Autodesk’s decision to ship Backburner 2008 with Maya2010 has leveraged  the utilisation of resources across the network for executing batch rendering task from a single node point. Backburner jobs can be easily created from within Maya 2010 using the Create Backburner Job command under the Render menuset as shown in the  figure below.

This will bring up a window similar to the one shown below.

Here you can specify the job name, frame range, number of tasks, Renderer and also specify the IP address of the machine in which the backburner Manager is running.

But the real power of backburner is revealed when you get under the hood and explore the power of the command line based utiliy cmdjob.exe. This is a handy tool for adding jobs to backburner manager for  literally any version of maya and not even just maya even Softimage, Aftereffects, and Nuke projects with a change in the passed arguments.The cmdjob utility can be accessed from within the backburner installation directory.

The basic syntax for the cmdjob is as follows CMDJOB <Options> executable to run <executable parameters>

By specifying the executable for the specific version of maya and passing the arguments for the maya batch we can trigger renders across multiple machines in the network and still monitor the progress using the backburner monitor.For example:

cmdjob.exe -jobName myRenderJob -jobNameAdjust -manager localhost -priority 50 -numTasks noOfTasks -taskName 1 -leaveInQueue “C:\Program Files (x86)\Autodesk\Maya2009\bin\Render.exe” -r mr -s 0 -e 196 -of tiff -proj projectPath -rd renderDirectory fileName.ma

will add a job named myRenderJob to manager running in the same machine(localhost) using Maya2009 batch using renderer mentalray(mr) for frame range o to 196 with file format of tiff to renderDirectory location for file named fileName.ma.It will distribute the job to noOfTasks number of machines in which backburner server is running.

You can get a list of all the valid parameters accepted by cmbjob from the list below

We often do not create any Pipe Networks to represent the existing utility mains in a project.  There is usually limited information on the correct depth of the utilities, even with a utility spot.  The best we can hope for is to draw the main in the plan view based on paint markings, and draw the crossings in our profile manually based on an approximate depth after a phone call to the respective agency.

On a recent design, not knowing the depth of the existing utility mains was a problem.  We have Force Main and Water Main running along and under a dirt road that will be paved.  Everyone is concerned that vibratory packing will cause a problem.  So they potholed the lines.

Now I have 3D point locations along 2 mains.  A pipe network would be best, so that it is easy to bring into my profile, and can be managed by styles. This presents a nuisance since the locations are on top of the pipes, and there are a lot of locations; that’s a lot of pipe edits.

Here is what I came up with.  Again, not rocket science, but I hope that it will help someone else. 

• Style the points so that it is easy to discern them from others. 
• Make the style respond to the elevations. 
• Create a 3D polyline from point to point
• move the polyline down the HALF (see below) the respective inner diameter plus one wall thickness.  I used he move command.
• Make sure the Pipe style prepared as desired, and the correct pipe size is in the Parts List.  Don’t forget the wall thickness
• Create Pipe Network from Object
• Add the network to your profile

Half the diameter

The reason for this is that the Create Pipe Network from Object will use the elevation of the 3D polyline for the CENTERLINE of the pipe.  If you move the polyline down a full diameter, then the pipe will be created too low.  I mean to tell you that is a lot of edits. 

If you did do this wrong, you can fix the pipe network easily.  Just expand the pipe network in the prospector, select the individual pipes (I highlight and pick ‘Select’ from the right click menu), and use the AutoCAD Move Command again.  Move it up HALF the pipe diameter.  Double check your values.

The wall thickness is somewhat negligible for structures like ductile iron, but I like consistency, so I add it.  If you are simulating RCP, then that thickness will be substantial.

That’s it.  Again, not rocket science, but the 3D poly really speeds things up.

Did you notice the wrong pipe linetype in the plan view?  10 seconds later it’s FM instead.  Another benefit of pipe networks in this case – 1 style can direct both Plan view and Profile view independently.

Revit Structure Tutorial Videos

These Revit Structure Tutorial videos are the ideal way for users to quickly advance their working knowledge of this powerful application. Taught by a leading Revit Structure expert, practical working files also accompany this self-paced training series.

