NAUTA User Manual · 1 3D View: it is the main component of NAUTA+® user interface. It shows a 3D representation of the objects to be built and allows advanced interaction with them

3D SOFTWARE PARAMETRIC EDITOR FOR 3D PRINTING

NAUTA®

User ManualV e r s i o n 1 . 3 . 0

N A U T A +

N A U T A f o r X F A B

© Copyright DWS Srl

February 2015

All rights reserved

NAUTA+® USER MANUAL

These pages provide a quick

reference which aims:

To help you understand the general

concepts of 3D modelling.

To show you the basics of NAUTA+®

interface and workflow.

To introduce you to NAUTA+®

advanced functions.

Note: NAUTA+® Version: 1.3.0

Rev. 1.0

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Contents - License. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 - License Activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 - License Transfer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 - License Destroy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 - Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

1 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

• System Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

2 User Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

• Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10• Objects and Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

- Object Browser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 - Object Cloning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

• 3D View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 - Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 - View Interaction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 - View Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 - Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 - Manipulators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

• Machines and Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18• Slices View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19• Minimum Workflow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20• Importing and Saving Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

- Build Platform Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

3 Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

- Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22• Tool List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

- Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 - Explode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 - Positioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 - Auto Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 - Add Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 - Auto Base . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 - Matrix Copy (*) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 - Polar Copy (*) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 - Mirror Copy (*) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

4 Appendix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

- Shortcuts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

License Activation

At first launch, NAUTA+® will prompt you for license activation with the

following form (fig.1):

1. Insert the Activation Key in the Activation Key field. If the Activation Key entered does not have the correct format, the field is highlighted in red, otherwise it is shown in green and the license data (Name, Company, License status), if necessary, press the “Refresh” button to update data..

If you do not have an Activation Key please skip to step 3.

2. If your license is ready to be activated your data will appear on Licensee

box and Status field will show that a license activation is available. In this case you can simply press “Activate” button to activate license and

start using NAUTA+®.

3. If you do not have an Activation Key, you can start an assessment test of the software for 4 days by pressing the “Try” button.

To obtain an Activation Key (if you have the right) you can register at: http://licensing.dwssystems.com/registration.aspx (*).

Note: The activated license type determines the activation or

deactivation of certain functions described in the following

sections.

4 | License

License

To use NAUTA+® you need toactivatealicenseonyourcomputer.NAUTA+®licenseisbasedon: •anActivation Key, •aRegistration ID •andaLicense Key.

• Activation Key is a code that certifies

you have the rights to use NAUTA+®

(it is similar to a serial number). You

will receive the Activation Key the

moment you purchase a new DWS

machine or a NAUTA+® license and

you need to activate it.

• Registration ID is a code that

uniquely identifies the computer

where NAUTA+® is installed.

• License Key is a code that activates

NAUTA+® license, so that you can use

NAUTA+® on a specific computer.

Once you have activated a license, the correspondent Activation Key is associated with your Registration ID so that it is not possible to activate a licence on another computer having the same Activation Key.

fig. 1

(*) If you have purchased an XFAB printer,

register at:

https://customers.dwssystems.com/.

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License Transfer

If you want to transfer the license from a computer A to a

computer B click on Main Menu Help\License to show the

license dialog (fig. 3) on the computer A.

Note: The Activation Key field may already be compiled, otherwise enter your Activation Key.

1. Press “Transfer” button on the license dialog (on computer A). NAUTA+® will be closed and license will be deactivated on

computer A.

2. Launch NAUTA+® on computer B. The activation form will

appair (fig. 1) 3. Insert the Activation Key in the field provided on the activation

window (Fig. 1).4. If your license has been properly transferred from computer A,

your data will appear Licensee box and Status field will show that a license is available. In this case you can simply press

“Activate” button to activate license and start using NAUTA+®

on computer B.

If you do not have an internet connection on the computer

where NAUTA+® is installed, when you press “Activate” button

you will be prompted to proceed using offline procedure. If you continue, the following form will appear (fig.2):

1. Take note of the Registration ID.

2. Using an other device where Internet connection is enabled, go to the following link: http://licensing.dwssystems.com/

MyAccount_Activation.aspx.

3. Insert your Activation Key and the Registration ID in the

proper fields.4. Press “Get License Key” button. Then your License Key will be

produced

5. Just copy the License Key in the proper field of the offline activation form (fig.2) and press “Activate” button to activate

your NAUTA+® license.

