Features for money?

Post here if you have a FreeCAD-related job to offer to the FreeCAD community. This can include programming or modeling.
Forum rules
Be nice to others! Respect the FreeCAD code of conduct!
User avatar
dprojects
Posts: 721
Joined: Mon Mar 06, 2017 6:02 pm
Location: Poland
Contact:

Re: Features for money?

Post by dprojects »

ISwearImCool wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 11:46 pm I have checked it out, but it doesn't list any of its features and the examples are different in their kind than I'm typically doing
But I agree that woodworking has huge range, especially the raw wood, not furniture making from prefabricated panels. Panels can be created with single click. Also you can change Cube to Pad with single click. But you were talking about drawers too. So here is the drawers, and it is fully parametric with decoration and with bool cut operations:

It is available as example for free at: Fully parametric examples

Image

Good Luck, is up to you what you choose.

Thanks
Darek
github.com/dprojects

workbench for woodworking is available at: github.com/dprojects/Woodworking
User avatar
dprojects
Posts: 721
Joined: Mon Mar 06, 2017 6:02 pm
Location: Poland
Contact:

Re: Features for money?

Post by dprojects »

ISwearImCool wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 11:46 pm haven't found a faster workflow than boolean cuts
The bool cut is my favorite tool too. But it is complicated because it usually grab things outside the Body and leave the Body empty. The box should be rather cut with Pocket. And all the parts should be simplified so there would not be so much elements. Bool cut is good if you want to cut irregular shape and make it parametric, if you would like to cut the seat at the char with the leg.

Image

But also you could make construction line. Also you use Part Mirror what cannot be parametric. It is better to use Multitransform for that, because you can make it parametric.
ISwearImCool wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 11:46 pm the nesting problem and also the need for a multiplicity of items to cut a single on sometimes.
There is no nesting problems. You can use Fusion to make less cuts.

Thanks
Darek
github.com/dprojects

workbench for woodworking is available at: github.com/dprojects/Woodworking
keithsloan52
Veteran
Posts: 2756
Joined: Mon Feb 27, 2012 5:31 pm

Re: Features for money?

Post by keithsloan52 »

ISwearImCool wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 11:46 pm @chrisb
The box from your dropbox doesn't really seem to be that complicated. Perhaps it is sufficient to learn the existing tools better. What you describe - cutting multiple objects - could for example be made with a compound.
Yeah, the point of the box is that it is so simple and the tree is a mess. I have modelled more complex things and it always end up being extremely manual because the booleans create nests, which means parts are hard to keep track of. Shoot, I could do all the parts drawings on paper faster, but paper doesn't scale. Which is why I'm after this kind of thing. I could have made that box in real life faster than I did in freeCAD lol, but any more complex and a computer models it better. Do you get what I'm saying?

Maybe there is a better workflow that you could point me toward, but I have done a ton of watching tutorials, reading tutorials and googling and haven't found a faster workflow than boolean cuts. It's just that it has extremely limited scale because of the nesting problem and also the need for a multiplicity of items to cut a single on sometimes.

I view a computer as a tool. If I can pay to get a better tool, I will if I can afford it, which is the point of this post.

FreeCAD, despite not being designed for us has so much potential for woodworkers, so I would like to see if I can fund some development in that direction.
Cut Hierarchy
drawerBottom
panel1
panel2
Maybe you should be creating your main design features drawerBottom, panel1, panel2 (Maybe even in a separate Model) and where you want to perform Cuts, create Links for the features and use them in the Cuts, so what is buried in the Cut is a link to the original and you still have access to the original for other operations.
User avatar
dprojects
Posts: 721
Joined: Mon Mar 06, 2017 6:02 pm
Location: Poland
Contact:

Re: Features for money?

Post by dprojects »

ISwearImCool wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 11:46 pm FreeCAD, despite not being designed for us has so much potential for woodworkers, so I would like to see if I can fund some development in that direction.
FreeCAD is used by many people with many different interests. Even at woodworking, you have raw wood artists, furniture makers, cut board services, timber construction builders, and many many more. So it would be a little pointless to pack everything in one bag, and make the FreeCAD useless for many others.

But returning little bit to the main topic "Features for money". From my perspective only regular full time job is profitable. You need time to develop and reflect. Working under time pressure, with the help of manipulation, underestimating someone's self-esteem, junk contracts, not help development and inventions. Setting company to earn $20 for feature is wasting time.

It's better to do something like that for free for fun, but for that you you need to know someone and be nice to him, at least. Not trying to manipulate him.

Thanks
Darek
github.com/dprojects

workbench for woodworking is available at: github.com/dprojects/Woodworking
User avatar
dprojects
Posts: 721
Joined: Mon Mar 06, 2017 6:02 pm
Location: Poland
Contact:

Re: Features for money?

