Do parametric modeling in SketchUp thanks to a Nodes Editor similar to Unreal Engine's Blueprints. Modify entities parameters at any time and see result instantly. Extract shapes, points and vectors from active model. Import schema from a file. Export schema to a file.
- Be sure to have SketchUp 2017 or newer.
- Download latest Parametric Modeling plugin from the SketchUcation PluginStore.
- Install plugin following this guide.
Now, you should have in SketchUp a "Parametric Modeling" entry in "Extensions" menu and a "Parametric Modeling" toolbar.
Nodes Editor is the place where you can design a parametric schema. A parametric schema is made of nodes and connections between nodes. A node is made of input sockets, input fields and output sockets.
To add a node: click on an icon in toolbar inside Nodes Editor window. Node is stuck to mouse. Move mouse at desired position for node. Click again to unstick node from mouse.
To connect two nodes: click on an output socket of first node then click on an input socket of second node. Only sockets of same type are connectable. Hint: hover a socket if you are not sure about its type.
To move a node: drag and drop node at desired position.
To move several nodes at once: hold CTRL key then click on each node. Nodes are selected. Hold again CTRL key then drag and drop nodes at desired position.
If you input a wrong data in a node field: node border becomes red.
To remove a node: right click on node then click on "Remove this node".
Right click in void to discover yourself other possible actions such as "Import schema from a file", "Freeze parametric entities", "Export schema to a file", etc.
This node type allows you to evaluate a math formula. Following elements are accepted in a math formula.
Constants: pi
Variables: a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l
Operators: +, -, *, /, %, <, <=, =, !=, >=, >
Functions: min, max, round, ceil, floor, deg, asinh, asin, sin, acosh, cos, atanh, atan, tan, exp, log2, log10, sqrt, cbrt, rand, if, case
Here are some correct math formulas:
floor(a)
(a + b) / rand(c, d)
if(a > b, c, d)
a * max(b, c, d, e)
case a when (b) then c when (d) then e else f end
Functions expecting an angle, such as sin or cos, work with radians. If you want to work with degrees instead, you can use deg function
to convert beforehand the degrees to radians. Following math formula will give you the cosinus of an angle of 36 degrees:
cos(deg(36))
This node type is used to select parametric entities matching (or not) a query. You can write a select query with following elements.
Numeric variables: a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l, nth, width, height, depth
Numeric operators: +, -, *, /, %, <, <=, =, !=, >=, >
Numeric functions: min, max, round, ceil, floor, deg, asinh, asin, sin, acosh, cos, atanh, atan, tan, exp, log2, log10, sqrt, cbrt, rand, if, case
Boolean variables: first, even, odd, last, solid, random
Boolean operators: and, or
Boolean functions: not
Alphanumeric variables: name, material, tag, layer
Alphanumeric operators: =, !=
Alphanumeric functions: concat
Here are some valid select queries:
random
not(first)
width > a
first or last
nth = if(a = b, c, d)
name = concat('Box ', a)
Parametric Modeling plugin is powered by Rete.js framework. Shapes module of this plugin is based on SketchUp Shapes plugin code. SolidOperations module of this plugin was coded by Julia Christina Eneroth. Toolbar icons of this plugin were made by Freepik, Smashicons, xnimrodx and Pixel perfect from Flaticon.
© 2021 Samuel Tallet