HP Designjet 3D Printer series - Manual (Page 27)

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Selecting the scale of your STL file:
Before you process a part for printing, you can change the size of the part within the build
envelope. Every part has a pre-defined size within the STL file. After you have opened the file
you can change the size of the part produced from the STL file by changing the scale. The scale
always relates to the original STL file size definition.
For example: a cube that is defined as 2 X 2 X 2 can be built to be 4 X 4 X 4 by simply
changing the scale to 2.0. If after changing the scale to 2.0, you decide that a size of 3 X 3 X 3
would be preferred, change the scale to 1.5 - the scale relates to the original size of 2.0, NOT
the resulting 4.0 from the first scale change.
Click within the scale input box to type a scale of your choice.
Selecting the orientation of your STL file:
The Orientation tab has an expanded preview window. It provides options for viewing a part,
measuring a part, orienting a part, processing a part and viewing the layers of a part. How a
part is oriented in the preview window will determine how the part is oriented when it prints.
Orientation impacts build speed, part strength, surface finish and material consumption.
Orientation can also affect the ability of HP Designjet 3D Software Solution to repair any
problems with the STL file.
You can choose to auto orient your part, which allows HP Designjet 3D Software Solution to
determine the best orientation for the part for the fastest build time and least material usage, or
you can manually change the orientation of your part.
Orientation Considerations:
• Build Speed - Closely related to material use. A lesser amount of supports will allow for a
faster build speed.
Another factor affecting build speed is the axis orientation. The printer can build faster
across the X-Y plane than it can along the Z axis. Orienting a part so that it is shorter within
the modeling envelope will produce a quicker build.
• Part Strength - A model is stronger within a layer than it is across layers. Depending
upon what features you want your part to demonstrate, you may need to orient your part to
have its greatest strength across a specific area. For example a tab that needs to be
pressed would be weakest if you are applying pressure across layers.
• Surface Finish - Much like orienting for strength, how the part is oriented will determine
how the surface finish will look and allow the printer to provide the smoothest finish for a
specific area. For example, if building a cylinder, orienting the cylinder upright will have a
smoother surface finish than building it on its side.
• STL File Repair - It is possible for an STL file to have errors while appearing to be trouble
free. If the STL file contains errors, HP Designjet 3D Software Solution may have problems
processing the file. HP Designjet 3D Software Solution has the ability to automatically
correct some STL file errors. How the part is oriented can impact this automated repair
function.