Other Product FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions about ThreeDify Solutions
ThreeDify BspSolid FAQs
What version of Visual Studio ThreeDify BspSolid supports?ThreeDify BspSolid is available as a binary library or DLL for Visual C++ 6, 2003, 2005 and 2008.
Do you provide COM or VB callable automation interfaces for ThreeDify BspSolid?Not at this time. But we can do it as a part of a consulting service or if there are sizable market demands.
Does ThreeDify BspSolid handle curved objects? No. ThreeDify BspSolid expects 3D meshes as input and output a 3D mesh or a BSP Tree. Curved objects must be polygonized first before using ThreeDify BspSolid.
Does ThreeDify BspSolid support any file formats as input and/or output?ThreeDify BspSolid reads and writes STL and DXF files. By definition, a STL file can represent one 3D mesh. In case of DXF, ThreeDify BspSolid treats all 3D faces in a DXF file as part of one solid mesh.
What is the best way to avoid floating point precision issue between successive Boolean operations?You can maintain the result of a Boolean operation as a BSP tree instead of converting to 3D mesh. 3D mesh extracted from a BSP tree can be used for display purpose only.
Does ThreeDify BspSolid offer source code licensing?Source code licensing is available. Please email us for a quote.
Does ThreeDify BspSolid support 2D Boolean operations on polygons?Yes, it does.
As a developer, I am looking for a 3D Boolean component to be used with my own software. Both ThreeDify Designer and ThreeDify BspSolid support Boolean operations on 3D meshes, which one should I use?ThreeDify Designer provides Boolean operations at end-user level. It also exposes Boolean operations as a COM automation API. If your software is written in VB, the only way to get Boolean operation support in our product is through ThreeDify Designer. Please note that you will also get most of the ThreeDify Designer GUI in your program. If your software is written in C/C++ and you do not want to embed ThreeDify Designer GUI in your software, ThreeDify BspSolid would be your choice. We are currently evaluating the possibility of providing GUI-less automation compatible COM interface in ThreeDify BspSolid.
ThreeDify OctSolid FAQs
What kind of objects is best modeled with ThreeDify OctSolid?3d objects with variable attributes in different parts, such as orebodies. These types of objects are usually modeled with rectangular block or voxel models with each block or voxel having its own attributes, i.e., ore grade, rock type and mass properties.
What is the maximum octree universe ThreeDify OctSolid supports?The largest octree universe supported by both 32-bit and 64-bit ThreeDify OctSolid libraries is 2^19 in X, 2^19 in Y and 2^19 in Z-directions respectively. However, total number of blocks in the 32-bit lib is limited to 2^32 whereas in 64-bit version of the library, it is 2^19 x 2^19 x 2^19. This is more than sufficient to model any real-life deposits.
How do I render my large octree model? They are huge.You need to extract border faces of your octree model and rendering then as collection of polygons. ThreeDify OctSolid provides LO_ComputeBorderVoxels API for this this purpose.
I view linear octree as a compressed block (voxel) model. How much saving do I really get by using ThreeDify OctSolid to encode my block or voxel model?It depends. On one extreme, the saving is close to 100% if your model consists of the entire octree universe of 2^19 x 2^19 x 2^19 blocks. In which case, one Gargantini code would suffice to represent the whole model instead of 2^19 x 2^19 x 2^19 integers. On the other extreme, if your model all consists of disjoint voxels (voxels that do not touch each other), then the saving is 0. In real life scenarios, the savings are typically over 90%.
What version of Visual Studio ThreeDify BspSolid supports?ThreeDify OctSolid is available as a binary library (LIB or DLL) for Visual C++ 6, 2003, 2005 and 2008.
ThreeDify FlowPit FAQs
What is the difference between the optimizing algorithm (Network Flow) used in ThreeDify FlowPit and Lerchs-Grossman's 3D pit optimization algorithm?Speed, speed, and speed. The theoretical running time of the Network Flow algorithm is much better than that of Lerchs-Grossman and furthermore the maximum flow algorithm that is the heart of the Network Flow algorithm keeps improving over the time whenever a new or improved maximum flow algorithm is published.
How fast is ThreeDify FlowPit compared to Whittle's Lerchs-Grossman implementation? We do not know as we do not have access to the Whittle's implementation. But you are welcome to post or send us your findings.
Can I embed ThreeDify FlowPit as part of my own mining software?Yes, like most of our other software components, ThreeDify FlowPit is designed to be automation compatible COM server. It is also available as a C++ binary library. Source code license can also be negotiated.
Does ThreeDify FlowPit provide GUI to display the output?No. Currently ThreeDify FlowPit outputs to an ASCII file only. If there is enough demand, we may create a ThreeDify FlowPit import plug-in for ThreeDify Designer.