Autodesk Revit Structure 2010 Tutorial Video

This Autodesk Revit Structure 2010 Tutorial Video Training CD offers a immersive introduction to the newest version of the Building Information Modeling (BIM) powerhouse. Combining a proven media-rich training format with expert level instruction, this innovative series is geared toward beginners as well those who have worked with other CAD and BIM software in the past.
This Revit Tutorial video course is narrated by Temesgen Hussein, a longtime Autodesk instructor with industry experience as a consultant. By placing an actual structural model at the center of the training, Hussein immerses students in a realistic experience of what the software can do, showing off useful features and tools one step at a time. The lessons are structured to mirror a traditional structural engineering workflow, covering the import of the architectural floorplan, the addition of basic elements such beams, trusses and slabs; following up with more detailed model elements, and then proceeding to detailed analysis and the implementation of schedules, views and sheets and the creation of helpful annotations and tags.
While the series is not exhaustive in scope, it covers all of the important points one needs to know to get up to speed with Revit Structure 2010. When considering the price and ease of use, it is without a doubt the best introduction to the latest version of Revit Structure that one can find.

New to Revit Structure 2010: Interface Upgrade

As a leader in the BIM software market segment, Revit Structure continues to innovate. The core software incorporates a hybrid physical and analytical model that allows you to design and analyze effectively while taking a number of key attributes into consideration.
In the latest edition, key tools and features have been given a more prominent place in the workspace, making the program more consistent with the ”ribbon” style of other Autodesk offerings and streamlining many common tasks. By bringing the functions forward, Autodesk aims to let professionals spend less time digging through menus with more to focus directly on design.
A new Application Menu lets users create, open project files and switch between tasks with ease. Beneath the menu, the much-touted ribbon interface provides a number of common tasks organized into separate tabs based on workflow. The tab is subdivided into specific panels arranged in sequential order of typical use.
Contextual tabs now appear in the ribbon when you’re working with specific elements in the workspace. Just as with the permanent tabs, the arrangement of tasks is workflow-based, which Autodesk has found increases the productivity of users by giving them a natural reference for transitioning from one stage of work to the next.
Of course, the developers at Autodesk know that not everyone works in the same way. Drag and drop customization allows you to quickly re-arrange menus in the ribbon to fit their your preference and individual feel.
To see the new interface in action, the Revit Structure 2010 Tutorial Video is a good place to start. In addition to showing you the basic commands, the course goes deep within the software to teach you professional techniques.

Gradings are wonderful things.  Problematic as they may be, they have been quite useful, even back in LDD.  The new Gradings have a host of settings and features that carry with them new terminology that is sometimes confusing.

In light of studying preparing for the Grading Lab I will assist with, I thought it would be nice to explain some of the terms that are often hard for new users to get a grasp of.  It’s not that they are inappropriate, but they all start to sound the same to a new guy.

Gradings, Grading criteria, Grading Criteria Sets, Grading Groups…..  See what I mean?  Today we’ll take a brief tour of these terms.

Terms

 Grading – This is a 3D object that all the fuss is about. 

This It is built on a frame of feature lines (rough interpretation) and autonomously projects its own set of faces, based on instructions that it was assigned.  This instruction set known as a Grading Criteria, is stored within the Grading object, allowing the object to follow it’s instruction no matter what changes to its environment occur.  Objects created by Gradings can be as simple as a single Grading building pad, or complex grade scenarios, such as a littoral shelf detention pond, that might contain numerous Gradings.

 Grading Style – The style applied to the Grading that controls its appearance.

This can be found in the Grading section of the Toolspace Settings Tab.

Grading Criteria – The list of instructions that the Grading object must follow.

These are stored in a Grading Criteria Set, in the Settings Tab of the Toolspace. Each Grading contains 1 grading criteria, that tells the Grading how to act.  Should it project to a surface, or over a specified distance at a given slope?  The list of possibilities goes on and on.  If the root Feature line is adjusted or the target surface changed, the Grading continues to follow the instructions in its Grading criteria, and dynamically re-grades itself.

Grading Criteria Set – this is simply a collection of grading criteria.

An organization tool, that becomes a filter when creating a Grading.

Gradng Group – A Grading Group is the collection of Gradings that mold together into a single FG graded object. 

I think this doesn’t get explained thoroughly.  We usually just figure it out.  One of the nice things (there are a few) is that all the objects in that group automatically work together to create the final product.  That littoral shelf detention pond might be the name and focus of the Grading Group.  The end product of the group could be a volume surface, that is the product of all the Gradings that went into that particular grading group, and is automatically updated as new Gradings are created.  It helps the system understand and collect instructions into a logical outcome.

Making the Grade Lab at AU

Check out the Lab “Making the Grade” taught by Ron Couillard.  It will be at CV118-6L  Tuesday 03:00pm – 04:30pm PST  MB Ballroom K (Lab)

CV204-1L Wednesday 08:00am – 09:30am PST MB Ballroom H (Lab)
It looks like it will be a pretty good class.

He’ll go through the settings and explore a few scenarios along the way.

Please check “Autodesk Licensing” in SECTION menu on the right side of this page.

Cyberport Animation Camp is one of the largest digital media development events in this year. Sponsored by Autodesk, Inc., a world leader in 2D and 3D design, engineering and entertainment software, and co-organized by Cyberport IncuTrain Centre and supported by Mayan Hong Kong Maya User Group, leaders of the animation world including Imagi Studio, Lucasfilm Animation Singapore, Rhythm & Hues Studio and Rising Sun Pictures are invited to be the key speakers of the Camp. The camp will gather all industry practitioners focusing on animation production soft skills upgrade in areas of character design, story design, and features animation. It is aiming to bring the local animation production skills and quality to the next level.

This is one of the coolest commercials ever made. Yours truly, and two others from Team Legend, Thiago Levy and Eden Obando, put this together, called Bubbaloo Salmon. Our inspiration was crazy japanese commercials and culture(obviously). Tasty enough for you?

クールなコマーシャルをこれまでに作ったのこの1。敬具、チームレジェンド、チアゴレビーとエデンオバンドーから2人、一緒にBubbalooサーモンと呼ばれる配置。私たちのインスピレーション日本語コマーシャルや文化に夢中だった（当然）。十分屋のおいしい？

These’s are the shots I worked on:

I modeled, textured, and animated this panda:

I animated the gum breaking out of the package:

I animated and textured the ninja and sword slashing the gum:

In Autodesk Robot Structural Analysis 2010 the stress analysis for a cross section is available. The section is taken from a structural model or is defined by the user following the procedure presented in an existing arcticle.

In the first step the geometry of the structure is defined. Therefore the steel cross section has the following dimensions: hi=900mm (height of the web), ti=8mm ((thickness of the web), b=280mm (within of the flange), t=16mm (thickness of the flange). The next two images will present the section definition and also the bar proprieties window. For a similar spreadsheet calculations, the characteristic properties display the same values.

I considered a 12,00m element fixed at its ends. As a result the diagrams for the My and the Fz are as bellow. In this example we consider only the starting point, where x=0,00m, My=-741,60kNm and Fz=370,80kN.

The stress analysis window is presented bellow. As you can see, the load case and the bar number can be selected in case we use a previously defined structure. The Sigma, Tau and other values are available in the right corner. The Sigma formula used is SigmaMy=My/Wy (and SigmaMz=Mz/Wz) and for the Tau, the expression is TauMax=(T*Sy)/(Iy*ti). These two are also used in the specialized literature. The results provided by Robot Structural Analysis is validated by manual verification.

The complex Smisses are also provided for the section. These are always positive because of the square root. (Smisses=SQRT((SigmaMy+SigmaMz)^2+3*Tau^2)).

And here I end a short presentation of cross section stress analysis using Robot Structural Analysis. Have a nice day!

P.S. Autodesk User Group International (AUGI) Robot Structural Analysis Forum. Use it wisely!

I was labeling this frame detail and remembered how frustrating it was when i couldn’t get disconnected Balloons to reconnect with an arrowhead.

The trick is the selection priority.  By default, edges are selected during the placement of the Balloons. However when the Balloons are disconnected due to placement needs, the Selection priority takes over for the reconnection.  If the method is set to Part Priority, then the arrowhead cannot reconnect to an edge, but the dot takes over to connect to the surface of the part.

So if this happens, simply change the selection priority to edges again.

Now, the edges become the priority, and the arrowhead edge configuration will reappear, and attach as desired.