STL render and arrangement problems

[Greybear]

Hi,

I've just started using Creator with my new M2. So far I'm concerned. Here are the problems I've encountered so far:

1. Some models are just incorrectly rendered.
2. The arrange feature doesn't nest correctly. I can manually drag parts into position, but the arrange button should position parts to use space efficiently and ensure that non-oversized parts are placed inside the printer's platen constraints.

#1 is the most concerning, obviously. I at first worried that the problem was the nut behind the bolt (e.g. me!). However checking the model in multiple other programs shows that the STL file renders correctly in every program other than Creator. I will conduct a test print in slic3r and Creator today to see if this error is merely visual rather than structural, but either way it seems to indicate a problem.Here's a screenshot of the part from Pleasant3D:

Part Screenshot from Pleasant3D

Screen Shot 2013-04-02 at 1.23.19 PM.png (21.93 KiB) Viewed 8514 times

I've also attached a copy of the STL file for you to examine in Creator. The issue is the small tapered cylinder on the end of the quarter circle. It's not rendering at all in Creator.

*edit*: the board won't allow me to attach .STL files?

I'll post more info after I test the print.

Greybear

[Simplify3D]

Greybear,

I made an administrative change on our end, so you should be able to attach your .stl file now. If not, you can always zip it and then attach it after that. It's going to be hard to help much without getting to see the actual file in question. I have a few ideas, but it will be easier if we can look at the same model.

Concerning the auto-arrange feature, we're using a square footprint for each part right now for performance reasons. The part you posted looks like a banana so it's not too surprising that it doesn't compute the most optimal packing arrangement. We've tried to do a complete 3D surface bounded packing scheme in the past, but it takes orders of magnitude longer and can still fail in many scenarios. If you have a particularly oddly shaped part, yes, it will probably require a bit of manual placement. Thankfully there's easy mouse and keyboard shortcuts so that it's pretty easy to do.

[Greybear]

Hi,

Thanks for the rapid response. I've attached the .STL file (still had to zip it, as it was too big).

Your point about auto arrangement makes sense, and I wouldn't expect that every situation would be handled perfectly. My concern is that dropping a second copy of the part into Creator resulted in the part being about halfway outside the platen area even after auto arrange. It would seem that a relatively simple polygon area calculation would allow reasonable fitting of even a weird part like this one. That said, I understand that this is not a showstopper sort of glitch.

I've did a successful print last night using slic3r and pronterface. I'll do a Creator print tonight and give you feedback on how it goes.

Thanks!

Greybear

[Simplify3D]

So after looking at your STL file I found the problem pretty quickly. This particular STL file is actually 2 individual STL files spliced together. If you look at line 10908, you will see the standard "endsolid" tag that typically defines the end of the model. However, in this case, there is another model spliced to the end of it. This is pretty unorthodox and goes against typical file format standards, which is why Creator isn't importing past the first "endsolid" tag. We might try to play nice with these odd files in the future, but for now, just remove lines 10908 and 10909 from your file and it will load with no issues.

[Greybear]

OK, that makes sense I suppose, and you are technically correct- the original STL format was supposed to describe a single solid. However a quick google search demonstrates that this subject has been debated since at least 2009, and the de facto additive manufacturing standard is to allow for multiple solids in a single STL file.

This STL was created with Autodesk's 123d Design (latest version). In creating this file, I didn't do anything unusual, it's really just a revolved sketch, some subtracted triangles and the additional tapered cylinder. It's interesting that the silly taper was described as an additional solid.

As popular as the program is becoming (and I assume, that this practice may well carry over into their commercial software), it's probably worth handling at some point, especially since slic3r and Pleasant3D handle the file without a hiccup.

At any rate, thanks for the quick follow-up and resolution. At least it didn't turn out to be my own crappy 3D modeling skills... =D

P.S. - Just for kicks I fired up Netfabb basic to see if it would read the file - It did, and even popped up a dialog alerting me to the multiple solid issue, and let me choose to make the model one or two objects.

Thanks!

GB

[Simplify3D]

Alright Greybear, you convinced me I'll make sure this features finds its way into our upcoming 1.0.7 release. Thanks for the extra research on the topic

[Greybear]

Wow, I'm really impressed. Thanks for listening, and for being willing to accommodate this kind of thing.

You've got my loyalty...

GB

[Greybear]

Bravo!

1.0.7 handles the file like a champ.

GB