Can you run in 3D-printed shoes? Someone gave it a try, and there are implications.
modeling
New Tinkercad Features Expand Capabilities Beyond Entry-Level 3D Design
It’s been a while since I looked at Tinkercad, but it seems there have been some updates.
Hands On With FishCAD
I’m looking at Taiyaki’s new FishCAD system.
OpenSCAD Embraces Multicolor 3D Design with New Geometry Engine
OpenSCAD is soon to have color capabilities.
Exploring TRELLIS: Microsoft’s Advanced SLAT-Based Generative 3D Model Framework
Microsoft has released a new version of TRELLIS, a generative 3D model framework. There are several tools of this sort now available, but TRELLIS uses a different approach. They explain: “The cornerstone is a unified Structured LATent (SLAT) representation which allows decoding to different output formats, such as Radiance Fields, 3D Gaussians, and meshes. This… Continue reading Exploring TRELLIS: Microsoft’s Advanced SLAT-Based Generative 3D Model Framework
New AI Technique Pioneers Accurate Mechanical 3D Model Generation Using BREP Geometry
Research is proceeding on ways to use AI techniques to generate solid mechanical 3D models.
Book of the Week: Sculpting in ZBrush Made Simple
This week’s selection is “Sculpting in ZBrush Made Simple” by 3D artist Lukas Kutschera.
Plasticity Blends Artistry with CAD in a User-Friendly 3D Modeling Tool
I’m looking at a new 3D modeling tool, Plasticity.
Rhino3D 8 Revolutionizes 3D Scanning with Innovative Shrinkwrap Function
Robert McNeel & Associates has released a new version of Rhino3D, version 8.
Book of the Week: 3D Printing with Fusion 360
This week’s selection is “3D Printing with Fusion 360” by Sualp Ozel.
Book of the Week: 3D Modeling and Printing with Tinkercad
This week’s selection is “3D Modeling and Printing with Tinkercad: Create and Print Your Own 3D Models” by James Floyd Kelly.
What is Parametric Modeling?
PTC made parametric modeling famous.
Will AI Finally Put the Aid in Computer-Aided Design?
Moribund software about to get an innovation boost from the AI tsunami.
Trinckle: Simplified 3D Tooling Design Software for Non-CAD Users
Trinckle continues to innovate with a new version of their tool-making software.
ChatGPT and 3D Printing: A Look into MakeUseOf’s Findings
I’m reading a curious article on MakeUseOf that attempts to show how ChatGPT can be used for 3D printing.
Book of the Week: Mastering Fusion 360
This week’s selection is “Mastering Fusion 360” by Jake O Sugden and Joshua Manley.
Book of the Week: FreeCAD Beginner’s Starter Kit
This week’s selection is “FreeCAD Beginner’s Starter Kit” by Aleksander Sadowski.
Book of the Week: 3D Printing with SketchUp
This week’s selection is “3D Printing with SketchUp” by Aaron Dietzen.
Rapidly Design Lightweight Parts with Metafold’s 3D Modeling Tool
Metafold is a powerful tool to generate and process highly complex 3D models.
Text to 3D: The Massive Implications of Luma AI’s Imagine 3D Technology
This week Luma AI announced a new 3D model generation technology, that while crude today, will ultimately dominate in the future.
Clara.io Shuts Down
Online 3D modeling tool Clara.io is shutting down.
Womp’s New Shareable 3D Modeling Service
A new service for shared 3D model development has been launched by Womp.
SnapEDA’s Syndication Network Liberates Millions of 3D Models
SnapEDA announced a new Syndication Network that releases “millions” of 3D models.
trinckle’s Fixture Designer Shows How It’s Done
I’ve been looking at trinckle’s Fixture Designer software, and it’s quite impressive.
Could Sketch2Pose Show The Way To Easy 3D Modeling?
Sketch2Pose provides an intriguing capability that might eventually lead to a new way of 3D modeling.
Interesting New Features in Autodesk Fusion’s May Update
Autodesk released a new version of Fusion 360, and there are quite a few new useful features.
Book of the Week: Integrating 3D Modeling, Photogrammetry and Design
This week’s selection is “Integrating 3D Modeling, Photogrammetry and Design” by Shaun Foster and David Halbstein.
Beyond Generative Design: Where 3D Modeling May Go
I caught a glimpse of a potential future for 3D modeling tools, and it’s breathtaking.
Blender Gains CAD Functions!
At long last, it appears that Blender will soon be able to perform proper CAD functions.
Book of the Week: FreeCAD 0.19 Learn by doing
This week’s selection is “FreeCAD 0.19 Learn by Doing”.
Book of the Week: Getting Started in ZBrush
This week’s selection is “Getting Started in ZBrush” by Greg Johnson.
Plasticity: New 3D Modeling Tool Coming Soon
A new, inexpensive 3D modeling tool is about to arrive: Plasticity.
