I have a question of how to create a grayscale map from my 3D models I have created in Blender. Here is the reason why… Our school has a CNC router that can take grayscale images and use them as a means of carving witht he router.
Example:
Most of the sites with these type of grayscale images are pay sites. I would like to be able to create these type files from my own models and save the hassle.
Does anyone know of a program or script that can be used in coordination with blender that would allow me to turn out images that are similar to use with my CNC?
I have the model… but to convert the model to the CNC machine requires a completely different program which is expensive. It converts the model to a toolpaths which I can them import and use…
HOWEVER, I can use a height map like the grayscale pug face above and do the same trick without need of converting etc. So that is why I am trying to accomplish it this way…
if i understand you correctly you just have to bake the displacement map. just add a plane at an appropriate distance from your model (which - i think - has to be uv unwrapped), select the plane first, then your model and make sure you check “selected to active” in the render panel and hit bake.
maybe you can use the
mist-pass
to create such an image. Would work with some
adjustment, but if you use some kind of
nearly flat image (like the bar-sign)
you have to adjust the limits for the mist
to only use this small height-difference of the bar-sign.
the sample uses the suzanne-monkey, but this is really
an object with big height differences - from nose to ears…
This is my Halo:ODST helmet… the reason I wanted to learn this process was so that I could take images and make z passes to use in CNC router mill like so:
The first is the output from Blender with my helmet… The second is the output from my CNC machine… Cut time was about 2 hours… I’ll post images of the final project a lil later this week. But it worked stellar!
Sorry for the late reply… to answer your question, This was a approach I was putting together for group that had a software called Photocarve. It uses flat vector based images to carve using a SNS router. So what we were doing was using the model in blender to create the image that we would later use in the router software…
this can become a great tut for people interested in making aa CNC model from blender
sorry but i’m still a little confuse with all the different approches here
i tought you needed a real 3D model to transfert to the CNC machine!
if you use the node set up you get an image in the render but this is not a real 3D model ohly a 2D picture!
now as i’v indicated you can make a real 3D model with greyscale or height map in blender
and this gives you a real 3D model
so how can you use the node rendered output which is basically a 2D picture to go to the CNC machine ?
i tough you needed a real 3D model to transfert to the CNC machine
which is what i think you ask in first post with the greyscale map which happen to be in blender what we call a heightmap!
do you ahve a copy of this file you use with node set up
that might help to understand
thanks and appreciate your comments
and i’m learning here
would this be the same process for printing in 3D may be?
by the way is this photocarve and a free soft?
and is this SNS or CNC machine and wha’t the difference here ?
The different approaches on my website show how to use Blender with ALL 3 of Vectric’s main softwares – Photocarve, Vcarve, and Cut3D. they just show different was to get results from the software using Blender as a starting point…
Vectric software package Vcarve (vector carve) and Photocarve are NOT designed to use 3D models… ONLY 2D vector art for carving. that is why I was using Blender with the Height maps with my models to get a 2D design. The rendered image is taken from Blender then imported into their software which interprets the depths by grey scale and carves…
If I was using Vectric’s top end product, 3dCut then I could use blendr 3D models easily… but we don’t have the money to afford that… so I make due with what we have Never tried 3D printing… but would be cool to see!
Is there an undated method to this. This thread is from 8 years ago. I am looking to do same thing as original post. Turn 3d model into grayscale from blender so my cnc program can turn that grayscale into a 2d model to be cut out from machine.
Never tried 3D printing… but would be cool to see!