JP2005135272A - Information processing device and method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the efficiency of drawing printing in a 3D CAD device. <P>SOLUTION: This information processing device is provided with a display means virtually displaying a plane on which attribute information for a three-dimensional model is arranged, in the same three-dimensional space as that of the three-dimensional model and an output means outputting print data for the three-dimensional model viewed in the normal line direction of the designated virtual plane and the attribute information when the plane displayed by the display means is directly designated by a designation means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus and method, and more particularly to an information processing apparatus and method for creating a 3D model (3D shape) using a three-dimensional CAD (hereinafter, 3D is referred to as 3D).

  Conventionally, a 3D model (hereinafter, simply referred to as a part) such as a part or unit constituting a product or product has been designed using 3D-CAD. In the design using the 3D-CAD, attribute information such as dimensions, dimensional tolerances, geometrical tolerances, notes, symbols, and the like is input to elements such as surfaces, ridges, or vertices of the 3D model of the designed part.

  The 3D model and attribute information are printed on a recording medium such as paper for writing a check result or examination result by a designer or various engineers. There are the following two methods for printing the 3D model of 3D-CAD and attribute information on a recording medium such as paper with a printer or the like.

  The first method is a method of transmitting a 3D-CAD 3D model and attribute information to a 2D-CAD system, and creating and printing a so-called printing drawing on the 2D-CAD system.

In the second method, in 3D-CAD, a viewport converted into image data as image information such as bitmap data for display on a display screen such as a CRT (a rectangular area is determined in the drawing area). Then, there is a method of printing the 3D model and attribute information in a place where the drawing area is used) by outputting it to a printer or the like.
JP 2002-324086 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-200904 JP 09-309665 A

  In the first method for printing the 3D model and attribute information described above, a so-called drawing must be created on the 2D-CAD for printing, which requires troublesome work. Specifically, in creating a drawing on 2D-CAD, it is necessary to set a view (a line-of-sight direction in which a 3D model is displayed), a layout of a projected view, and a scale. In addition, if necessary, an instruction for a cutting line in a sectional view, an instruction for a range and name of a partially enlarged view, or an instruction for an arrow view is required. These operations can be performed in a short time if the parts are simple in shape, but a large number of parts or parts with complex shapes must be printed out in large numbers such as many projected views, cross-sectional views, and partial enlarged views. When it is necessary, it takes a long time.

  In addition, the fact that the design act is not completed with 3D-CAD and the work with 2D-CAD is necessary, which forces the designer to learn more operation commands, and cannot be said to be a favorable operation environment. Furthermore, the fact that a 2D-CAD drawing must be created with the latest information at each point of time during various checks during the design action significantly reduces the efficiency.

  In the second method of printing the 3D model and attribute information, the orientation of the 3D model must be changed every time one piece of necessary drawing information is printed, which is inefficient.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention virtually displays a plane on which attribute information for a three-dimensional model is arranged in the same three-dimensional space as the three-dimensional model, and the display means The display device includes: an output unit that outputs the print data of the attribute information and the three-dimensional model viewed from the normal direction of the specified virtual plane by designating the displayed plane by the designation unit. An information processing apparatus is provided.

  According to the present invention, desired drawing information can be efficiently printed out.

  An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of a 3D-CAD apparatus which is an information processing apparatus according to the present embodiment. 2, the information processing apparatus includes a RAM 201 for developing CAD data and the operation processing program of the present embodiment, and an external storage device 202 such as a hard disk for storing the CAD data and the operation processing program of the present embodiment. . In addition, the information processing apparatus performs processing based on a program developed in the RAM 201, geometric calculation such as clipping and shading, and pixel of image data for geometric data of the geometric shape sent from the CPU 203. It has an image processing device 204 that executes rasterization processing such as data calculation and hidden surface processing, holds it in a storage device (display buffer) (not shown), and outputs image data to a display device 205 described later.

