This is not real: lifelike renderings from Eagle files

lifelike-rendering-from-eagle-files

Look at it. Just look at it! This board is a lie. It doesn't exist (at least not what's seen in the image here). Instead this is a lifelike rendering made from Eagle CAD files. We've already seen that it is rather easy to pull Eagle CAD files into Google SketchUp thanks to the EagleUp package. You'll get a 3D model that looks quite nice but it's hardly photo-realistic. This process starts … [Read more...]

EagleUp pulls your PCBs into SketchUp

eagleup

[Karl] wrote in to tell us about a software package called EagleUp that will import your Eagle CAD PCB designs into Google SketchUp. It bridges the gap between the two using the open source image processing software ImageMagick. As you can see above, you'll end up with a beautifully rendered 3D model of your hardware. This is a wonderful way to make sure that your enclosure designs are going to … [Read more...]

Importing PCB layout into Google Sketchup

import-board-layout-to-google-sketchup

If you've been spending hours with the digital calipers while designing enclosures for your circuit boards there may be a better way. [Phil] tipped us off about a new software package that will let you import PCB layout files into Google Sketchup. This way you can start working on the enclosure in CAD before you've populated your first board. Of course this adds to the pain of realizing there's an … [Read more...]

Autodesk enters the hobby market

123d

Autodesk aims to enter the hobby market with its offering of Autodesk 123d. If you've ever been spoiled by a nice CAD suite like Solidworks, Pro-E, or Inventor it becomes readily apparent that the free offerings don't come anywhere close. At first Autodesk 123d seems to be entirely a Google Sketchup clone, and in some ways it is. Though, after a bit more exploring, the software offers some pretty … [Read more...]

Cocktail cabinet to be proud of

cocktail-cabinet-build

At a glance you might think it's the real thing, but if you look closer you'll see that The Distraction Contraption is an extremely well-executed cocktail cabinet recreation that hosts a MAME setup. [Sam Freeman] took pictures of the entire build process and has posted them, along with captions, as a Flickr collection. The project started after some inspiration from this diminutive cocktail … [Read more...]

Fabricating a music-controlled stoplight

stoplight-for-music

[Andrew] built himself a stoplight that flashes along with the music. Unlike the traffic signal we checked in on a year ago, this one's not a reused municipal fixture. [Andrew] imported a 3D model into Sketchup, printed out the results, and traced them onto Bristol board to make his templates. He cut out the parts, used a brake for the bending, then a combination of spot and MIG welding to … [Read more...]

CNC used to make 3D video using one camera

3d-video-one-camera-cnc

[Gabriel] is making 3D movies using only one camera. This should be impossible because true 3D needs to be stereoscopic, with images from different perspectives for each eye. He's worked this out by mounting the camera on a CNC gantry and programming it to make two passes along slightly different paths. He's plotting the camera paths using SketchUp and a plugin that exports paths as CamBam files, … [Read more...]