Amapi 3D supports two drawing modes:
¨ Polygonal mode: The points defining the element are connected by line segments. The facets are defined by the points’ coordinates.
¨ NURBS mode (Non-Uniform Rational B-Spline): A NURBS curve or surface is a mathematical function. A NURBS curve or surface is defined at any point of its length or surface. As Amapi 3D cannot display all of the points at once, it displays only some of them. The drawback of the NURBS mode is the increased computing time compared to the polygonal mode. Furthermore, some tools do not operate on NURBS objects. (See the Modeling Palette.)
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Polygonal curve |
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You must specify the creation mode before creating the 3D primitive or drawing the curve. (see chapter User Manual/Tools/Construction/3D Primitives and Drawing).
You can switch between modes as follows:
¨ Selecting “NURBS Mode” in the Tools menu.
¨ Clicking on the “NURBS” or “POLY” icon in the menu area of the Assistant Palette.
¨ Using the hotkey: PC: CTRL+B, Mac: Command+B.