  In addition, the information processing apparatus includes a display device 205 that displays the 3D model shape, attribute information, and the like based on pixel data output from the image processing device 204 based on a command from the CPU 203. The display range of the shape and attribute information of the 3D model can be determined by using CAD functions such as zoom, pan, and rotation when displayed on the display device 205. Specifically, the display range may be determined by the viewpoint position with respect to the 3D model, the viewing direction (viewing axis direction) for viewing the 3D model, the viewing angle, the viewing range (viewing space) in the viewing direction, and the like. it can.

  The information processing apparatus has an output device 206 as a printer or a plotter. As a flow of printing processing, first, image data rasterized by the image processing device 204 is temporarily held in the RAM device 201, and image data of a predetermined format converted based on the processing of the CPU 203 is recorded on paper or the like. Print out to media. The print output is output as image data such as bitmap data using the image data rasterized by the image processing apparatus 204, and can be printed out in a short time with only simple processing.

  The input device 207 includes a mouse, a keyboard, and the like that give instructions to the CAD program. The external connection device is for connecting the information processing device and an external device and exchanging data between the device and the external device.

  FIG. 3 shows an example of a 3D model used for explanation in this embodiment. In this embodiment, parts having a relatively simple shape are used for the sake of simplicity of explanation, but the concept of the present invention can naturally be applied to parts having a complicated shape having several hundred to several thousand elements. is there. FIG. 4 shows an example in which dimensions and the like are represented in the so-called 2D drawing of the 3D model 1 of FIG. In FIG. 4, the 3D model 1 shows a front view, a plan view, a right side view, and a detailed view in which the drawing is doubled.

  Using the 3D model 1 shown in FIG. 3, the print output processing of the drawing in the present embodiment from the setting of attribute information will be described according to the flowchart shown in FIG.

  First, in step S101, attribute arrangement planes 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d for expressing attribute information such as dimensions and tolerances of the 3D model 1 are set for the 3D model 1 (FIG. 5). 5 correspond to the front view, the plan view, the right side view, and the detailed view of FIG. 4, respectively.

  Next, in step S102, necessary attribute information such as dimensions is input, each attribute information is associated with one of the attribute arrangement planes 2a to 2d, and arranged at a desired position on the attribute arrangement planes 2a to 2d. FIG. 6 shows an example in which a state in which attribute information is associated with the attribute arrangement plane 2a is displayed.

  Next, in step S103, scales that can be clearly seen without making a mistake in the shape and attribute information of the 3D model 1 are set in the attribute arrangement planes 2a to 2d. In this embodiment, a scale of 1: 1 is set for the attribute arrangement planes 2a, 2b, and 2C, and a scale of 2: 1 is set for the attribute arrangement plane 2d corresponding to the detailed view. Based on the set scale, the 3D model 1 and attribute information are displayed and printed out.

  In addition, the scale is calibrated in advance before setting the scale. The calibration is performed with the size of the display device 205 and the viewport for displaying the 3D space of the display device 205 being constant. For example, in an arbitrary display range in the 3D space, that is, an arbitrary degree of zoom, the CAD program displays a line segment whose length is known on the screen. The displayed length of the line segment differs from the actual length depending on the zoom level. Then, the displayed length of the line segment is measured with an actual scale (measurement), the measurement result is input, and the CAD program compares the measurement result with the known length and the measurement result to display the display range. Can be set to a display range corresponding to the scale.

  For example, when the measurement result of a line segment having a known length of 100 mm is 150 mm, the display is reduced to 2/3 times the height and width by zooming. In other words, by increasing the display range in the 3D space by 1.5 times vertically and horizontally, a length of 100 mm in the 3D space is displayed on the display screen as 100 mm, and a 1: 1 display becomes possible.

  In addition, from this state, by changing the display range according to various scales, display according to various scales is possible. Further, by storing the display range and the measurement result, it is possible to display according to the scale at an arbitrary timing. Furthermore, by setting the size of the character or the like of the attribute information to be inversely proportional to the scale, the attribute information can be displayed with the same size regardless of the scale when displaying according to the scale.

  For example, if the character size of the attribute information is 4 mm when the scale is 1: 1 and 0.8 mm when the scale is 5: 1, the character size of the attribute information is always displayed when displaying according to the scale. 4 mm. Thereby, an easy-to-see display can be obtained.

