3D Modeling Applications

Three dimensional (3D) computer graphics are widely used and they are almost too common to see anywhere, let it be movies, products designs, advertisements, etc. Although they are commonly seen, that doesn’t mean they are easily created. In order to interactively control a 3D object, it must be created in a 3D authoring tool which usually cost a lot to a non-professional user.

A 3D model is usually originated on the computer by engineer using some kind of 3d modeling tools. Creating 3D models is not easy and the software alone can cost a fortune Therefore, we thought it might be interesting to check out the availability of open source 3D modeling tools out there. Crawling from sites to sites, reading through end users comments and feedback, we bring you 25 Free 3D Modelling Applications You Should Not Miss. Full list after jump.

1. Blender

   A free and open source 3D modeling and animation application which can be used for modeling, UV unwrapping, texturing, rigging, water simulations, skinning, animating, rendering, particle and other simulations, non-linear editing, compositing, and creating interactive 3D applications.

2. K-3D

   K-3D is free-as-in-freedom 3D modeling and animation software. It features a plugin-oriented procedural engine for all of its content, making K-3D a very versatile and powerful package.
   K-3D excels at polygonal modeling, and includes basic tools for NURBS, patches, curves and animation.

3. Art of Illusion

   Art of Illusion is a free, open source 3D modelling and rendering studio. Some of the highlights include subdivision surface based modelling tools, skeleton based animation, and a graphical language for designing procedural textures and materials.

4. SOFTIMAGE|XSI Mod Tool

   A free 3D modeling and animation software for aspiring game developers and modders. The Mod Tool is a free version of XSI for non commercial game creation. It is made for everyone needing a powerful 3D application to make and mod games. The Mod Tool plugs into all the major game engines and development frameworks for next-generation games, casual games, mods for existing titles and even Flash-based 3D games.

5. Zmodeler

   ZModeler (or Zanoza Modeler) is a 3D modeling application developed by Oleg Melashenko. It is aimed at modelers who model for computer games. ZModeler is capable of complex modeling, even though it does not support important modeling functions such as extruding, or beveling.

6. TopMod3d

   TopMod3d is a free, open source, portable, platform independent topological mesh modeling system that allows users to create high genus 2-manifold meshes. It can also create solid models that can be prototyped using various rapid prototyping technology.

7. Google SketchUp 6

   Google SketchUp is software that you can use to create, share and present 3D models. Whether you want to design a new deck for your house, build models for Google Earth, or teach geometry to your fifth-graders, you can use SketchUp to see your ideas in 3D. And when you’re done, you can export an image, make a movie or print out a view of what you made.

8. AutoQ3D Community – 3D Editor

   AutoQ3D Community is an easy, light and fast 3D model editor tool that uses the full power of your PC´s graphics hardware, allowing you to rapidly prototype your 3D designs. Its interface is intuitive and easy to use and provided at no charge. It is released under the terms of the GNU General Public License so it will be free to use, modify  and distribute within any educational, professional or commercial purposes.

9. Anim8or

   Anim8or is a 3D modeling and character animation program which allows users to create and modify 3D models with built-in primitives such as spheres, cylinders, platonic solids, etc.; mesh-edit and subdivision; splines, extrusion, lathing, modifiers, bevel and warps,

10. Seamless3d

    Seamless3d is free open source 3d modelling software which designed for the artist who is realistic about the time it takes to learn any tool that’s going to offer creative freedom.

11. BRL-CAD

    BRL-CAD is a powerful cross-platform constructive solid geometry solid modeling system that includes an interactive geometry editor, ray-tracing for rendering & geometric analyses, network distributed framebuffer support, image & signal-processing tools.

12. 3DPlus

    With 3DPlus you can create outstanding 3D designs in just a few minutes – with no need for any complicated VRML or other programming. 3DPlus is the amazing 3D design software that enables you to create stunning 3D graphics for your home, school or business – no experience required!

13. 3D Canvas

    3D Canvas is a real-time 3D modeling and animation tool that incorporates an intuitive drag-and-drop approach to 3D modeling. Complex models can be constructed from simple 3D primitives, or created using 3D Canvas’ Object Building Tools. Modeling tools are provided to deform, sculpt, and paint 3D objects.

14. eDrawings

    eDrawings is a freeware utility which will give the user the power to view, create and share 3D models and 2D drawings. eDrawings offers unique capabilities like point-and-click animations that make it easy for anyone with a PC to interpret and understand 2D and 3D design data.

