Hello everyone, Is anyone else wondering how much longer it will take before Shapeways supports the .3MF file format? They are in the consortium shaping this very file format and their competitor i.competitive service has been accepting these since November 2015! With Windows 3D Maker now connecting directly to i.competitive service, Shapeways is getting behind Maybe only .OBJ with .mtl support for color would do part of the trick, but VRML/X3D is just really outdated. Many of my exports just won't get through. I can fix them in Windows 3D Builder, but then what? only .3MF is a color supported export format for this app. Maybe the HP multi jet fusion printers that will soon support color will help Shapeways step up their game? I was just wondering if anybody else is looking forward to this too? regards a desperate color maker
Depends on how soon is "soon" when shapeways has not even shown test prints from the first generation of HP multijet fusion printers that will only print in black despite having been a test customer for something like a year. Without native printer support, .3MF looks more like an attempt of Microsoft to redefine a market they never had a significant role in.
What software are you using to author color models with? We do plan on supporting the 3mf format. That said I don't have a release date for you. Personally my interest in 3mf has been mostly around multi-material support.
Hello Alan, Thanks for the reply! I tried numerous apps with mixed results. Currently I use Blender. When I export to stl my models work fine. When I export to wrl/vrml/x3d there is always the issue or merging shells (though it should only add color info, same geometry). Windows 3D builder now has a solid auto repair function but only exports color in the 3mf format. Will Shapeways be added to the automated upload function within windows 3D builder? That would also be nice for the upcoming paint 3D in windows April update. Thanks!
You might try netfabb's repair service directly as I believe it offers more output options: https://service.netfabb.com/login.php Merging of color shells is usually a bit different then non color as the problem is a bit harder, ie when repairing the underlying mesh you must try and preserve the textures/color information as well. I don't have any information on the windows 3d builder product integration plans.
Thanks again Alan, That service says "fix your stls" so no color there. I think Shapeways 3mf support will do the trick since Microsoft is really upping its 3D auto fixing tools with every update. Hope to see it one day! Regards
You'd probably have to reimport the netfabb-fixed STL to Blender for texturing. Perhaps just seeing what netfabb wants to fix will be helpful already (I think shapeways' WRL import runs into problems when it has to merge two coincident faces that have different color)
The service says this: Use the Netfabb Online Service to repair STL, OBJ, 3MF or VRML files automatically. so I think it worth a try. I like what Microsoft is doing but I'm fairly certain they use Netfabb under the covers to repair the files. So a more immediate solution might be to try that service to repair your color meshes.
Thanks Alan, I contacted Netfabb and they do color, just not textures. They suggest uploading, fixing and then apply textures and then upload it to Shapeways. That means retexturing my entire model. from Microsoft 3D builder to i.competitive service works like a charm, however they have different thickness guidelines. so that means remodelling the entire model. I really hope the 3mf support will be done quickly, or at least OBJ with color/texture/.mtl support. Especially since the mentioned windows maker build is out now. thanks for all your support.
Agreed with the posts above that lack of support for 3mf is becoming a disadvantage for Shapeways, as this format is supported by the major competitors, and there are some very nice tools (eg, MS Paint3d) that use this format. Hope support can be added soon.
it's been over two years ago since this thread was started. the 3mf file was announced in 2015. Shapeways is a founding partner in the 3MF consortium, Full Color MJF 300/500 series is around the corner (also over a year, must be nice around that corner). The Polyjet color option (minimum price per part $99) is just live. Maybe now is the time to support the .3mf file? Microsoft pushed free .3mf design/check software in the meantime. Saves the Shapeways servers lots of trouble over VRML file processing I guess? Oh and Elon managed to land rockets in the mean time. Can't be that hard to support .3mf can it?
For what it's worth, two years ago I wrote up some C++ code that converts 3MF to binary STL, and back again: https://github.com/sjhalayka/3MF_to_Binary_STL https://github.com/sjhalayka/Binary_STL_to_3MF I wrote the C++ code in anticipation of 3MF support here at Shapeways. Oh well.