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jasonmburns

Member
I was wondering how well Alibre imports STL or OBJ files. I want to 3D scan some parts and import them into CAD for reverse engineering and/or modification. My 3D scanner software exports files as STL or OBJ.

Thanks
 

DavidJ

Administrator
Staff member
It doesn't.

Inherently going 'backwards' from STL to a usable CAD file is a nightmare. Many softwares which do import STL just produce a STEP (or similar) with all the triangular faces from the STL - result a HUGE file that you can't realistically edit.

For simple stuff, I use the measurement tools in the free version of Netfab to get dimensions from STL. Real reverse engineering needs specialised tools.

There are a small number of applications which do a reasonable job of trying to convert STL to 'sensible' CAD geometry - at least one has been mentioned on the forum (name escapes me just at the moment).
 

Ralf

Alibre Super User
Please take a look, InStep Studio 3D could also be an option:

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.

But as mentioned several times, reverse engineering is not a trivial matter in practice and requires quite a high investment (3D scanner + software) as well as solid knowledge and experience for optimal results...
 
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