Book Image

3D Printing with SketchUp. - Second Edition

By : Aaron Dietzen aka 'The SketchUp Guy'
Book Image

3D Printing with SketchUp. - Second Edition

By: Aaron Dietzen aka 'The SketchUp Guy'

Overview of this book

Working with the amazing 3D printing technology and getting access to the printing hardware is now easier than ever before. While there are many other resources that cover the general process of 3D printing, this book is the ultimate guide to creating models for 3D printing using SketchUp. You’ll start with a basic understanding of how SketchUp is used in the 3D printing workflow and jump into the steps to create a print-ready model using only SketchUp. This 3D printing book will guide you in using SketchUp to modify existing 3D files and cover additional tools that make SketchUp an even more powerful modeling tool. As you advance, you’ll learn how to transform 2D images into 3D printable solids, how to create multi-part prints that can be assembled without the use of fasteners or glue, and how to make sure your model, whether designed from scratch or assembled from preexisting geometry, is ready to be made real via your 3D printer. By the end of this book, you’ll have the confidence to bring your design ideas to life by generating your own 3D print-ready models with SketchUp.
Table of Contents (13 chapters)
1
Part 1: Getting Prepared to Print
6
Part 2: Modeling for 3D Printing

Importing files into SketchUp

Just like exporting, the process of importing a .stl file varies from one version of SketchUp to the next. While we will get into modifying and repairing imported files in Chapter 7, Importing and Modifying Existing 3D Models, right now, we will just cover the process of pulling .stl files into SketchUp. First, we will look at SketchUp for Web.

Importing .stl files with SketchUp for Web

The first thing to note is that the ability to import .stl files is an option that is only available with a paid subscription. This means that you have to be running SketchUp for Web for SketchUp Go or SketchUp Pro. The free version of SketchUp for Web does not include the ability to import .stl files. Knowing that, let’s walk through a quick step-by-step guide using the .stl file you just created:

  1. Start a new model in SketchUp for Web.
  2. Click on the menu button at the top right, then click Import, and then My device.

At this point, you have...