Spacemouse does not rotate view in sketch

[matthewZYM62]

Since the most recent update, when I open a sketch (either creating a new sketch or editing an existing one) my SpaceMouse device will pan and zoom the view, but will not rotate it.

Once I rotate the view using my regular mouse and the viewcube, the SpaceMouse then functions normally and I can pan, zoom and rotate within the sketch.

This is a change in behaviour. The SpaceMouse device used to be able to rotate the view normally immediately upon opening a sketch. I do not believe I have changed any settings or preferences. My view is set to "Free Orbit" and the display setting is "Perspective with Ortho Faces" (i.e. it changes to Orthographic when in a sketch.

I am running Fusion 360 2.0.12157 on Windows 10 Pro 21H1. I am using the "new" 3DxWare driver 10.8.3 with a  SpaceNavigator device.

[Phil.E · Accepted solution]

Does this post (see message 14 for the latest developments) explain it for you? Let me know if you need anything else.

[matthewZYM62]

Yes, that explains it, thanks.

Like others in that thread, I am astonished that this is deliberate behaviour and that anyone could want it. I have a regular mouse in my left hand which is able to effect panning and zooming in 2D; if I reach for the SpaceMouse with my right it is for the explicit purpose of moving in 3D.

I guess I will use one of the workarounds until this is reverted, or at least made optional.

As an aside, I was also astonished to learn that changing this requires 3DConnexion to change their driver. I cannot imagine how broken their architecture must be that a change to what appears to be an application-level behaviour requires a change to the hardware driver.

[Phil.E]

3Dconnexion is our development partner on this project. They want us to consume the latest-greatest commands and workflows they are creating for users of their products. We want Fusion 360 customers to enjoy the benefits of this. As a result, we work together to implement it in Fusion, and they in return make changes to allow their features to work in Fusion. This is rather common in the software/hardware industry, especially between decades long partnerships like this one.

The sketch lock behavior is a 3Dconnexion feature. They asked if our users would like it. We tested it along with the other features included in the new spacemouse drivers integration, as a preview feature for months, and did not receive any of this negative feedback.

And as you read in the posts on that thread, a couple users have mentioned they expect/appreciate the behavior. One user's bug is another user's preference it seems.

That said, we have acted as quickly as possible to allow you to avoid the behavior you don't like. That is possible today if you follow the instructions on that other post. At the same time 3Dconnexion is providing a method, using their own Fusion 360-specific drivers that are built into their control panel, to allow users to pick the spacemouse behavior they wish to see. If you look at the other features in 3Dconnexion you'll see that they have a purpose built architecture for supported applications like Fusion 360, not broken.

I hope you find the settings you wish to enjoy. Let me know if I can help any further.

[matthewZYM62]

Thank you for your detailed response.

I guess my surprise is that the driver includes more than just a hardware driver. I am coming to the understanding that 3Dconnexion have integrated a whole bunch of what I would think of application-level functionality in it. That seems ... wrong? I mean, we don't see that with regular mouse drivers, and in the end the SpaceMouse is just a pointing device with more degrees of freedom. I suppose it is good for lock-in - it is hard for another vendor to produce competing hardware if half the functionality is in the "driver".

[Phil.E]

Thanks for the feedback. I think this is a great discussion for the 3Dconnexion forum. They may have an easier time describing their business model than I can offer.

[Phil.E]

3dconnexion has released their latest driver for windows with full support for Sketch Lock on/off. The version is now 10.8.5

Steps:

1. After installing the latest drivers, open the 3dconnexion settings, Advanced, Other:

This will enable supported devices to take advantage of full Fusion 360 command integration/customization, as well has have control to turn on/off the Sketch Lock feature.

[eddy_emckPYU]

In my workflow this is a VERY ANOYING "feature"!!! I hate these things popping up after an update.

Eddy 

[Phil.E]

Hi,

Thanks for posting. Did something change with the latest release of Fusion?