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Subject: Re: [geda-user] 3D modelling and gEDA
From: Peter Clifton <pcjc2 AT cam DOT ac DOT uk>
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Date: Sun, 16 Jun 2013 13:04:34 +0100
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On Sat, 2013-06-15 at 19:33 -0400, Evan Foss wrote:
> What do you think of opennurbs?

I don't recall coming across it, I'll take a look....

[brief look]

Looks like it only supports the Rhino3D format, but the primatives are
there to support more.

FAQ:

"What is in the file format?
It is the complete Rhino file format, which includes NURBS curves,
surfaces, and solids, annotation, images, and meshes. These data types
can accurately hold all of the 3-D geometry found in most other CAD/CAM
file formats including IGES, STEP, VDA/FS, ACIS, Parasolid, etc.
"

"Who is funding the openNURBS Initiative and why?
Robert McNeel & Associates. They feel that the 3-D market is stifled
because of the inability to reliably transfer 3-D geometry between
applications. The problem is too big for us to solve alone. By funding
the operating cost of openNURBS, others will get involved in the toolkit
design and development. It will be a much cheaper and effective way to
solve the problem.
"

I might get in touch with them at some point to say hello.. we need a
decent open-source compatible 3D cad framework. (Opencascade is nearly
this, but it is not GPL compatible unfortunately).

My most recent thoughts on 3D + PCB + CAD, was to offload to a separate
process, which is non GPL (e.g. GPL/LGPL + exception for Opencascade),
and use that process to convert "real" 3D cad files into a triangulated
(BOT) like format for easier consumption and rendering on screen.

It probably doesn't buy us more advanced functionality than that though,
as if we start to re-expose the entire cad kernel API via the external
program, then a) The size gets insane, and b) It may start to violate
the GPL again (IANAL).

-- 
Peter Clifton <peter DOT clifton AT clifton-electronics DOT co DOT uk>

Clifton Electronics