Inventor Export To STL or Send to 3D Print Explodes Into Individual Components

[Anonymous]

I exported a design from work hoping to 3D print it from home since I have a printer.  The Send to 3D Print Service seemed to open in Fusion 360 as well as Meshmixer but was broken out into the individual constituents (100-200 objects) rather than all together as it was designed in Inventor.  And I couldn't even get the direct export to load in Fusion 360 with it consuming nearly all of my 64GB of RAM then dropping down to 2 or 3GB then consuming it all again and dropping until I ended the process 30 minutes in.

Admittedly, this is a pretty complex model but the STL is only 350MB and I have an OK system at home (12 core threadripper, 64GB RAM, GeForce 1080, NVMe SSD).  What's the best way for me to export this from inventor so that I can use meshmixer at home to manipulate into a 3D print friendly version (make solid, reduce poly, etc)?  Is there a way to perform these meshmixer functions from within inventor? Can someone describe the difference between directly exporting as an STL vs the "Send to 3D Print Service"?

kelly.young has edited your subject line for clarity: STL Files

[JDMather]

I have always used File>Save As>Save Copy as *.stl and then opened in MeshMixer.

No issues here with this workflow.

Can you attach your original *.ipt file here?

[Anonymous]

Unfortunately I cannot due to contractual obligations with the client.

[johnsonshiue]

Hi! Send to Printer workflow was supposed to automate the process of exporting mesh and importing to printer software. This process can break down from time to time depending on configuration. Most people simply export the Inventor model as STL or OBJ file. You need to make sure the export unit is in sync with your printer unit. Otherwise, the scale will be off (STL and OBJ are unitless formats).

Many thanks!

[Xun.Zhang]

Hi Steven,

As JD and Johnson said, there is no much differences between send to 3D printer and export to STL, the only clarification is about the quality of STL (mesh). There are many options during export stl, if you want it a better choice, the default setting is enough for 3D printing.

[JDMather]

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@Anonymous wrote:
Unfortunately I cannot due to contractual obligations with the client.

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You should be able to create a simple dummy file that exhibits the same behavior as your proprietary data.

[kelly.young]

Hello @Anonymous I see that you are visiting as a new member to the Inventor Forum.
Welcome to the Autodesk Community!

It sounds like you are working with a Part.ipt that is a multi body solid?

If so can you use Combine to make it only one solid?

If it is an assembly you could try to Shrinkwrap the part. 

I've always found that Export works best for me when sending to .stl for my 3D printer.

Make sure your units are set otherwise your parts will be at 1/10th scale and you'll scratch your head at your tiny parts like I did.

Please select the Accept as Solution button if a post solves your issue or answers your question.

[jeffsteiger6735]

Late to the party as I recently got a 3D printer.....

I've found the default export to STL is NOT sufficient for 3D printing. I have a simple part model (square plate with a counterbored hole) and when I opened in Cura (4.4) the holes showed as octagons.

I've re-exported using the "high" resolution and it now appears to be correct.