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Ask Slashdot: Best 3-D Design Software?
An anonymous reader writes "I'm just getting into playing around with various maker-related tools, and I've run into a bit of a roadblock. I have access to a 3-D printer, a CNC mill, and a bunch of other fun tools, but I'm not able to make my own designs to use on them. I'd like to learn some 3-D design, but there are a ton of different software options, and I'm not sure which is the best. I've been hesitant to jump right into one, because I don't know how well it'll suit my needs compared to the others, and many of the options have a pretty steep price tag. I also don't want to spend a bunch of time learning one only to find out it's not very good for actually making things. I've played around briefly with Solidworks, Alibre, and AutoCAD, and also some free options like Blender and Sketchup. But these are complicated piece of software, and knowing nothing, it's hard for me to evaluate the differences. Makers of Slashdot, what do you recommend? Also, if you know of good online resources for learning 3-D design in general, or on any of this software in particular, I'd love to see it."
Rhino is an excellent surface modeler. People need to understand that a solid modeler is a different animal from a surface modeler. Solid modelers are usually parametric and are good for nested objects and assemblies. Surface modelers are good at smooth ergonomic designs. Many people use both to complete projects.
Blender has become easy to learn since a major interface revamp in version 2.5.
I'd suggest jumping between tutorials on youtube.
Here's one to get you started:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmOFRkRjOSQ
It'll always create closed meshes and is simple enough for beginners to use with more advanced modes available as you learn more. It can also export to a wide variety of formats.
As someone who has used AutoDesk Inventor, PTC Elements/Pro, and Solidworks in an engineering setting, they are all pretty much the same toolset but with the buttons rearranged. If you want to use CAD software, though, what really matters most is whether you can find a guide that is well-written on how to use CAD software for things. You may, in fact, want to take a course at the local community college. Whatever software they use, you can then buy and be at least moderately experienced with it.
My college uses http://www.amazon.com/Introduction-Solid-Modeling-Using-SolidWorks/dp/0073522694 this book and it's pretty well-written, if you would rather avoid having to take a course. Solidworks is very capable of doing anything a hobbyist might want to and more.
A great way to get your feet wet for no cost. Start by making and manipulating mesh objects. Really, everything you learn in one program is somewhat transferrable to another, so the best way is to just dive in, watch some tutorials and fiddle. Then you can try out a bunch of different packages to see what suits your needs best.
Check out OpenVSP http://www.openvsp.org . Although airplane focused, you'd be surprised what you can quickly create. It has a number of ways of creating *.STL files ready for 3D printing.
If you don't want to dive right in, you can browse their community file exchange.... http://hangar.openvsp.org/
It is currently undergoing significant refactoring/rewriting. After that is completed, you can expect significantly greater capability including better support for non-airplane objects.
The Guerrilla guide to CNC machining, mold making, and resin casting is probably one of best resources you can find.
Solidworks will change your life. Once you grasp the concept of parametric modelling, nothing else goes so quickly from concept to making chips.
You'll want 3D parametric, associative modeler. The parametric means the dimensions are parameterized. Associative means the geometry is referenced off other geometries (edges, faces, etc). Alibre is probably the cheapest. Solid Works the most popular.
1. Who you work with & funds you can spend: vendors, suppliers to interchange files with might be most important, or the company you might work with later.
2. Simple vs complex 3D surfacing-solids needs. You want to learn simpler constructions that are extruded and rotated sections first. Jumping into complex 3D surfacing for "organic" shapes right off the bat can be confusing & frustrating.
3. Training: It takes time to get the subtleties, and that may take a couple days practice on each platform if you can do it. Otherwise finding a good designer you respect which might be at a vendor or job shop can guide you (I happen to use SolidWorks as so many of my vendors & toolmakers use it). Once you pick software, its best to start constructing simple then more complex objects to find out how to best start a solid. For a round part, it takes experience to figure out whether you should start by extruding a shape or rotating a shape. Sometimes it doesn't matter. Sometimes it limits easy changes. Controlling constructions so draft doesn't give you sliver wedges is experience based. Many parts are constructed easier if you leave corner radii until nearly last.
If you come from a programming background, you might have a look at OpenSCAD (http://www.openscad.org/). It's a FOSS tool which allows you to do constructive solid geometry (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constructive_solid_geometry) through a programming language rather than a GUI (though you do have a GUI for visualization).
It's pretty cool as it allows you to create parametric objects : for example, there are libraries to generate gears by specifing parameters such as radius and number of teeth.
Quite a few projects of the reprap family are developped with this tool.
My favorite CAD software is ProE because of its powerful surfacing tools. If you will only be modeling to make things using subtractive fabrication/manufacturing techniques, then a solid-modeling software like Solidworks will suffice and is simpler/easier to learn. If you want to make things with 3D-variant surfaces, then you'll want to learn at least Pro/E. It's in the middle between the basics like SW and the industrial strength surfacers like Catia.
As 3D printing and fabrication techniques become more and more accessible, good surface modeling capabilities becomes more valuable to more and more people.
Solidworks, AutoCAD (CATIA, Unigraphics PRO/Engineer etc.) are software designed for engineering and understanding what they're all about, even if some have some handy CNC extensions(both proprietary or created by others) would require some relevant education in the field; I suggest you play around with the stuff people use for the gaming industry (Maya, Milkshape, Rhino). Anyway, my 2 cents.
it depends a lot on what you need to do — you can model and design something in a specialized app like ArchiCAD in 2 days what would take you 2 weeks in a generalized programme like AutoCAD.
if you were doing 3D animation, and needed procedural behaviours, particles, and vast datasets — Houdini is the top of the bunch for 3D Rendering and Animation.
needs define software.
ArchiCAD (free trial, requires registration): http://www.graphisoft.com/support/archicad/downloads/
Houdini (Apprentice Free Version): http://www.sidefx.com/index.php?option=com_download&task=apprentice&Itemid=208
best regards from toronto island
jp
If you want something super accurate to the millionth of a decimal point to machine a piece that will go into something with very low tolerances, then AutoCAD. Personally, I'm not a fan of it because of the legacy user input style (command line origins). I find it clunky and it takes me forever to create something simple, but that's just my own limitations. AutoCAD is very different from other 3D packages I've used (below).
Maya is great for organic modeling, if you start out with box modeling. It's versatile and you can export to different packages without much issues. It's widely used and support/ plugins for it is everywhere.
3d Max is another great package but it's more commonly used with architects and low-poly characters for videogames. I find it to be an intermediary between AutoCAD and Maya, mainly because of its snap utilities and ease to change units. Maya tends to stay in metric, or at least that's the implication. I use Max for some technical drawings.
SideFX's Houdini is also great if you mess up a lot and need to go back in the node tree. I had some problems setting up the correct units, but modeling is not their strength (it's particles simulations). For your 3D Printing needs, I'd stay away from this program.
I heard from people that Cinema4D is easy to use with some nice presets. Might want to give that a try.
I didn't like Blender at first, because the interface was a bit clunky, but not as much as AutoCAD. I spent 3 hours trying to figure out the program on my own and it was frustrated. Watching the quick-start video tutorials really helped and I should've done that in the very beginning. It only takes 30-60 min but after that I was modeling without much issues. I'd def. try Blender if you're pursuing this just for fun, as opposed to a business venture.
You might want to take a look at http://www.openscad.org/
It's style is more like programming than other CAD tools I've used, and some folks in the http://www.reprap.org community are doing interesting things with it.
I'd recommend using your favourite text editor to write out .obj or .ply files. You can even change the font without affecting the final file.
i would point you to solidworks, why? because you need to learn mech design, 3d modeling is secondary. there is a distinct difference between modeling for 3d graphics, gaming etc and for real world manufacturing, forget about graphics and start thinking about manufacturability, strength, wear and tear, weight etc
For 3D printing, I lean toward OpenSCAD because it's more like a programming language and you can define your model mathematically with great precision. For importing and tweaking existing models I lean toward Blender. Neither is particularly easy to learn, but both are very powerful (and FREE).
