rotate bricks in any angle

[ma05860]

Hello to everyone . I'm new here and i'm very happy to be a member of this community . I have a question .How can i ortate bricks to ldd in any angle i want to ? Thank you for your time!!

[Classicsmiley]

Hello to everyone . I'm new here and i'm very happy to be a member of this community . I have a question .How can i ortate bricks to ldd in any angle i want to ? Thank you for your time!!

Have you experimented with the hinge tool yet?

[Calabar]

"Fine" rotation need a pivot, which consists in a connection with another brick.

Once the connection is stated, you can use the rotation tool to rotate the brick at the angle you desire.

[ma05860]

Thank u very much . Its a little complicated but very helpful.

[Calabar]

Agree with you, not much comfortable: a free rotation, for example using a R + mouse, would be very appreciated.

[Superkalle]

I'm not sure I follow guys. How do you mean complicated.

I think it's pretty straight forward. You select a brick to rotate and have three choices

1) click on the green arrows in the model (good for simple rotation, or rotation a brick to a "stop" against another brick)

2) click on the rotate wheel (perfect for 45 or 90 degree rotations)

3) you enter a free value.(perfect for fine tuning)

[Calabar]

The problem is that you need to make a connection before rotating a brick.

That's not comfortable for various reasons:

- I can't take a brick and rotate it immediately. I have to take the brick, place it, take a second brick as a pivot and then rotate.

- The rotation is tied to the pivot. For some rotations, I need to organize a complex pivoting system.

- It don't works if there are unconnected bricks (very very annoying in certain situations).

LDD allows only a simple unconstrained rotation using arrow keys when the brick is "on the air".

I think it would be very useful (and simple to implement) a "full" rotation for dragged bricks or groups of bricks (don't mind if connected or not).

The simplest solution I imagine is to use a key in the keyboard: pressing it while you drag a brick or a group of bricks is "pinned" and you can use the mouse to rotate it. Obviously there should be the chance to insert numeric rotation too and use the green arrows, as with the rotation tool.

This is a request for the next LDD I asked time ago, and I think it is a reasonable request.

[Superkalle]

The problem is that you need to make a connection before rotating a brick.

OK, now I understand, and it's an interesting idea.

I guess the problem will be to decide which axis the brick should rotate around, and how the user should select that axis. That is the benefit with the "simple" system that is today; The axis is a connectivity point and you select it by simply connecting bricks and click on the "arrows".

An open question: If there would be a free rotation too, which would be the prefered axis that the brick should rotate around?

1) Brick geometrical center

2) Center of gravity

3) Brick zero point (which in LDD is normally the first stud on the brick, so actually not the geometrical center)

4) a connectivyt point centerline

For a normal 1x1 brick, it's easy to percive the geometrical center as the rotation point and it would be an easy case, but for more complex and organic shapes, it can be less intuitive.

[Classicsmiley]

I'm used to the way it is now, so I'm having a hard time imagining how free rotation would be better. I just wish they'd go back to the old absolute part rotation, instead of the camera-relative rotation that they've got now...

[Calabar]

I guess the problem will be to decide which axis the brick should rotate around, and how the user should select that axis. That is the benefit with the "simple" system that is today; The axis is a connectivity point and you select it by simply connecting bricks and click on the "arrows".

There is no need to select an axis. I mean a free rotation, mouse dragging type (such as this one). It is immediate and intuitive.

The rotation center should be the geometrical center of the bounding box. But maybe select a different rotation point could be useful sometimes.

[Classicsmiley]

Can you give me an example where completely free rotation would be better than what we've got? In my experience, the current 90-degree keyboard rotation increment can get the parts close enough to "snap" to any another angled part that you may have in your model.

[Calabar]

Example: you are trying to place a Bar inside a Barrel, so that the bar seems to be laid to the border of the barrel.

There are many other examples, because not ever the part will be connected to another one, or maybe you prefer to connect other parts to the rotated one once it is placed.

[Superkalle]

Example: you are trying to place a Bar inside a Barrel, so that the bar seems to be laid to the border of the barrel.

But that example requires a lot of scaffolding and fiddling around any way, and then a small rotation is not a the biggest problem, or?

But on the other hand, the day we DO get free placing of parts in LDD (through some nice feature), then free rotation will be much more relevant.

[Classicsmiley]

Example: you are trying to place a Bar inside a Barrel, so that the bar seems to be laid to the border of the barrel.

There are many other examples, because not ever the part will be connected to another one, or maybe you prefer to connect other parts to the rotated one once it is placed.

Ok, that makes sense. However, once a part is rotated, I don't usually have any problem connecting other parts to it.

[Calabar]

But that example requires a lot of scaffolding and fiddling around any way, and then a small rotation is not a the biggest problem, or?

But on the other hand, the day we DO get free placing of parts in LDD (through some nice feature), then free rotation will be much more relevant.

Sure, the free placing is a very desired feature, I hope we will see it soon.

Anyway, it is not necessary much scaffolding, you only have to know the right trick!

(nothing complicated: place the bar on the building ground, then place the Barrel under it at the right height)

[Superkalle]

Sure, the free placing is a very desired feature, I hope we will see it soon.

Anyway, it is not necessary much scaffolding, you only have to now the right trick!

(nothing complicated: place the bar on the building ground, then place the Barrel under it at the right height)

Good point - didn't think about that