15. Blink 3D

    Blink 3D is an authoring tool for creating 3D environments. The 3D environments are immersive, just like today’s modern games and can be viewed using the a Blink 3D Viewer on the Web or locally.

16. Minos

    MINOS extends the capabilities of your existing 2D-or 3D-wireframe-based systems, so you can take advantage of all the benefits solid modeling offers right away. MINOS makes it easy to design 3D parts and assemblies. The design methodology is based on defining simple geometric elements including lines, curves, and circles, and then linking them together to form contours.

17. freeCAD

    freeCAD is a basic 3D CAD with advanced Motion Simulation capabilities. It is suitable for anyone interested in learning 3D CAD and Motion Simulation for free before using more sophisticated packages. Its motion simulation capabilities are comparable to the best and can provide accurate answers to engineers and scientists in diverse fields.

18. Bishop3D

    Bishop3D is an interactive modeler and animation tool for the popular freeware raytracer POV-Ray™, a world-class renderer for creating three-dimensional photo-realistic images. Bishop3D allows you to model the scenes interactively and it will automatically generate the correspondent POV-Ray SDL script. It offers native keyframe animation support, POV-Ray SDL import and a powerful texture editor.

19. K3DSurf

    K3DSurf is a program to visualize and manipulate Mathematical models in three, four, five and six dimensions. K3DSurf supports Parametric equations and Isosurfaces. K3DSurf can be used by every one interested in 3D Mathematical drawing functions and don’t require any special competences by users.

20. DesignWorkshop Lite

    DesignWorkshop is a three-dimensional modeling program for architectural design and related endeavors. Its unique interface makes it more profoundly "Mac-like" than any prior modeling software. This interface allows it to support actual design in three dimensions, as opposed to just recording design ideas already worked out with other media.

21. GDesign 2.0

    GDesign 2.0 is a 2D/3D free generative art application for Windows. With GDesign you can interactively build, test, and edit complex models. You can create, edit, build and preview huge 2D and 3D objects with extended LSystems and Cellular Automata tools.

22. Sweet Home 3D

    Sweet Home 3D is a free interior design application that helps you place your furniture
    on a house 2D plan, with a 3D preview. Sweet Home 3D helps people to design their interior quickly. The user may: draw the walls of his rooms upon the image of an existing plan, change the color or the texture of the walls, import additional 3D models created by himself or downloaded from different Web sites, change the size, view the changes in the plan simultaneously in the 3D view, either from an aerial view point, or from a virtual visitor view point, print the home plan and the 3D view.

23. trueSpace

    trueSpace7.6 is a fully-featured 3D authoring package that will let you model, texture, light, animate and render 3D content. As well as traditional images and movies, you can also make 3D content for online shared spaces, and for Virtual Earth.

24. Alibre Design Xpress

    Alibre Design Xpress is a rich and capable 3D solid modeler for creating mechanical parts, assemblies and 2D drawings – and is free. Alibre Design Xpress equips the person needing basic 3D design capabilities. Alibre Design Xpress has a rich set of integrated tutorials that you can use to learn the product quickly.

25. 3DVIA Shape

    3DVia Shape is a free online 3D modeling application that eases you to create, publish and share ideas in 3D. There are 3DVIA archive of prototypes and modeling software you can choose to create three-dimensional. Each model can be viewed at any angle, spun around and zoomed-in on.

Open source multibody simulation and animation

by Jason Moore — last modified May 03, 2010 04:35 PM

Luke and I have talked at length over the years about the fact that we have no decent and somewhat painless way to animate multi-body systems. We write equations of motion for systems and integrate them, but all we ever get to see are 2D plots of the states (or various combinations of them).

Our original flow for simulation goes something like this:

1. Develop dynamic models conceptually (we typically use Kane's method, but sometimes Newton-Euler or Lagrange)
2. Set the models up in Autolev and symbolically derives the equations of motion using Kane's method and spits out code for integration in Fortran, Matlab or C
3. Integrate the equations of motion and generate time histories of states and various combinations of states using Matlab, C or Fortran
4. Make 2D plots of the states. We've mostly used Matlab for this.
5. Make 2D or 3D animations with Matlab

This all works ok except that the two critical pieces of software have become more and more of a pain to work with. Autolev is good at what it does but the fact that it is such a black box, the documentation and support is bad or non-existent, there is no community, it hasn't been updated in over 5 years (although this is just came out), and it costs a ton makes it less and less appealing to work with. Matlab is definitely better and is by far the best for control system design, but the animation is poor and it is quite slow for integration and you have to keep up on the licensing fees.