I would suggest you start on 3D printing as that has the most intuitive manufacturing paradigm (YMMV but still...). The easiest solid modeler to learn is probably Tinkercad: https://tinkercad.com/. Blender and Sketchup are not solid modelers. They CAN produce manufacturable (i.e watertight) meshes if you know what you want from them, though. I would suggest you try 3D printing with Tinkercad to get your bearings and then figure out where to go next.
I would suggest blender, but for simplicity, google sketchup is great.
One of the best all around but not cheap.
I tried Wings3d first, and it's easy to get into and make some compositions of cubes and spheres and whatnot. There's a good starting tutorial here where you make a simple table.
However, as a programmer, I find it much faster and more intuitive to use OpenSCAD. Instead of clicking on things and moving them around on the screen, you edit code that generates the objects. There are thousands of examples to get you started at thingiverse. Here's one of mine.
At the other extreme, Google Sketchup is excellent for the "click and drag objects around" approach. Its UI is way more powerful than Wings3D, and it may even be an easier starting point for non-programmers.
Rhino for patch modeling (machinable objects)
Blender for box modeling (organic stuff), animation, and visualization
That would be a good start. And for the next ten years or so (forever).
If you start working on the next Dreamliner or you decide to spend $10-$20K on your hobby.Then you might take look at CATIA or ProE.
Do lots of 2D projects first, like making solder masks, PCB boards, print blocks, etc.
Use this to get a feel of materials, the idea of tool paths, etc.
Moving to 3D is just adding depth to some your cuts, or lots and lots of 2D layers if you're printing.
The unfortunate fact of the matter is, most 3D design software is quite similar, in that learning the software can require a bit of a learning curve. At first, it is a rather unusual way to design things but once learned can become incredibly powerful and intuitive, especially when jumping from software to software if that is ever required (particularly if you have to write machine code for a CNC mill). My best advice to you is to pick one and simply jump right in and learn it. I know that's probably not helpful, but that's the reality that I faced when choosing design software myself. Solidworks and AutoCAD are both great, but I personally prefer CATIA (I'm biased, though, as an aerospace engineer, so take this as you will). It is more powerful than Solidworks, and CNC milling can be quite simple if it is used properly. Richard Cozzens' book (http://www.amazon.com/CATIA-V5-Workbook-Release-19/dp/1585035440) is a great beginners resource that walks you through simple projects and it's not too expensive. There's an advanced workbook and an even more basic introduction book that're also not too expensive. There are also plenty of youtube videos that reference CATIA (though this is true for most design software). The Guerilla Guide is great, too (referenced previously) if you want to do some CNC machining. I like CATIA, but it is expensive and has some odd quirks, and most other software will work just as well. My advice is again to just pick one and learn the basics thoroughly, with budget and range of capabilities being the best guides. Then you can move into more advanced work with the same software.
Aka rhinoceros 3d.
This is what architects use these days. It's very easy to get up and running with but can do incredibly complex things if you ever want to. Also excellent community support and plugin ecosystem. That said it is not a "solid modeling" program, so making watertight meshes can sometimes take work.
The key benefit is that it's all about being simple and precise with the fundamentals: points, lines, curves, surfaces...
If you are planning on doing a lot of complex curved work, you might want to look at Rhino -- it's a highly capable surface modeler. I often describe it as "like autoCAD but inherently 3d and without the suck." The basics can be learned very quickly and you can do relatively sophisticated work with it shortly there after. It's actually kind of a pleasure to work with. Version 5 is just out and I haven't seen it, but I can't imagine it makes a huge dent in some of the UI and paradigm limitations of that package, though. The big, and ultimately frustrating limitation of Rhino is that it's a surface modeller. It's great for sketching ideas out and exploring potential and complex geometries, but if you want to 3d print something, you need to make sure you have a water-tight model, which can be a pain. Making changes to models after the fact can also be a pain.
If you are planning to send drawings out to contractors for fabrication work, or ever want to work in an architecture office, autoCAD is (god help you) still a viable route to do that sort of work. It's industry standard, the only problem is that it's paradigm for drawing is one that was bad even by the standard of R&D prototypes done in the 60s -- it's basically the equivalent of an electronic drawing board. It brings some level of intelligence to the problem of drawing, but it fundamentally doesn't understand that two orthogonal views of the same object should be linked.
Solidwork is a great option if you're willing to put in a lot of time to understand it's paradigm: everything is about defining geometrical constraints and relationships. It's all number and sketch driven. The joy of it is that if you set things up to be reconfigurable, you can change tweak fundamental elements of your model. The horror of it is when you need to make a change that you didn't anticipate, the complex network of relationships that you've created can totally break. This is often not actually as bad as it sounds -- the relationship networks can be repaired and there are best practices and design patterns for setting up assemblies and parts, but there's definitely a bit of a feeling of trepidation on opening a complex solidworks model and thinking about making a change to it after weeks or months of work. After more than a year and a half of working with this package, I went out and bought one of those mega Bible books on it, and it's been very rewarding to page through. As I said, a great option *if* you want to invest the time in learning a deep deep tool. The other thing to understand is that Solidworks is a solid-modeler: it inherently understands that the world is composed of closed, water-tight objects. It's associative and parametric, which are technical terms related to the fact that you can build associations via sketch geometry and drive dimensions and other elements via numbers (extending all the way to creating a link with a spreadsheet, if you want). It's also fairly easy to get drawings out of it, if you ever do want to communicate with a fabricator or someone else: it'll do the projections for you. It's definitely not as aggressively NURBSy as Rhino (NURBs are the name for the splines that construct curvy surfaces) but you can do curved and organic shapes with it. Just be prepared to go down another rabbit hole -- there's an entire solidworks bible devoted just to surfacing techniques.
I know some people who prep laser cutting files in either Illustrator or InkScape. Personally, the though of doing serious cad work in Illustrator makes my teeth hurt. And I'm a proficient Illustrator user.
I've been lucky to generally have access to commercial grade cad packages. My very limited experience with free and open-source CAD suggests it's skill a bit of a ghetto. This may have changed in the past year or so -- if people can recommend a genuinely good, O.S. package, by all means jump into it. But if it hasn't, I would suggest that learning any CAD package, even the relatively user-friendly Rhino, is a pretty big
I'm an architect and I've used Rhino for quite a while and have found it to have the most intuitive workflow between 2-d and 3-d, working between making curves or projections and using those to make solid geometry. It is also great at interface with both CNC mills and 3d printers--I've used it quite a bit myself to print architectural models and also know of quite a few other design offices that use it in a production setting. It also has quite a large community and a great scripting interface in grasshopper if you are into that. If you are more into sculptural mesh modeling I'd recommend Maya or 3D-Studio Max but I'm not sure how it would interface with a 3d printer or CNC mill. With regard to Sketchup or Blender or any other free software, I've never found their features or interface to be up to the level of commercial programs, and the cost for a Rhino seat relative to the productivity gains is negligible, and personally, while I'm sympathetic to open source, I'm reluctant to let software ideology preferences limit what I can do. If cost is a huge factor, though, and you can't amortize the software cost over a large number of projects, by all means look into those.
How about freecad http://free-cad.sourceforge.net/ ?
Alibre is worth learning if your serious about CAD/CAM. The personal version is only $99 and should do anything you want outside of NURBS. You absolutely don't want to use something like Blender for 2D/3D precision work.
Alibre tries to follow the Solidworks way of doing things, so if you learn Alibre then you can quickly migrate to something more high-end if you ever need too.
It has support for full parametric solids cad, so it isn't the old school Autocad stuff where you have to pretend you know what its going to look like from your 2D sketches.
When your ready to cut metal, or print plastic, Alibre can output a number of solid models (STL) formats, as well as DWG and DXF which are critical for using importing into a good CAM package (whole nother ask slashdot on choosing a good CAM).
Alibre has some pretty easy to follow tutorials to get you started.
I don't work for the company, just a VERY happy camper when I bit the bullet 2 years or so ago and got the $99 version. Used it to design a 3D printer down to every last nut/bolt.