Book of the Week: Creating Lifelike Figures in Polymer Clay
This week’s selection is “Creating Lifelike Figures in Polymer Clay: Tools and Techniques for Sculpting Realistic Figures” by Katherine Dewey.
Formlabs Focusing On Automotive Applications?
Formlabs announced today a partnership with an automotive company, and this has some interesting implications for the 3D printer manufacturer.
Could The Future Of 3D Printing Be Specialized Software?
An announcement from Stratasys hints at where the future of 3D printing might be heading.
Apple Joins Blender Development Fund
The Blender Foundation announced that Apple has joined their development fund.
WASP Introduces a New 3D Print Industrial Application: Clay Modeling
WASP has partnered with Honda to develop a new process using 3D printed clay.
Book of the Week: Digital Modelmaking
This week’s selection is “Digital Modelmaking: Laser Cutting, 3D Printing and Reverse Engineering” by Helen Lansdown.
Interesting New Features in SOLIDWORKS 2022
It’s 2021, and that means only one thing: SOLIDWORKS 2022 is coming out.
Book of the Week: Modeling Naval Ships in Small Scales
This week’s selection is “Modeling Naval Ships in Small Scales” by Mike McCabe.
Book of the Week: The Complete Guide to Blender Graphics
This week’s selection is “The Complete Guide to Blender Graphics: Computer Modeling & Animation” by John M. Blain.
Book of the Week: Parametric Solid Modeling Projects
This week’s selection is “Parametric Solid Modeling Projects” by Prof. Sham Tickoo of Purdue University.
Book of the Week: Essential Skills for Scale Modelers
This week’s selection is “Essential Skills for Scale Modelers” by Aaron Skinner.
Autodesk Limits Functionality In Free Version Of Fusion 360
Autodesk abruptly announced some significant changes in the functionality of the free version of Fusion 360, their flagship 3D design tool.
Finally: Autodesk Introduces Proper Emboss Feature In Fusion 360
At long last Autodesk has resolved a long-standing issue with Fusion 360: the ability to easily emboss a curved surface.
Microsoft Officially Joins Blender Foundation
Microsoft has officially joined the Blender Foundation Development Fund, a group that supports the open source 3D modeling tool Blender.
Question of the Week: 3D Printing Life-Size Heads
This week’s question delves into the science of producing life-size head sculptures using 3D scanning and 3D printing.
SketchUp Goes Subscription-Only
SketchUp, the 3D tool many of us began learning 3D concepts from, has moved to a subscription payment model.
Cad Crowd Announces Winners of COVID-19 Design Contest
3D modeling freelancer site Cad Crowd announced the winners of their COVID-19 Design Contest.
Behold: Pico CAD
Game developer Johan Peitz posted a tweet recently with an animation of a project he’s working on called Pico CAD, an 8-bit 3D modeling tool.
Fusion 360 Now Offers 3D Print Slicing, But Will You Use It?
Autodesk surprised everyone by suddenly adding a way to slice 3D print jobs directly within their popular Fusion 360. But is it something you will use?
A 3D Modeling Newbie Tries SelfCAD
Could a complete 3D newbie master the easy-to-use SelfCAD? We put it to the test.
Book of the Week: Python for 3D Printing
There’s a rather interesting book that can show you how to use Python programming to supercharge your 3D modeling experience for 3D printing.
Book of the Week: Thermo-Mechanical Modeling of Additive Manufacturing
This week’s selection is “Thermo-Mechanical Modeling of Additive Manufacturing” by Michael Gouge and Pan Michaleris.
Is Blender 2.8 Suitable for 3D Printing?
Blender is upgraded to v2.8. Does this mean it is suitable for making 3D printable 3D models? We look at the pros and cons of the new software system.
Womp Provides On Demand 3D Services To The Public & Companies
A new 3D printing startup, Womp, is taking an unusual path to offer several 3D services to the public in an easy to use fashion.
3D Printing From Crowdsourced Data
A new project from Virginia Tech is perhaps the closest we’ve yet come to 3D printing as a Star Trek Replicator.
Kodak’s 3D Printing Ecosystem Extends Farther
Kodak has introduced something very interesting into their 3D printing ecosystem: 3D design and print services.
LuBan: 3D Printing Very Large Objects
LuBan is a software tool to greatly assist when a very large 3D print is required.
Book of the Week: Geometric Modeling
This week’s selection is “Geometric Modeling: The mathematics of shapes” by Nikolay Golovanov.
New Reverse Engineering CAD Technique Could Pose Issues
Researchers at MIT have developed a practical method of reverse engineering 3D models.
Morphi Fills Us In: What’s New In v3.5
Morphi has launched the first of several updates for 2019, introducing v3.5.
Question of the Week: How Do I Get a 3D Model?
This week’s question delves into the mysterious world of 3D scanning and 3D modeling, typically unknown territory for 3D printing newbies.
