I have a sketchup file that a student created as a model for a presentation we are giving in December. The team wants to print it on a Flashforge Dreamer printer. We have tried to export it out of sketchup as a .obj file and put in to meshmixer to prepare for print and when we do we get a flat picture. When we export it as a .obj file into the flashforge printer software, flashprint, the file is to small to print. In sketchup the student created the model that should be 4" cubed but when exported it ends up looking like 1 cm cubed I am attaching the sketcup model file for reference. Let me know if it would be helpful as well.
Mini prototype.skp (261.7 KB)
Your model doesn’t have any solids. Try this one.
Mini prototype.skp (180.1 KB)
Your model has multiple issues that make it impossible to 3D print.
For starters, most SketchUp objects won’t print correctly unless they are what SketchUp calls “solids”. A solid in SU must be a Group or Component, but your model contains only loose geometry. So step 1 is to create Groups or Components from your two major parts (take care to exclude the base rectangle, which you don’t want to print!).
Then get an extension such as ThomThom’s solid inspector 2, select one of the Components and run the inspector. It finds multiple flaws such as stray edges, internal faces, reversed faces etc. - but the good news is that they are all fixable! After fixing your parts are SU solids and should be printable.
I would suggest that you study the things that SI2 detects and learn why they are defects so that you can avoid them in future models you create for 3D printing.
Edit: regarding the size, be aware that many file formats used by 3D printers don’t have ability to pass units and assume your model is in mm or cm. You may have to set units in SU and/or during the import to get the right size in the printer software.
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