Yes its a challenge, but like everything worth doing...
Last, but not least, get plugged into the forums at cnczone.com. They have categories for every type of machine from mills, lathes, to 3D printers; from every type of CAD package to every type of CAM. Its a great asset, and once your hooked you'll spend more time reading on cnczone than here on Slashdot (sacrilegious i know).
A friend of mine wanted to get into CNC milling. I ended up taking a regular milling class with him.
It's best to learn the "how", before you try to automate the process to make many.
Spending 30 hours to make a part by robot is silly when you need one and it takes 10 hours to make by hand.
Spending 300 hours to make 100 parts by hand is silly when you have robots.
The tutorials in solidworks are actually extremely helpful making it my everyday go to program. Other programs are more powerful in the simulation areas but are generally a pain to use (E.G. NX)
I have been doing 3D modeling for over 25 years. If you really want to get good or create some neat stuff, it doesn't matter what program you use. They are all "hammers" and we all prefer a particular "handle" to pound nails. If you really want to do some scripted 3d renderings, use POVray, If you want a program with a UI Blender,3DSMax, or something along those lines works great. If you need precision, any form of AutoCAD works great. Pro/E and others like it are a bit more difficult. Pick a program and buy a book and learn to use it, or search YouTube for video tutorials. I use autodesk programs and I am in the ADN, because I enjoy writing my own plugins and all autodesk programs are fairly easy to write add ons for. If you want to create great models you will, but you will have to learn the terms and quite a few complex operations regardless of the program used. That's just the reality of it.
It's amazing.
The command-line in Rhino is robust (scriptable via Python) and Grasshopper allows node-based geometry workflows (like Max/MSP, Houdini, Quartz Composer, etc). It also allows you to create complex scripts and control their input in real time. Rhino is impressively accurate (algorithm-wise) for its price. I've seen this setup where my girlfriend studies architecture, but also at NYU's interactive telecommunications program (where I study) - two places that have quite different requirements (one designs large-scale and shares with engineers, one designs fist-scale and prints directly), yet it serves them both quite well. I wish all of the 3D programs I worked with had this workflow.
One major caveat is, however, that this stack works only on windows. Grasshopper is written in .NET (and, until recently, only scriptable in C# in VB - python is new and experimental). But it'll take you a long time to hit a wall with the available functions and have to write something.
formZ deserves a mention.
Ive used several, and do a lot of work like this ( I work in a cnc shop) i would t use anything but solidworks. The tutorials it comes with are great, spend the hour or so to go through them and youll br able to do a fair bit right away. Because its so popular there is tons of people making tutorials on youtube and lots of resources on the web. inventor is good but solidworks is better. Sorry about the grammar/composition im on my phone traveling.
You can use 'Voxel' on iOS to make simple voxel-based models.
AgentCubes/Inflatable Icons allows you do create 3D shapes very quickly with no 3D modeling background. Paint images in 2D and turn into 3D. You indicated that you are struggling with 3D tools such as Blender and even Sketchup. I guess I don't know what kinds of shapes and what kind of quality of 3D shapes you have in mind. We have been exploring for some time why many people have problems using these kinds of tools. The short answer is that these tools are aimed at typically professional 3D designers or, more generally, at people with a lot of time at their hands to learn an interface with a steep learning curve. If your goal is to produce 3D shapes of the Pixar level quality then there just is not way around these kinds of tools. If, on the other hand, you just need to build very simple shapes that you can produce in, say, a couple of minutes, and maybe print that on a 3D printer then perhaps Inflatable Icons may do the trick.
A benchmark with Inflatable Icons was that if it takes more than a minute to explain how to make a 3D shape it is too complex. The idea is to make casual 3D tools. We have tested this with many kids and it works great. The short version of the concept is that practically all 3D tools work on the "First Shape then Paint" while we have flipped this around to be "First Paint then Shape" You are basically drawing a 2D image first using a Photoshop-like editor. Then you use tools including inflation to turn then 2D image into a 3D shape.
video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GWcb3aG2w0&feature=player_embedded
sample Inflatable Icons (you can even edit them in the browser): http://scalablegamedesign.cs.colorado.edu/arcade/
I'm trying to understand what you are asking for, and I'll just take a wild guess and say that you are a complete beginner who really wants to use advanced tools to make some stuff, not just a saw+hammer+nails?
Consider what you are asking of your CNC/printer/etc. vs. what you want to create. If you want to make things that are composed of many things attached together for some function, then the idea of make something in 3D becomes a layer of more of complex considerations. If you want parts to fit and move, or not, in a certain way then you have added yet another layer of complexity. There are many options available at many price points. If you want to create geometrically (mathematically) precise parts, then a NURBS surface or a solids modeler will be very helpful. If you want to create assemblies with parts that mechanically fit together and function together properly, then it would be wise to consider an app that can provide associativity and assembly functionality. If you want to create organic forms that don't need to work functionally together (ie slide, rotate, not move, etc.) then you can utilize the organic, yet relatively imprecise mesh modeling apps. The two types of software (mathematically precise and polygon mesh modelers) rarely work well together, at least in my 20 years of experience. There are apps that will get around this impediment, but they can be pricey.
If you are going to make things then output from the design process (CAD) needs to transfer/output/export to the next phase (CAM), and from there to your advanced tools/machine. I am not trying to advocate, just explain the process and the steps between the phases.
If you want relatively cheap but good 3D software that can output to CAM and 3D Printer, you can try ViaCAD ($), FreeCAD (free), and some others.
Wow, its difficult not to go into detail. I've erased 1/2 of what I typed and tried to answer all of the OP questions without going over board.
Solidworks is the de-facto standard in many industries for 3d models. CATIA's great if you're made of money. If you want something a bit cheaper try http://www.rhino3d.com/ And you'll get more experienced responses by looking at threads about this question on cnczone or practicalmachinist.
Not familiar with computational design? Check out some of the examples on the processing gallery.
You sound like you don't know how to use your tools, not how to use 3D software. Or maybe you can use them, but can't come up with your own design - in which case knowing the design software won't help much.
You can program CNC mills (3 axis) without knowledge of 3D software. FeatureCAM and MasterCAM will let you create 2D toolpaths and specify the depth. 3D milling isn't much more complicated, since the software handles the post. If you know conventional machining, this is very easy to do.
If design is your shortfall, I suggest (besides completing an engineering degree) getting your hands on as many blueprints as possible. Punches and dies, components for the aerospace and medical industry are very good places to start. They will teach you about tolerances and constraints. From there you can adapt to 3D software fairly quickly. After that it's just practice. Your designs will ALWAYS have room for improvement (performance, ease of manufacturing, cost, etc) but building and failing is part of the learning process.
I can't speak about 3D printing, as I don't have any experience with it. I've been doing mechanical design and manufacturing parts in a high-precision machine shop for 20 years.
123D Design from Autodesk is free and compatible with 3D printers.
Here's a guy who used it to replace a critical piece of a mounting bracket for his TomTom GPS.
The video gives you some insight into the workflow from design to 3D printing.
For building abstract, conceptual 3D objects, I find Maya or 3DS Max are the best. The uniform interface style Autodesk provides is very easy to learn across programs, and they both seem to achieve the same end result in different ways. I use these mostly for creating models for video games or for CG animations, but I have saved the odd .OBJ and 3D printed it before.
For creating something you actually want to mass produce, or even I would suppose for the one-off 3D printed objects, SolidWorks can't be beat. It is the fastest and most accurate CAD/3D platform I have ever used. I was able to create some very complicated and measurement-accurate CAD drawings - complete with 3D render, engineering diagrams and tests, and various export formats - in just minutes with zero experience.
All of the aforementioned programs are very expensive, but Autodesk has free student software, and if you look hard enough everything is free on the internet.
If the only way you can accept an assertion is by faith, then you are conceding that it can't be taken on its own merits
I'm not sure what the requirements are for models to be 3D printed. I can imagine you need a solid model to make a print, but the software that comes with the printer can probably convert a surface model into a solid model. Most objects you'll print wont be very solid anyway, but rather thin-walled hollow objects.
