Presenting Your Models

There are several things you can do after you create a model. For example:

• You can add dimensions, section cut effects, and other entities to your model for use in documenting the actual physical item.
• You can present the model within SketchUp as an animation.
• You can print your model
• You can export all or portions (such as a section slice) of the model for post processing in another application

Section Cut Effects

SketchUp allows you to create section cut effects which are the result of slicing through your model to see and work inside its interior. The following image shows a model of a building with a section cut affect active allowing the designer to work inside the model or present interior detail to a client.

The following model shows the section cut effect resulting from slicing through the model of a cup.

Section Planes

Section cut effects are created by section planes which are special entities used to control the selection, placement, orientation, direction, of the section slice. Section planes are generated using the Section Plane Tool.

The previous image shows a section plane entity intersecting the cup and creating a section slice through the cup.

Section Slices

The term section slice refers to the edges that are highlighted after intersecting geometry with a section plane. The following image shows a section slice in red.

These edges act as dynamic virtual edges in that they continually change as you move the section plane through your model with the Move Tool. You can create a group from these edges, such as when slicing horizontally through a house, to create a wire frame of the model (such the outline of a floor plan). Then, export this section slice for use in a CAD program to add additional detail (such as wall construction detail).

Animations

SketchUp allows you to create different scenes, similar to slides in traditional presentation software, each containing different settings for your model (point of view, section cut effects, and so on). These scenes can be combined and executed sequentially as an animation. The animation engine can be set to gradually transition between effects on different scenes for a truly dynamic presentation.