  7a to 7d show display states in which the attribute arrangement planes 2a to 2d are displayed facing each other. In FIG. 7d, the scale is 2: 1, and a fine shape (groove) is clearly displayed. In FIGS. 7a to 7d, the characters of the attribute information are shown in large size for the 3D model 1 for the sake of explanation.

  Next, in step S104, the arrangement range in the 3D space of the attribute information associated with the 3D model 1 is calculated for each attribute arrangement plane 2a to 2d. This arrangement range is calculated as a rectangular shape including all of the attribute information associated with the 3D model 1 in a display state in which the attribute arrangement planes 2a to 2d are displayed facing each other. For example, in FIG. 8a, the range surrounded by the line is the arrangement range 3a.

  Next, in step S105, a recording medium such as paper having a minimum size print range 4a (solid line) including the planar model indicated by the dotted line and the attribute information arrangement range 3a based on the set scale and the arrangement range 3a. Selected. For example, as shown in FIG. 8a, when the scale is 1: 1 and the arrangement range 3a is 215 × 410 mm, a recording medium of A3 size (297 × 420 mm) is selected. On the other hand, if 410 mm is 430 mm, it cannot fit in the A3 size, so the A2 size (420 × 594 mm) is selected. When the scale is 2: 1 in FIG. 8a, the arrangement range 3a in the 3D space is 215 × 410 mm, but the actual range is 430 × 820 mm, so the A1 size (594 × 841 mm) is selected. Is done.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 8b, in the attribute arrangement plane 2d corresponding to the detailed view of FIG. 4, the arrangement range 3d is a rectangle that includes a predetermined desired detailed area 5 (solid line) and attribute information associated therewith. It becomes a shape.

  In the present embodiment, an A3 size recording medium corresponding to the printing ranges 4a and 4b is selected in the attribute arrangement planes 2a and 2b, and an A4 size recording corresponding to the printing ranges 4c and 4d is selected in the attribute arrangement planes 2c and 2d. A medium is selected (FIGS. 7a-7d). As described above, the size of the recording medium and the printing range are set stepwise according to the arrangement ranges 3a to 3d.

  The center of the arrangement range 3a is set to coincide with the center of the printing range 4a of the selected recording medium (FIG. 8a). Of course, if necessary, the arrangement range may be moved and corrected relative to the print range (FIG. 8b).

  In step S106, the print range is displayed. That is, the print ranges 4a to 4d are displayed as, for example, rectangular lines on the attribute arrangement planes 2a to 2d (FIGS. 7a to 7d). At this time, assuming that the display screen is a display range corresponding to the scale, the displayed print ranges 4a to 4d have the same size as the actual print range. That is, for example, when an A3 size recording medium is overlapped on the display screen of the A3 size print range 4a or 4b, the print ranges of both coincide. The display of the print ranges 4a to 4d allows the operator to clearly grasp the printable range.

  In step S107, one of the attribute arrangement planes 2a to 2d to be printed out is selected and specified. When this selection is designated, the display screen may be displayed in any state. That is, the attribute arrangement plane is selected and specified regardless of the display range determined by the line-of-sight direction that sets the display direction in the 3D space, the normal direction of the selected attribute arrangement plane, and the visual field range. For example, it is possible to select an attribute arrangement planar drawing to be printed in a display state in a view direction (a direction in which a 3D model is viewed from a certain viewpoint) as shown in FIG. 5 or FIG.

  For example, the selection designation is performed by directly selecting a frame of the attribute arrangement plane (for example, the frame of the attribute arrangement plane 2a in FIG. 5 or FIG. 6) by moving the cursor with the mouse, or keying the name of the attribute arrangement plane. It is executed by inputting. At this time, the selection of a drawing to be printed can be made efficient by selecting a plurality of drawings. The selected attribute arrangement plane is recognized by the operator in a color different from that of the non-selected attribute arrangement plane.

