Contents



Learning Objectives

  • Learn to use the ‘center’ parameter to modify the placement of shapes.
  • Understand how to use ‘translate’ to move shapes within the modeling space.
  • Understand spatial orientation in OpenSCAD’s 3D space.

Centering and Translating Shapes

In OpenSCAD, the ‘center’ parameter is used to control whether the origin of the shape is at its center or at its bottom corner. This plays a vital role in the placement of your 3D model.

cube([20, 10, 10],center=true);
cylinder(h=20,r=5,center=true);

The ‘translate’ function moves the object from its original location to a new location in the 3D space. Here’s an example:

translate([-10, 20, 0]) cube([20, 10, 10]);
translate([-10, 20, 0]) sphere(r=10);



Understanding 3D Space and Movement

OpenSCAD’s 3D space is divided into eight octants, each defined by the combination of the signs of the X, Y, and Z coordinates. Here’s how you can move shapes into different octants:

//Moving a centered cube to the first octant
translate([5,5,5])
cube(10,center=true);

//Moving a centered cylinder to the third octant
translate([-5,-5,5])
cylinder(h=10,d=10,center=true);

//Moving a centered cone to the seventh octant
translate([-5,-5,-5])
cylinder(h=10,d1=10,d2=0,center=true);




Practice: Creating Complex Shapes

Now that you understand the basics of moving shapes in OpenSCAD’s 3D space, let’s create a couple of complex shapes:

  1. Mickey Mouse Shape:
cylinder(h=1, r= 3, center=true);
translate([-2,2,0])
cylinder(h=1, r= 2, center=true);
translate([2,2,0])
cylinder(h=1, r= 2, center=true);
  1. Yo-Yo Shape:
translate([0,0,-2])
cylinder(h=20, r1 = 20, r2 = 0, center=true);
translate([0,0,2])
cylinder(h=20, r1= 0, r2 = 20, center=true);




Review

In this lesson, you learned:

  • How to use the ‘center’ parameter to control the placement of shapes in OpenSCAD.
  • How to use the ‘translate’ function to move objects within the 3D space.
  • The concept of 3D space orientation and movement across different octants.
  • How to create complex shapes by manipulating and combining basic shapes.




Resources