Note: The activated license type determines the activation

or deactivation of certain functions described in the

following sections.

fig. 3

fig. 2

6 | Enicaperficaedsustanondinisesnonimetdolore

License Destroy

You may want to deactivate a license on a computer because you do not have anymore the right to use it.

Click on Main Menu Help\License to show the license form

(fig. 5). Note: The Activation Key field may already be compiled,

otherwise enter your Activation Key.

Press “Destroy” button on the license form. NAUTA+® will be

then closed and license deactivated.

If you do not have an internet connection on the computer, you will be prompted to proceed using offline procedure.If you continue, a Destroy Code will be shown (you can also

save it on a text file) and after that NAUTA+® will be closed

and license deactivated.

Please send the destroy code to DWS to certify you have

removed the license from your computer.

Note: Remember to transfer or destroy license before

uninstalling NAUTA+® from a computer.

If you do not have an internet connection on the computer

A and on computer B, when you press “Transfer” button you

will be prompted to proceed using offline procedure. If you continue, the following form will appear (fig.4):

1. Launch NAUTA+® on computer B, the activation form will appear (fig. 1)

2. Take note of Registration ID that will appear in the

activation form.

3. Insert the Registration ID in the field “Target Registration ID” on computer A and press “Transfer” button.

4. The license key for computer B will appear (you can also

save it on a text file).5. Proceed with the offline activation procedure on

computer A (as described above) using the generated license key.

fig. 5

fig. 4

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NAUTA+NAUTA for

XFABTranslate, rotate, uniform scale

Snaps to grid

Object info:

Explode:

Positioning:

Set object position, rotation and scaling

Orient objects to predefined directions

Move object to platform zero and center it

Align object along predefined directions

Automatic Supporting:

Automatically create supports with optimized distribution

Advanced parameters Manual editing of single supports

Supports editing:

Create tree-shaped supports

Add/remove support branches

Advanced parameters Automatic base:

Adjust base thickness and overhang

Create lattice structure

Several base shapes available

Replication:

Create rectangular copies Create circular copies Create mirrored copies Allow copies of supports

Functions

This section gives a summary table of the functions found in

the various software versions.

NAUTA+NAUTA for

XFAB

File formats

NAUTA 3D (.nauta) DWS machine format (.fictor)

Stereolithography binary and ascii (.stl)

Rhino 3D (.3dm)

Polygon file format (.ply)

3D Studio (.3ds)

Alias wavefront (.obj)

Lightwave 3D (.lwo)

Direct X (.x)

DWS laser path (.mkr)

SLC (.slc)

Visualization

Pan, Orbit, Zoom, Zoom window, Look at point, Zoom extent (each one is interactive)

Orthogonal/Perspective views

Point, Wireframe, Faceted, Silhouette and Shaded

Stereo view View snapshot to file Real time slicing preview Object browser

Selection

Group / object picking Select All / Inverse / By name

Selection rectangle

Tools

Parametric tools with automatic recalculation

Undo/redo Copy/Paste/Instancing Measurement units (mm/inches)

Transformations:

8 | Overview

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1 Overview

NAUTA+® is a parametric 3D editor that allows users to prepare objects for optimal 3D printing with all DWS machines and materials.

NAUTA+® can read several common 3D file formats allowing interoperability with almost any 3D modeling

software. With NAUTA+®, it is possible to easily place and duplicate objects on the Platform and to apply

advanced tools like manual and automatic supporting.

Tools inside NAUTA+® are parametric so that you can modify the result of a tool at any time. For example

you can change support thickness, position, etc. to adapt an object to be printed in different materials.

The resulting objects can be sent to FICTOR® machine controller by using DWS proprietary file format.

FICTOR® machine controller can connect to all DWS machines and produce high quality 3D objects.

FICTOR® can read files from NAUTA+® but also several common file formats (STL, SLC, etc.) and directly control

the 3D printer by just specifying the building material (anyway a wide variety of custom settings are possible).

It performs on-the-fly calculations (slicing, compensations, etc.). This means that, while the machine is building a layer, it also

performs calculations for next layers, so it distributes calculations over building time avoiding additional waits.

System RequirementsWINDOWS MAC

Operating system:

Windows Vista or higher (64 bit recommended). OSX 10.8.5 (Mountain Lion) or higher.

CPU:

Any CPU (newer CPUs for complex files are recommended). Any CPU (newer CPUs for complex files are recommended).

RAM:

4 GB (8 GB or higher for complex files recommended). 4 GB (8 GB or higher for complex files recommended).

Disk space:

100 MB recommended. 100 MB recommended.

Graphic card: OpenGL compatible card with 1 GB video memory (2 GB or

higher for complex files recommended).

