Hello! I’m Marta, nice to meet you 
I have a problem: I have to create a few visualizations of 3D panels. Is there a plugin for Sketchup which help creating traces formed by routing bit (CNC)? Something like “follow me”, but creating rounted edges? Example is on the picture below. Maybe some of you have been exporting 3D models from Artcam 2011 to Sketchup Pro 2015 or Autocad?
Please help, it’s really important to me…
The way I have seen this done is a bit clumsy but it works:
Create a cone by latheing the V shape of the router bit (i.e.follow-me around a circle)
Slice a 90-degree section out of the cone
Erase the sharp outside corner created by follow-me and substitute your cone section
Latheing all the way around a circle and then slicing avoids issues with the end sections of the path not being perpendicular to the profile (a common issue with SketchUp’s arcs and follow-me)
1 Like
Here are a number of router bit profiles Dropbox - RouterBitProfiles.zip - Simplify your life
Sorry thought had thumbnails of them but not
1 Like
Maybe better at least namedLegacy - Magnate.zip (575.4 KB)
Do you have to use follow me tool? See this link SKETCHUP TEXTURE: CARVED WOOD 3D PANELS COLLECTION for “other” ideas.
1 Like
@slbaumgartner, thank you! I’ll try it soon! I also have more complicated designs to visualize, so this isn’t simple for me.
@mac7595, thanks for the Router Bit Profiles! I’ll use them trying “a slbaumgartner way”. and thank you for panels, but I already have designs, which I can’t change, so I can’t use them. And they don’t have rounded edges - they aren’t realistic in 100%… But thank you for your answers!
I don’t have to use “follow me” option. I’m looking for any (quick) way to create realistic 3D panels (using vectors and router bits). Or easy way to import 3D model from Artcam do Sketchup (*.obj is too ragged)…
Suggestion; You do need to create whole panel. Just a small section then use SU’s array capability to create panel. Of course that depends on the geometric repetition in the mode.
Form your original post above I guess you have SU model for one case, Posting that makes it much easier to get " better" answers.
Make sure you use components as much as possible. That isolates or prevents other geometry form self intersecting with the entity you are working with. You can always explode at the end.
You mentioned round corners. There is a plugin for that called round corner by Fredo
BTW Su has issues with geometry =< 1/16 , faces will not form as they should , so it is good idea to scale model up by large number ~ 1000 or more then back down when done .Attached is very crude example of 4x4 blocks made and then arrayed 4x4 (PANLE EXAMPLE.skp (2.1 MB) Not to be used by you but to give concept)
1 Like