I'm guessing a surface modeller like Rino, Blender or Wings3d are the best option, since these a cheaper than solid modelling software and more suitable for creative design.
Solid modellers like Solidworks, Catia and Proengineer are used in industry, and may give you more control over the solidity of your model (like where supports should go and how thick these must be). For the extra money you'll get many extra features that you'll never use.
Rick
assignment != equality != identity
Catia is my personal favorite since I work with it every day. Solidworks is good and less expensive, but still pricey. I haven't use ProE for a decade. All of these are expensive. I DO NOT recommend getting a bootleg copy of good software rather than paying for crap that you can afford. That would be unethical. Good CAD is priced in the thousands of dollars and up.
"Artsy" modeling software is not good for work on engineered parts. 3DS max, rhino, blender are all not CAD.
It will depend on what you intend to make - but if you don't know anything about 3d design and want to build something with a regular form (i.e. composed of cubes, spheres, and the like) you may want to look at Tinkercad (tinkercad.com). I'm quite sure there are much better 3D modelers out there - but first you have to concentrate on learning how to design an object. Spending the learning curve required for most 'true' CAD systems is for later.
Many of these 'Which CAD system is better' discussions can devolve into quasi-religious, zealotry-laden arguments akin to 'Should I use Linux or Windows?' discussions. Just a friendly warning. :-D
I've been using Pro/Engineer (now called 'Creo') for over 16 years. Which package you use really depends on what you think you will want to accomplish. For designs to be used in 3D printing or for CNC machining, you are probably better off with a CAD package. The dimensions are absolute, and are inherent to the model. There is also sufficient precision for these processes. The 3D modeling packages like Blender, Maya, 3DS, etc. are more for creating aesthetic models - sizes are relative by scaling, mainly to get the perspective right.
Which CAD package you use really depends on what you intend to do. Any of them will work for basic modeling of individual parts or simple assemblies. If you want to be able to do more advanced engineering work, such as simulations, finite element modeling and analysis, optimization and feasibility studies, shear diagrams, etc., you will want one of the more advanced packages such as Pro/E (Creo), or Catia. For modeling parts and small assemblies, SolidWorks or Unigraphics could fit the bill, too. Pro/E (Creo) has built-in 3-axis CNC programming, and SolidWorks interfaces with MasterCam for this functionality.
They are all rather expensive systems, and unfortunately, vendor lock-in has always been a huge factor in the CAD market. Be sure to choose up front based on what you expect to use it for ultimately. There are interchange formats for the files, but you lose many aspects of the file vs. the native file formats. Be sure to check into student versions - they can be had for around $200, usually with a one-year renewable license. The most common restriction is they will not be able to share data with the commercially licensed products, and some may print a watermark on any drawings you produce. Neither sounds like it will be a problem for you.
Good luck, and have fun!
When you're dead, you don't know you're dead. It only affects the people around you. Same thing when you're stupid.
Blender.
When learning complex and powerful software look for two things: Cross-platform & Open-source.
Cross-platform code is usually much more stable, having a healthy abstraction layer from the os.
Open-source: It can never be taken away from you - say you learn autocad, and use 1 feature allot, then there is a new version of windows and it's not compatible with your autocad, so you get new autocad, but that feature isn't there anymore. if it were opensource you could maybe do something about it.
You put the two of them together and you also get the benefit of possibly flying anywhere in the world, and being able to download powerful software that you already know how to use on whatever computer they have there.
I started 3d modeling on truespace, and the many hours (and dollars) i spent on that are gone forever now.
I tried to learn Blender a couple of times. My major gripe was not its interface, but rather that it's difficult to find written tutorials. All of them seem to be videos.
The Blender 3D: Noob to Pro wiki book has been around for years and does a very good job* of teaching basic and intermediate level Blender use.
If you search for "blender 3d tutorial" it's the second result on Google and the fourth on DuckDuckGo (e.g. Bing). Maybe try searching on Google instead of YouTube next time. (That's a joke, for any humour-impaired types reading)
* At least, it did when I first found it four or five years ago. It may not be fully updated to match the Blender 2.5 UI changes now.
If you are a student or unemployed (or lie) you can use any of Autodesk's software for free. Personally I have trouble thinking in meshes, I learned parasolids from my intro CAD courses and when I try Blender or 3dsMax I get mad at the logic behind them.
One thing you have not mentioned is if you have CAM software. I am not satisfied with free CAM solutions, and if you do need to buy CAM software you may want to consider BobCAD, which is affordable for the hobbyst but can make cutterpaths also.
Since your goal is 3D printing or CNC machinging I would say you definitly want a "Solid Modeler" type package. I prefer SolidWorks personally, In my experience it's the defacto among small to medium sized manufacturing shops that keep up with the times, Pro-Engineer is popular too. AutoCAD seems pretty popular among shops that are a little behind the times.
Larger companies (Auto and Aerospace manufacturers) tend to use packages such as Catia, but that's way overkill (and way out of budget) for 3D printing and the like, it's more suited to massive assemblies with thousands or millions of components. Solidworks isn't without it's faults but I find the interface fairly intuitive once you learn the basics and it's perfect for small-scale stuff. I've used it many times to design small components and assemblies for car and computer projects among other things. Most professional software solid-modeling packages can export to whatever format you'll need for your 3D printer, CNC software, or whatever it is that your manufacturer requires.
You want a solid-modeler like Solidworks/Pro-E/Catia/etc because they're all designed with dimensional accuracy in mind. Surface modelers are generally used for 3D graphics production and have a higher concentration on making things look good than being dimensionally accurate. It's like the difference between MS Word and Adobe Photoshop... if you want to write a book, Word is probably the better software, but if you're designing a poster, Photoshop is probably the better choice... both create "documents" but they have very different uses... similarly if you need a 3D design software for manufacturing or real world production you want Solidworks, but if you wanted to make a 3D move or game Maya would be a better choice.
Collector's Edition
Havn't used it myself but I was impressed with the interface of ViaCAD as shown in this article: http://www.inhale3d.com/2012/12/enclosures-3d-printings-killer-app-part-3-designing-enclosures-with-front-panels/
NZ Electronics Enthusiasts: Check out my Trade Me Listings
If you have access to such machines, what software are they using already?
You might not want to pay for a full version for hobby use, but if you have to make last-minute adjustments on your files before cutting/printing then you would still want to know how to use what's already there.
I would recommend Alibre because it's a lot like Solidworks, and I use that at work and play (because I have it at work). Scupltris is cool is you want to play with a ball of clay. TinkerCAD is just fun.
I work as a CAD/CAM Supervisor at a company that Designs and Manufactures mechanical components for reciprocating compressors. We use to use 2D CAD to design our products. We wanted to move to a 3D CAD/CAM. We tried SolidWorks, Alibre, Inventor, and Solid Edge. We found that Siemens Solid Edge was the Most Powerful Mid-Range design package. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hb_Sj1jFwtw http://www.plm.automation.siemens.com/en_us/products/velocity/solidedge/index.shtml Check it out Slashdoters!!!!!
I am working/in school, as/for mechanical Engineering. I have used Pro/Engineer and IronCad extensively they are polar opposites in the way that they operate. They also both have there advantages and disadvantages.
When I had to chose a 3d Cad Program for myself I chose IronCad mostly on price but after using it for two years I genuinely feel that It is the fastest to model and easiest to use (but coming from Pro/E offers at times hair pulling levels of frustration mostly due to differences in methodology) It has a 30 day free trial that you can use to see if you like it. http://www.ironcad.com/ That is what I would point someone on a budget towards (if money were no objective I would still go for Pro/E but would miss a lot of the features of IronCad)
As a lover of open source I often look towards FreeCad http://sourceforge.net/apps/mediawiki/free-cad/index.php?title=Main_Page longingly and have great hope for it. it may be worth a look
How about Autodesk's 123D http://www.123dapp.com/ . If you want something designed more for engineering than artistic work. It's free of charge.