PNVIDIA or AMD graphics processors for complex files

recommended..

Monitor:

1280x1024 pixels or higher, 32-bit colour depth.

The use of a multi-button mouse with scroll wheel is recommended.

Internet connection for the installation and validation of the software is recommended.

10 | UserInterface

Description

MainelementsofNAUTA+®userinterfaceareshowninthepicturebelow. Theinterfaceiscenteredonthe3DView 1 thatgraphicallyshowstheobjectstobeprinted.

2 UserInterface

1

9

11

5

2 4 16

3

6

10

12 13 14 15

8

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Main elements of NAUTA+® user interface are:

1 3D View: it is the main component of NAUTA+® user

interface. It shows a 3D representation of the objects to

be built and allows advanced interaction with them. In

3D View the Machine Platform is represented by a grid

9 . Grid spacing is 1 mm by default. Building volume is

also represented.

2 Main Menu: most of the functionality of NAUTA+® can

be activated from this menu

3 Command Bar: all commands can be activated from

this bar.

4 View Bar: switches between view point and rendering

modes.

5 Navigation Bar: activates several view navigation and

selection modes.

6 View Box: shows a DWS logo in a view that matches the

Platform axis orientation.

7 Properties Panel (dockable): shows active command

parameters.

8 Object Browser (dockable): shows objects on Platform

in a hierarchical view.

9 Machine Platform: represents the Machine Platform

with the realistic dimensions.

10 Objects: the objects to be printed. Selected objects (on

which user can apply commands) are highlighted in

yellow.

11 Slice View: simulates the solid construction process,

enables you to display a processing layer of the same

at a specified height.12 Status Bar: shows quick information or requests

depending on user actions.

13 Machine Selection: allows you to select the type of

machine to use. Machine selection is used to correctly

resize the grid 9 in the 3D View 1 .

14 Material Selection: allows you to select the type of

material to use. All the range of DWS materials is used

to correctly calculate object weight.15 Units: allows you to select the unit of measure to use in

the project.16 Platform: allows you to activate or disable the platform

view.

Note:dockablepanels(like 7 )canberesizedbydraggingtheirbordersandcanbedockedbydraggingthepaneltitlebarneartheborderwhereitneedstobeattached.

Slices

12 | ObjectsandGroups

Objects and Groups

NAUTA+®canvisualizeandedittheobjectstobebuilt.

The following object representations are available in this release:

Mesh: the 3D object is made of several small planar faces (polygons or triangles) that represent the surface of the object

itself. This is the most common representation for objects in 3D printing. For example objects coming from popular STL files

are mesh objects.

Mesh

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From this panel user can:

• Select objects: selection works in the same way as file

selection in Windows or Mac OS. Multiple selection is

allowed.

• Change object names: click on a selected object name

and edit the name. Press ENTER to finish.

• Show/Hide objects: toggle check box on the left of the

object name.

Object CloningSelected objects can be copied by using standard

Copy&Paste (CTRL+C, CTRL+V) or Cut&Paste (CTRL+X,

CTRL+V) as in common editors.

Copied objects are placed next to the original object so

that they are not overlapping.

Besides cloning, NAUTA+® allows one important alternative

called instancing.

Instances appear as copies but have some nice advantages:

• Only one object is saved on files, as only position is saved

for each instance. This provides less file size.

• Visualization of instances is very performing even for

complex objects.

• Instancing is supported also by FICTOR®. FICTOR®

calculation is very performing with instancing.

Note: All instances of selected objects are shown in light

yellow.

Slices: the 3D object is represented by curves derived from

horizontal slices. These objects are typically calculated for

building process or they come from SLC or MKR files.

Slice objects can be moved (or rotated) only along XY plane.

Objects can be groupedtogethersothatclickingononeobjectofthegroup,allobjectswillbeselected.

To group objects just select them and click on Main Menu

Edit\Groups\Group (or pressing CTRL+G).

For the inverse operation (ungroup) click on Main Menu

Edit\Groups\Ungroup (or pressing CTRL+U).

NAUTA+® implements Object Selection mode (from

Navigation Bar 5 ) to select single objects even if they are

part of a group.

This is very useful when using tools like Auto Support that

produces grouped supports to select and modifies single

supports.

To switch back to normal selection just press the select

button on Navigation Bar or press ESC.

Object Browser All objects are listed in the Object Browser panel 8 .

Visualization is hierarchical so grouped objects are indented.

