Easy 3D Printable Landscapes: TouchTerrain

By on April 11th, 2017 in Service

Tags: , ,

 A 3D model of Death Valley, near Furnace Creek
A 3D model of Death Valley, near Furnace Creek

Looking for an easy way to find 3D printable terrain models? Go no further than TouchTerrain.

TouchTerrain is a project of the University of Iowa that allows you to select a rectangular surface area of anywhere on the Earth and then download a 3D model of the surface terrain. 

The interface is quite straightforward, although you must expand the map and drag the prominent rectangle over the area you wish to download. 

Here is the control screen for a download of the San Francisco area. 

 The control screen of TouchTerrain about to generate a 3D model of the Bay Area
The control screen of TouchTerrain about to generate a 3D model of the Bay Area

And this is the corresponding 3D model. Note that it doesn’t look like much and that’s because the world is actually quite flat, in spite of your very localized personal view of the terrain. 

 The not so dramatic 3D model of the Bay Area
The not so dramatic 3D model of the Bay Area

The service is best used to portray areas with dramatic elevation changes, such as the view of Death Valley at top. 

It’s also possible to download the surface imagery for the same rectangular section and then apply the texture to the surface of the 3D model. Then if you have access to a full color 3D printer, you may be able to 3D print a color textured terrain model of anywhere you wish. 

There is one caveat: the system uses higher resolution data for US locations, and less for other places. This is likely not much of an issue unless you zoom in too closely. 

This is a research project and doesn’t seem to have any cost to operate, so feel free to use at your discretion. 

Via TouchTerrain (Hat tip to Bruce)

By Kerry Stevenson

Kerry Stevenson, aka "General Fabb" has written over 8,000 stories on 3D printing at Fabbaloo since he launched the venture in 2007, with an intention to promote and grow the incredible technology of 3D printing across the world. So far, it seems to be working!