This doesn't answer your 'which is the best CAD software' question, but rather addresses your 'i have access to a CNC mill and want to make something' issue. SketchChair is specifically designed to do one thing: make chairs. It won't teach you much about CAD, but it will let you make your own CNC furniture very easily. It's free software, and you can get a good result very quickly - it could be an ideal first project to try out your mill.
I'm not a complete CAD junkie or anything, but I've used ProE, SolidWorks, and even CATIA. If I wanted to just design something for fun, I'd probably reach for SolidWorks first. It's really powerful, but also really intuitive and easy to use (at least the more recent versions).
I've heard a lot of good things about Rhino, too (and many others have called it out here), but I haven't used it personally, so I can't compare it to the others above.
I recommend Solidworks. I worked in their UK r&d lab for three years before leaving to start my own business.
Their attitude, standards and ethics are excellent. They test their software to death on a scale I haven't seen anywhere or read about anyone doing. And that was 1998_2001, before unit testing became de riguer. And they take customer bugs very seriously.
AutoCAD are following in Solidworks wake when it comes to 3D.
I have used Vectorworks before, and although it is not as popular as other CAD packages out there, I have found it much easier to use and just as capable.
I like it. You can do some interesting things with it. However, you have to code.
I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
Not a single mention of Solid Edge? I'm wondering why... is it no longer considered a viable package these days?
.... which 3D software you use but rather learning how to use 3D software in general. You say you don't want to spend much time learning how to use software and that is your downfall in the goal you want to achieve. You further limit your software selection to low cost which can be a contradiction to ease of use. Additionally you want to program a CNC machine and that means additional software unless the CNC machine controller is able to take a cad based 3D object and automaticall create the g-code (cnc programming language)
Perhaps the question to first ask is what software is currently being used by those who are using the 3D producing equipment? Followed by asking if you might be able to learn to use it, as this sounds like a work environment you are in.
As a long time developer and engineer of CAD and modeling systems, I can say there is a lot of confusion around 3D software, terms and platforms. Even after 40 years the field is currently only in it's infancy.
In short it all boils down to the core geometric representations being used by the systems. The different capabilities of these cores end up having direct impact on even the UI, easy of use and workflow of the user. Furthermore most of these representations are incompatible in the sense that translating from one to the other is a lossy process. The basic representations are:
1. polygons (including Sub-D) - i.e. trimmed 2D flat surfaces arranged in 3D space - e.g. Blender and most other animation packages, as accuracy is not a concern for animation
2. parametric surfaces (NURBS and analytic) - i.e. trimmed 2D continuous curved surfaces arranged in 3D space - e.g. AutoCAD and nearly ALL other CAD systems (two main geometric engines dominate the market here - most CAD software is derived from one or the other)
3. voxels - i.e. discreet blocks or "points" in space that define a 3D volume - e.g. medical scanning software and some artistic modeling tools
Most systems as you can see are built on polygons and or parametric surfaces nether of which is truly volumetric. "Solid" as in Solidworks just means the software tries to create surfaces that are completely closed and clearly bound the inside from the outside. This is important because real stuff has volume and for manufacturing the CNC/3DP tool need closed or solid models. Only voxels can make the claim of being always "solid" or better a volume but they have accuracy/smoothing and usability issues. So the first common mistake is to call any of the common modeling tools "solid" or "surface". They can be used in either fashion and furthermore most of them do not really define or export watertight or solid models for an object of even mild complexity (having run a 3D printing lab I can say Solidworks is really bad at this - most of the time it ends up being a "surface modeler"). This has led to the creation of all the many 3rd party tools to fix these models (some of them more expensive than the CAD tools). Here are some links to just some of the issues around 3D representations (the one on polys will make your head spin):
http://www.pilot3d.com/NurbSecrets.htm
http://www.meshrepair.org/eg2012_meshrepair_slides.pdf
Few notes on some tools mentioned here:
- Blender is largely polygon based.
- Wings3D uses polygons but with additional algorithms to subdivide and smooth polygon sets and it always tries to be "solid". In this sense it is a "solid modeler".
- Rhino uses polygons and or parametric surfaces but mostly users are meant to use parametric surfaces with conversion to polygons for manufacturing and Rhino can also be used to "solid" only model.
I should also add there other representations coming from companies pushing the boundaries:
- 3D Coat is doing neat things with voxlesels and pushing that representation forward.
- Pixologic with ZBrush has created a representation that can be summed up as something like depth field maps applied to a polygon base mesh.
- More recently Uformia with a plugin in to Rhino has appeared with continuous true 3D volumes that are, like voxels, always solid or watertight.
You can find a description of tools for 3d printing over at
http://www.heise.de/download/special-datenmetz-150901.html
Link of google transaltion
http://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&eotf=1&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.heise.de%2Fdownload%2Fspecial-datenmetz-150901.html
The article focuses on the imporvement of 3d Scans for 3d printing.
Cheers
Metasepp
The industry STANDARD is Solidworks, with SOME form of CAM, but it is expensive, and the CAM side of the house can get crazy, depending on what features you want/need to support. High speed machining? 3+ axis profiling? etc. The HUGE advantage, if you are a student, you can get it CHEAP, and even better, if your school picks it up/you have access to their validation server it can be free. Going into the pro world, this is the one they will probably expect you to know
Best for money/easiest? I went Alibre enterprise, but the CAM it ships with is somewhat limited, but it may be enough for what you want to do. Bobcad/cam is another product where I own a seat, but it didn't work the way I thought. Rhino gets good reviews, and is supposedly fairly easy
IF you have the funds, and are starting from scratch, and want you knowledge to be industry applicable, get Solidworks (for the amount I spend on a full up Bobcad, Alibre, and CAM, I probably could have done this, and even if it was extra, I wish I did). There is a real cheap version of Alibre, see if you like it (I also think there is a 30 day trial of the full up version)
Oh, one huge advantage/disadvantage of Alibre - they use the directX libraries vs (gad, can't remember what the high end cads - had 3 teeth pulled today, and drugged off my mind). The GOOD thing is that you don't need to run a workstation level graphics card - just a good 'regular' card, like you would do for a business or gaming PC.
-- 73 de KG2V For the Children - RKBA! "You are what you do when it counts" - the Masso
A free AutoCAD-type program. Dassault Systemes Draftsight.
Mostly random stuff.
I would never use any other 3D software, personally. Buy it, don't steal it. I know those guys.
Hi, I don't know for sure if the following software is able to create 3d models that you can print etc. But Cinema 4D is pretty "simple", at least the learning curve is not so high then let's say Maya or 3Ds Max. You could give that a try, there are a lot of cinema 4d forums/tutorials out there.
I am in roughly the same situation, having bought a sub-$1000 3D printer just before Christmas. I then had to learn CAD and found there were few solutions in my price range. In the end, price drove my selection almost exclusively.
The cheapest I found was Cubify Invent, which is for the Cube 3D printer. It was very cheap, and probably the easiest to use, but it's very limited. Good enough to create basic stuff though.
The next up was CorelCAD - you can get this cheap on Amazon, especially older versions ( though a warning - the original version has a few bugs related to drawing spirals ) which is an autocad clone based on ARES Commander. It's difficult to get over the steep learning curve, in that you need to spend about a day playing with it and watching youtube video tutorials online to learn to use it. After that, it's pretty easy and I figured it out enough to create a complicated shape for a housing the next day, with specific tolerances and sizes, including recesses for knobs and switches ( and the knobs themselves ) - I found it felt more precise to me than the Cubify Invent. Typically you can find a copy for a few hundred dollars online.
Both are available as fully-featured trial-ware that lasts about a month.
Solidworks seems to be the standard, as was mentioned earlier, but is incredibly expensive and isn't affordable to someone like me. I'm not an engineering shop so I just had to walk away from it and never ever tried it since I knew I couldn't afford it.
GrpA
Enjoy science fiction? "Turing Evolved" - AI, Mecha, Androids and rail-gun battles. What more could you want?
