Does anyone have a good way to convert an .stl file to something that Alibre can use?
- Thread starter srjacob
- Start date
Ken226
Alibre Super User
Check out the .stl import script linked in this thread.
Any good way to convert an .stl file to something Alibre can process?
Any good way to convert an .stl file to something Alibre can process?
www.alibre.com
Ex Machina
Senior Member
Hey srjacob,
The link Ken gave you is a pretty decent way to do it. And you can always download FreeCAD and pass it through there. I think FreeCAD complements Alibre pretty well because FreeCAD suffers a bit in the design and assembly parts where Alibre is excellent.
But bear in mind that, which ever way you go, an stl file is 3D geometry made up of triangles. There are no curves, arcs, etc. So, once something is converted into stl you have lost a bit of the "information" of the geometry and are left with an approximation. Converting that to a solid can be done but will not bring that information back.
For simple parts, it's worth keeping the part in as a template, design a new one around it and then delete the original.
The link Ken gave you is a pretty decent way to do it. And you can always download FreeCAD and pass it through there. I think FreeCAD complements Alibre pretty well because FreeCAD suffers a bit in the design and assembly parts where Alibre is excellent.
But bear in mind that, which ever way you go, an stl file is 3D geometry made up of triangles. There are no curves, arcs, etc. So, once something is converted into stl you have lost a bit of the "information" of the geometry and are left with an approximation. Converting that to a solid can be done but will not bring that information back.
For simple parts, it's worth keeping the part in as a template, design a new one around it and then delete the original.
Last edited:
UGMENTALCASE
Member
InStep Studio 3D - From Mesh to CAD | Reverse Engineering Software
InStep Studio 3D v3.0 is Reverse Engineering software that works with multiple mesh formats to convert them to CAD - STL / Step converter.
instepstudio3d.com
I use this. In basic mode it works well to find cylinders etc and gives nice clean surfaces. In advanced mode you can draw on the surface and generate a nurbs straight from the mesh. It's a little clunky, didn't do as well as they thought so not a huge amount of development at the moment. I have a license for it so if you have a part you want me to try let me know