“R” you ready for some CAD commands beginning with R? What’s more exciting is that we’re exploring the enhanced CUI feature of the latest ZWCAD 2021 as well! Feel free to read on!
REFEDIT
With REFEDIT, you can edit an external reference (Xref) directly in the drawing.
Steps:
- Input [REFEDIT] and press Enter.
- Select the Xref you’re editing.
- Modify and save it.
As you can see, I edited out some similar entities in the selected Xref without having to open or modify the original file, which would be updated simultaneously.
REDO
You must be familiar with UNDO whose keyboard shortcut is Ctrl+Z. How about REDO, which can recover the effects of the last UNDO command? You can invoke this command simply by inputting [REDO] or pressing Ctrl+Y.
In the GIF below, you can see that I accidentally undid the erasing of the palm tree. Then, I realized I did want to remove it, so I used REDO to reverse the UNDO.
REVOLVE
Do you still remember how to create a solid in ZWCAD with the EXTRUDE or LOFT command? This time, I’m introducing REVOLVE, which can help you create solids or surfaces with existing closed objects, or surfaces with open objects, revolving around an axis.
Steps:
- Input [REV] and press Enter.
- Select the entities you’re revolving.
- Define the axis of revolution by specifying the starting and end points.
- Specify the angle of revolution.
Having used REVOLVE to select some regions, I created a bowl, a goblet, and even a simplified version of the Canton Tower effortlessly!
REVSURF
REVSURF is similar to REVOLVE, but helps create a mesh instead by revolving the selected linear objects (including lines, arcs, circles, and 2D or 3D polylines) round a specified axis at a certain angle.
Steps:
- Input [REVSURF] and press Enter.
- Select the linear objects you’re revolving.
- Select the axis of revolution.
- Specify the angle to begin surface of revolution.
- Specify the degrees to revolve entity.
Using REVSURF, you can get a simplified version of the Canton Tower mesh easily as well.
As I’ve mentioned when talking about EDGESURF, you can adjust the mesh density by changing the values of 2 system variables that respectively control the number of units in the M and N directions, “SURFTAB1” or “SURFTAB2”, before invoking this command.
RULESURF
Designs aren’t always regular. How to add some fun, a.k.a. irregular and complex surfaces, to your design, then? RULESURF is the tool to create a ruled surface between two curves!
Steps:
- Input [RULESURF] and press Enter.
- Select an entity to define the first end of the ruled surface.
- Select another entity to define the other end of the ruled surface.
That’s all for today! I really “r”ecommend that you try practicing these CAD commands beginning with R in ZWCAD 2021 because you will be blown away by not only the convenience of CUI, but also the rapid drawing opening speed (You can even win free 180-day ZWCAD 2021 licenses by witnessing it!), smooth visual effects, etc. “S”tay tuned for the next article of this series!
Now I am going away to do my breakfast, when having
my breakfast coming again to read more news.