Offset Faces/Edges Tool

The Offset Faces/Edges tool is used to inflate or translate faces or edges.

When inflating faces or edges, the selected entities are copied and offset a user-defined thickness. New faces are then created along the thickness to maintain connectivity between the original face or edge, and the new face or edge. When translating faces or edges, the selected entities are moved a user-defined distance and the connectivity with adjacent faces and edges is maintained.

Typical uses of the Offset Faces/Edges tool are illustrated in the following guided examples:

Inflating a baffle surface
Translating a surface
Creating a zero-thickness baffle

Using Offset Faces/Edges tool is preferable to the wrapper inflation process, as it provides more control over the thickness and shape of baffle.

To display the Offset Faces/Edges Options, click

(Inflate or translate selected faces or edges).

Select the surface or edges to offset using the Selection and Display controls. With the selections made, you can then set the offset properties.
Alternatively, you can use the surface repair tools to fix the non-manifold edges.

Offset Mode

The Offset Mode determines whether you offset Faces or Edges.

In Faces mode, Offset Faces/Edges inflates surfaces so they have a thickness, typically surfaces representing baffles or internal walls. It also translates or extrudes a surface, moving its position, while maintaining connectivity with adjacent surfaces.

In Edges mode, Offset Faces/Edges inflates edges to create a two-dimensional surface, which can be used to create a zero-thickness baffle. It can also translate an edge, moving its position, while maintaining connectivity with adjacent edges and faces.

Inflate Offset Actions

The default options set Offset Action to Bi-directional Inflate, which inflates both sides equally, with a specified direction and thickness. Setting the Offset Action to Inflate allows you to inflate one side with a specified direction and thickness. The diagram below illustrates both of these options:

In the above examples, the baffle surface is still non-manifold. However, the surface wrapper can account for this effect, and produce a manifold surface.

Translate Offset Action

Setting the Offset Action to Translate moves the selected surface or edge, with a specified direction and thickness, and maintains the existing connectivity.

The diagram below illustrates this option:

Selecting a Direction Option

In each instance, you specify the direction of inflation using the Direction menu.

Selecting Face Normal from the Color Face by menu in the Display Control. Positive face normals are colored green and negative face normals are colored red. This feature is useful when choosing a Direction.

The following Direction options are available:


+ Normal Direction	Offsets the surface or edge in the positive normal direction. For edges, the average normal of the adjacent faces is used to determine the inflation direction. For Bi-directional Inflate, this option has no obvious effect, as the tool inflates in both the positive and negative direction.
- Normal Direction	Offsets the surface or edge in the negative normal direction. For Bi-directional Inflate, this option is not available, as it has the same effect as using the + Normal Direction option.
Specified Direction	Offsets the surface or edge in a user-defined direction. This option requires Direction Vector Components in a given Coordinate System to specify the direction. This option is not available for cylindrical or spherical systems. You can only define a Coordinate System for cartesian systems.
Seed Point	Offsets the surface or edge in the normal direction, towards a user-defined seed point. In cases where there are multiple connected surfaces or edges, the tool uses a majority rule to determine the offset direction. This option is useful when using Bi-directional Inflation on surfaces or edges that have normals in various directions.

Setting a Thickness or Distance

With the direction option selected, you then set the Thickness, which defines the inflation thickness.

Similarly, when using Translate, you set the Distance, which defines the translation distance.
When using Bi-directional Inflation, the Thickness sets the total inflation thickness, meaning the tool inflates each side by half of this value.

Offsetting Faces

When you have provided all necessary settings, click Offset to carry out the operation.