14 | 3DView

3D View

Traditionally3DViewsaremodeledbyusingapinholecameraconcept.

Camera has a position (called eye point) that represents the

eye of the user who sees the working area. Then it also has

a focus point (often called look at point) that is the point

where the camera is directed.

There are two types of cameras in NAUTA+®.

• Parallel cameras (also called orthogonal cameras):

with these cameras identical objects look the same size,

regardless their distance from eye point.

• Perspective cameras: they provide the illusion of depth

making objects farther away look smaller.

Views

NAUTA+® uses these cameras to visualize the objects to be

printed through the following standard views:

• Perspective View: it is a general view where a

perspective camera can be used to see any point of the

Platform from any direction

• Top, Bottom, Front, Back, Left, Right Views: they

are parallel cameras with a fixed view direction

to see objects along one of main axis direction.

Activation: click on one of the view point buttons in the

View Bar 4 or go to Main Menu View\View Point.

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View Interaction

NAUTA+®allowstointeractwithacameratoobtaintheneededviewpointforobjectinspection.

Available interactions are:

• Orbit (rotation): moves the camera position around the

look at point. This function allows to rotate the view to

see objects from different view points.

- Activation: right-click on the 3D View 1 (or alter-

natively left click on the 3D View after activating the

orbit button on the Navigation Bar 5 ) and drag the

mouse. Orbit is not available on parallel views.

- Note: camera can be rotated by steps of 45° using

keyboard arrows.

• Pan (translation): moves the camera position and the

look at point in the same time. This function allows to

translate the view.

- Activation on perspective view: SHIFT+Right-

click on the 3D View 1 (or alternatively left click on

the 3D View after activating the pan button on the

Navigation Bar) and drag the mouse

- Activation on parallel views: Right-click on the 3D

View and drag the mouse.

• Zoom: moves the camera position toward the look at

point and back. The zoom is centered under the mouse.

- Activation: CTRL+Right-click on the 3D View 1 (or

alternatively left click on the 3D View after activating

the zoom button on the Navigation Bar) and drag the

mouse up and down.

- Zoom can be also obtained by scrolling mouse

wheel. In this case zoom is not continuous but it is

applied with a step.

• Zoom Window: applies a pan and a zoom so that the

portion of the 3D View inside a given rectangular window

becomes the whole visible area.

- Activation: CTRL+SHIFT+Right-click on the 3D

View 1 (or alternatively left click on the 3D View

after activated the zoom window button on the

Navigation Bar 5 ) and drag the mouse to define

the zoom window area.

• Look at Point: sets the look at point of the camera to a

point on an object in the Platform and moves the eye

point to align it to the surface normal direction.

- Activation: activate the look at point mode on the

Navigation Bar 5 and click on an object where you

want to set the look at point.• Zoom Extent: applies a pan and a zoom so that all

objects in the Platform will be visible.

- Activation: Click on zoom extent button on the

Navigation Bar 5 .

• Zoom Selected: applies a pan and a zoom so that all

selected objects in the Platform will be visible

- Activation: click on zoom selected button on the

Navigation Bar 5 .

16 | 3DView

View Mode

ObjectsinNAUTA+®canbevisualizedinseveraldifferentmodes:

• Point: shows only points used to represent the objects

surfaces.

• Wireframe: shows the structure of the objects by

visualizing only the borders of the faces (polygons) that

represent the object surfaces.

• Faceted: combinatin of the Shaded and Wireframe

views.

• Silhouette: the same as the Shaded view with the

addition of the perimeter edges of the object.

• Shaded: the objects are viewed with shading.

- Activation: select the needed mode from the right-

most menu of the View Bar 4 or from Main Menu

View\View Mode.

Note: object surfaces in NAUTA+® are represented with

two sides. The inner side is visualized in red.

For a perfect building, objects need to be water tight, this

means that all surfaces must be closed so that you cannot

see inside the object from any point of view.

If objects in NAUTA+® appear red (totally or partially), you

are seeing an inner surface so the object is not correctly

designed.

Selection

MostoperationsinNAUTA+®areappliedtoselectedobjects.

Object selection can be performed in different ways.

Note: make sure that Select or Object Select functions are

active on the Navigation Bar 9 .

• Picking: left click on the object to select it. All other

objects will be deselected. If CTRL key is pressed object

selection is toggled without deselecting other objects.

• Rectangle selection: left click on an area without

objects. Dragging the mouse a rectangle will appear.