I won't hesitate to agree with the positive comments I've read regarding Sketchup. it is a pretty simple piece of CAD software to get to know (MUCH more intuitive than say autocad or solidworks) plus its free! As for getting started, I would suggest first downloading the software and checking out the Video Tutorials under Help>Welcome to Sketchup. They can be very informative for a first time user of the program, or any CAD for that matter. As for creating a physical 3D model, I honestly don't know. However, I have heard a lot about converting formats which will then allow for model making. Look into it and I'm sure you'll find resources throughout the web. ;-)
Furthermore, if you're interested, Sketchy physics can be fun if you're looking for a way to animate your models. I would suggest you get to know Sketchup first before playing around with Sketchy physics as the combination can/could be pretty intimidating for first time users.
I don't know what you're looking to build, but as a first time user it might help you to draw inspiration from Sketchup's online warehouse. They have THOUSANDS of models there from users of all talent levels. I personally have found it to be an invaluable resource (a feature not offered by most programs mind you
Minecraft is the easiest 3D modeling software you will ever find. Once you've built your model, export it with the free Mineways software: http://www.realtimerendering.com/erich/minecraft/public/mineways/
... you still don't have the intelligence to read his post and understand it.
You are so pathetic, that you look for the most ridiculous typo to complain about his post.
If you are on a budget people are using this to create their models. Then run the files thru various converters to get it 'printer frendly'
If you know coding and do not mind wrangling with the a language like scheme (a derivative of lisp (which is actually an acronym (lots of irritating silly parenthesis))), you can test Spatial's ACIS. Again their primary market is selling these geometry engine to other CAD companies. But they throw in a simple, yet quite powerful, model editor.
These packages are quite intimidating to beginners who don't care about Finite Element Analysis and such stuff. But if you persevere, you get a powerful package for free or low price. And you could do stress analysis on your model before you build and see cool pictures of stresses and strains.
sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
No one has mentioned Spaceclaim?
Every time I check the website, more big-time companies show up as using it.
IMO the best.
I used VariCAD for all my 3D modeling of sheet metal (bent/riveted/welded) parts, when the metal shop had SolidWorks-based internal workflow. Actual operations specific to sheet metal were handled by the shop based on my models, so I only had to deal with the shape of the part after it was already cut (on a press or with a laser cutter) and bent. It should work fine for general-purpose 3D, it supports export to formats now used for 3D printing, runs on Linux, and is relatively cheap.
Contrary to the popular belief, there indeed is no God.
Spaceclaim is NASA tech briefs readers choice product of the year 2012 How can it not get a mention?
Since this is /. I'll start with a programming analogy. Imagine someone saying: "Hey, I got one of those rasberry pi computers and a bunch of stepper motors and I want to build a robot." Sure you could do it but you would need to be ready to put in some time and a lot of hard work.
CAD design is a field, just like programming. You need to learn some basics of design (drafting in the days of old) first. This doesn't mean that you need a degree but it does mean that you should be a bit organized in how you approach it. Here's my suggestion:
1. Pick a program that will let you do 3d modeling that you can easily aquire. Pick wisely so that you only waste 1 strike if caught =)
2. If you do spend money, don't spend a lot. This could be a momentary interest/hobby
3. Get a book that teaches the basics of design with the program that you chose
4. Start simple
5. Be patient
and ended up with Alibre both because of porice and their excellent tutorials and training(which the sales guy I worked with got me some for *free*).
Given infinite funds I probably would have purchased solidworks, but I have no real complaints about Alibre.
Opensource Flash:
http://www.makercam.com/
Hosted by the guy who created the Shapeoko:
http://www.shapeoko.com/
Sphinx of black quartz, judge my vow.
Slashdot, what is the best gaming system, OS, food, and political philosophy?
nerds, nerds, nerds... the answer is obvious. There's a reason why you heard of SolidWorks first: because it works the best. There is a learning curve to it, so if you want to model, I suggest you do some simple tutorials first. If you want to get good at it, get some experience with a partner or teacher in a class or something. That would be ideal. On your own (I don't recommend this), i suggest you really go through all the tutorials and practice making some simple objects that you personally find interesting. Ex: if you're into cars, model a car. Start with the simple five box shape, add wheels, then headlights, and just go from there. There will be a learning curve to whatever software you use, just accept that as part of the deal because that's how it is with anything.
If you're looking for something easier to start with, Sketchup is very simple to use and you should be able to model some basic figures in a matter of an hour or two.
ALL 3D modeling software is extremely complicated.
:D
It's probably the most complex software I've used to date. The specific flavors I'm familiar with are: ( In order of greatest to least knowledge )
Softimage | XSI
Rhino 3D
Zbrush
Maya
Max
Your interests seem to be in content creation destined for CnC system. As a result, I would try to emphasize sticking with a package that
is strong in NURBS. Rhino kicks much ass in the Nurbs department, but that is ALL it does without some third party plugins. ( Like T-Splines
or the like ) Oh and Rhino doesn't play on Linux. Windows only. Figure that's an important point to make on this site
Of my list above, Maya is probably the strongest candidate for both Nurbs and poly-modeling. In addition, it's pretty much the current industry
standard, so you should have no issues finding training material to learn with.
Tip: I suggest the purchase of a punching bag or stress ball. Like I said, this software is among the most complex you'll ever use. You have
to be both engineer / programmer and an artist at the same time to make anything you'll be happy with.
I run a small 3d printing company and can recommend using Sketchup. we have paid for the professional version (only $500) but even for free it is great for most designs and easy to learn. Just follow a bunch of tutorials and within a couple of days you'll be designing things no problems.
For my day job i use solidworks but it's expensive. however you can just download a pirated version for your own use.
Blender is also great but a bit hard to learn, once you do though you can create great models. it's worth putting in weeks in to tutorials and practise. the problem with blender is there is no easy way to scale things correctly. if you are designing things to print in 3d i would start with sketchup and work your way up from there when you hit it's limitation of design. but if you are good with sketchup and use the many addons that is available for it form the public you can do almost anything.
I'm not going to lie..things with clock speeds turn me on...
hello Soulskill on Sunday March 17, @06:47AM have you heard of this program KUBOTEK KEY CREATOR. it is a solds and surface FULL 3d modeler. it is not freeware but it is not expensive in comparison to other 3D modelers. i have worked with companies who have used it for surface cnc cutting, shipping container design and fabrication and solids exhaust manifolds modelling for cnc milling and cast aluminium mould desidn. it is quite easy to learn, simple to use and affordable. for what you are trying to do im sure it will meet your needs. there is also a demo download available allowing you to explore before you put down the hard stuff. wishes wsidxyz http://www.kubotekusa.com/
xxxx
Unless you're willing to commit to a lifetime of being nagged about upgrading your license or licensing your trial.
I like the free form play of Sketchup. I don't appreciate how Google abandoned it almost as soon as they bought it. It is not a good tool for very small objects, but you can scale down your model. It is definitely a different paradigm from traditional CAD.
There are a bunch of trade offs when producing a 3d printable model:
- artistic versus engineering versus programmable ui
- how much resolution is in the final print
- how many vertexes/etc do you want for complex objects
- how important exact dimensions/etc are for you
- how much time do you have to create the design
In general:
- If you must be able to let anyone without experience quickly produce a design, tinkercad is by far the best software to use. It's also good for quick modifications to designs made in other software.
- If you want really fine resolution/high number of vertexes and have a long time to test out design changes and willing to use a programmer based ui, openscad is where it is at.
- If you want the best open source ui for artists, use blender
- If exact dimensions and engineering ui is what you need, use a cad program....I haven't come up with what is the best...there doesn't seem to be a clear winner here.
- If you need to quickly fix problems in designs produced by other software, use netfabb.
for 3d Prinitng go with Blender or 3dsmax. For your CNC machinery, use solidworks. Unfortuantley they are 2 different kettles of fish that probably require 2 different softwares to get the most benefit out of it.
