3D Printing with Autodesk 123D, Tinkercad, and MakerBot

Master the art of 3D printing with step-by-step tutorials and DIY projects

Are you ready to join the new industrial revolution? 3D Printing with Autodesk 123D, Tinkercad, and MakerBot reveals how to turn your ideas into physical products that you can use or sell! You'll learn how to operate powerful, free software from Autodesk and bring your creations to life with the MakerBot--a leading consumer printer--or an online service bureau.

Practical examples take you through the Design, Catch, Meshmixer, Tinkercad, Make, and CNC Utility apps, and the MakerBot Desktop. Fun projects, easy-to-follow instructions, and clear screenshots progress from installing the software to printing the design. Videos and digital files accompany this hands-on guide.

• Make your own creations with Design and Tinkercad
• Download editable, premade content
• Generate construction documents with the LayOut feature
• Create and edit a reality capture model with Catch
• Edit and mash up .stl files with Meshmixer
• Navigate the MakerBot Desktop
• Print the model on your own machine or with a service bureau

Paperback: 304 pages

Table of contents

Foreword

Chapter 1 Hello, Maker!

What is Making?
What, Exactly, is a Modeling Program?
Mesh vs. Solid Models So Tell Me About the Autodesk 123D Suite Already!
File Formats
What is a 3D Printer?
What is a CNC Machine?
What is a Maker Space?
So What's This Book About?
What You Need, Computer-Wise to Run the 123d Suite
Free and Pay Accounts
Download 123 Design Desktop and Print Utility
Sites to Check Out

Chapter 2 Getting Started with 123D Design

Open 123D Design Desktop
Sketch plane
Menu Bar
Sign In/Help
View Cube
Navigation Panel
Online Kits Window
Snap and Units
Units

Chapter 3 Model It! 123D Design Projects

How to Select and Erase
Studded Bangle Bracelet
Move, Rotate and Copy with the Box Gizmo
Sketching: Tools, Planes and Editing
Sketches vs. 2D Primitives
Sun Sculpture Wall Decoration
The Loft Tool
Combining Solids
Import a Picture File
Star Cookie Cutter
Jell-O Mold Tray
Peace Sign Pendant
Personalized Business Card
Pacman
Upload a File to Your 123D Account
Model vs. Project
Pinky
Insert a File into an Open File
Frog in a Tea Cup
Summary
Sites to Check Out

Chapter 4 Generate Construction Documents with LayOut

What is Autocad 360?
Getting Started with LayOut
The Design Screen Interface
Add Text and Dimensions to the Drawing
Layers
Download and Print
The Sheets Screen Interface
Summary
Sites to Check Out

Chapter 5 Capture It! with 123D Catch

What is 123D Catch?
What Can You Catch?
How to Photograph a Subject
Catch on the iPhone/iPad
The Catch Screen
Submit the Catch
Download the Capture
Troubleshooting the iPhone/iPad App
Open the Catch Web App
The Web App Interface
Edit and Repair with the Web App
Troubleshooting the Web App
The Catch Desktop App
The Marketplace
The Desktop App Interface
Make an Animation
Customize an Animation
Manually Stitch Photos into the Photoscene
Making and Deleting Reference Points
Scale the Capture
Add a Dimension Line
Troubleshooting the Desktop App
Export the Catch
Summary
Sites to Check Out

Chapter 6 Mix it Up! with 123D Meshmixer

The Interface
Import a Textured Donut Model
The Object Browser Box
Navigating the Workspace
Rotate the Donut with the Transform Tool
Analyze the Donut Model with the Inspector Tool
The Select Tool: Lassos and Brushes
Facegroups
Heal the Donut Model
Scale the Donut Model
Import the Chapter 5 Glass Head Capture to Make a Candy Jug
The Plane Cut Tool
The Plane Cut Tool's Slice Option
Select and Smooth
Change Face Texture with the Shader Tool
Make the Mesh Visible and Reduce Its Density
Make a Hole with the Stamp Tool
Make a Custom Stamp
Model a Bead
Flip the Front (Normal) and Use Allow Back Faces
Add and Extrude a Stamp to Pierce the Sphere
Make the Bead Hole with Boolean Difference
Add a Stencil to the Bead
Modify Pacman with Volume Brushes
Export the Model
Duplicate and Modify Pinky
The Object Browser Box Again
The Meshmix Parts Bin
Add a Parts Bin Arm to Pinky
Mirror the Parts Bin Arm
Duplicate the Original and Mirrored Arms
Combine the Pinky Models with their Arms
Summary
Sites to Check Out

Chapter 7 For the Kids! Tinkercad

The Interface
Tinker a Building Block
Tinker Basics: Drag, Delete, Select, Move and Save
Change the Block's Size with the Manipulators
Snap Parts Together with the Workplane
Make the Studs with the Cylinder Part
Make a Hole with the Hole Part and Grouping
Copy and Smart Duplicate
The Ruler
The Dashboard
Download Options
Tinker a Happy Stamp with the Align and Mirror Tools
Tinker a Happy Ring with an Imported SVG File
Tinker Other People's Models
Import an Stl File of a Phone Case and Customize It
Manage Large Files by Removing Memory History
Tinkercad as an Stl File Repairer
Shape Generators
Summary
Sites to Check Out

Chapter 8 Fabricate It! with 123D Make and the CNC Utility

Send a model to Make and make a cut pattern
Prepare a model for fabrication to a CNC machine
Send assembly parts to an online fabrication service

Chapter 9 Print It! with Meshmixer, Makerbot and Service Bureaus

How to generate stl and obj files from all apps
Send a file from Design, Catch, Make, and Meshmixer
Send a file from Tinkercad to a service bureau
Prepare the drawings: Inspector, Remesh
Discuss resolution, tolerances, overhangs, bridges, supports
Set up a Makerbot Replicator 2 (install extruder, filament, level the build plate, attach filament spool, attach to computer)
Discuss and download Makerware/Makerbot Desktop software
Discuss what Shapeways, Pocono, imaterialise are; differences
Discuss PLA filament: limitations/benefits, safety concerns, cost, how to store it
Troubleshoot