Rhino: Work on Chess Boards, Chess Pieces and Pull Toys

On Thursday and Friday of last week I kind of threw chess pieces and pull toys at you and didn't give you much time to work on them.  Today, tomorrow and Wednesday I would like you to work on them.

I would also like you to feature them on a table of some sort with a floor and walls.  Remember that a large block makes the floor, another large block makes a wall, and another makes another wall.  The you can add a block as a table (or actually make a table) and shine some spotlights on it.

Add your checker/chess board to the table and adjust the lights if necessary.

Some specifics:

• Chess Pieces:  Complete a full chess set (Pawn, Rook, Knight, Bishop, Queen and King)

 Pull Toys: 

• Trace an object (animal, vehicle, etc.) and extrude it and cap it.
• Create a block for the object to sit on
• Add axles and wheels (I use cylinders)
• I also use Filletedge on these to round them off
• Draw a curve that will become the string or rope
• Select the curve and type "Pipe"
• Set the width of the first end (i.e. .25")
• Set the width of the other end (i.e. .25")
• Press ENTER
• Add textures and bump maps

Rhino: Create a Few Chess Pieces

The plan for today is for you to create a few chess pieces.  Basically you use one of the curve tools to draw a profile of the piece (just like we did with the vase/goblet/bowl) and then "Revolve" the piece.  Instructions for the "Revolve" project are still on the board, but here are the basics:

• Draw a Curve Shape Profile
• Type Revolve
• Select the Curve
• Set the Beginning Angle to "0" (Press Enter)
• Set the Revolve for "360" (Press Enter)

If you aren't familiar with the shape of chess pieces, here's an example:

You can see that most of the shapes are done by revolving a profile and then using Boolean Difference to cut out a few shapes here and there.  The biggest difficulty that I can see is the Knight (horse).

Here is my creation for a King and a Pawn. You can see my profile drawing and where I set the Axis (in red).  Notice that my profile for the Queen is shown, but I added a Sphere to the top to make it look like a pawn.

There are many styles, sizes, and materials for chess sets so don't feel like you're locked into a specific design.  Here are a few unusual examples:

Note: You don't have to create an entire chess set.  You can create a few chess pieces to sit on your chess board.

Rhino: Create a Chess or Checker Board

Today we will be creating a checker/chess board using a series of squares of alternating light/dark wood.  We will also be creating a border with a filleted edge.

In the first step, I turned on "snap" and created two rows of 8 blocks.  Then I changed the textures and alternated between light and dark.

In part 2, I copied the two rows and pasted them 4 times to create a basic checkerboard.

In part 3 I added a block that extended beyond the edges of the squares and lowered it just slightly so the squares stuck out of the surface.

In the final step, I filleted (rounded) the edges of the block (see above).

You can add texture, gloss, color, etc. and even lighting, background, etc.

Below are various styles of checkerboards including some that have been made into tables.  Note the different colors, textures, materials, etc.  Checkerboards can be made in stone, metal, wood, fabric, etc.