To conclude my final major project I intend to create two 3D models of Star fighters from the Star Wars franchise and render them together to create a space battle scene. Deciding what ships I was going to model was difficult as I wanted to challenge myself to create geometry and shapes that I haven't worked with before. I have always loved the unique, asymmetrical look of the B-wing and so that is why I chose to model it as my 'hero' ship.
To achieve the basic shape of the main wing I began with extruding a sketch I made based off of some blueprints I found online. I used these blueprints as a reference image to make sure the scale was correct for each section, however when it came to adding finer details I used multiple sources including stills from the film and designs of toys for the B-wing.
Once I had a solid body I began adding all of the surface details and panels. This was a very lengthy process as I had to extrude each sketch individually, on both sides to create depth. The bottom cannon was a particularly difficult part to model due to its unique shape. To make the smooth transition from the wing to the cannon I used the loft tool to merge two sketches together, which I then filleted to remove the sharp edge. Even though it may not be visible in the final renders I made sure to fillet/chamfer every sharp edge so that the ship revoked the smooth aesthetic of Ralph McQuarries concept art.
I made the center intake engine by extruding a sketch of an elongated hexagon which I then cut through from the other direction to create the c-shape front. The opposite side of the engine was created by mirroring the main wing and then cutting and modifying different sections to allow the cockpit to fit on top.
With its unique asymmetrical design, the B-wing has its cockpit (pilot seat) all the way at the end of the main body. The cockpit was a very challenging part to replicate due to the amount offsets and rings with different sizes. To create the rectangular notches that allow the part to rotate I had to sketch on the front profile and then extrude a circular pattern of rectangles.
The next parts that I modelled was the s-foils that attach either side at the top of the main wing. These were tricky to make as they had a lot of surface detailing such as grooves and wiring. After extruding the sketch I filleted all of the edges to make sure the wing was as smooth and rounded as possible. To get the subtle incline that the laser cannon attachment has I used the draft tool. With it being the only symmetrical part of the ship I was able to mirror the s-foil to to other side so that I had the two wings.
George Lucas wanted the aesthetic of Star Wars to look 'used' and so I wanted to reflect this in the form of the exposed wiring near the rear thrusters. I made this wiring by using the pipe tool on several spline sketches. With the engine done the model of the B-wing was complete.
Below is a recording of the timeline of this model showing all the steps I went through to create the final product.
A feature of Fusion 360 that I have never used before is the animation section. While it has many limits to what you can animate I still decided to make a short animation of the moving components on my model. To do this I need to keyframe rotation of the cockpit and the revolution of both s-foils. In addition, I made the camera view move slightly to highlight each moving component.
Below is my full animation of the opening s-foils and spinning cockpit.
Applying the materials to the B-wing was a very time-consuming process as I wanted the colours to be as close as possible to the Return of the Jedi design. Once I was satisfied with the ship's aesthetic I started making some test renders to see which lighting and environment worked best.
My initial idea was to have the B-wing rendered with a space background however this did not end up working with Fusion's way of rendering. I went through many techniques to make the space background look effective however every time I rendered it the lighting would just diffuse the dark colour. I even used shading nodes on Blender to make a space HDRI (360 image) however Fusion was unable to import the file. After experimenting for many hours I decided to just give the background a jet black colour which I think work just as effectively.
This is a short recording of what my B-wing looks like in the render workspace.
Here I my final renders of this model. I am very pleased with the look of the ship and it definitely shows my potential in the Fusion 360 software.
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