The beauty of automation is that it replaces manual labor, that's prone to human error. Production preparation often involves lots of repetitive manual labor, which takes time and leads to small mistakes, with potentially serious consequences.
Today you can choose to automatically transform your 3D model into a top-notch building package within 24 hrs. Sounds like magic, doesn't it?
A frequently asked question is: will production preparation automation work on any 3D model? The short answer: no. Why? The geometry in your model is processed 'as is'. This means 'perfection in = perfection out', but it (sadly) also means 'issues in = issues out'. However, with limited efforts, you can prepare almost any 3D model to be processed automatically, using Onepush technology. We'll explain how to prepare your model in this article.
Clean 3D model
To ensure smooth processing of the 3D geometry it is important that complex mesh models are removed from the 3D file that you want to upload.
Mesh models can be for information purposes such as people or outfitting items. They have no function for the building kit and can be deleted from the 3D file.
Double parts
Check your 3D model for duplicated parts, you only need your construction parts once. So no need for double work.
Supported file formats:
Our system can handle a wide variety of input files. However to optimize the conversion process we highly recommend providing files in any of the formats below:
● .step/.stp
● .3dm
● .iges/.igs
File content:
The objects in a file should be limited to the parts that need to be processed. Any other objects ( eg motors, furniture, fasteners, etc) will increase processing time and reduce efficiency.
Types of geometry:
Our system is setup to process 3D geometry representing the parts as they need to be produced. Therefore we need precise 3D representations of those parts:
● All parts should be solid boundary representations
● Polygon meshes are not processed neither are curves, points etc
Plate/profile recommendations:
Plates should be modeled as solids with a constant thickness. Bends or forming of plates should be represented by smooth transitions. Sharp kinks are impossible to produce and should be represented by filleting both sides with the correct radius.
Meta data:
To do an efficient intake and processing, information about parts other than the geometry ( eg material type, plate or profile, sub-assemblies etc.) can be provided through means of coloring, naming or layering objects in the 3D file.
Geometry details:
Our system automatically scans geometry and determines what type of part an object is and how it should be processed. The quality of the input geometry can have significant influence on the efficiency of the processing.
There are 2 main types of parts:
● Plates (made from sheet material )
● Profiles (made from extrusion type stock material)
A special type are “flatbar” profiles as they can be made both from sheets or extrusions. For these type of geometries a decision based on metadata will need to be made to determine the type used in production.
This summarizes how to prepare your 3D model for automated production preparation. If you have additional questions, please get in touch.