mands like LOFT and SWEEP, but you can now create NURBS (non-uniform rational b-spline) surfaces. NURBS surfaces allow you to create 3D objects through a sculpting process. You use the new Surface tab on the ribbon to create surfaces. Procedural surfaces can be converted to NURBS using the CONVTONURBS command. The Surface tab contains tools that allow you to modify surfaces with tools like blend, trim, or offset. You can also display the control vertices for NURBS surfaces which allow you to control the shape of the surface. Figure 4 shows a 3D model created using NURBS surfaces. The Surface tab on the ribbon contains tools that allow you to perform an analysis of the surfaces. Surface modeling is a large 3D modeling feature in AutoCAD 2011, but there are many other 3D enhancements that have been introduced. The following additional features have been introduced: • 3D Object Snaps – Apparent Intersection has been the only 3D object snap for a long time in AutoCAD. AutoCAD 2011 introduces six new 3D object snaps that allow you to snap to the center of a face or a vertex among others. • Associative Surfaces – When you create 3D objects by lofting, sweeping, extruding, or revolving you can modify the original objects used to change the 3D object if associativity is enabled. Both 3D solids and surfaces can maintain a history between the 3D object created and the 2D objects used to create it. You can also now choose to create surfaces from closed profiles. • Visual Styles – Five additional pre-configured visual styles have been introduced: Shaded, Shaded with Edges, Shades of Gray, Sketchy, and X-Ray. Figure 4 shows an example of the Sketchy visual style on the left. • Consistent Materials – Materials have been enhanced so they are consistent across all Autodesk products. The editing of materials is now more intuitive, and the previews shown in the Materials palette are much closer to how it will appear when rendered. Materials can also be stored in custom libraries so they can be used across drawings and projects. • Mesh Modeling – Mesh modeling tools have been expanded to allow for merging meshes, closing holes, spinning faces, and collapsing an edge or face. • Point Clouds – You can now attach 3D point clouds that can contain millions of scanned points. These points can be used to help create digital models of physical objects. • 3D Basic Workspace – A new simplified 3D modeling workspace named “3D Basic” comes with AutoCAD. This gives those new to 3D modeling a chance to get started with a small subset of the 3D modeling tools available in AutoCAD.
todesk discussion forums and AutoCAD Exchange that is relevant to the current topic you are viewing. Action Recorder – View Observation changes cannot be deleted from an action macro. Navigation Bar – Navigation tools have been consolidated into a single location. The Navigation Bar allows you to access both 2D and 3D navigation tools and is located by default along the right side of the drawing window. Native 3Dconnexion Support – AutoCAD now natively supports 3D mice developed by 3Dconnexion. For more information on 3Dconnexion products, visit www.3dconnexion.com. 3D UCS Icon and Gizmos – The UCS and Gizmos have been updated for 3D modeling. Workspace Switching – You can now switch workspaces using the Workspaces drop-down list located on the Quick Access toolbar. Sketching – The new improved SKETCH command allows you to sketch using lines, polylines, and splines.
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CONCLUSION AutoCAD 2011 includes many new 2D and 3D enhancements. There are many long time requested enhancements that have been included in this release, and improvements to some of the everyday workflows to help you be more productive. From the improved hatching to the new object selection features and even the inclusion of transparency, there are many new and exciting changes that will make it easier to get your job done faster and better. As you might have noticed, since about AutoCAD 2007, AutoCAD is not only a 2D drafting application. 3D modeling is a key part of the feature set in AutoCAD. The changes to visual styles and materials are welcomed additions, and the new surface modeling features make it easier to create complex looking models. To learn more about the new features and enhancements in AutoCAD 2011, download the trial version from http://www.autodesk. com/autocad or contact your local Autodesk reseller. Lee Ambrosius is a Sr. Technical Writer in the PSEB division at Autodesk, Inc. and works on AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT. He is an author and contributor to a number of AutoCAD books that are under the For Dummies and Bible series. Lee can be reached via e-mail at lee_ambrosius@ hyperpics.com; other contact information can be found on his Website at http://www.hyperpics. com or Blog at http://hyperpics.blogs.com.
OTHER CHANGES AutoCAD 2011 contains a variety of features and enhancements that are both large and small. I listed many of the key features earlier, but here are some additional ones that are worth mentioning: Web Based Help – AutoCAD 2011 introduces a new look for its help system, and offers an online and offline mode. When online, help pages display additional content from the Au-
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