http://www.shapeways.com/forum/index.php Shapeways: Bring your creativity to life in 3D http://www.shapeways.com/forum/index.php?t=rview&goto=58364&th=11948#msg_58364
I have a kit of 26 parts that I'd like to make modular, that is to allow customers to buy all the parts or specific parts in the kit.

Right now I am using 'design configurations' in my CAD software, but creating all the sub-kits and variations is VERY labor intensive. Is there a way to create this on the Shapeways side?

For reference, here is the kit:

http://www.shapeways.com/model/820929/echo-herc-v5-the-full- monty.html?key=2d42e57ee60c947dc818eb04425659fa

Any help is greatly appreciated...

Thanks,

Steve]]> echotransformer 2012-12-11T00:37:42-00:00 http://www.shapeways.com/forum/index.php?t=rview&goto=58377&th=11948#msg_58377 You'll have to upload each of them as a separate file.]]> stonysmith 2012-12-11T04:39:24-00:00 http://www.shapeways.com/forum/index.php?t=rview&goto=58386&th=11948#msg_58386
If you're looking to automate this, take a look at OpenSCAD: http://www.openscad.org/

It's an open-source, scriptable tool. You should be able to create a script that loads the required parts (maybe even by parsing a simple configuration file), combining them and writing a new .STL file.

That might save you some time?

Bart]]> bartv 2012-12-11T10:30:28-00:00 http://www.shapeways.com/forum/index.php?t=rview&goto=58594&th=11948#msg_58594

bartv wrote on Tue, 11 December 2012 10:30

Stony is right - we don't offer this functionality at this time. If you're looking to automate this, take a look at OpenSCAD: http://www.openscad.org/ It's an open-source, scriptable tool. You should be able to create a script that loads the required parts (maybe even by parsing a simple configuration file), combining them and writing a new .STL file. That might save you some time? Bart

@Bart: Solidworks is automating the configuration nicely, but maybe this scriptable tool can help manage the STLs...breaking down a large multi-body file into individual kits that can be uploaded...thanks, I'll look into it. Still, I really wish Shapeways had a feature like what I described above (not that this isn't the coolest service on the web these days...you guys rawk!)
]]> echotransformer 2012-12-14T01:39:00-00:00 http://www.shapeways.com/forum/index.php?t=rview&goto=59214&th=11948#msg_59214 The intension was similar. Let the user choose from a subet of X items and create one new part out of it.

http://stlcreator.mac-au.eu/indexb.html

There's a php engine in the background which generates a new stl where all the parts were connected via a sprue.
The system can be configured to deal with new items of my production.

Unfortunately the upload interface stopped working after the first trials and I never got it running again.
(currently it fails with another failure maybe the interface has been changed)
[Correction: I get a Mail that i have uploaded a stl fiile but the model doesn't become visible in the my models page
that could also be caused by a failure on my side. If I upload the stl file per hand it's normally ok]

To be honest I think this topic is very difficult to solve on the shop owner side. There's a request in the shapeways' feedback platform to deal with this topic but so far the effort seems to high ...

Woody64

]]> woody64 2012-12-26T10:41:45-00:00 http://www.shapeways.com/forum/index.php?t=rview&goto=59234&th=11948#msg_59234
Here's hoping there's a strong enough business case in the near future...I know my sales would increase!]]> echotransformer 2012-12-26T17:00:02-00:00