  Next, in step S108, by output operation, the 3D model 1 viewed from the normal direction of the designated attribute arrangement plane (that is, the attribute arrangement plane is directly displayed) and attribute information associated with the attribute arrangement plane are displayed. Then, printing is performed using the printing range and the ruled paper size set in step S105. Specifically, the image information within the print range set in the attribute arrangement plane to be output is converted in a predetermined format by the image processing apparatus 204, temporarily stored in the RAM 201, and sent to the output apparatus 206. As a result, printing is performed with the set size of the recording medium. At this time, the image information of the 3D model 1 is printed on an A4 size recording medium corresponding to the print range 4a set based on the scale. That is, the print output result reflects the scale of the 3D model.

  Here, a process for indicating the display of the attribute arrangement plane that has been printed out on the display screen (FIG. 5) of the display device 205 is different from the display color of the other attribute arrangement plane. For example, a different display that can be identified by the operator is applied, such as changing the color of the frame of the corresponding attribute arrangement plane, or adding a mark that informs that it has been selected or printed out. Thereby, a plurality of attribute arrangement planes can be selected efficiently and definitely.

  Note that the entire print range may not be displayed on the display screen if the scale is set on the attribute arrangement plane due to the size limitation of the display device 205. In this case, after the print range is divided into two, four, nine, etc., the image information in each divided range is transferred to the output device 206 and output. FIG. 9 shows a state where the printing range 4a is divided into 6a to 6d as an example.

  The results printed out for each of the attribute arrangement planes 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d are shown in FIGS. In the print output result, the 3D model 1 is shaded as necessary. The print results may be printed out by color printing of different colors in order to make the distinction between the 3D model 1 and attribute information or a leader line of attribute information more clear. Further, the background in which no attribute information or the like exists with the 3D model 1 is white, that is, the state in which nothing is printed makes the 3D model 1 and the attribute information clearer. Further, when printing out each attribute arrangement plane, if the attribute data is output by including the names 7a to 7d of the individual attribute arrangement planes in the print data, it is efficient to determine which attribute arrangement plane the print output result is facing. I understand it well.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the drawing to be printed can be efficiently selected regardless of the display state of the display screen, and the attribute arrangement plane is displayed facing each attribute arrangement plane. The entire 3D model and attribute information can be printed out with a desired scale and a required size.

  In the above embodiment, the description of the resolution of the display device 205 and the output device 206 is omitted. However, the embodiment can be applied regardless of the resolution. For example, if the display device 205 has horizontal 1280 × vertical 1024 pixels and the pixel size is 0.25 × 0.25 mm, the display screen of the display device 205 has a horizontal size of 320 × vertical 256 mm and a resolution of about 100 dpi. A print range of A4 size (297 × 210 mm) is set on the display screen, and printing can be performed on an A4 size recording medium by the output device 206 having a resolution of 600 dpi, for example.

  However, the print output result at this time is an output equivalent to 100 dpi, and depending on the shape of the 3D model, the resolution may not be sufficient. In such a case, the print range is divided, the image information when the divided range is enlarged and displayed is combined, and the combined image information is printed with the size of the recording medium set by the output device 206. As a result, a higher-resolution print output can be obtained.

  For example, in the display device 205, the print range is divided into 16 × 4 × 4, each divided range is enlarged four times to display image information, and the 16 ranges are combined and printed out. A print output corresponding to about 400 dpi can be obtained. This can be similarly applied even when the entire print range is not displayed on the display screen when displaying with the scale set on the attribute arrangement plane. In addition, the number of divisions is not limited within the range of sufficient storage capacity prepared in the 3D-CAD device including the memory prepared in the output device 206, and a print output with sufficient resolution can be obtained as necessary. is there.

  In the above embodiment, printing is performed using image information for display on the scale set in the attribute arrangement plane. However, the print range and the size of the recording medium corresponding to the print range are set. Therefore, the present invention can also be applied to converting the image information in the print range into the size of the recording medium and printing it out at an arbitrary zoom level for displaying the entire print range.

  In the above-described embodiment, the image processing device 204 is included. However, the image processing function may be integrated with the CPU 203.

  In the above embodiment, the scale of the attribute arrangement plane or the print range is set after inputting the attribute information, but the present invention can be applied regardless of the order. For example, you may set the scale of an attribute arrangement plane during 3D model creation. At any timing, the operator can specify the print range. For example, the print range can be set by designating an arbitrary position on the attribute arrangement plane or a position relative to the 3D model and the size of the print range.

