The Historic Hallway2.skp (2.9 MB)
I have been unable to figure out how to make a curved window cut through a curved ceiling. I’m hoping someone can help. It seems the curve in the ceiling keeps it from being a solid so solid tools doesn’t work. I tried intersecting faces but that didn’t work. I’ve been using Flex Tools for windows but they must be on a flat surface to cut through.
Appreciate any advice.
Thanks!
Thank you so much for the quick response! I’m trying to follow the bottom video but something’s not quite right when I do it. I’m sure I’m missing something. Are these the right steps?
1.Selecting both the entire hall and the individual window, and exploding both.
2. With both still selected, intersect faces with selection.
3. Erase extra window geometry.
4. Select window faces and delete.
Also, once I get this to work, I could delete the other windows and use array to insert the same window that you used all the way along the wall. Will it work for me then to select and explode all the windows at once, along with the hallway, and intersect faces with selection?
I don’t know how to make my screen recording show the menu, but this is what I’m seeing when I follow the steps I outlined above.
You’re welcome!
The way your model looks now, you have complicated yourself unnecessarily and it would be much simpler if you started from 0, knowing the steps you should follow.
But first you should learn the basics of SketchUp.
If you have imported a DWG file, position it as close to the origin as possible.
It will be imported as a component, so assign it a tag, lock it and use it as a reference.
Use the layers (tags) imported with the dwg file to temporarily turn off them and keep only one open at a time for better visibility and draw the new components over.
As your model looks, draw separately components for repeating elements, having the dwg component as a guide only.
Don’t leave raw geometry (edges, faces) free in your drawing and don’t tag it.
Make all the elements you draw into groups or components, to which then assign tags (walls, floors, stairs, windows, doors, etc.).
Try to work as cleanly and simply as possible.
Your model now contains a lot of raw geometry
These would be the steps
Pardon my long pause between messages. I’ve been out of commission for a bit. Thank you for your advice and for posting the videos. I wish I had talked to you before I started this project! A little background:
This is an interior design project. I need to create a shell replication of the building below, to include all exterior walls, doors, windows, etc., and interior structural elements such as support beams, elevators, stairs, floors/ceilings. I need to use actual dimensions, including the window dimensions, locations/placement on the walls. I will then develop an interior floorplan.
I know how to use DWG files to draw a clean plan, but I haven’t worked on multi-story structures before. I wasn’t sure of the best/fastest way to replicate this entire building and thought it might be easier/faster to pull walls up from the imported DWG. It clearly isn’t the case and I found myself with this disorganized file full of tags from the CAD files, along with my own.
I need to use accurate/actual dimensions for floor/ceiling thicknesses, windows, and exterior door openings, and facade features. I was given separate DWG files for each floor of the building (actually, each floor was two separate files - one north and one south end). I have a 145-page PDF drawing set from which to determine elevation information and accurate dimensions. The file frequently crashes, so I decided to put all the levels on a single plane within one SU file where I could see and work on multiple floors while studying elevations and separate CAD files. This is why things aren’t positioned at the origin. A mistake, I’m sure, and I expect it may be problematic to align my levels.
I’m not clear about the proper way to build a complex facade like this. I could have pulled the interior portion(s) up from ground to the top level and then added floors at the appropriate elevations, but I wanted to keep each floor on a separate tag with its exterior walls. I’ll need to create final sections and elevations of the entire building, and floor plans for each level.
Does it still make sense for me to start over? I don’t have more than 4-5 days to have a completed model. I’m a little worried about the time it will take me to place all the windows again.
You are wrong, its the best way,
This means that, unfortunately, you failed on this task. Why did you take up this assignment with so little experience? The size of the documentation - 145 pages - proves the enormous amount of work. Unfortunately, the elevation is not the biggest problem here. I do not know what the interior looks like, the number of stairs, stucco, columns, pilasters, niches, doors and windows, and their repeatability and repeatability of rooms. These are just some of the factors that influence the time needed for modeling. Five days for a skilled person may be too short a time to complete this assignment. Unfortunately, this is not enough time for you.
EDIT
By adding your small skills in SU and the size of the project and photos of the object on the internet, it looks like a final job at the university or checking when applying for a job.
A few things you can take into account:
It is advisable and logical to work correctly from the beginning.
In 3D, draw everything in its final position, each level in its place.
It is always preferable to avoid a possible less accurate (sloppy) work.
And even if you know that the plan is correctly drawn in ACAD and correctly imported into SketchUp, it is still better to use the imported DWGs (plans, sections, facades, etc…) only as visual/helpers guides.
Looking at what you have drawn so far, you will have an easier task to take it from 0 and work correctly, using groups, components, tags, as well as the shape of the building (repetitive elements and levels) to model it in a time as short as possible.
You’re welcome!
To add to what @mihai.s has told you, it’s worth braking the whole structure down into workable sections that can be repeated. Using repeating components can help make short work of a large project.
On a related note, making your structure from solids can make life much easier, for example here you can see an array of different shaped ‘holes’ into which you could insert windows/door etc
I know this is a bit of a simplification but the logic is sound.
Sturnus,
The model is far along, (this is a partial file) but I was having trouble with the curved walls. mihai.s mentioned it might be better to start over by drawing over the DWG (using it as a reference, which is what I have done in the past), which is why I asked the follow up question about starting over.
Given the size of this project, and the fact that I had CAD files, I originally opted to import the CAD files into SU and used AutoCAD cleanup tools and Eneroth Face Creator to clean up geometry & create faces that I then pulled up, rather than re-drawing everything. Are you saying I was correct in that approach, or do you agree that I should have traced my own lines over DWGs? The problem with the way I did it is that it’s been a mess reorganizing/labeling and grouping things, as mihai.s pointed out.
Thanks for the constructive comments, Box, and for the example. I have used repeating components and array wherever possible, which certainly is immensely helpful. I can see that I have underutilized solid tools though and will be using it much more now. Appreciate it!
Thank you for your thoughtful replies. I sure wish I had done it all that way from the start. It’s how I’ve done all other models, but I was hoping I could save time this way. That sure backfired! I do think that by going back and doing it over I can avoid issues that might slow me down when I start designing the interior.
Thanks again for graciously sharing your wisdom.
