Hello,
I have purchased Moi3D after trial for a month. My graphic skills are zero but I like how it works and have been able to make some simple things.

I use for home 3d printing.

I have made this shape with curves and sweep. To 3d print it must be solid object. I can close ends using network tool. I was able to try blend with edges and it looked solid but it is not really enclosed object. Slicing program shows non-manifold and a surface does not show up.

I find often i get curves like this which cause me problems.

How do I properly close ends and make solid object?

thank you.

JM

Hi JM, can you please also post your original 3DM model file in it?

It will probably be easier to look for issues in your original model file rather than only examining the STL triangulated output.

One of the main tools to investigate holes in a model is to set up a shortcut that will highlight naked edges (edges in the model that only belong to one surface rather than being joined between 2 surfaces), which is described here:
http://moi3d.com/forum/index.php?webtag=MOI&msg=6051.2

When you select an object, if the object type indicator in the upper right corner of the screen says only "Surface" or "Joined srf" instead of reading "Solid" it means you have some naked edges somewhere in the model, which is preventing the model from being a watertight solid. The naked edge script can help to show you where those are at. Then you usually need to build some surfaces and join those in to make it a complete solid.

It can also be easier to try and keep your objects as solids from an earlier stage in modeling rather than only building things in separate surfaces, but for some shapes doing it at a surface level can be useful too, but you need to keep track of what areas are not finished.


- Michael

Thank you. I have corrected file upload.

I would like to be as simple as possible and avoid getting into these kinds of problems. Is there a way you would recommend to do this shape instead of how I have done it?

thank you

JM

Adding the 'starting' point file.

Hi JM,

> Is there a way you would recommend to do this shape instead of how I have done it?

Well, that shape is kind of squiggling and bending around in 3D a fair amount, it's harder to optimize things like that with simple construction steps.

It would be easier if the ending shapes were flat planar shapes though, those kinds of ends can be capped easily with the Construct > Planar command. So one thing might be to make those ending curves to be flat planar curves first before building stuff off of them, that would just make for a kind of easier to manage form.

There are a couple of different ways you can finish off your current shape though, one would be to draw in a couple of large planes near the ends and then trim off the shape to those planes so that you would then have planar openings at the end to cap with Construct > Planar.

Also another way without altering the end shape would be to draw in a connecting line here:




Then you'll have some 4 sided regions on the ends, each of those regions can be filled in with a surface using Construct > Network and then select all those surfaces and run Edit > Join to glue them together to make a finished watertight solid, I've attached a 3DM model file result doing that, it should probably work for printing now.

Just be aware that the ends are not flat, that spot where I show the line drawn in above is a sharp crease between 2 3D curving segments, so the ends that I created are somewhat bent surfaces and not totally flat surfaces.

Hope this helps!

- Michael

Also if your profile curve you sweep is planar, Sweep itself has an option in it to cap off the ends, that makes a solid right from the first sweep.

When your profile curves are not planar curves then you won't get automatic caps generated on the ends, you have to then form the end caps yourself basically.

- Michael