The PDT Pivot Point, hereafter PP, is intended to provide a location for rotating and scaling geometry in Edit Mode Only. It works as an independent location to the 3D Cursor. It can, however, be placed relative to Object geometry. This is the Interface found in the N Panel of the 3D View:
You can see the PP as the 3-Axis symbol and also the 3D Cursor, the PP‘s axes always lie along Blender’s Global Axes.
Operations
Starting from the top, the first row is the Show Pivot button with three inputs alongside.
To show the PP, click the Show button, to remove it press Hide button, Show will change to Hide when PP is displayed.
You can still use the PP location, whether you can see it, or not.
The three inputs are; Size Factor ranging from 0.2 to 2 and will adjust the relative size of the PP, the PP is drawn relative to the 3D View scale. The next is the Width and this determines how bold the PP arms are ranging from 1 to 5. The last is the Alpha and determines the translucency (Colour Alpha) of the PP, values range from 0.2 to 1.
The next row shows the Pivot Location, values can be entered here, or the boxes may be “scrubbed” and the PP will move as you do so.
On the next row is To Selected, which locates the PP on a single selected vertex, select 1 vertex only. The middle button is To Cursor, which locates the PP at the 3D Cursor location. The right button is To Origin, which locates the PP on the selected Object’s Origin, you must have a selected Object.
The next row has Rotate and Angle, To rotate selected geometry about the PP, first set the Angle and click Rotate. Geometry is rotated about the View Plane (an axis normal to your screen).
The next row has Scale on the left, this button is used to scale the selected geometry about the PP. this uses factors as set in the last row showing X, Y and Z values. the scaling is performed about the Global Axes. There are many ways in Blender to Scale about different axes, so it was decided not to replicate all this, this is the function I use the most for scaling.
The button on the right is Cursor To Pivot, it will locate the 3D Cursor to the PP, this is useful if you want to use other Blender techniques for rotating, scaling, etc. but want to use the PP location.
The PP cannot be used to move geometry, it was decided that there are already sufficient methods of doing this in Blender.
Update 12/09/2019.
The latest release of 12/09/2019 has two new options:
You can now write the PP location to the Object using the PP Write button, these are stored in the form a Custom Property, you will be required to confirm this, clicking OK on the popup accepts this operation, moving your cursor off the confirm dialogue cancels the operation.
You can then read back this information to place the PP using the PP Read button. If the custom property are not there, either because it hasn’t been written, or because you deleted it (loud sigh!), an error is displayed.
There are options in the main PDT Drawing Tools menu to place the PP by either Command input, or Tools. The operation of this menu will be covered in a separate page, but to alter the PP, set the Operation to Pivot Point, before using any of the tools.
Examples here include, Absolute Location (Global XYZ) Delta Location, relative to a selected vertex in Orthographic (Front, Top, Right to determine local axes), or View planes and is given as incremental values in X, Y & Z, Direction (Distance at Angle) relative to a selected vertex, It can also be placed by a Percentage between two selected vertices (50% is the midpoint…), at the Normal intersection between a vertex and two other vertices, these could represent an edge. It can also be located at the Intersection of four vertices representing two edges and at the Arc Centre of three vertices assumed to be lying on a circle.
All of the functions above can also be performed relative to an equivalent number of objects, like the intersection of four object as determined by imaginary lines drawn through their origins.
Here the PP has been placed at the point where the Active vertex would intersect normal, or perpendicular, if you prefer, to an imaginary line drawn between the other two selected vertices:
If you have any issues, or suggestions for improvement, with this Add-on, please contact me using the Contact page.
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