Autolev

Computes the equations of motion symbolically for complex multi-body dynamical systems using Kane's method. It is closed source, costly and there is only one developer. It uses GNUPlot for 2D plotting, Animake for 3D animation and Matlab/C/Fortan for simulation. The newest version is something called MotionGenesis Kane 5.0 and seems to be Autolev 5 with integration libraries built in.

Matlab

Matlab is a general purpose matrix laboratory that has many useful functions for engineers. It has its own scripting language. The controls tools are excellent. There are some dynamics toolboxes that are powerful, but I haven't used them. The 2D plotting is good, the animation isn't so good. Plenty of robust integration routines.

Luke has been working on a solution to our software dreams. It is written in Python, is open source and aspires to be able to complete steps 1 through 5, but still has some way to go before it is a solid alternative to Autolev.

PyDy

(Python Dynamics) Derives equations of motion symbolically using SymPy for multi-body systems using Kane's method. Makes use of C integration routines using Python wrappers. Uses VisualPython for animations. He's also been working on animations written in C using OpenGL directly and the integration with the GNU scientific library.

There are other options in dynamics simulation too and I've had little experience with them. To start, here are a couple of lists other folks have put together: http://www.cs.rpi.edu/~trink/sim_packages.html and http://real.uwaterloo.ca/~mbody/#Software (this deserves a wikipedia page...).

I'll start with some open source options:

MBDyn

At a Multi-body conference this past summer in Warsaw, I saw a presentation on a pretty cool combination of Blender and MBDyn (both open source applications!) to produce beautiful and rich animations of simulation results and even being used as a flight simulator for a conceptual tilt rotor aircraft. 

A monolithic dynamics package.

Doug Baldwin is working on the Blender scripts for MBDyn

http://www.vimeo.com/baldwin

http://sourceforge.net/projects/blenderandmbdyn/

http://www.baldwintechnology.com/

I found this description of multi-body code in a presentation on the MBDyn site and though it was a nice way to group the types of solvers:

• Monolithic:
  • user prepares specific model using built-in library elements
  • general-purpose solver swallows model and spits results
• Library:user writes specific solver using library elements
  • usually needs programming skills; the solver must be compiled
  • specific solver solves the problem and spits results
• Symbolic manipulators:user writes equations
  • symbolic manipulation engine solves equations and spits results
• Modelica (and Modelica-like):user prepares model using a modeling language and libs
  • general-purpose interpreter generates specific solver
  • specific solver solves the problem and spits results

Here is a start at making a comparison chart of dynamic software.

Free dynamics software:

Name	Language	GUI	Method	2D/3D	Symbolic Manipulation	Collision	OS	2D Plotting	3D Viz	Closed Loop Systems	Non-holonomic
MBDyn					ginac?				EasyAnim, Blended MBDyn,
DynaMechs	C++
Mbs3d	Matlab/C++		Double Step Maggi's formulation	3D					OpenSceneGraph	yes
Open Dynamics Engine	C++
3D_MEC
EasyDyn	C++
RoboTran	Matlab
OpenModelica
PyDy	Python		Kane's method	3D	SymPy		Multi	Matplotlib
OMD	C++/Python		Kane's method	3D		Yes	Windows	Matplotlib	Vpython	no
OMD2	Python		?	3D
Bullet Physics Library
EOM	Octave
Simtk
lib3d_mec_GiNaC	C++	Yes	?	3D	Ginac		Multi	Yes	Yes

 

Proprietary

Name	Col 2	Col 3	Col 4	3D Viz
Spacar
Working Model
Autolev				Animake
MotionGenesis Kane 5.0				Animake
Adams

 

Simulation

Name	Language	Description
OpenOpt and FuncDesigner	Python	Has ode solvers + automatic differentiation for rapid, accurate jacobian calculations
SciPy	Python	odeint and ode
GNU Scientific Libraries	C & C++	There is a python interface, PyGSL
PyDx	Python	automatic differentiation
PyDSTool

Visualization

http://homepages.laas.fr/matthieu/gdhe/

http://www.opendx.org/

http://pypi.python.org/pypi/arboris/0.1.0pre7

 

http://www.vtk.org