Blender or 3dsmax will allow more free-form modelling techniques and diversity, and theres plenty of tutorials you can learn. Output to a 3d printer is easy. no CNC data though, these programs arent a solid modelling engine.
Solidworks is more mechanical design if you need to create CNC data for you mill which solidworks provides because of its solid modelling engine. You might be able to also output to STL from solidworks to 3d printer also, however you are then limited with a mechanical engineering application rather than a product designed 3d package if you want more organic models.
Hi, there is an open source app named freecad. It is a mix of gui interface, and openscad. You chose thé way you want.
They call it a parametric cad software. Don't know what it means, but i manage to use it quite quickly, and things begin to be VERY interesting when you open the python console!
Indeed, with this console you have access to openscad api, in python, and you can write your functions to script whatever you want.
This is sill in development, but i enjoy it.
Check out freecad.org
LOL. Ansys is, user-interface-wise, stuck in an awkward prehistoric backwater that it created for itself. We're talking of a system that has FORTRAN READ command line syntax, for crying out loud. At least until 3 years ago or so didn't have any sort of undo in its user interface. I see absolutely no reason to use ANSYS as a modeler of any sort, except if you want to run FEA on your ad-hoc model. Your productivity will be worse than entering openscad or povray source - in notepad. I have used Ansys for a bunch of courses and it would have almost been easier to use the core functionality as a library callable from custom code written in something modern like C++. I really didn't care for the awkward and useless GUI. Give me a break, their GUI functionality doesn't even provide the basics that you had with Autocad in the times when a 6MHz 80286 machine was top-of-the-line. I've first used Autocad on an XT clone, with Hercules card on a monochrome Roland monitor. Today's Ansys's GUI feels like crap compared to that.
A successful API design takes a mixture of software design and pedagogy.
Hi,
I make wooden surfboards.
surfboard specific cad - Boardcad (GPL)
cad to mesh model - Gcad3d (Freeware)
cleanup mesh model - Meshlab (GPL)
model to gcode - Pycam (GPL)
running the mill - LinuxCNC (GPL & LGPL)
I have had great help from the people who wrote these pieces of software.
I also purchased BobCAD but don't like using it.
An early board is on the Gcad site in the gallery, (it became a board).
You are not alone in the open source community.
Go well
UMMM... Calculus Torus. /math homer
If you're going to go the openscad route, I'd suggest taking a look at both
coffeescad: http://kaosat-dev.github.com/CoffeeSCad/
and
OpenJsCad: http://joostn.github.com/OpenJsCad/
OpenScad is more popular at the moment, it's been around a lot longer. However the openscad language is... well lets be honest - it's horrible.
The above two are a bit more immature, but are far more flexible language wise.
Some good options above... i have a few extra bookmarks!
Most of the big aerospace and automotive *big equipment* industries use either NX or CATIA. NX used to be called Unigraphics, among other things. Haven't used Catia but NX is fast and quite powerful. Creo, once Pro/E, is sorta in this ball park but I understand it is sorta buggy and lacks some features... but that is hearsay. The key thing that differentiates these packages is high level CAM, PDM and simulation-based design integration. NX and CATIA are very expensive but the money is easily made back in time saved in a high-through put design to manufacture environment (GM, Boeing, SpaceX...)... for instance, Siemens makes NX and also makes awesome CNC equipment and CNC control system hardware (computers, PLC's, servo controllers, etc.) SO... your CAD--> CNC setup becomes almost effortless and you can get great 'manufacturability' feedback information in real time while you are designing parts and assembllies. If money is no object, NX is awesome... but certainly gross overkill for the individual.
Solidworks (from the same company as CATIA), SolidEdge (from same place as NX), SpaceClaim, and Inventor are all high quality solidmodelers with some good advanced features. I have used Solidworks for a couple of projects and like it well enough... really, they all get the job done and have very similiar feature sets. Solidedge used to blow the others out of the water but that is less the case these days, or possibly not at all. For the individual or small shop, Something like Solidworks or Inventor is all you need.
Right now, if you are a student, I believe you can download/register/install an academic version of Inventor for free (along with pretty much everything Autodesk makes...which is a lot). At least that used to the be the case. SolidEdge has a free trial/academic version that used to last one year.
CAM software is also real expensive but a lot of the 3D printer and hobbyist CNC's have integrate or cheap CAM packages that work well enough.
If you are not a student, the only option under 2000 USD is Alibre which I hear is not bad... or go with something funky or opensource.
I do 3D printing and talk a lot to the designers of the big printers. As mentioned above, you definitely don't want Blender, or any of those other surface modelling apps. They WILL work, but tend to suck for dimensional accuracy, and you can create weird crap that cant actually exist.
I think if money is no object, Solidworks is by far the easiest and most powerful thing you can jump into, with tons of resources on the net. If you can afford the price tag or are going to pirate it anyways, Solidworks is great.
The mendelmax series of printers is designed by maxbots. He personally uses Alibre. He says it does a lot of what solidworks does, and with some caveats, thinks that for the 99$ it is a great tool and all you'll ever need for basic 3D modelling. Depending on your patent stance, 3D systems owns a shit ton of patents on 3d printing in general and they don't hesitate to use them to close down infringing competitors. This may sour you.
If you want a fairly nice option that is getting nicer every day, FreeCAD is obviously free, open source, and is a fairly nice tool. Obviously no Solidworks, but the price is right!
And the last but certainly not least is OpenSCAD. You write your 3D models like programs, and it will render them. This allows some very cool time saving things, but it is obviously a bit less visual, so it depends on how you think, design, etc, and what your background is. Many of the things you will make in OpenSCAD will end up being parametric as well, making resizing and changing things somewhat easier. That being said any of the above tools can create parametric designs.
Anyways good luck, I love 3d printing, and would love to get a mill some day! Or maybe just start casting my prints using the lost PLA method: http://3dtopo.com/lostPLA/
Have fun!
It's easier to fight for one's principles than to live up to them.
I prefer Solidworks over Autocad.
Solidworks - A Windows application with a 3D solid design for a final product.
Autocad - A DOS application converted to Windows, with a 2d design, and 3d as a added on much later in development.
I have 7 years experience in Autocad, and I found it somewhat easy to transfer to SW. Solidworks usually will output a good STL for use on my companies Connex 350 Resin Multi-Material 3d Printer. but be warned, all CAD programs have their issues.
Both taking classes on how to use the software, and having a copy to "play with" are critical to figuring how best to use the software. Community College classes qualify you for the %90 percent or so student discount. Also in my job my designs are propitiatory, so I can can't post them online, but if you if you can post it, there are many people who will help you though the design challenges.
Screw threads are particularity tricky as SW treats them as a cosmetic feature, and you have to make them by hand. The book "Machinery's Handbook" is a good resource.
lvdata
http://www.punchcad.com/c-12-consumer-cad.aspx
http://www.punchcad.com/p-11-shark-lt-v8.aspx
First off, don't play around with many pieces of software. At the beginning you should learn one program fully. If it's free or not, you should consider spending some cash on a book or on-line tutorials with that program. There is one skill everybody needs to have, and that is box-modeling. It will enable you to create complex meshes. Once you know one software program and know how to box model and refine your models to your desired level you can start shopping around with other 3d-model packages looking for particular features.
If you want to make things from your models you're going to need a parametric modeler because you're going to be refining your design in countless ways. And a parametric solid modeler is the way to go because it's the best virtual representation of the totality of the design: the intent, the process, the manufacturing, and the end result. I've spent years if front of SolidWorks and PRO/Engineer and for all of the religious warring that goes on they're basically the same. SolidWorks certainly win for usability, but after a few months that's not your first priority anyway. You can throw the Autodesk products in there too, but they seem to be still recovering from the nightmare that is AutoCAD. I'm sure it's great if you're an architect. Anyway, the central point is that there is a world of difference between a 3D modeler and a CAD system of any value. Blender is great for 3D graphics, but I would'nt want to be tasked with designing an assembled product with it. I've never made my living with Rhino, but it seems to fall more on the modeler end of the spectrum than the CAD side. Step back from needing to create something in 3d and think about what you really need out of the software, that will guide which product is right for you. Do you need dimensioned drawings? You need a pretty complete CAD system unless you have oodles of time. Everybody has student versions of their software, most are pretty full featured. Are you going to be outputting CAM data? Stick with something proven like SolidWorks and one of the free/CAM packages. The first time you have to go back and move a hole, remove a chamfer, or increase the diameter of a round, you'll start understanding why $4000 is cheap if your time is valuable. The student version will get you there.
