software for image unfolding?

[servilletanegra]

Hi, someone knows other software beside touchcad for unfolding images?
I´m building blimps and I want to print images.

[CGN]

That's a good one, you can have a look at:

http://www.unwrap3d.com/index.aspx
Deep Paint 3D 2
http://www.uvmapper.com/

I hope this links can be usefull.

[servilletanegra]

Thanks, I also learned how to do it with FormZ.

[CGN]

Besides TouchCad i don't remember seeing something like that, only UV mapping

Good luck

[ludesign]

Originally Posted by CGN

Besides TouchCad i don't remember seeing something like that, only UV mapping

Good luck

UV mapping is typically used for rendering purposes using fairly small images whereas TouchCAD's image unfolding is intended for automatically mapping VERY large images on very large objects, in scale, in full color, with automatic panel numbering, seam allowances, alignment marks, etc. essentially ready for production. Some examples that I have done:

A 59 square meter spinnaker consisting of 40 panels took 2-1/2 minutes to render as save as 40 separate images at 12 DPI (for very large objects you typically use very low resolutions as you typically look as such images from a distance).

A 10 meter long speed boat, hull side and bottom panels, full scale, 48 DPI took 9 minutes 15 seconds to render. The resulting files where 107 resp. 87 Megs when opened in PhotoShop. At 12 DPI, such a model would be 40 meters long in full scale

Despite these big images, it still does not feel like it can't do even bigger objects. Doubling the physical model size essentially quadruples the rendering time and the file sizes so at some point it will run out of memory and disk space. The boat at twice the size would for example take 37 minutes to render and the files would be 428 resp. 348 Megs so realistically it really can't grow much beyond that. An 80 meter image at 12 DPI is however HUGE.