Post by dprojects »

keithsloan52 wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 8:26 am Maybe you should be creating your main design features drawerBottom, panel1, panel2 (Maybe even in a separate Model) and where you want to perform Cuts, create Links for the features and use them in the Cuts, so what is buried in the Cut is a link to the original and you still have access to the original for other operations.
I think to simplify the process he can make several parametric elements and use them as construction elements for more complicated structure. At woodworking there is saying "think twice, cut once". I think the same you can apply to the FreeCAD bool cut operation. You can use Arrays and Fusion and cut whole big structure once. Look at the picture below, this box is parametric with X joints, look at the left how simple and clean is the Tree structure:

Image

EDIT:

Other example. This furniture below is made from merged bookcase, drawer and front, all elements parametric. He can do the same. He can make several construction elements with joints and build any structure with that. It is the simplest and possible way at FreeCAD already. The most powerful features are LinkGroup and Link. If you change one drawer or add any element to the segment all other two Segments (1 and 2) will be updated automatically with new drawer or front, because they are just Links to the 1st segment.

Image

Thanks
Darek
github.com/dprojects

workbench for woodworking is available at: github.com/dprojects/Woodworking
ISwearImCool
Posts: 8
Joined: Tue Feb 01, 2022 2:23 am

Re: Features for money?

Post by ISwearImCool »

@chrisb Part Design is the main one I use, it's just that the arrays and mirrors only work if the parts are contiguous. I also find the part workbench bools easier to understand.

Maybe there is something I'm not getting.

@dprojects It is genuinely very cool that you made a workbench. Like you said, woodworking is broad and this means that different woodworkers have different needs. I work much less with panels than you do so our needs are different.

Unfortunately, the timber frame bench is not python 3 compatible and the other one is more about conventional framing it appears. I have spent a lot of time googling this.
Setting company to earn $20 for feature is wasting time.


It would not be $20. I assume it would take a few hours at the very least and developers are worth at the very least $50/hour. I get that you don't want to work for money on this, but I'm looking for someone who would–-or trade for carpentry work in the southern Alberta region! Anyone who codes need a deck or builtins or a piece of furniture?

@keithsloan52

I'll freely admit that I don't understand links very well. Is there like a document or video you recommend.
User avatar
dprojects
Posts: 721
Joined: Mon Mar 06, 2017 6:02 pm
Location: Poland
Contact:

Re: Features for money?

Post by dprojects »

ISwearImCool wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 2:44 pm I assume it would take a few hours at the very least and developers are worth at the very least $50/hour. I get that you don't want to work for money on this
Generally I am not into being paid for hours. Developing and inventing is hard to describe with hours. There is something call Scientific wild-ass guess (SWAG) that describe very well estimations in that matter. Some things may be long, some things might be very quick.

However, I agree with you that bool cut is not so handy as is could be. But I am still convinced you don't need "cut hierarchy". I think you may need better cut bool naming, automatic, and also multi bool cut, to speed up this process.

I am during coding drilling machine feature, that will be able to drill holes in series like dowels. Bu I looked into that. And I made simple multi bool cut with exact naming. This is total prototype and I even don't have good name for this feature, there are also not needed so much Cut names but it shows a little bit something you may want: Let me know what do you think about this approach: I think the same think you can do with joinery. If you cut boxes you get along panel joinery pockets.

Image

Thanks
Darek
github.com/dprojects

workbench for woodworking is available at: github.com/dprojects/Woodworking
ISwearImCool
Posts: 8
Joined: Tue Feb 01, 2022 2:23 am

Re: Features for money?

Post by ISwearImCool »

That is very slick looking. I wonder if there would be a way to automatically generate clones to do the cutting while preserving the panels as top level items, just so as to make the tree more manageable.
keithsloan52
Veteran
Posts: 2756
Joined: Mon Feb 27, 2012 5:31 pm

Re: Features for money?

Post by keithsloan52 »

ISwearImCool wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 2:44 pm
@keithsloan52

I'll freely admit that I don't understand links very well. Is there like a document or video you recommend.
Try https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1cifndxxkY
keithsloan52
Veteran
Posts: 2756
Joined: Mon Feb 27, 2012 5:31 pm

Re: Features for money?

Post by keithsloan52 »

ISwearImCool wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 2:44 pm
@keithsloan52

I'll freely admit that I don't understand links very well. Is there like a document or video you recommend.
Try this Macro, Select two objects as for a cut and then invoke the macro.
CutwithLinks.FCMacro
(1.05 KiB) Downloaded 48 times
Much prefer workbench functionality rather than macro's, If it helps maybe somebody could make it more robust and add it to a workbench icon rather than a macro.

If you want to stick to your original hierarchy cut, you could create a new macro, where the thing being selected is a Part within PartDesign.
The Selected Part will have a OutList which will be an objects list of its contents, so start coding.

Note: Only in the PartDesign workbench can you reorder the contents.
Post Reply