User:Piffpoof

hi there

This is the user page for PiffPoof. Our use of FreeCAD and our membership on this forum started as a project to document a 40 year old sailing boat. Lots of information about the boat and the work done on it over the last 10 years is available at https://maringret.wordpress.com/. This page describes our FreeCAD specific activities.

The builders no longer had drawings and the son of the first owner of the boat building company doubted there ever were full drawings. Apparently they built things "by eye" before CAD. Consequently the hull dimensions had to be measured and then a model constructed within the software, Modern software packages like FreeCAD offer many beneficial features like symmetry constraints but when the final measurement is a model that is "easy on the eye" much "massaging" of models and data is required.

Current state of the project: 400+ objects and counting...

We started by modeling the interior (it was easiest to measure) and quickly reached 150 objects. We were barely started and so it was at that point that we started to realise that we would be swamped by the sheer complexity of the undertaking unless we could sub-divide the project and automate as much as possible.This also marked the point where we started to construct tools we needed to manage our complexity explosion.

We developed a few utilities and systems for our own purposes. Due to the open nature of the FreeCAD community we tried to keep them open enough to be used for other uses and by other persons. At present we have the following items in various stages of development:

Macro Dump Objects

 * a macro which lists the objects in the current document to the Report view, a window or an output file
 * v 0.2

Navigation Utility Suite (toolbar based)

 * a toolbar consisting of 3 macros that enhance managing the FreeCAD user interface, in addition 2 existing FreeCAD macros are included
 * [[File:Piffpoof_utility_suite_toolbar.jpg]]
 * Fit All Content on Screen (existing FreeCAD macro)
 * Set to Axometric View (existing FreeCAD macro)
 * CAD Navigational Style - switches the Navigational Style to "CAD" Macro_Manage_Navigational_Style
 * Inventor Navigational Style - switches the Navigational Style to "Inventor" Macro_Manage_Navigational_Style
 * Toggle Views Visibility - toggles visibility of Python console, Report view & Combo view Macro_Toggle_Views_Visibility
 * v 1.0

Navigation Utility Suite (widget based)

 * under development
 * working as prototype

Macro Build Utility

 * a macro which accepts a command file which specifies how to combine different projects into a single output document
 * v 0.1

Macro Python Assistant Window

 * a macro that offers a sizable window which holds Python snippets for use in assembling Python code files - the window is persistent between FreeCAD sessions
 * v 0.1

Macro Global Variable Watcher

 * displays global variables created in the FreeCAD system (e.g. FreeCAD.myVariable) either on request or on a timed basis
 * uploaded and working but still being tested
 * GUI not finalised, suggestions welcome

Visibility Management Assistant

 * anticipated

Macro Half-Hull Model

 * assists with the design of half-hull models of ship hulls
 * documented
 * uploaded
 * working but may fail on complex or esoteric inputs

Macro Wiring & Hoses

 * provides the facility to run wires and hoses through three dimensional models (e.g. buildings, ships, planes, machinery)
 * under development
 * working as prototype

Thanks
Thanks to Werner Mayer for code snippets and answers to (endless) questions.

Works in Progress
Sandbox:Piffpoof