Book of the Week: SolidWorks Surfacing and Complex Shape Modeling Bible
This week’s selection is the detailed “SolidWorks Surfacing and Complex Shape Modeling Bible” by mechanical engineer Matt Lombard.
Dassault Systèmes Moves Closer to Students
Dassault Systèmes, producers of the popular Solidworks 3D modeling system, announced an educational partnership that may suggest something interesting.
Anarkik3D’s New Strategy
Anarkik3D announced a new strategy for growing their user base.
The Incredible MagicaVoxel 3D Modeling Tool
Need an introductory 3D modeling tool? MagicaVoxel is what you need.
Caboma’s 3D Personalization Solution
Montreal-based Caboma has developed some intriguing software that could lead to more widespread personalized 3D printed items.
Meshmixer 3.4 Available
The swiss-army knife of 3D printing has been upgraded.
Playing Around With BOTS101, But Where Is This Going?
I’ve been doing some simple testing with a bizarre 3D modeling tool, BOTS101, and I’m wondering where this journey will end.
SketchUp Free Out of Beta
The web-based version of SketchUp is now official.
Household 3D Prints: Handy, but Unaccessible
Two seemingly unbreathable barriers hold back 3D printing from general use in homes around the world.
Disney’s Compliant Mechanism System
Entertainment giant Disney has published an interesting study on a system they’ve developed to assist in the design of “compliant objects”, which could be very useful in 3D printing.
Google’s Blocks Has Nothing to Do With 3D Printing, or Does It?
Google announced a new online tool called “Blocks” for creating 3D objects.
Another Online 3D CAD Option: SelfCAD, with a Surprise For Readers
I’m looking at a new online 3D CAD service, SelfCAD.
3D Slash Releases Version 3.0
France-based 3D Slash released a new version of their popular entry-level 3D design tool with some useful features.
Microsoft’s Paint 3D: Introductory, Not Revolutionary
Windows 10 now includes Paint 3D, a simple 3D modeling program.
Netfabb Basic: Lost, Then Found!
A while ago we posted a short piece wondering what the heck happened to the very popular Netfabb Basic software. Now, there’s an answer. A few actually.
3D Printing Software That Might Pay For Itself
France-based Deltaface has produced 3D print preparation software that could save you some money.
Regional 3D Print Services Emerge
In spite of the efforts of the major 3D printing industry companies to grow their empires around the world, there is still much opportunity for regional players to emerge.
What Is Stratasys Doing With Thingiverse, Anyway?
In 2013, Stratasys acquired MakerBot and all its assets. Besides the printer company, the deal also included Thingiverse.
Onshape’s Generous – And Completely Free – 3D CAD Service For Education
While you might be aware of Onshape’s limited free plan for online 3D CAD, you might not be aware they offer an unrestricted version for education.
Gravity Sketch Simplifies Touch-Based 3D Design
A fun 3D design app has launched: Gravity Sketch.
New Minority Report-Style 3D Modeling Service Coming: 3DGxPAINT?
I stumbled onto a new, apparently not-yet-launched 3D modeling service that could be extremely interesting: 3DGxPAINT.
It’s A New Version Of 3D Slash!
3D Slash has announced version 2.0 of their powerful, but easy-to-use web-based 3D modeler.
Microsoft Updates 3D Builder App For Windows 10
Did you know Microsoft produces a 3D modeling app? They’ve just updated it, too.
Solidworks Developing “Apps For Kids”
Solidworks is perhaps the best known 3D modeling system for industry, but now they’re introducing 3D tools for kids.
MeshMixer 3.0 Enables Multi-Material 3D Printing
Autodesk’s 123D team has released version 3.0 of MeshMixer, their free – and amazing – 3D modeling utility. This time, it’s all about multiple materials.
Hands On With The Morphi App
We’re testing Morphi on one of our lab iPads, and it seems to be a very good introductory 3D modeling tool.
uMake For 3D Printing? We Don’t Think So
A new iOS app for easily creating sketch-based 3D models appeared: uMake. But we’re not sure it’s best for 3D printing.
Onshape Moves Out Of Beta; Now Officially “Commercial”
Onshape, a new web-based 3D modeling tool, officially concluded their beta test period and is now officially a commercial product.
Is The Most Popular 3D Modeling Software For You? Maybe Not!
i.materialise published a handy list of what they believe to be the most popular 3D modeling software packages, but we have some questions.
Powerful New Features in Onshape
Web-based 3D CAD service Onshape continues to add new features and fixes almost weekly, but recently a very powerful feature was added: DXF and DWG import.
Another MeshMixer Update For You To Download
Autodesk has released another update to their increasingly useful (and free) MeshMixer 3D utility.
Talk With Your 3D Clients With talk3D
Another business-oriented 3D cloud service is preparing for launch: talk3D.