If you dragged it to the left, all objects partially inside

the rectangle will be selected at mouse release. If

you dragged it to the right all objects totally inside the

rectangle will be selected.

Note: pressing ALT key rectangle selection is activated

even clicking on an object, instead of standard

picking.

• Select All: clicking on Select All from Main Menu Edit\

Select\ All (or CTRL+A) all objects will be selected.

• Select None: clicking on Main Menu Edit\Select\None

or pressing ESC all objects will be deselected.

• Invert Selection: clicking on Main Menu Edit\Select\

Invert all selected objects will be deselected and all

deselected objects will be selected.

• Find: all objects whose name partially or totally match

the given one will be selected.

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Manipulators

Manipulatorsareelementsofthe3D View 1 thataresensibletomouse.

User can drag these elements to produce a modification of the Platform.

Main manipulators are Translation (fig.1), Rotation (fig.2) and Scale (fig.3) .

Then, each NAUTA+® command can have its own manipulator.

• Translation Manipulator is automatically activated by selecting one or more objects (or from Main Menu Transform\

Translate or pressing T). It allows to interactively move the selected objects on XY plane (horizontal plane) by dragging

them using left mouse button.

Alternatively, it allows to move selected objects along X, Y, Z axis directions by dragging red, green or blue arrows

respectively.

Note: selected objects can be moved by 1 unit (grid square, that is typically 1mm) pressing CTRL+arrow keys.

• Rotation Manipulator can be activated from Main Menu Transform\Rotate (or pressing R).

It allows interactive object rotation around X, Y, Z axis by dragging the relative yellow circle.

• Scale Manipulator an be activated from Main Menu Transform\Scale (or pressing S).

It allows interactive object scaling by dragging the blue sphere.

fig. 1

fig. 3fig. 2

18 | MachinesandMaterials

Machines and Materials

On the right part of the status bar two menus allow to select the Machine 13 and the Material 14 to be used for building the

objects. It is also possible to select the unit of measure type 15 to be used in the project.

The menus feature a range of DWS machines and materials.; the lists displayed will be different depending on the type of

license enabled.

In this release, Machine selection is used to correctly resize the grid in 3D View that represents the Machine Platform and

gives the user a reference for object positioning.

The Materials selection is used to estimate realistic object weights.

13 14 15

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Slices View

Slice View 11 simulates the object construction process, enables you to display a processing layer of the same at a

specified height.

By using the slider bar or the numeric input user can set the height of the layer to be visualized.

User can interact with this view in the same way as main 3D View.

The list found beside the scroll bar allows you to switch between the following views:

• Show lower part: display of the objects from 0 to the height set (fig.1);

• Show upper part: display of the objects from the height set to the maximum height of the same (fig.2);

• Show slice: display of the object contours to the height set (fig.3).

11

fig. 1 fig. 2 fig. 3

20 | MinimumWorkflow

Importing and Saving FilesThe supported file formats for importing objects into

NAUTA+®:

• NAUTA 3D (.nauta)

• DWS Machine format (.fictor)

• Stereolithography binary and ascii (.stl)

• Rhino 3D (.3dm). Only mesh objects are supported.

• Polygon file format (.ply)

• 3D Studio (.3ds)

• Alias wavefront (.obj)

• Lightwave 3D (.lwo)

• Direct X (.x)

• DWS laser path (.mkr)

• SLC (.slc)

.nauta file format is the default application format. It

is the most complete format and includes all information

needed to reactivate tools and to edit objects at any time.

.fictor format is the format for sending information to

FICTOR for building.

For backward compatibility, MKR files (coming from

previous DWS software) are supported for importing.

Note: Objects from SLC and MKR files can be inspected,

duplicated, positioned on the Platform and then built,

but cannot be supported at the moment.

They cannot be rotated or moved along Z axis because

these files contain slicing data that have to remain horizontal

and at the same height of the original.

To add/import objects into NAUTA+® you have several

options:

1. Menu File\Open…: loads the selected file removing

previous objects from the Platform

2. Menu File\Reload: reloads last loaded file removing

previous objects from the Platform

3. Menu File\Add…: loads the selected file leaving previous

objects in the Platform

4. Add… (Command Toolbar 3 .): same as point 2

Minimum Workflow1. Select the Machine to define the available Platform size

2. Select the Material if you want to estimate the weight

of built objects

3. Import one or more file into NAUTA+®

4. Position the objects (rotate and translate)

5. Add supports by using Auto Support or Add Support

tool

6. Add a base by using Auto Base tool

7. Save build file (.fictor) to send to FICTOR by using Build

button on the bottom toolbar

8. Save .nauta file for future editing

9. Open the .fictor file by using FICTOR, choose the

Material and start building the object

-V:1.3.0 | 21

Build Platform Properties

NAUTA+® allows to store additional information on .nauta

files.

