CAD, BIM & 3D

The new releases of upcoming Rhino 5.0 WIP (on Windows) and Rhino 4.0 WIP (on Mac) both support Python as an alternative scripting language. This opens up possibilities of cross-platform scripting (Win/OSX/32+64bit) with plain text-based scripts. And if this opens the way to support Grasshopper on the OSX version, I can only encourage this evolution. Switching from RhinoScript (VB.script) should be reasonably straightforward. Some info on http://blog.rhino3d.com/2010/03/python-scripting-in-rhino-os-x.html and on http://blog.rhino3d.com/2010/03/python-for-rhino-50-and-os-x-available.html .

I saw this used to announce Python-scripting for Rhino (on OSX and Windows). This is both a webservice and a software tool to quickly assemble a movie with an animated character, which speaks the text you type. The webservice makes it usable directly in the browser, but you have to wait till the movie is rendered on the server. You can customize backgrounds, actors, camera angles, soundtrack... But whenever more people are using it, you will get bored seeing the same scenes again and again. But till then... enjoy.

I don't have a clue yet as to what this precisely is, what it costs, on which platforms it runs or how it can be used alongside your regular tools, but I was amazed by the demo movie. Seems like a combination of Google Earth with detailed 3D models, with GIS and other information (metadata), possibly linked to SketchUp. It seems to be marketed as a service offering, currently focused on UK cities. But it also seems to be a software tool. Not sure if and when it will be available. Realtime 3D urban models, realtime shadows, visualization ... Interesting. Please take a look.

As announced on several websites (and as always around this time of the year), Autodesk is starting to launch several new versions of their flagship applications. 3ds Max 2011 screenshots can be seen on http://www.infinity.no/max_2011.htm New features: node-based material editor, hardware rendering, toxik integration, finally some backward compatibility Maya 2011 screenshots can be seen on http://www.infinity.no/maya_2011.html New features: Qt-based new interface, more control over timeline and multiple cameras, ... I assume pricing, platforms and product versions stay the same.

Caedium is a range of CAE (Computer-Aided Engineering) tools, usable for simulation with CFD (computational fluid dynamics). There are several editions, including a free viewer. Remarkably, the software is cross-platform on Windows, OSX and Linux. Info on http://www.symscape.com

According to a mailing I received from AECCafe, Belgian CAD developer, Bricsys, announced that their Bricscad software, an alternative to AutoCAD to produce DWG files, has been rewritten to be completely independent of the IntelliCAD source from which they started. They are not a member of the IntelliCAD Technology Consortium anymore. An important aspect of the Bricscad platform, is the possibility for extensions through the API , and of course, AutoCAD DWG compatibility , through the ODA libraries, but without the price-tag of AutoCAD. As a result of this transition, future versions of BricsCAD will also be ported to Linux (currently in testing) and OSX (end 2010). But until then, the software only runs on Windows . Info on http://www10.aeccafe.com/nbc/articles/view_article.php?section=CorpNews&articleid=786652 and of course on the Bricsys website.

I have tested the Unity Game Engine and it is quite interesting for architectural visualization. This engine works on Windows and on Mac OSX, can create standalone or web-applications and you can even create WII and iPhone games, but then you need the Pro-version + additional (non-free) modules. I have been playing with the OSX version and it takes some (not that much) learning to get started. Try the help files and the video tutorials on the Unity site and you are ready to go. The free version, which is very complete, misses realtime shadows, which is quite frustrating. You could try baking in your shadows using Lightmaps, which is possible in must up-to-date DCC programs, such as 3ds Max, Maya, Cinema4D and even Blender. The following part is a small example (provided you have installed the Unity player for your browser. The whole scene was modeled in ArchiCAD 12, exported to Cinema4D 11.5, exported into FBX and loaded into a simple Unity Scene. After some attempts I got it working ...