Does the form tool and surface modeling in Fusion 360 software make you a little uncomfortable? For longtime SolidWorks users, surface modeling is usually fine. The form tool, on the other hand, can cause some head scratching. The key to maximizing the form tools is building a level of prediction for what your actions will produce. It’s all about the how, why, and when you should use these tools. Adding in Surface (and Solid) skills sets makes a very powerful team set. Come and learn about the speaker’s process and combination of these different tool worlds.

This intermediate-to-advanced hands-on lab offers 3D AutoCAD software veterans as well as AutoCAD 2D users a chance to explore 3D solid and surface modeling techniques for creating compelling composite 3D solid and surfaced part models in AutoCAD 2014. Tools for creating 3D solids with surfaces will accelerate your design workflow. Learn new techniques that will supersede your old-school techniques and develop a new level of understanding for creating and editing 3D models. In this lab, we explore solid and surface extrudes, sweeps, lofts, and revolves. We also explore creating procedural, networked, blended, patched, and trimmed surfaces using surface slicing workflows. If you used AutoCAD 3D in the past, attend this class and get ready to be surprised!

Surface modeling is an efficient and accurate way to create existing 3D models, and you can use this existing geometry to add proposed geometry. This class will start with the importance of the way in which the original scan data must be processed in order for it to become a useable format. The attendees will then work through how to manipulate the point cloud in order to create 3D geometry of the existing structure. We will show attendees how to overcome problems that arise during surface modeling. We will also show how this geometry can then be used in other Autodesk, Inc., software, such as Inventor software. The class will introduce a unique way to create existing 3D geometry and show how one can use this in other Autodesk software.

Learn how to reduce time and improve the quality of surface models in Civil 3D software using geographic information system (GIS) data. The Autodesk and Esri partnership has spurred advances in surface modeling that fuel collaboration between civil engineers and GIS professionals. Newly developed tools simplify the processing of triangular irregular network (TIN) surfaces originating from Civil 3D and formation of complementary terrain data sets within ArcGIS Pro. Surface model data propagated into ArcGIS web feature layers then establishes both a system of record and an avenue for two-way synchronization extending into Civil 3D. In this class, we'll walk through key steps of surface modeling workflows and show how the new tools facilitate ground assessments and visualization in multiple environments. Civil engineers and GIS professionals will come away from this class better equipped to jointly participate in design workflows for existing and proposed ground.

This class is for Inventor software users who (just occasionally!) find themselves ready to create a complex model and don't know where to start. We will cover the basics concepts of surface and curvature continuity, then look at some examples of difficult topology and how to avoid it, and then we’ll take a deep dive into the toolset for surface modeling in Inventor software. Finally we will run through a complete step-by-step example of building a model from surfaces with Inventor software from concept to solid body. This class will benefit students who find themselves modeling challenging topology with Inventor software and who want to go from hack and whack . . . to planned and perfect!

This class is for Fusion 360 users who (just occasionally!) find themselves ready to create a complex model and don't know where to start. We'll cover the basics concepts of surface and curvature continuity, and look at some examples of difficult topology and how to avoid it. And then we'll take a deep dive into the toolset for surface modeling in Fusion 360. Finally, we'll run through a complete step-by-step example of building a model from surfaces with Fusion 360, from concept to solid body. This class will benefit students who find themselves modeling challenging topology with Fusion 360, and who want to go from "hack and whack" to planned and perfect.

This will be a live demonstration of Alias 2025 software—showcasing the latest features in Alias 2025 and providing a sneak preview of new technologies under development. See firsthand how Alias is still an evolving and powerful surface modeling package for designers.

In this session, we'll walk through an end-to-end cloud-centered workflow on using large point-cloud data for detailed design using ReCap Pro software and the Autodesk Construction Cloud platform. We will share simple tools to prepare surfaces, intelligently decimate large point-cloud data, publish to Autodesk Construction Cloud, and collaboratively extract design elements (like curbs, gutters, median, walls, ADA ramps, driveways, and drainage breaklines) and assets via browser and take them into detailed design technology like Civil 3D software to generate highly accurate surface models. Users can also publish the extracted features and assets to ArcGIS to use the information across the organization. This is a workflow the point cloud industry has been wanting for decades!

In this workshop, you’ll learn how to create a shoe from scratch in Fusion 360 software. Starting with a 3D scan created using ReCap Pro software as a template, the workshop will show you how to insert an STereoLithography (STL) or Mesh into Fusion 360, utilizing the Mesh Environment. To achieve the perfect design, the tutorial will elaborate on the optimum methods of inserts sketches or guides to reference when modeling. Starting from a 2D sketch, the workshop will let users create and modify T-spline bodies to produce the basic form of a shoe design around the 3D scan. Finally, in the Patch workspace, you’ll begin to learn how to add key design features using surface modeling. You’ll learn how to add key features to the design, such as the midsole, and convert surfaces into BREP bodies ready for 3D printing. We’ll provide all the tools you’ll need to begin creating footwear designs in Fusion 360.

Almost every original equipment manufacturer and design studio is trying to shorten the design process. And not just shorten the process-they want more and more innovative designs. More variants, shorter process. How could we make this happen? The answer is never far. It's time to let the designers get into the real 3D design world. Alias software is not just a tool for surface modeling. It is far beyond that: it is supposed to be the designers' playground. You can sketch 2D, model 3D, sketch 3D, and communicate with digital sculptors on one model, one platform. This class will explain how.