Information includes:

• The name of the build Platform

• A description of the objects

• The author of the file

• Additional Notes about the file

• A revision number. It is automatically incremented at

each save but it can be edited

These information are accessible from Main Menu 2 File\

Properties.

5. Menu File: menu last items refer to the list of recently used files. By clicking on the name of the file, user can

open the file.

6. Drag a file into 3D View: same as point 3.

7. Drag a file into 3D View holding CTRL: same as point 1.

8. Double click on a .nauta or .fictor file icon: starts a new

Nauta application and loads the file.

9. Right-click on NAUTA+® icon (if pinned on application

bar): click on one of recently used file, starts a new

NAUTA+® application and loads the file.

To save a file in .nauta format you

have the following options:

• Menu 2 File\Save: saves Platform

by using last used .nauta file name

(or ask at the first save). After each

save,therevisionnumberofthefile

isincremented.

• Menu File\Save As…: saves Platform by asking a .nauta

file name

• Menu File\Save Incremental: saves Platform by using

last used file name but adding a three digit number to

the file name. Number is incremented each time this

function is called.

• Menu File\Export Selection: saves selected objects by

asking a .nauta file name

Additionally, it is possible to save an image of the current

content of the 3D View. Allowed image formats are: .png,

.bmp, .jpeg, .tiff.

Finally, to send a file to FICTOR® for

building just press Build button on the

Command Bar 3 .

3

22 | Tools

3 Tools

Introduction

ToolsareNAUTA+® commandsthattypicallycanbeusedtoeditobjectsinthePlatformortoproducenewobjects.

They can be applied by using the Command Bar 3 that, by default, is on

the bottom of the 3D View or using the Main Menu 2 Tools\Commands.

Command Bar can include drop-down menus to group similar tools. These

menus can be identified by a small arrow on the top right of a tool button.

To activate the drop-down menu you can just left-click on the command

button and hold down the mouse button for a while.

Tools have a list of input and output parameters. Input parameters can

be changed to produce the needed result by using the Properties panel

7 (docked, by default, on the right side of the main window) or using

Manipulators.

3

2

12

7

-V:1.3.0 | 23

Tools are applied to selected objects. If no object is selected, user is prompted for the selection through a violet bar on the

bottom of the main window (called Status Bar 12 ).

If tool allows the selection of more than

one object, user will confirm the end of the

selection by pressing RETURN key.

The input bar can also appears to prompt

user for a required parameter.

Tools are parametric. This means that

when modifying a parameter of the

tool in the Properties panel or through

a Manipulator, the tool output is

automatically updated.

User can avoid automatic update by

unchecking the Auto Update check box.

To force a recalculation user can press

Update button in the Properties panel

7 . It is useful when Auto Update is not

active or when the input objects have

been modified.

When pressing ESC or deselecting objects, the active tool is closed, but, when selecting an object created by a specific tool,

the tool itself is then reactivated and it is possible to modify its parameters again.

Note: .nauta file format includes information about tools so, when opening a .nauta file, user can still modify tool results

through their parameters. This is not possible using .fictor file format because this format is only used for printing with

FICTOR®.

12

Tool List

3

Information Shows several information related to selected objects.

Remarks: an important application of this tool is the estimation of material consumption. Since the building process has no

material waste the needed material can be properly estimated by using object weight from this tool (in this case the tool

should be applied to the final object including supports).

Thelistofparameterspresentarelistedbelow:

Geometry:

• Vertices: number of vertices.

• Faces: number of faces (applicable only for mesh objects).

Size:

• Width, Depth, Height: axis-aligned bounding box size (width, depth, height).

Properties:

• Volume: total volume in mm3.

• Surface Area: total surface area in mm2.

• Weight: total weight in grams (considering selected material).

Slices:

• Max Layer Count: number of layers (it refers to the object having the maximum number of layers among the selected

objects). Applicable only for objects from SLC or MKR files.

• Average thickness: average layer thickness. Applicable only for objects from SLC or MKR files).

3

ExplodeDivides separated shells of a single object into different objects.

Remarks: this tool is useful, for example, to obtain separated objects coming from an STL file.

STL file format cannot manage more than one object so importing an STL file into NAUTA+® produces exactly one object

even if it is composed by separated parts.

