SketchUp for Design

Earlier this week, OpenAI released its new gpt-4o model. This model not only improves and updates its current AI models, but it also adds vision ability. As a result, a user can upload images and then the AI can identify things in the image based on a user prompt. There are some great examples of the new capability on OpenAI’s website.

Since I previously implemented the OpenAI connection with SketchUp using either plain Ruby code or a handy extension, I had to try out whether we can connect the two using these new capabilities, too…

We don’t always need to work in 3D. Space layout planning for interior design, event planning, facilities management, etc. is often easier and faster in 2D. As it turns out, we can do this quite effectively in SketchUp’s 3D modeling environment or on LayOut’s 2D sheets, without even creating a full 3D model.

In this tutorial video I describe various ways how you can print scaled, parallel-projection views from SketchUp for Web as well as SketchUp Pro/Desktop (where I will be using the LayOut software).

I cover all the relevant aspects and then show how you can use the PDF file format as an intermediate print file format. This video is an update to my older one on this topic. Since that video was posted, SketchUp for Web has been introduced and printing in SketchUp Pro/Desktop has changed. Hence the need for an update.

In this video I use the example of a set of mitered beams to cover how to trim solid (i.e. volumetric 3D) objects in SketchUp. As always, there is more than one way to do this. In addition to what is mentioned in the video, also check out the Eneroth Solid Tools and Eneroth Slicer […]

As I discuss in Chapter 6, you can create a mobile in SketchUp and design it in the software so that – when 3D printed or otherwise fabricated – this mobile hangs perfectly in the balance. This process works for all planar designs, independent of how many levels such a mobile may have. In this post, I’ll show you how to run the calculations for the mobile so that its equilibrium is assured.

This video provides an introduction to Ruby scripting with the Ruby Code Editor extension in SketchUp. Scripting in SketchUp is also a good “intro to coding” exercise because you not only learn a usable scripting language (Ruby), you can even use it to create 3D models that you can manufacture (e.g. 3D print) afterwards.