Thursday, May 13, 2004
You, Your iPAQ and NURBS
Posted by Pat Logsdon in "OFF-TOPIC" @ 01:00 AM
I know what you're thinking - NURBS must be some kind of crab made out of foam rubber. Well, no harm, no foul - that's what I thought at first, too. First of all, let me allay your fears. NURBS isn't dangerous, and you don't need a cream to make it go away. It's an acronym for Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines. I sense blank stares from the non-CAD designers out there, so I'll let Geekzone explain.
"NURBS...are mathematical representations of 3-D geometry that can accurately describe any shape from a simple 2-D line, circle, arc, or curve to the most complex 3-D organic free-form surface or solid. Because of their flexibility and accuracy, NURBS models can be used in any process from illustration and animation to manufacturing.
What do the iPAQ h1900 series, the Allegro Field PC, the Creative Labs Nomad Jukebox, Spider Man the movie and the Nokia 5510 mobile phone have in common? The design tool. All these articles, and many more were created with the help of a design software, Rhino. This software can create, edit, analyze, and translate NURBS curves, surfaces, and solids in Windows. There are no limits on complexity, degree, or size. Rhino also supports polygon meshes."
Make sure you check out the Rhino site - there are quite a few pictures, including iPAQ shells and a really neat cradle that I'd like to have. It also made me want a Creamsicle, but maybe that's just me. :mrgreen:
