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1042 Chapter 9: Sur face Modeling
edge, the cursor changes to a + cursor. Click and
move the mouse and a dashed line appears from
the vertex with an arrow cursor at the other end
of the line. Position the cursor over another edge
and when the + cursor appears again, click the
mouse. The first edge is moved to the position of
the second, and the two are welded.
You can weld only edges that have one polygon
attached; that is, edges on a b order. Also, you
cannot perform a weld operation that would result
in illegal geometry (e.g., an edge shared by more
than two polygons). For example, you cannot weld
opposite edges on the border of a box that has a
side removed.
BridgeConnects border edges on an object
w ith a polygon “bridge. Bridge connects only
border edges; that is, edges that have a polygon on
only one side. This tool is particularly useful when
creating edge loops or profiles.
TherearetwowaystouseBridgeinDirect
Manipulation mode (that is, without opening the
BridgeEdgessettingsdialog):
Select two or more border edges on t he object,
and then click Bridge. This immediately creates
thebridgebetweenthepairofselectedborders
using the current Bridge settings, and then
deactivates the Bridge button.
If no qualifying selection exists (that is, two or
more selected border edges), clicking Br idge
activatesthebuttonandplacesyouinBridge
mode. First click a border edge and then move
the mouse; a rubber-band line connects the
mouse cursor to the clicked e dge. Click a
second edge on a different border to bridge the
two. This creates the bridge immediately using
the cu rrent Bridge settings; the Bridge button
remains active for connecting more edges.
To exit Bridge mode, right-click the active
viewport or click the Bridge button.
Note: Bridge always creates a straight-line
connect ion between edges. To make the bridge
connection follow a contour , apply modeling
toolsasappropriate
after
creating the bridge. Fo r
example, bridge two edges, and then use
Bend
(page 1–541)
.
B ridge S ettings—Opens the
Bridge Edges
dialog (page 1–1070)
, w hich lets you connect pairs
of borders via interact ive m anipulation.
Co nnectCreates new edges between pairs of
selected edges using the current Connect Edges
dialog settings. Connect is particularly useful for
creating or refining edge loops.
Note: You can connect only edges on the same
polygon. Also, Connect will not let the new edges
cross. For example, if you select all four edges of a
four-sided polygon and then click Connect, only
neighboring edges are connected, resulting in a
diamond pattern.
Connecting two or more edges using the Settings dialog
creates equally spaced edges. The number of edges is set in
the dialog. When you c lick the Connec t button, the current
dialog settings are applied to the selection.
Connect S ettings Opens the
Connect Edges
dialog (page 1–1072)
,whichletsyoupreview
the Connect results, specify the number of edge
segments created by the operation, and set spacing
and placement for the new edges.
Create S ha pe From S election—After selecting one
or more edges, click this button to create a spline
shape from the selected edges. A Create Shape
dialog appears, letting you name the shape and set
it to Smooth or Linear. The new shape’s pivot is
placed at the center of the poly object.