{"id":30104,"date":"2017-04-04T11:21:25","date_gmt":"2017-04-04T15:21:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shapeways.com\/blog\/?p=30104"},"modified":"2017-05-22T17:58:32","modified_gmt":"2017-05-22T21:58:32","slug":"tutorial-tuesday-11-topological-mesh-modeling-topmod","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shapeways.com\/blog\/tutorial-tuesday-11-topological-mesh-modeling-topmod","title":{"rendered":"Tutorial Tuesday 11: Topological Mesh Modeling with TopMod"},"content":{"rendered":"

Do you want to make beautiful 3D-printable sculptures, jewelry, and lamps? It’s easier than you might think \u2014 if you know how to use TopMod. TopMod is a really unique tool to have in your 3D printing toolbox. It specializes in remeshing, wireframing, stellating, and modifying\u00a0object meshes, and by combining those powerful functions you can quickly create stunning 3D-printable works of art. And, if you love beautiful mathematics, we’ll have some of that for you in this post as well!<\/p>\n

For example, you could start with\u00a0a dodecahedron cell, add stellations to\u00a0the faces, and then remesh to smooth everything out, like this:<\/p>\n

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Get started by downloading TopMod<\/a> for free, and then follow along with the examples and tutorials below.<\/p>\n

Topology<\/h3>\n

In mathematics, topology<\/a> is the study of shapes or objects that are preserved under certain deformations. In other words, to a topologist, two objects are considered the same if one can be continously morphed into the other without breaking, tearing, or gluing. So a topologist can’t tell the difference (and doesn’t want<\/em> to tell the difference) between a cube and a ball, or even between a donut and a coffee mug<\/a>. To see this principle in action, check out Henry Segerman’s\u00a0Topology joke<\/a>\u00a0video on YouTube, or even buy a 3D-printed version of the donut-to-coffee-mug sequence at his Shapeways store<\/a>.<\/p>\n