Part creation

Parts are an essential tool for creating a model. The parts panel works similarly to Layers in Rhino, but not quite the same, because it maintains certain aspects of a curve and has a different visibility setting.

How to create a part

It is possible to create a part on the JPattern Parts toolbar using the _J_PartCreate command. It is also possible to create it through the “+” symbol on the Pattern Parts panel.

Once you decide to create a part, you will need to include the objects you want inside the part to define the view. This can be done before selecting the command, similar to many other Rhino commands.

After the lines or the command are selected, it will present this form:

The panel displays the name of the part, dimensional data, and other properties such as material and nesting allowance (the distance between pieces during nesting).

Then you can select the entities you want to include in the part.

Part Panel

Part panel has some functions on the top bar.

The Green tick indicates the active status of a part. When a part is active, objects that are created are added automatically to it.

is to create a new part

move part up/down

toggle the master layer. This will show the complete model.

toggles the generating lines of a part. Generating lines are the baselines that constitute a part.

toggles print boxes

The buttons on the side are used to manage the panel

select all parts

assess parts

delete a selected part

show panel columns

Toggle between list view and menu view.

Right-clicking a part in the Part Panel opens its properties, allowing you to add or remove objects and entities.

From here, you can edit the part, select its components, or add/remove objects.

Creating Patterns

Now that we have traced the model and learned about parts and entities, we can create a pattern part.

This model was traced using baselines and margins. Following this, layers with different colors (lateral/medial) were applied, along with special properties for the axis lines (cyan and dashed).

Boundary

Definition: A boundary defines the cutting outline of a pattern, which cutting machines use to identify cutting paths.

_J_BoundaryCreateLegacy is the go-to command to create a boundary. The boundary must be a closed path.

A boundary is required to create a proper pattern. Using the _J_BoundaryCreateLegacy command, select the path that defines the desired pattern shape.

To create a heel pattern, mirror the necessary lines first, then create the boundary.

Select the curves to mirror, right-click, and select the mirror axis:

Then, use the _J_BoundaryCreateLegacy command to create the heel's boundary path:

You can automatically apply all rounded corners and notches from the corresponding baselines by using the command line toggle during execution.

Once the boundary is created, it will be the only selected object. You can then click to create a new part:

The boundary will appear in the thumbnail, and you can confirm the part creation.