3D Print Designs

[elisfkc]

I don't know how many people are interested in this, but there is a way to make your coasters in NL come to life (and hopefully a easier way to do so in TPS). The way to do so is though a 3D printer. It may sound expensive, but there are a some cheaper options ($100's rather than $1,000+).  You can look them up on Google by searching cheap 3d printer, looking at http://www.3dprinter.net/directory/personal-3d-printers, and many other ways. Some are pre-assembled for you, some aren't assembled, although the cheapest method is DIY. The one I'm personally looking into, since I've been using my school's about $10,000 one, is found http://portabee3dprinter.com/shop/portabee-3d-printer-complete-kit-uassembled/. Now, for the instructions on how to do this.

1. Save your NL track.
2. Download the NL Construction Kit.
3. Once installed, unlock it from trial version by using Name: No_Limits-Free@Construction.Kit and code: m13959424-d11964450-QpmVtrT.
4. Open up your track in the Construction Kit, note that the station and all Props are not brought over.
5. Hit modeler, create model, then save model as, making sure that the Ground, track, and supports are are checkmarked.
6. After exporting as a .3ds, use a software that can open .3ds programs to open your track (most of these can save to the file format for the printer, but just double check. I personally used my school's Autodesk 3DS Max, since it was available to me for free.)
7. Put something in for the station, whether you bring in a .3ds version of a station (as shown in the one on the bottom of the picture) or just draw a block to connect the empty part of the track (as shown in the top)
8. Save the file as an .stl format (usually this is in the export part of the software).
9. Open up your 3D printer's software, or if it doesn't have one that comes with it, use an open-source one like http://slic3r.org/.
10. Make sure to scale down your track, as right now it is about actual size! You may or may not be able to do this in the 3D printer's software, the one I used could. However, make sure not to scale it down too much, or else the supports will NOT exist, and your ride cannot be taken out of the modeling support once printed, if it can print (an example is the bottom one in the picture, as it is stuck in the modeling support).
11. Double check the last step and print away.


Note: Printing something as complex as a roller coaster will take many hours, anywhere from 9+. Mine took 12 hours for the top one, and 10 for the bottom, although if I would have done the bottom one correct, it would have taken 23 hours and 45 minutes.

Hopefully TPS makes this process easier and better when it comes out by either exporting to .3ds itself or exporting to .stl, while also including everything in the park.

If your only going to print one or two designs, I would suggest not buying one and instead, sending your design to a 3d printing company, as they can also get the color right for you and such. Autodesk has a list of providers for them http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/pc/item?id=13779273&siteID=123112, but I'm sure there are plenty others, including some of the companies that make the printers, that are probably also cheaper. You will still more than likely have to put the file in a .stl format. If you want to print more than a few, it will be worth the money and time to just buy your own, since these companies charge a significant amount more than it costs them to do this. It also is pretty fun and cool to actually see a 3d printer work, and printing something you made on the computer  .
When buying, a lot of the bigger companies will let you send them a model and print it for you for free so that you can see the quality you are getting.

[gavt1976]

^
I change your post for you, because it looks better in one post instead of 2 posts ie double posting and to keep your thread ok as it is really, but i do like what you have say in the posts.

[Krankin4]

I don't get it. All that just  and 12 hrs print a pic?

[elisfkc]

I don't get it. All that just  and 12 hrs print a pic?

I'm guessing that's sarcasm. If not, it's not the picture, it's the two blue models in the picture that it's printing.

[puppyjonathan]

Oh, so (no offense) why do we have a 3D printer thread, it's nice but a little off topic. Unless we can build scale models out of this

[elisfkc]

Oh, so (no offense) why do we have a 3D printer thread, it's nice but a little off topic. Unless we can build scale models out of this

You can print scale models off, as shown in the picture. However the scaling down has to be an insane amount, around 1 inch in the model to 1.008*10^-5 inches in the print, because as stated earlier, the .stl you bring over is the actual size off the model, unless you scale it down before you make it an .stl (which looking back, may have been why the 3d printer's software kept crashing...). Another note, it will take it a while to write each layer's toolpaths, because, once again, a roller coaster is very complex.

[Krankin4]

No sarcasm intended. I just don't understand. If you know what the scale is say one unit is 1 ft. or 1 unit is 0.3048 meters then why can't you scale it in a modeling program or in the rendering program and render it? As I said I model in SU (Sketchup) and render in Kerkythea. Both are free and render time was about 1 min. on the box fan. Granted I didn't go way into setting shadows and lighting but still would take no where near 12 hrs.

This is a Kerkythea render.


http://www.flickr.com/photos/pardon_my_chardon/5770877259/

[elisfkc]

^ I find it easier to show people what you spent so much time on the computer doing by showing them something real. I also believe it helps to find any problems you have in your design in real life to see any mistakes you have made. You can also lay out an entire park in real life, provided that the ratios of scaling down are all the same. Again, as I said at the beginning of this topic, I don't know how many people are interested in this, but I figured that if anyone would be interested in 3D printing their designs, this would be extremely helpful.

[Krankin4]

Hmm... what about using it for making a park map?

[elisfkc]

Hmm... what about using it for making a park map?

It would work, but I would make sure that your size ratios are similar and, before you start, make sure that your biggest ride fits in the printer's printing space and that your smallest one actually will come out, you don't want it to not be able to stand at all (which will happen if the supports are too small for the printer).

[Wolfhunt]

I had actually wondered if you could use the in game models of the flat rides to do something similiar with the 3D printers. If we are able to export the files from TPS it would be a lot of fun creating them as an actual object, even breaking them down to their parts and creating a working model (with a bit of creativity obviously).

[elisfkc]

I had actually wondered if you could use the in game models of the flat rides to do something similiar with the 3D printers. If we are able to export the files from TPS it would be a lot of fun creating them as an actual object, even breaking them down to their parts and creating a working model (with a bit of creativity obviously).

Totally possible, as long as you have a format and software that converts the file to .stl, which includes .3ds files.

[puppyjonathan]

That would be interesting to make scale models from the game in real life

[elisfkc]

That would be interesting to make scale models from the game in real life

That's what I'm hoping. The models in the picture on the first post are directly from No Limits, although they had  go through multiple other software to make into 3D print-ready file. What I'm hoping for is that TPS would make this a lot easier.

[C-A_99]

Has anyone here messed with K'nex Screamin' Serpent or Rippin' Rocket sets when they were around? I built some customs out of them, though never at the quality nor scale of some of the models at SSCoasters, but I think the possibility of being able to 3D print a coaster model that actually runs would be quite interesting.

That said, with the detail level of some of the 3D prints above, I'd rather stick to 2D renders and paper printouts. =p Just my opinion of it, though 3D printing tech is improving very rapidly and can give us much better models in the near future if not now.