NURBS Modeling
January 24, 2003
By Brian J. Immel
Commonly used Functions in the Edit Curves Menu
Attach Curves 
Select one curve, shift-select another and hit Edit Curves > Attach Curves. The two curves are now one. If the curve ends are not touching, Maya will close them, which reshapes the curve.
Detach Curves 
1. Select a curve.
2. Right-click the curve and select some Edit Points.
3. Select one or more EPs and hit Edit Curves > Detach Curves. If you selected one EP, the curve will be broken into multiple pieces.
Cut Curve 
1. Create two separate curves that overlap each other (one on the X axis and the other on the Z axis).
2. Select the two curves.
3. Hit Edit Curves > Cut Curve. When the two curves intersect, they will be divided apart at the location.
The curves below are moved to illustrate that the curves have been cut into four separate parts.
Curve Fillet
1. Select two adjoining curves (the edges are touching but not connected).
2. Hit Edit Curves > Curve Fillet option box.
3. Change the Radius value and hit apply. You may have to repeat this step several times until you get the curve you like. This will create an unattached curve that fillets the corner nicely.
Insert Knot
1. Inserting a knot into a curve adds another Curve Point (CP).
2. To do this right-click the curve and select Curve Point.
3. The curve will turn blue. Click anywhere on the curve to place another CP. Shift-select if you wish to add multiple CPs.
4. Hit Edit Curves > Insert Knot. Now your curve has a few extra CPs.
Reverse Curve Direction 
This function comes in very handy when we use curves to create objects. Direction of the curve is very important in constructing a NURBS surface.
Rebuild Curve 
1. Allow you to add/subtract knots to your curve while still keeping the relative shape.
2. Create a six point EP curve in a semi regular circular motion.
3. Click on Edit Curves > Rebuild Curve option box.
4. Change the Number of Spans to 11 and hit apply. You may notice that the curve didn’t change shape too much. What we just did is add more ‘resolution’ to the curve.
5. Now change the Numbers of Spans to 3 and hit Apply. Notice how the curve changed resolution lessened and the curve shape got rougher.
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