Is there a way to convert triangle-mesh STLs to quads?

[Anonymous]

I am using Fusion 360 to design stuff for 3d printing. I understand that Fusion 360 cannot convert the triangle meshes. Is there any tool, 3rd party or Autodesk, that can take my triangle mesh and convert to a quad?

I've downloaded meshlab and converted a model to quads. Worked fine. However, if I export from meshlab, the only file type that Fusion 360 seems to be able to import is an STL. I find when I do that, everything is back to triangles! 

Any help is much appreciated. Thanks. 

[jeff_strater]

If you have quads in Meshlab, can you export obj format?  Fusion will import obj with quads, and these can be converted to TSplines, if you want that.

Jeff Strater (Fusion development)

[Anonymous]

Just wanted to mention when in Base Feature mode or Sculpt environment, you can convert an imported triangular mesh to an editable body or surface, by going to Modify > Mesh > Mesh to Brep.  But performance will go down with many faces, maxing out at 10,000 faces.

Jesse

[Anonymous]

Even as an OBJ, it is imported with triangles. I even decimated the number of vertecies (to make sure it was actually exporting with the filters applied) and it still has triangles.

[Anonymous]

This is helpful. It would still be nice to get it as t-splines so I can sculpt. This is better than nothing though! 

[Anonymous]

I haven't worked with mesh stuff a lot yet, but did to a successful tri to quad conversion with Meshlab in the past.  In general though it's often tough to import a mesh convert to Tsplines and get a nice and editable Tspline mesh.  Usually a better approach is to create a Tspline mesh that is conformed to the imported mesh.  There are various ways to do this depending on your geometry.

Good luck!

Jesse

[Anonymous]

I saw a bit of the tsplint conforming to mesh in a demonstration video. Any idea if there is a way to do a large area all at once? The demonstration I saw would take hours to do a large mesh. 

[Anonymous]

Two main methods I know to get quality results are illustrated in the following threads:

http://forums.autodesk.com/t5/design-and-documentation/foot-insole-modelling/td-p/5715117

http://forums.autodesk.com/t5/design-and-documentation/object-snap-trouble-gt-suggested-improvements...

The second listed method I have not tried much myself yet, but can attest to the first method working very well. 

Hope that helps a little.

Jesse

[Anonymous]

Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Sure thing 🙂  Be sure to vote for Orthometrix's idea that would make this whole business a lot faster, here: http://forums.autodesk.com/t5/fusion-360-ideastation-request-a/cross-section-curves/idc-p/5752999#M7...
Jesse

[Anonymous]

Done

[Aadithya01]

hey use the opensource software called as FreeCAD . It's amazing it can convert even triangular meshes to solid objects . 

There are youtube videos available which shows the procedure to convert riangular meshes to solid objects in FreeCAD .

[veganagev]

you can use zbrushes zremesher .   it  converts/remeshes  into quads...

[Anonymous]

Triangles were ultimately settled upon over quads because the 3 points of a triangle are always planar. The define a single plane no matter what. The math just works.

Quads ultimately have an instability in that an error that creeps in on any of the points can lead to a non planar twisted surface ... or four possible planes from which one must be chosen .... or a point that lies off plane from the other three.

[TrippyLighting]

@Anonymous What in the world are you talking about ?

i believe in the 27 years that I've been involved in computer graphics and CAD I've not heard such nonsense.

[veganagev]

thats because you work in cad and not 3d modeling. cad uses nurbs and modelers use polygons. you should know this.

[TrippyLighting]

I do know that. My experience include s 15 years spent with subdivision surface modelers.These all work with quad meshes for a reason. Not with triangle meshes!

[Anonymous]

"Quads at the assets creation level, and triangles at the engine level."

The video card only takes triangles as it is the fastest most efficient way to render. File formats intended for the fastest throughout of the video card ultimately break any higher level prinatives down to triangles.

Quads may be the native higher surface element and even the way the data is stored but on the way to the gfx card it's going to be almost always triangles.

Making two triangles from a quad on the way down is easy. Making a quad from two triangle to reverse engineer on the way up is not so easy....for example which of the many neighboring triangles to a particular triangle is the one that reconstitutes the original quad? There nothing in an STL file to tell you that.