autocad question

[joeypfeil]

Hey Guys,
Has anyone got an easy way to take a 3d compound curved surface (I.E. a boat sideshell) and "flatten" it into a 2d template using Autocad 2002? I have succesfully done this, but it was very time consuming. I Cant afford a good surfacing program such as mutisurf or the like. Any help is greatly appreciated.
Thanks

[CGN]

All i can think affordable is Prosurf Basic that may do it, Hull design by greg carlson is very good but limited on shapes that you can have, multisurf you have to buy the modeler and the expansion plate program, Prosurf will do it in the same package.

somebody here in the forum will have a better idea.

[Hans Friedel]

You can use the Rhino 3D Demo, you can make 20 "saves" with it

Hans

[DaveB]

I think this whole business is sort of an art... not too sure on the finer points really, but I do know that rhino can unroll a surface along one of its edges, the only trick is to figure out if the material can actually be bent as you'd like it... There's also a plate developing plug in (from albacore research I think) that might break up a complex shape into sections that can physically be made with a particular material...

brgrds,

Dave