3D print a design

You can bring your model into the Manufacture workspace to complete the additive manufacturing processing within Fusion, or prepare a solid or mesh body to be 3D printed directly from an external application.

Switch to the Manufacture workspace

1. On the Design workspace toolbar, click Utilities > Make > 3D Print .

   The 3D Print dialog displays.

2. In the 3D Print dialog, choose the Preparation Type of Manufacturing.

3. In the confirmation message, click Switch.

   Fusion switches from the Design workspace to the Manufacture workspace, with the Additive tab active. The Setup dialog and the Machine Library are automatically displayed.

4. In the Machine Library, select the 3D printer you want to use, or choose a generic Autodesk placeholder machine associated with a selected technology, then click Select.

   Note: When you select a machine from the library, you are also choosing the specific additive manufacturing technology that the machine supports. From this point on, all further options available in the current setup are narrowed down by the technology you have opted for.

   Print Setting Library opens.

5. In the Print Setting Library, select the print setting you want to use, then click Select.

   Additive Arrange dialog opens.

6. In the Additive Arrange dialog, select the components you want to arrange in the print build, choose one of the available 2D or 3D Arrangement Types and adjust the Spacing settings, then click OK.

Export to a 3MF, STL, or OBJ file

1. On the Design workspace toolbar, click Utilities > Make > 3D Print .

   The 3D Print dialog displays.

2. In the 3D Print dialog, choose the Preparation Type of Export.

3. With Object active, in the canvas or the Browser, click the component or body to export.

4. Select a file Format:

   • 3MF: Exports a 3D Manufacturing Format file (3MF), which is an XML-based file specifically designed for additive manufacturing. It describes the properties of a 3D surface, including its vertices, triangular faces, units, colors, and textures.
   • STL (Binary): Exports a binary format stereolithography file (STL), which is a unitless description of a triangulated 3D surface. Often used in scanning, reverse engineering, and rapid prototyping workflows.
   • STL (ASCII): Exports an ASCII format stereolithography file (STL), which is a unitless description of a triangulated 3D surface. Often used in scanning, reverse engineering, and rapid prototyping workflows.
   • OBJ: Exports an OBJ file, which is a unitless file that describes a 3D surface, similar to STL, except it can also reference color and texture information.

5. (Optional) Select a Unit Type.

6. (Optional) To display a preview of the converted mesh on the canvas, select the Preview checkbox.

7. Expand the Refinement Settings and select the level of Refinement. Optionally, adjust the individual settings:

   • Surface Deviation: Specify maximum distance between the surface of the original body and the surface of the mesh body.
   • Normal Deviation: Specify maximum angle between the normal vectors of each face on the mesh body.
   • Maximum Edge Length: Specify maximum length of any face edge on the mesh body.
   • Aspect Ratio: Specify ratio between the height and width of each face on the mesh body.

8. Click OK. The Save As dialog displays where you can specify a location to save to.

Export and send to an installed 3D printing application

1. On the Design workspace toolbar, click Utilities > Make > 3D Print .

   The 3D Print dialog displays.

2. In the 3D Print dialog, choose the Preparation Type of Print Utility.

3. With Object active, in the canvas or the Browser, click the component or body to export.

4. Select the Application to which the model should be exported:

   • From the dropdown list of 3d print utilities that Fusion has found, select the application that you want to use.
   • If your preferred application is not listed, select Custom. Then, click and specify the location of the custom print utility on your computer.

5. Select a file Format:

   • 3MF: Exports a 3D Manufacturing Format file (3MF), which is an XML-based file specifically designed for additive manufacturing. It describes the properties of a 3D surface, including its vertices, triangular faces, units, colors, and textures.
   • STL (Binary): Exports a binary format stereolithography file (STL), which is a unitless description of a triangulated 3D surface. Often used in scanning, reverse engineering, and rapid prototyping workflows.
   • STL (ASCII): Exports an ASCII format stereolithography file (STL), which is a unitless description of a triangulated 3D surface. Often used in scanning, reverse engineering, and rapid prototyping workflows.
   • OBJ: Exports an OBJ file, which is a unitless file that describes a 3D surface, similar to STL, except it can also reference color and texture information.

6. (Optional) Select a Unit Type.

7. (Optional) To display a preview of the converted mesh on the canvas, select the Preview checkbox.

8. Expand the Refinement Settings and select the level of Refinement. Optionally, adjust the individual settings:

   • Surface Deviation: Specify maximum distance between the surface of the original body and the surface of the mesh body.
   • Normal Deviation: Specify maximum angle between the normal vectors of each face on the mesh body.
   • Maximum Edge Length: Specify maximum length of any face edge on the mesh body.
   • Aspect Ratio: Specify ratio between the height and width of each face on the mesh body.

9. Click OK. The file opens in the Application you selected.