for different magazines and
newsletters. You can reach him at
alireza.parsai@cadpanel.com or visit his website
www.cadpanel.com.
