How to distribute Objects perpendicular along a Curve with sharp corners ?

Support Modeling
1

Hi all

I wanne distribute a Cube along a Curve (with sharp corners).
Unfortunaly it does not align the Cubes perpendicular to the segments of the Curve.

See here:

Zuschneiden.jpg1680×1022 286 KB

How can I distribute the Cubes along this Curve and align them perpendicular to the segments of the Curve ?

Kind regards
Alain

2

Thanks for that hint.

But those methods dont direct to the goal.

I need the cubes aranged like this:

Zuschneiden2.jpg878×827 46 KB

Dupliverts AND Curvedeformation-Modifier do always some smooth interpolation in the corners of the Curve.
But I need to cubes to be perpendicular to the segements (“edges”) of the Curve (it’s a straight line actually).
Does anyone else know how to do it ?

Kind regards
Alain

3

Why not break each section into a separate object and then do dupliverts. That way there are no corners. You can then make dupliverts real and join them back together if you need to.

4

Or you could extrude your polyline and use dupliface.

dupliface.jpg1431×906 140 KB

5

Hey Alain,

I’m curious, how did you get the setup working like you have it in your first post? I seem to have the opposite problem… I can only get arrays along curves to be perpendicular to the curve and I’d like them straight up and down.

6

@TheRiddler
The setup in my first post is from here:

Kind regards
Alain

7

Dupliframes:
Set all curve handle types to Free.
Set pivot point to Invidual origins.
Scale curve handles to zero (S 0).

Attachments


8

That’s a bit better, but it lacks the control I’m after.

I wonder, is there a way to use an array along a curve and limit the rotation on one or more axes? For example, the supports of a bridge will follow its 2D curves, but still remain perpendicular to the flat ground below (if that makes any sense).

9

If you untick Path animation follow then objects doesnt rotate at all. Or use Object constraints: Limit rotation.
And Riddler, Alain didnt use array and curve modifiers, he used Dupliframes.

10

Hey Juha,

Yeah, I got that he was using dupliframes.

And I tried using a limit rotation constraint, but that works on the whole object, not the individual array instances along the curve.

11

Ok, but rotation constraint works invidually with Dupliframe objects. Curve modifier deforms objects so if you are after no deforms then try something else than curve modifier.