  In the above embodiment, the size of the printing range or the size of the corresponding recording medium may be displayed. In this case, for example, the size name or size is displayed numerically in the vicinity of one of the four corners of the rectangle indicating the print range, or is displayed in a rectangular frame, or the pointer is positioned near the rectangle line in the print range. The display method may be any method such as displaying the size temporarily.

  In the above embodiment, the print range is set based on the scale set on the attribute arrangement plane. However, the print range corresponding to the scale is prepared in advance, and the print range is arranged on the attribute arrangement plane. It is good.

  Further, the print range set as necessary may be reduced and printed out.

  Further, a specific color of the image information, for example, a color expressing a ridge line of the 3D model may be configured to perform so-called enhancement processing by the image processing device 204. The enhancement process is performed, for example, by changing pixels around the pixel corresponding to the corresponding color to the corresponding color and using it as image information. Thereby, for example, the ridgeline of the 3D model can be printed out thickly, and a printout result that is easier to see and has no mistakes can be obtained.

  In the above-described embodiment, image data such as bitmap data is output to the output device 206. However, a vector that is a raster line segment from the geometric data of the geometric shape sent from the CPU device 203 in the image processing device 204. May be generated and vector data may be output.

5 is a flowchart of print output processing according to the embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a block diagram of an information processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The figure which shows an example of the 3D model in embodiment of this invention. The figure represented with 2D drawing with respect to 3D model in embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the 3D model and attribute arrangement | positioning plane seen from a certain view in embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows 3D model in embodiment of this invention, an attribute arrangement | positioning plane, and attribute information. FIGS. 4A to 4D are diagrams showing a case where attribute placement planes according to the embodiment of the present invention are displayed facing each other. FIGS. 4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating an arrangement range in the embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. The figure explaining the division | segmentation of the printing range in embodiment of this invention. FIGS. 5A to 5D are diagrams showing print output results in the embodiment of the present invention. FIGS.

Explanation of symbols

201 RAM
202 External storage device 203 CPU
204 Image processing device 205 Display device 206 Output device 207 Input device

Claims (16)

Display means for virtually displaying a plane on which attribute information for the three-dimensional model is arranged on the same three-dimensional space as the three-dimensional model;
By designating the plane displayed by the display means by the designation means, the three-dimensional model viewed from the normal direction of the designated virtual plane, and output means for outputting print data of the attribute information An information processing apparatus comprising:   The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a normal direction of the plane is different from a line-of-sight direction of the display unit with respect to the three-dimensional model.   2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising print range setting means for setting a range of the print data with respect to the virtual plane.   4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the print range setting unit sets the range of the print data step by step.   4. The scale setting means according to claim 1, further comprising a scale setting means for setting a scale for displaying the three-dimensional model and the attribute information viewed from the normal direction of the virtual plane. An information processing apparatus characterized by that.   6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the print range setting unit sets a print range based on the scale.   6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the output unit outputs print data for each plane. A display step of virtually displaying a plane on which attribute information for the three-dimensional model is arranged on the same three-dimensional space as the three-dimensional model;
By specifying the plane displayed in the display step as a print target, the output step of outputting the three-dimensional model viewed from the normal direction of the specified virtual plane and the print data of the attribute information An information processing method comprising:   The information processing method according to claim 8, wherein a normal direction of the plane is different from a line-of-sight direction with respect to the three-dimensional model in the display step.   9. The information processing method according to claim 8, further comprising a print range setting step of setting a range of the print data for the virtual plane.   11. The information processing method according to claim 10, wherein the print range setting step sets the print data range step by step.   11. The scale setting step according to claim 8, further comprising a scale setting step for setting a scale for displaying the three-dimensional model and the attribute information viewed from a normal direction of the virtual plane. An information processing method characterized by the above.   13. The information processing method according to claim 12, wherein the print range setting step sets a print range based on the scale.   14. The information processing method according to claim 8, wherein the output step outputs print data for each plane.   15. A program for executing the information processing method according to claim 8.   A storage medium storing the program according to claim 15.

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