24 | ToolList

= IN - = OUT

-V:1.3.0 | 25

3

PositioningAccurately positions selected objects on the Platform. It allows to set position, rotation and scaling, as well as objects aligning.


Position:

• Position: current absolute position (x, y, z) of the selected objects. Reference point is the bottom-center of objects

bounding box.

Rotation:

• Rotation: current absolute rotation angle (around x, around y, around z) of the selected objects. Reference point

is the bottom-center of objects bounding box.

Scale:

• Width, Length, Height: absolute axis-aligned dimensions of selected objects. Changes in one of this values

result in an object scaling. Values are linked together and proportional to grant there is no deformation on the object.

- Scaling center is the bottom-center of objects bounding box.

• Scale: scale factor for selected objects. A value equal to 1.0 sets the objects to their original size.

Orientation:

• Orient to XY: rotates the selected object so that the normal direction of a point in the object surface is

perpendicular to XY plane.

- Procedure: push Orient to XY button and pick a point of the surface you want to be aligned to XY plane.

• Orient to XZ: similar to Orient to XY but it refers to XZ plane.

• Orient to YZ: similar to Orient to XY but it refers to YZ plane.

Alignment:

• Move to Ground: moves selected objects along Z so that their bottom part have Z = 0.

Having objects on the ground level is needed for a correct building.

• Center on Platform: moves selected objects along XY plane so that their bounding box center lies on axis origin.

• Align (*): aligns selected object along predefined directions.

- Procedure: select alignment direction from combo box and press Apply button.

(*) Features not available in the NAUTA for XFAB version.

= IN - = OUT

26 | ToolList

3

Auto Support

Automatically creates supports for the selected objects.

Remarks: when possible, supports are distributed as a uniform grid.

It is possible to create complex support structures by positioning objects one above the other. Therefore, supposing applying

Auto Support to a topmost object, Auto Support will generate supports connecting the topmost object to the underlying ones.


• Supports: number of automatically generated supports.

Positioning:

• Min. Z (*): distance of the object from ground floor.

Size:

• Contact size: diameter of the contract point between the support and object.

• Base size: size of the base referring to support side inclination. Zero means that the support is cylindrical.

Distribution:

• Max distance: max distance between supports.

• Max inclination: max inclination of the surfaces where support will be created. If, in some points, surface is inclined

more than this value, support will not be generated on those points.

• Border distance: distance between supports and borders (or steps) of the supported objects. Small values avoid

deformations of the object during building.

• Rotation: rotation of the support grid around Z axis.

Details:

• Contact strength (contact point) (*): sets how deep the support penetrates the object.

• Break point strength (contact point) (*): sets the strength (diameter) of the break point. Enabled only if Break point option is active.

• Max. branches (*): when possible the tool tries to generate tree-shaped supports with a number of branches less

or equal this value.

• Max. branch inclination (*): max inclination of support branches. This tool tries to recalculate support shape to fit this value.

IMPORTANT NOTE: automatically generated supports are grouped together. So, by using Object Selection mode you can

select and edit single support and Add Support tool parameters (see below) will be active on Properties panel.

By using standard selection you can select the whole support group so Auto Support tool parameters will be active.

= IN - = OUT


-V:1.3.0 | 27

3

Add Support

Creates a new support for the selected object.

This tool allows the creation of single straight supports or tree-shaped supports, with or without break point for easy support

removal after building.

- Procedure: select the object to be supported, activate the tool, click and drag a point on the object to be supported

(see manipulators section below). The first click generates a straight support, then next clicks will insert a new branch

to the support.

- Note: to quickly insert a sequence of supports, just insert one support, press <spacebar> (this closes current tool and

re-apply last one), so reinsert the second support and so on. You can then insert a quick sequence of supports

just by doing click, <spacebar>, click, <spacebar>, click, etc.

Remarks: the tool automatically calculates the base point of the support. So base point can lie on the Platform (at Z=0) or

can lean on the object itself (auto-supported point) or on another object.

If base point leans on an object a break point is generated (when required) to facilitate support removal.


Size:

• Contact size: diameter of the contract point between the support and object.

• Base size (%): size of the base referring to support side inclination. Zero means that the support is cylindrical.

• Base size (mm): support base diameter.

• Center trunk: centers the trunk in the middle (barycenter) of contact points

• Align trunk: makes truck perpendicular to XY plane

• Add branches: add branches to the support.

