Creating custom edges on a form in sculpt mode.
@Anonymous - can you add some more info here about what you want to do. When you talk about "custom edges" are you talking about edges in the TSpline body, in Sculpt mode, or in the resulting BRep when you exit Sculpt mode?
For the first, which I think is this question: "I’d like to create a groove that follows a pre-sketched arc (on my 2D sketch) along part of the cylinder’s length.", there is Match Edge - you can select a set of TSpline edges and snap to, say, a 2D sketch. That feels like it should address this requirement.
If you are asking how you can preserve edges that are in your TSpline body so that they appear in the resulting BRep, then there is a way to do that also. Instead of exiting Sculpt using the Exit button, you use the Convert command (yeah, that is way not discoverable). Using the "Keep Edges" selection, when the type is set to "TSpline to BRep", any edges you select will be preserved in the resulting BRep:
Jeff Strater
Engineering Director
Thank you for your time and reply.
Below is a 2D sketch of a rectangle with 2 arcs.
Below is a cylinder I created in the Form mode that matches the length/width/diameter of the 2D sketch. I want to preserve the outer edges of the 2D sketch (length/width/diameter) as per the image directly below.
The image below also contains a groove/depression along part of the length of the cylinder. I'd like to re-create this type of groove but not along the automatically generated (perpendicular) edges. I'd like to create two edges (one for each arc) that follows each respective arc (like a projection in a 2D sketch). Then, I'd like to depress the "arc-like" edges on the cylinder just as below to create a smooth, gradual, groove for each arc.
I have tried using the match edge suggestion (see image below). This skews the actual shape of the cylinder.
Basically, I'd like to "sweep" two smooth grooves (one for each arc) into the cylinder while maintaining the cylinder's original shape.
I thought about using a "Cut" feature of some sort but those usually create very abrupt edges and they wouldn't create a nice, gradually, depression as per the image above.
Thank you!
I would suggest that you create a hand sketch with paper and a pencil of your desired final geometry.
Or maybe you already have a picture of something similar.
That will provide us with a much better foundation to suggest better workflows.
@Anonymous - the basic idea is most likely going to involve the techniques mentioned by @dikshant. - Insert Edge or Insert Point (which is not a completely accurate name, because you can use it to insert edges as well). This is really the only way to add topology to a TSpline. But, those techniques can be a challenge as well, since they tend to distort the form when inserted. As @TrippyLighting requested, if you can supply a hand-drawn or photo of what you have in mind, others will be happy to offer choices about how to proceed.
Jeff Strater
Engineering Director