Modeling
About Archicad's design tools, element connections, modeling concepts, etc.

How to create a superellipse.

Anonymous
Not applicable
Hey all, this is my first post, so I hope it falls in the right place.

I'm looking for a way to draw/generate a 2d superellipse (or something close- as the shape might not be precisely this) in plan- perhaps then after extrude it and round the edges to form the basic shape of a building.



Is this possible?
18 REPLIES 18
Erika Epstein
Booster
You could start with the soccer field in the Library.
Please add your OS and AC version to your profile. Answers often vary dependent upon these variables.
Erika
Architect, Consultant
MacBook Pro Retina, 15-inch Yosemite 2.8 GHz Intel Core i7 16 GB 1600 MHz DDR3
Mac OSX 10.11.1
AC5-18
Onuma System

"Implementing Successful Building Information Modeling"
Anonymous
Not applicable
Hey Erika,

Sorry for the delayed response. It wasn't my intention to create the stadium itself, just a 3d massing model and a 2d axonometric diagram.
Anonymous
Not applicable
Hmm... my sig didn't update...
Erika Epstein
Booster
Well, given your pic...
This should be in the GDL section. Look in the GDL manual under the HELP menu in archicad. You'll find examples of how to use superellipse formulae.
Erika
Architect, Consultant
MacBook Pro Retina, 15-inch Yosemite 2.8 GHz Intel Core i7 16 GB 1600 MHz DDR3
Mac OSX 10.11.1
AC5-18
Onuma System

"Implementing Successful Building Information Modeling"
Anonymous
Not applicable
It looks like the mesh tool should do the trick.

Here is a quickie for example. I used a copy of the mesh with an SEO to get the underside of the shell. This works fine for shallow slopes but would be much trickier in steep sections.
Erika Epstein
Booster
I'm not sure what borki is after. From his second post, I was wondering which superellipse shape he is trying to build. Is it this Superellipse?
Or ?
Erika
Architect, Consultant
MacBook Pro Retina, 15-inch Yosemite 2.8 GHz Intel Core i7 16 GB 1600 MHz DDR3
Mac OSX 10.11.1
AC5-18
Onuma System

"Implementing Successful Building Information Modeling"
Anonymous
Not applicable
Thanks for replying both,

I'm not completely sure it is a superelipse, but my impression is that the curves seem to bend in a way that it isn't simply a line abruptly altering it's angle/slope as it begins a curve- that the shape itself is uniform in some mathematic way/formula.

Make sense?
Anonymous
Not applicable
My point was just that if you know the geometry you can probably get the mesh to work. Its a matter of getting the contours right.
Anonymous
Not applicable
Thanks Matthew,

This was closer to what I did, but I didn't think to use the mesh option- great idea- now I need to go play with it a bit, GDLs too.

Thanks again to both of you:)