topic Re: How to Edit a STL in Inventor in Inventor Forum

How to Edit a STL in Inventor

jvn0606 — Wed, 29 Mar 2023 22:34:54 GMT

I have this stl from online and I am trying to edit it. I want to edit this cap that fits a coke bottle to have an end that will fit onto a water pump. But to do that I need to edit the file but it wont let me remove any of the file or make changes. So how do I edit this file?

I want to test a water pump I am working on for a water gun, but the water pump does not draw in water and only pushes it out. So I need to feed water into the housing by gravity.

Re: How to Edit a STL in Inventor

kacper.suchomski — Wed, 29 Mar 2023 23:26:58 GMT

You can edit this with the surface modeling tools.
But the geometry is so simple that you can do it faster simply by measuring the dimensions and classically modeling this geometry in a new file.

Re: How to Edit a STL in Inventor

johnsonshiue — Thu, 30 Mar 2023 01:56:25 GMT

Hi! Inventor has very limited mesh workflows. It can be used as a reference to create new body geometry. Or, you may create drawing views from the mesh. I suggest you look into Fusion 360. It has a dedicated Mesh Design environment where many mesh handling tools (repair, scale, simplify, combine, and so on) are available. Also, you may convert the mesh back to the body geometry.

Many thanks!

Re: How to Edit a STL in Inventor

JDMather — Thu, 30 Mar 2023 12:29:54 GMT

@jvn0606

The geometry is rubbish.

There is not a single curve in the geometry - not even one.

If you examine the geometry it is all straight lines and faceted planar triangles - no curves.

You will not get anywhere with this in Fusion 360 either.

Use it only as reference in creating proper native Inventor Geometry. Fortunately it is relatively simple geometry.

Re: How to Edit a STL in Inventor

WillL84 — Thu, 30 Mar 2023 18:10:17 GMT

There's no curves because it's an STL. You do know what an STL is right? It's literally a mesh of triangles. That's the point, the OP wants to convert the STL into an IPT.

There IS workflow to do it in Fusion but you can't do it with the free version.

Re: How to Edit a STL in Inventor

kacper.suchomski — Thu, 30 Mar 2023 19:01:20 GMT

Just do it manually. It will take you 10 minutes.

Re: How to Edit a STL in Inventor

JDMather — Thu, 30 Mar 2023 19:53:07 GMT

@WillL84 wrote:

1. You do know what an STL is right?

2. There IS workflow to do it in Fusion but you can't do it with the free version.

@WillL84

1. As a matter of fact, I do have some familiarity with using >>stl files<<.

2. Let's see you convert this mesh with Fusion 360 (I have some familiarity with that workflow as well).

Fortunately the geometry is relatively simple and as @kacper.suchomski it can be modeled with much better results and faster than trying to convert mesh. The GIGO principle applies here.

Re: How to Edit a STL in Inventor

WillL84 — Fri, 31 Mar 2023 11:32:46 GMT

Looks like you can't (easily) anymore since the Fusion team decided to remove the "Mesh to BREP" feature.

Re: How to Edit a STL in Inventor

JDMather — Fri, 31 Mar 2023 11:36:21 GMT

@WillL84

You do know what brep is, right?

Convert stl mesh to brep is still in Fusion 360.

Re: How to Edit a STL in Inventor

jvn0606 — Fri, 31 Mar 2023 11:46:05 GMT

would say that this is a solution, but that would require me to be good at 3d modeling well screws. I wouldn't be able to replicate this with my skills. I fixed this by taking it to tinker cad, adding a cylinder and setting it as a hole. I made it remove a large part of the cap, with that I could save it and then open it in Inventor. I just then added back the top of the cap and since its something I added I could edit that part.

Re: How to Edit a STL in Inventor

JDMather — Fri, 31 Mar 2023 12:49:03 GMT

@jvn0606 wrote:

...but that would require me to be good at 3d modeling well screws. I wouldn't be able to replicate this with my skills.

@jvn0606

That is what this forum is all about. Model as best you can and then ask one of the experts here with help modeling the screw thread. That is how I learned Inventor.

If you are on subscription and a faceted solid body is OK for your needs - the check http://apps.autodesk.com

for the AutodeskMeshEnabler to covert mesh to solid body.

@jvn0606

Edit the dimensions in Sketch1 in Attached file as needed and then we can discuss creating the threads...

Re: How to Edit a STL in Inventor

JDMather — Sat, 01 Apr 2023 12:55:59 GMT

@WillL84 wrote:

There IS workflow to do it in Fusion but you can't do it with the free version.

@WillL84

If you do a section view of the geometry in Fusion 360 (or in Inventor or in MeshMixer) you will see that there are ambiguous surfaces left over from constructing the geometry that would confuse Fusion. There is no Easy Button solution for editing poor quality triangulated mesh.