testing models for SW acceptation

Before I start, do know that I have read all the faq and forum in SW and outside of SW regarding specification for making a printable model.
The same model that I am trying to upload was accepted some times ago and is visible on my store 'evolution'
However, as I could not get the colors being part of the model, I have been searching for what makes colors can be printed?
In this case, I am very unsure about which side I have to look for, is it mine, and the application I am using, that is Blender 2.67 or is it on SW "s side that is for me kinda a black box.
You guys at SW must have seem my attempts to upload a series of models that have been immediately rejected. One problem I have is the rejection is not explained and simply there is a suggestion to look at the FAQ and other documents. This is not a good practice given that does not provide clues on what is wrong with a model?
Bear with me please, I am trying to understand the composition of a problem. Any explanation and solution will benefit to everybody.

Here it is.
I am in the process of exploring the process of 3D printing and what works and what does not work.
I have made a very simple model, with 3 materials, vertex mapped.
For each version I have tried different ways of thickness, smoothing.
for the 3 last models I could not get the model passing SW's checking entry level.

You've successfully uploaded your model 'Emblem Test Crown + Plate Metric 20 09', and we're running a few automated checks on it to

make sure your design can be 3D printed.
The 3D model Emblem Test Crown + Plate Metric 20 09 you recently uploaded didn't pass all our automated checks, so it's not yet ready

for 3D printing. Please take some time to review and revise your model before uploading it again.

The 3D model Emblem Test Crown + Plate Metric 20 08 you recently uploaded didn't pass all our automated checks, so it's not yet ready

for 3D printing. Please take some time to review and revise your model before uploading it again.

The 3D model Emblem Test Crown + Plate Metric 20 07 you recently uploaded didn't pass all our automated checks, so it's not yet ready

for 3D printing. Please take some time to review and revise your model before uploading it again.

and so on

What I am doing is to try to understand what are the points where a model does not pass your internal tests.
The model I am using is very simple but on each generation I have tried modeling Technics such as solidify, smoothing, multires and

subdivision surfaces. Each one of the modifier independently from the others.
I have made vertex groups for the materials. No image texture.

I have checked the normal at each step, the non manifold at each step.

Either there is a problem on SW side or on Blender side..

Can somebody suggest something here?
If needed I can provide the models.

Blender 267b r57344
win 7, nvidia gt 640 intel i3 8GO

Hi Yves,

you are correct, the information that SW gives you on rejection is not useful at all. But as you have read the forums you will know this already.

You will also know that if you have a problem you want SW to resolve you should send an email to service@shapeways.com - sometimes they will answer.

If you want the non-SW guys to help you need to make a model available, or some images or something.

The upload is not likely to be failing because of the colour data but for some other reason.

If the colour part of the upload is not working, then this is not normally a problem with SW but with how you have set up your model, and/or how you have exported it and/or how you upload it.

Well here is a step toward solution.
I just uploaded the same model in two versions, one is x3d the second is in VRML2
The x3d did not make it, the vrml2 is currently in advanced checking.
So I start to see where this can be solved.
I will contact the Blender guys to have their attention on this.
Before I do that, I read in the posts here that x3d has a problem with coding rgb? Do you know if this has been fixed or is it still ongoing?
I will post on the evolution of this issue
Thanks to you all guys
Yves
Below here are the two files, one in x3s the second in vrml2 and the blend file for those who can play with Blender.

For me, the first 2 files have no colour when I import them to Blender, so I imagine that the result is the same for SW.

For the Blender file, I see:
1. You are using Cycles. I do not know if this works with SW or not, perhaps someone else can tell you;
2. I see the colours on your model (with Cycles, not with Blender Render) but I cannot see how you have associated them with the vertexes;
3. The Vertex groups don't work for me;

Now I must say that I have Blender v2.64 and that I have never used Cycles, so what I say may not be useful. However, I think if you use Blender Render and get your model to show up ok in that it will probably upload to SW ok.

Blender is not a tool specifically for 3d modelling: much of its thrust is aimed at getting something that looks a certain way. This does not always help with uploadable models for 3d printing.

Good luck.

Have you tried looking at your files in a text editor ? The .x3d has some broken links to what appears to be blender-specific shader files
instead of color definitions in the Material fields. And your wrl, while containing vertex colors, has them all declared as either light gray
(.8 .8 .8 in RGB colorspace) or white (1 1 1). (Also try checking with a vrml/x3d viewer such as view3dscene - the geometry seems to be
a bit strange as well)

This recent post over in the Bugs&Feedback forum
specifically warns against using the "Cycles render" mode in Blender during vrml/x3d export, so this might explain part of your problem with
Blender.

Yeah. this is confirmation of what I find when looking at the vrml and x3d export files from my model
I never thought that selecting a rendering engine could modify the data structure at the export time.
I will remodel the project in Blender Internal to validate this and post the results
Yves