The Ellipsoid primitive provides a simple method for creating ellipses or "pills". There are many parameters available to create variations on the default ellipse. By dragging in the 3D Viewport with the tool active, you can create the initial plane for the primitive. Once the initial plane is created, clicking away from one of the handles snaps that handle to the mouse position so that you can add dimension to the shape, or simply change the current values. If you wish to drag out a 3D ellipse, hold the Ctrl key while dragging in the 3D view.
The following Ellipsoid options are available for editing the primitive created:
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Ellipsoid |
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Position X, Y, Z |
These three values establish the 3D location for the center of the primitive. |
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Size X, Y, Z |
These three values establish the dimensions of the ellipsoid. The default values are 50cm, 50cm, 50cm. |
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Sides |
The sides are the latitudinal edges of the ellipsoid running from top to bottom. By default, the primitive ellipsoid uses 24 sides. By increasing this value, you can increase the number of "cuts" in the shape. This is useful if you plan to deform the ellipsoid, as these segments act as hinges during deformation operations. This also increases the smoothness of the shape by adding extra facets. |
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Segments |
The segments are the longitudinal edges of the ellipsoid running from right to left. By default, the primitive uses 12 segments. By increasing this value, you can increase the number of "cuts" in the primitive. This is useful if you plan to deform the shape, as these segments act as hinges during deformation operations. It also increases the smoothness of the shape by adding extra facets. |
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Polygon Type |
You can use this option to determine the type of polygons created: • Face - creates standard, unsmoothed polygon faces. • Subdivs - creates Subdivision Surface smoothed polygons. • Catmull-Clark - creates Pixar Catmull-Clark smoothed polygons. |
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Bulge Top |
Increasing this value changes the shape from an elongated sphere to a rounded, capped cylinder. |
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Side |
Increasing this value pushes the edges to the corners of the shape, converting it into a flat-sided ellipse. |
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Axis |
This X, Y, Z choice allows you to quickly change the orientation of the primitive. |
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Make UVs |
When this button is active, a UV map is automatically generated for the geometry created with the tool. This is a very useful option if you plan to UV map the model you are creating from the primitive, as it provides a baseline UV map that you can massage later in the modeling process. In many cases this can reduce the amount of work required to map the model. |
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Min XYZ/Max XYZ |
You can also define the shape based on specific X, Y, and Z bounding box locations in 3D space, which can be specified here. This makes it easy to place an ellipsoid on the ground plane, for instance, by making the Min Y value 0 and the Max Y value 1m. |
TIP: The Ellipsoid primitive supports symmetrical creation. When Symmetry is activated, creating the primitive shape creates an identical version across the specified axis.