Modeling
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Angled Slabs and walls

I need to create angled walls and slabs. In the pictures below there is a floor plan of a ramp going down.

Ramp 12-02-2024.jpgRamp two 12-02-2024.jpg

 

In the floor plan it shows the ramp, direction arrows and 3 walls (left and right sides and center divider). When viewed in 3D you can see the ramp and the 3 walls but not the direction markers. The markers are there but are located under the ramp. Now the arrows are actually very slim slabs which can be placed on other slabs so they show in 3D but I can't find a way to tilt the slabs on an angle that matches the ramp which would allow me to locate them on the ramp's surface. And while I can create a fill I have the same issue. Fills cannot be moved vertically either. Regarding the center divider wall, it should only be to the start of the ramp (bottom). From that point I need a wall  that is 3.5 ft. high and follows the grade of the ramp's surface. My problem is that I can't figure out how to make an inclined wall. Leaning the wall left or right is simple but straight up and down and on a slope I can't figure out. While AC allows the user to rotate object in the "XY" plane (same as floor plan) I can't find a way to rotate objects in the "XZ" and "YZ" planes. Is there anything I can do that will allow me to place my arrow slabs on the surface of the ramp and create a wall that slants upwards? All help appreciated.

12 REPLIES 12
Barry Kelly
Moderator

Slabs can't slope so using them for your arrows will not work.

Try using a roof or convert to a morph that you can freely rotate in 3D.

 

To rake the top of bottom of a wall, you must uses a roof in a hidden layer and use Solid Element Operation to subtract with upwards/downwards extrusion.

Or you can place a polygon opening (triangle shaped) to cut a hole in the top or bottom of the wall.

make the opening the same length as the wall and just adjust the shape of the polygon to get the cut you want.

SEO does not show in plan, but the opening can.

 

Barry.

 

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Gerry Leonor
Advisor

i long for the time we finally have updated site modelling tools. but for now, why not use a 5mm thick roof in the shape of the directional arrow?

from the plan, it looks like it's located in the part of the ramp where it only falls one way & not on the kerb where it falls parabolically. 

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mthd
Ace

I just learned how to slope walls with SEO and a morph. I took a more simple approach and used a wall that I have set to be invisible once it was converted to a morph. A morphed wall will also allow us to slope the top or bottom so it can also be used as an SEO operator. For sloping slabs we can use a mesh with two adjacent corners being raised in the Z direction.

 

 

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If the divider wall is just a simple vertical plane without the need of any wall functionality then I would model it using a detailed extruded shell which avoids multiple elements, keeps it parametric and shows correctly cut. There are two approaches - either use the start/end angles parameter to slope the top and bottom or use the contour functionality to get the desired form. Unfortunately the interface is a mess so might take some figuring out to get right if you are not familiar with the tool - I guess GS are busy doing cool stuff rather than making sure everyone can use the fundamental potential of AC. 

 

thesleepofreason_1-1707811002339.png

 

 

Thanks everybody. Obviously if the slabs can't have a slope then that can't be a solution for my arrows. Maybe that is something AC can look at for future versions. As for the wall, I could have used a roof element like a rafter setting the angle of the ramp with vertical ends. It just seems awkward to use roof elements to create walls. I could actually do the same with rectangular/square slabs just by setting the appropriate sizes but it really makes it hard to remember which axis is which. It would seem, that for now, I would be better to create my wall and arrows using my 3D solids MCAD software to make the parts and then import them into AC. As I am more proficient creating special parts with my MCAD than I am using AC's solids modelling features that seems the easiest way to go. As I said above, maybe the AC software guys/gals can add the capability to rotate all objects in all three planes.

Best Regards.

Spot on @wile e coyote genius, it shouldn’t be that difficult to edit native elements in 3D. I hope the ramp tool mentioned in the RM will also help us all out too.

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you'll have to remember, that just because it's called the Wall Tool, doesn't mean you can only use them to model walls. same thing with slabs or roofs or any other ArchiCAD element. use whatever tool is best suited for a particular purpose. this is why there are a number responses here with different methods of producing the same outcome. just be aware that there are some limits & some (perhaps) unwanted interactions between one tool & another.

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Lingwisyer
Guru

I would do the arrows as a SEO Intersection then Subtraction with the ramp.

 

For the divider, if you do not need it to be a Composite and it is straight, I would just model it as a Shell. If you need it as a Composite, I would still create a Shell but this time just be the top finish thickness.

Lingwisyer_0-1707892626050.png

 

 

 

Ling.

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I think a polygon opening is really the easiest way to trim the top or bottom of a wall.

It can remain as a wall, can be basic, composite, complex profile, straight, curved, inclined.

Just ad a polygon opening and stretch to the shape you want to cut out.

The edges of the opening can even be curved.

 

BarryKelly_0-1707895288306.png

 

BarryKelly_1-1707895535911.png

Barry.

 

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