CAD Solutions for Fabric Design Professionals

MP ANEL N EWS

Form-finding and patterning software for AutoCAD

February 2007

MPanel User Profiles Now on Website

We have recently added a new page to our website highlighting projects that some of our customers have

designed. To view this page (and see credits for pictures below) click here.

If you are an MPanel user and would like your company information and products included on our web-

site, please do contact us at support@mpanel.com

MPanel v12 Favorites

MPanel v12 has been well received by our customers. Here are some of the favorites:

Delete Old Object

“Bless your cotton socks for that ‘delete old object’ button on the toolbar”. That is a direct quote from one

of our users. Funny how sometimes the smallest thing makes a big difference in the ease of use of a pro-

gram.

Draw 3DPoly from XYZ coordinates

Job coordinates can be obtained from GPS survey equipment, can be stored in a spreadsheet, and then

MPanel can add them into the drawing. Since 3Dpolys define the fixed or system points, this gets the site

dimensions into your drawing in a quick and documented manner.

Specify Number of Panels

This lets you split a mesh into a specified number of panels, with the seams following the mesh lines. This

can give the most natural looking seaming on a job.

Seam Allowance… Guidelines

Seam allowance can now add guidelines to align the panel to during assembly, to allow for panels that lap

over, lap under, have pockets, etc.

New MPanel Tutorials Now on Website

The Tutorial Drawings section on the MPanel website is

added to as issues arise, often out of support work done

for customers. New drawings include;

A tutorial on using constant tension links with

meshes to make cable supported structures

A better method of modeling double cone tents with

floating centers.

New drawings on how to build up a cone tent based

Using Links

on an outline frame, with different mesh MSurf on

individual meshes

A drawing on inflated structures.

These tutorials are presented as AutoCAD drawings that

you can manipulate yourself while learning the proce-

dure. To access these tutorials, go to our website at

www.meliar.com.

MPanel Development

MPanel Support Team

MPanel is a design tool that has been developed

And don’t forget...our Support Team is here to

using the input of design and production team

help you! From the smallest question by email

professionals. Our users drive our development

to web conferencing on the internet, we are

department, as we try to implement design

here to make your experience using MPanel the

techniques that are suggested by real MPanel

best it can be. For assistance with the new fea-

users, in real design environments.

tures of MPanel v12 or help with any design

problems, please use the contact information at

So remember, if you are one of our MPanel

the bottom of this email. With Support Team

customers, please do let us know of any fea-

members in the UK, the USA, and AUS, we

tures you would find useful. If possible, we will

cover your support issues whatever time zone

include these in our development strategy.

you are in.

MPanel Maintenance Release

If you are an MPanel customer with a current Support Contract, you will have automatically received the

latest maintenance release of MPanel. If you haven’t received this latest update or if your Support Con-

tract has expired, please contact us for assistance.

US and Americas contact:

Australia contact:

UK, Europe and Asia contact:

Timothy Akes

Alan Stewart

Andrew Askwith

CAD Effects, LLC

Structureflex

Meliar Design

10805 Sunset Office Drive, Ste 300

280 Bay Road

Lower Cwm Barns

St. Louis, Missouri 63127 USA

Cheltenham, 3192 Victoria, AU

Llanafan Fawr, Builth Wells,

(314) 631-6300 voice

(03)9581 6150 voice

Powys, Wales, UK LD2 3SG

(314) 754-9388 fax

(03) 9581 6177 fax

+44 (0)1597 860291

takes@cadeffects.com

alan@structureflex.com.au

andrew@meliar.com

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