This class applies an Inventor® software user's perspective to sketching and modeling techniques in Fusion 360 software as a service (SaaS). We also present some use cases from that perspective. Have you ever wanted to learn a new program but the instructor didn't understand your background or know where you were coming from? Then this is the class for you! We cover how to sketch and model in the Fusion 360 model environment and explore how it differs from Inventor by using history-free modeling with push/pull concepts. We explore the sculpt environment and talk about how the understanding of topology differs from modeling in Inventor. Finally, we show how T-spline modeling can solve the problem of complex surface modeling in Inventor.

When a large-scale infrastructure project gets started, you'll need to use tools in the Architecture, Engineering & Construction Collection to work with your data efficiently. The information in this session will reduce the time it takes to process huge files, from processing LiDAR-based surface models in ReCap software to implementing Autodesk Construction Cloud workflows. Speed up open times, improve collaboration, and learn best practices you can use immediately. We'll dive into topics that include: determining when to break up files using Data Shortcuts, managing .mms files for large surface models, using Autodesk Docs software for data management, and adjusting AutoCAD settings for optimal performance.

Too often, excellent technical modeling work is obscured by poor presentation to management. Taught by Class-A surfacing guru Barry Kimball, this class discusses methods to more effectively present surface models to the design and engineering communities.

This case study demonstrates the benefit of implementing a small 2D domain within an existing 1D InfoWorks ICM model to optimize the size and location of a planned storage facility and reduce overland flooding in a dense suburban neighborhood in the City of Toronto. Recent flooding imagery captured in 2018 and 2020 showed significant flooding in Woodborough Park and visible damage to facilities. The project team planned and designed drainage and storage mitigations by building a small-scale 2D surface model of the park and surrounding catchment area (39 hectares) within the larger 1D InfoWorks ICM model being used to plan and design the Fairbank Storm Trunk Sewer System Project. This approach enabled the designers to optimize the size of the storage facility and realize a 35% reduction in construction costs. We’ll present the approach used to develop the model, and there will be a discussion on what considerations should be given before adopting this approach to ensure the maximum benefit to the project.

AutoCAD software's associative framework is a general-purpose programming framework. It enables easy development of AutoCAD software applications that represent associative relations. Drawings and models created by such applications are intelligent, and they maintain relations between entities and automatically update when entities or parameters change. This class will explain fundamental concepts of the framework and show how it has been used to build several AutoCAD software features, such as 2D Constraints, Associative Array, Model Documentation, and Surface Modeling. The class will then provide a step-by-step programming example of how to implement new associative functionality in AutoCAD software. After completing the class you will be capable of taking advantage of the framework when developing your own AutoCAD software applications.

This session will be an introduction to the world of Alias product design, concept modeling, and detailed surface modeling. We’ll look at how automation can speed up the design process—allowing faster and more informed design making, as well creating shareable and reusable IP across the design pipeline. Experience-based decision making is becoming more important, and we’ll look at trends and offer insights into how this can help industrial and product designers gather customers insights. Disparate tools need cross-team and cross-function collaboration, making the designers of tomorrow even more efficient. Making decisions faster (with confidence) across teams and geographies is key. We believe that the future of design will start with the customer, and how we ensure that connection works (as well as enterprise-wide integration) in a seamless manner.

Capitalize on your knowledge of 2D to create 3D models entirely in AutoCAD software. In this class you will learn how to take your ideas from concept to completion by creating and editing solid objects; creating smooth, free-form shapes using meshing tools; and using the power of surface modeling. We will look at the differences between history-based and non-history-based solids, and we'll see how models can automatically update when you modify underlying curves or parameters. You will also learn how to control selection and editing with sub-object selection filters, and you will glean valuable tips and tricks for navigating and visualizing your AutoCAD software 3D models. If you thought 3D in AutoCAD software was just too hard, think again.

In the spring of 2024, the legendary Jeff Smith connected Associate Professor Bush from Auburn University with an OEM partner to explore what it would look like to team a group of graduate industrial design students with a seasoned digital vehicle designer. Through this interaction emerged a five-week section in Alias AutoStudio software and a five-week section in VRED software, using the Auburn instructor's background in surface modeling with the OEM partner's background in SubD and mesh modeling. This proposal compares the CAD instruction methodology that has been implemented at Auburn University for the past three years with the experimental, collaborative approach with the OEM. We will highlight the changes in student outcomes, as well as the implications of knowing SubD/hybrid modeling moving into the design profession.

Modeling in 3D can be easy. Learn how to use new and enhanced AutoCAD® software functionality to apply your 2D AutoCAD experience to the world of 3D modeling. In this class, I will show you how to take your ideas from concept to completion by creating and editing solid objects; creating smooth free-form shapes using meshing tools; and tapping into the power of surface modeling. Take advantage of new context-sensitive PressPull and surface curve extraction capabilities. I will also explain the differences between history- and non-history-based solids and show how you can use add-ins like Autodesk® Inventor® Fusion software to directly manipulate 3D AutoCAD models. If you thought 3D in AutoCAD was just too hard, think again.

In this session, we'll walk through a complete workflow starting inside ReCap Pro software, and publishing a point cloud to the Autodesk Construction Cloud platform. We'll extract linear features and bring them into Civil 3D software so we can create a simplified but highly accurate surface model. From there, we will publish the linear features as as-built information to ArcGIS Online for everyone to use. This is a workflow you've been asking for!