If it weren’t for its under-development 3D printing capabilities, it may have been very well on the top of the list. ![]() SketchUp reads STL files hence the majority of commercially available printers should pick it up and start printing without any problems. Most of all SketchUp is probably the easiest tool for CAD illustration and drawing and has been pumping efforts in its prepping and sharing of 3D printable models modules. It’s not browser based, instead installs on your system and comes in a free version also. Created by Trimble and bought by Google, SketchUp rates very well in every CAD category you can imagine, with some of the extended industry-specific functionality stripped. Furthermore, the SVG export works great for laser cutters letting the work plane prepare your models slices before they can be cut with a laser. ![]() VRML format is also supported and works well with all supported hardware. For printing, TinkerCAD is compatible with all major printers because of the industry-wide standard STL format. Using TinkerCAD’s grouping techniques makes it real easy to design a model from a number of shapes. This does take away some control from the designing process but that’s what you get from a free software that promises so much more. TinkerCAD has shapes as the basic building blocks instead of you drawing every shape by joining edges with lines. ![]() Second, we have TinkerCAD, an online, free, browser based modeling tool with some very elegant 3D printing services and features. This and the vast support for 3D printers, printing formats and other community-contributed printing resources, Blender is leading the way in economical yet hardcore 3D printing package arena. The printing functionality is just a click away from the rest of the CAD designing tools hence you can print just as easily as you can select the draw tool and draw a line. Even though the learning curve is a steep one, the fact that it has the world’s largest community of 3D print enthusiasts and a wealth of training and reference material is enough for any serious thoughts about 3D printing. The Blender project is the Blender community’s (the developers) contribution to Hollywood productions. For now, let’s go ahead and see what packages would be the best and why.įirst up, is Blender, an open source, Linux based CAD package that is known the world over to offer some of the most extended functionality it all areas of CADing, even 3D animations and CGI effects for feature films. If interested on tips and tricks to actually design in software for 3D printing, check out this tutorial. This is when you need a CAD package that has its design & production related functions in sync with the 3D printing module hence allowing further control and flexibility when 3D printing. Usually 3D printers come with their own software for viewing the model and controlling different aspects of the printing process, but are very limited in terms of actual extended functionality. Nowadays many software allow 3D printing just as many manufacturers have rolled out their versions of 3D printers for different budgets and sizes. ![]() Just like that, keep melting the filament and add layer upon layer of the molten material exactly where the model is solid, leaving out the empty space to get the shape. Instead of the ink, a 3D printer has a filament which is basically a plastic wire that can be melted, placed exactly as required and allowed to cool. What is 3D printing? Does it come with a software?Ī 3D printer basically prints much the same way as a regular printer, the only difference is of the ink and extra dimension. 3D printing now allows a software to control a set of hardware dedicated to the task of creating a solid model of the soft design from molten material. Whether it be architects or product manufacturers, everybody saves time and money when creating soft prototypes before actual production.Īs of just recently, the revolutionary advancements in 3D CAD have found their way into the home-user commercial sector, allowing the low-budget 3D production enthusiast to take a new swing at their favorite hobby. And it’s no wonder that every bit of advancement in the field has ushered forth a new standard for builders and designers alike.
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