STL Viewers and Editors

By Terry Wohlers

Now that RP is increasing in popularity, users of CAD solid modeling are producing a growing number of STL files. While most CAD systems can output STL files, most cannot read them. Consequently, CAD users are unable review their STL files before they send them to an RP machine for part production. Sometimes, STL files contain flaws and require repair.

The lack of STL viewing and editing capabilities has spawned the development of a new group of software: Products and utilities that permit you to read, view, and edit STL files. Several have become available over the past couple of years. The following products and companies are listed at random.

SolidView for Windows. SolidView enables you to view, measure, and edit STL files. It also permits you to view a model in a number of shaded and wireframe forms, as well as rotate, scale, and position it. I found the product exceptionally fast and easy to use. Price: $1,995.

Solid Concepts Inc., 28231 Avenue Crocker, Unit #10, Valencia, California 91355, (805) 257-9300, Fax (805) 257-9311

Rapid Prototyping Module (RPM). This product enables you to view, render, detect problems such overlapping polygons, reverse normals, detect and repair holes, cut models to create two STL files, and more. RPM is available as a stand-along product, as well as integrated into Surfacer, Imageware's flagship product. RPM stand-alone (UNIX): $12,000. RPM stand-alone (Windows NT and Windows 3.1): $7,995.

Imageware, 313 N. First Street, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48103, (313) 994-7300, Fax (313) 994-7303

Rapid Editor. This product checks, reports, and corrects problems in STL models by fixing gaps, illegal intersections, and topological inconsistencies. The software runs on UNIX workstations from SGI, IBM, Sun, and HP. Price: $8,000.

DeskArtes Oy, Kalevankatu 3 A, 00100 Helsinki, Finland, 358-0-644335, Fax 358-0-644330, DA@deskartes.fi

TopologyBuilder-RP. This product permits you to view STL files and correct flaws such as gaps, overlaps, and other common defects that can reduce model quality or prevent you from building an RP part. The product was co-developed by XOX Corporation and Stratasys, Inc. (Eden Prairie, MN), makers of the Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) rapid prototyping process. TopologyBuilder-RP is based on XOX's SHAPES geometry engine, as well as extensive customer experience with STL files at Stratasys. (Not yet released.)

XOX Corporation, Two Appletree Square, Suite 334, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55425, (612) 854-3087, Fax (612) 854-6337

Pogo 3.0. This product permits you to view, render, rotate, scale, move, and copy STL files. It also combines multiple ASCII and binary STL files into a single file. Pogo 3.0 converts STL to DXF and OBJ, and vice versa. The software is a 32-bit application that runs under Windows 3.1, Windows NT and Windows 95. Price: $3,500

POGO International, Inc., 7607 Eastmark Drive, Suite 242, College Station, Texas 77840, (800) TRY-POGO, Fax (409) 696-2143

MAGICS QM. This package includes STL file visualization and permits you to rotate, scale, mirror, and translate. It also enables you to measure in 2D and 3D and evaluate cross sections. The Build Time Estimator produces quotations. The software runs on 486, Pentium, Silicon Graphics, and IBM RS-6000 computers. Price: $995. A free evaluation version is available at their anonymous ftp site: ftp://alpha.materialise.be/pub/QM

Materialise N.V., Kapeldreef 60, 3001 Leuven, Belgium, 32 16 298 364, Fax 32 16 298 319

Facet Pro by Cramer Coil & Transformer Corp. This product is an ADS application that works with AutoCAD Designer 1.0 and 1.2, as well as AME 2.1. Facet Pro permits you to read binary STL files into AutoCAD and output both binary and ASCII STL files. Versions are available for Release 12 (DOS and Windows) and Release 13 (DOS, Windows and Windows NT). Price: $495

MasterGraphics, 20875 Crossroad Circle, Waukesha, Wisconsin 53186, (414) 785-9495, Fax (414) 785-1856

You can also read STL files into AutoCAD using AutoLISP. Jim Ten Hoven of Kohler Company (Kohler, Wisconsin) wrote a short AutoLISP routine a few years ago that reads ASCII STL files into AutoCAD. The AutoLISP code was published in the November 1992 issue of CADENCE in the article titled STL Is the Key to Rapid Prototyping.