As another poster said, most CAD packages have a terrible UI. Be prepared to spend lots of time.
SketchUp is a pleasant exception, but that's because it has relatively few features. Nevertheless, it's a good starting point. Use it until you run into its limitations, and use the knowledge you've gained to make an informed decision about your next step.
I've recently started using PTC Creo Elements (formerly Pro-Engineer, I believe). It couples a very complicated UI with useless documentation.
I've also used Inivis AC3D. After running into SketchUp's limitations, I tried a number of CAD packages, and this what I ended up with. I wanted an application where I could use at least some of my Adobe Illustrator experience, so I downloaded a couple of programs and tried drawing a simple curved shape (a rocket engine nozzle) in it. AC3D was the only one where I managed to do this within an hour or so.
Its drawback is that it doesn't do parametric (Bezier) curves.
Similar to OpenSCAD, but stronger CAD kernel, faster performance, and purely web based. Plus you can import geometry from other CAD packages. Sometimes the best mix is to do some things in a traditional CAD objects, and then use scripts to modify after that.
Each of the tools you mentioned has a scope of applications in mind, some very specific and specialized.
If you really mention Autocad and Blender or sketchup in one sentence, then think first about
-what you want to create (technical CAD database for drawings/CAE/CAM, nice graphics, prototypically designed enclosures for things)
-in which process step you are (manufaturing/different design phases)
-in which business you are working (and to whom you have to send your files)
-how much money you want to invest (nothing = just playign around; moderate = below 500 Euro; professional = how much it takes)
That said, in the moderate semi-prefessional regime i had good experiences with varicad.
Hello, Sorry to post anonymously. I have been an ME for 15 years and Solidworks has sort of become the phototshop of 3d CAD; becoming the standard tool taught in schools and used for small to medium sized products (complexity). Rhino is not what you are looking for but would be useful after you learn Solidworks, There is very powerful surfacing features in Solidworks that are comprable if not better then Rhino (Rhino is seen as kind of cheap in my industry) . Austodesk Mechanical Desktop is also gaining in popularity. Pro/E Catia and NX are all to BIG to for your needs.
I use solidworks. With it I have been able to create several iphone & andoid phone accessory designs which I have had 3D modeled using ABS, Tango, and Tango Plus. My experience with Solidworks has included courses in it because of the steep learning curve. I have also had formal training in engineering and in IDEAS 3D modeling which helps understanding stress analysis. I would also comment that ABS is a lot more brittle and creating cheap injection molds of finished prototypes (low run molds good for a couple hundred pieces ) make better demos since ABS is so brittle and Tango is a little too flexable and wears out easily when demoing it at trade shows. Just a little pitch, my kickstarter campaign starts in a few weeks! http://rawcell.com. GOOD LUCK with your designs!
3D navigation with a mouse is a PITA, so do yourself a favor and find a CAD program that is compatible with a 3D controller (the 3DConnexion controllers, for instance). This made my life a bit easier, at least.
Take a look at a product called IRONCAD (ironcad.com). Of all of the 3D solid modeler commercial products it is by far the easiest to learn and use. They offer a 30 day free trial and have lots of tutorials on how to use it effectively. I have used it for over 10 years and I have also tried all of the other 3D solid modelers (including the very high end programs) over the last 20 years and still prefer the ease of use of Ironcad. It does however have one drawback in that it is only a "Solid" modeler and not a "Surface" modeler so the idea of creating a mesh and pulling points to get the shape you want is not possible and it is for that reason that Ironcad allows the user to export files directly into Rhino and then back again. I personally don't have a need for that capability. Also note, this is a commercial product and is not cheap ($3K plus) and requires a service contract if you want to keep up-to-date year to year. Personally I only update every 4 or 5 years so I don't get the service contract resulting in having free support (and updates) for the first year which then really isn't needed until I upgrade.
DrWho
IMO Silo has the best, easy to learn and use interface available. Silo does require that you know how to model. You will find no fancy modifiers there. It is strait forward box modeling. Silo is not free. It is affordable at $160.
These are what we mostly use in my machining program. MasterC a m (or surfcam) are excellent if you don't want to hand write cnc gcode for a part you've designed. SolidWorks is excellent for designing complex parts easily and actsmore like most 3D modeling software. Also Rhino is amazing if you're used to something like AutoCAD.
Cinema4D is the easiest, most intuitive (but also powerful) one. Gorgeous renders. Python programming. Check out GreyscaleGorilla.com for tutorials.
While AutoCAD can do 3D, Autodesk's 3D parametric modeling software is called Inventor. It is on par with Solidworks but no where near as visible (as evidenced by the OP). While they can do it, both SW and IV were not created to do the swoopy, curvy, artsy stuff, but the more prismatic, industrial and manufacturing type of modeling.
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I've used CAELinux for quite a bit, but focused on Finite Element Modeling using Salome->Code_Aster. There are several packages on the disk and easy to burn the LiveDVD, insert it into your computer, reboot, use the software, reboot back to your base system.
http://www.caelinux.com/CMS/
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Cause that's really the decision for me. I've worked in all of them over the years, and I prefer box modelling for organic forms. Sketchup/CAD/SolidWorks is great if you're machining a part, but if you're scratching a creative itch and just want to fool around, Blender/3dsMax/Maya are looser.
All tools have tradeoffs. Your question is open ended and it seems everyone's making assumptions about what you want to do based on the CNC mill. I will second starting on Sketchup for geometric forms such as machinery parts because of it's ease of use. You will have to go to the Pro version in order to export an STL file though. But if you want to make models for miniature painting or something on a 3D printer, you're going to have better luck with something like ZBrush or Dyntopo in Blender. It really just comes down to what problem you're trying to solve.
FYI, I see a lot of people hating on Blender, but it's pretty easy to make a closed form in it. BlenderCookie just put up a simple way to do it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnCf-5G7DYc
If the OP can give more details on what the intended work is, I can give better suggestions.
I love Solidworks do most my work in it, but i also like SpaceClaim, it is really fast in coming up with designs quick...
Rhino is what I learned on in college, back in 2000, it's got the best user interface (in my opinion) and still has professional level tools that simpler programs (Blender, SketchUp) do not.
a 3D printer *could* understand polygons, but the produced output will still lack details.
(I've been doing it actually: outputing brain scans into STL format to be used for producing cheap models of brain for teaching anatomy).
To get back to your metaphor:
- feeding polygons to a 3D printer would be very close to feed a low rez PNG or JPEG to a laser printer.
The image is going to look pixelated.
Or, at best, the printer could do some form of interpolation, but the result will still be blurry.
In terms of polygons: if what you print is a bunch of triangles, the printed surface is either going to be faceted. Or if the 3D printer (in my case: the preprocessing) is able to do some filtering, the result will be slightly smoothed but imperfect.
If you're trying to print out a mathematical shape (a sphere, a torus, or something more complicated) you're only ending with an approximation with smaller facettes.
- feeding Nurbs to a 3D printer will be like feeding a SVG to the laser printer.
No mater the size or the resolution, the printed page will be what the laser printer can do best to represent your shape.
Nurbs: They are mathematical definition of the shape. If you want to have a sphere, or some curve following x^2 shape you can. It will perfectly be represented within the limits of the 3D Printer.
Each has it uses. If you want to print a figurine out of some artists design, polygons are good enough. (Or in my case: producing brain models).
If you want to produce a mechanical part that has to perfectly fit into another and move against it without any hitch, you're better of using nurbs.
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