- Procedure: push Add branches button, click and drag on the object to be supported, a new branch is added at each

click, press RETURN to finish insertion.

• Remove branches: remove branches from the support.

- Procedure: push Remove branches button, click on the violet manipulator of the contact points you want to remove

(repeat the procedure if needed), press RETURN to finish.

Details:

• Round (contact point): creates rounded contact points (those points that intersect the supported object)

= IN - = OUT

28 | ToolList

Manipulators:

• Contact Points: a point manipulator is shown for each

contact point. The point is linked to the object surface so

it is projected to the object during dragging.

- Note: it is possible to drag the point only on the

part of the object whose surface normal is looking

downwards

• Middle Point: allows to move the trunk in the XY plane

(adapting branches).

- Note: all branches intersect the trunk under this point.

• Base Point: moves the base point but maintaining the

Middle Point in the same position (so trunk changes its

inclination).

• Break point (contact point): creates contact point with

a break point for easy support removal after building.

• Contact strength (contact point): sets how deep the

support penetrates the object

• Break point strength (contact point): sets the

strength (diameter) of break point. Enabled only if Break point option is active.

• Max branches inclination (*): max inclination of

support branches. Tools try to recalculate support shape

to fit this value. If it is not possible for some branches,

those branches disappear.

• Maximize branch angle (*): if active, all branches

have the same inclination (that is Max branches inclination)

so there will be different points where branches intersect

support trunk. If not active, all branches intersect the trunk

in the same point.

Visualization:

• Show Contours Plot: shows a horizontal slice of the

object at the point where the active contact point is.

- Important: this is useful to identify minimum points of

the object to be supported during insertion. The slice

contour becomes very small when near a minimum

point. Minimum points are the points where a support

is absolutely needed.

• Contact Point Spacer: shows a horizontal circle with

a radius of the given value. This is useful to easily position

supports at a fixed distance between each other.


Contact point manipulator

Base point manipulator

Middle point manipulator

-V:1.3.0 | 29

3

Auto Base

Creates a base for selected supported objects or for selected supports.

Remarks: Auto Base can be applied several times to different selections of supports to obtain custom bases.


• Total base area: total area of the base of the supports.

Base:

• Shape:

- No Base (*): the base is not created. It can be used to create only the lattice between supports (see below).

- Circular (*): creates a circular base at minimum radius under supports.

- Rectangular (*): creates a rectangular base of minimum size under supports.

- Blobs (*): creates small circular bases, one for each support.

- Support Hull: creates a polygon-shaped base of minimum area.

- Minimum Coverage (*): creates a base with a as small as possible area so that every support is connected with

some neighboring supports.

• Thickness: thickness (height) of the base.

• Overhang: distance between base edge and support edge (fig. 1).

• Allow Clustering (*): allows supports grouping (supports are

clustered on the basis of the distance from each other) and

produces one separate base for each group.

Note: Works with Minimum Coverage base type only.

• Maximum Clustering Distance (*): if Allow Clustering is active,

supports are grouped and the base can connect two supports of the

group if their distance is less then this value. Distance between supports

of different clusters is greater than this value.

• Change Support: changes supports under which this tool has to create the base.

- Procedure: push Change Supports button, reselect support for base creation (you can use all types of selection),

press RETURN to finish.

Overhang

fig. 1

= IN - = OUT


30 | ToolList

Lattice:

• Create lattice: create a lattice structure between selected supports so that the lattice has the minimum size.

• Use cross elements: creates lattice elements as crosses.

• Max Support Distance (*): lattice structure is created between two supports only if their distance is less than or equal

to this value.

• Element strength (*): thickness of the lattice elements (as percent of support’s thickness).

• Element inclination (*): inclination of the lattice elements.

• Starting height (*): lattice structure starts from this heigh.

• Ending height (*): lattice structure at least ends at this height

3

Matrix Copy (*) Duplicates selected objects and positions the copies on the XY plane to fit a rectangular area.

Remarks: duplicated objects are instances of selected objects so result is very optimized for file size and calculation speed.

It works with support and support base objects.

You can use Object Selection to modify a single copied object.


• Total copies: total number of copies given from the values inserted in the Copies along X and Copies along Y

parameters.

Copies:

• Copies along X: number of copies along X direction.

• Copies along Y: number of copies along Y.

Positioning:

• Step along X: spacing between copies along X.

• Step along Y: spacing between copies along Y.

• Shift along X: even rows are shifted by this value.

• Shift along Y: even columns are shifted by this value.

• Rotation: each copy is rotated around Z axis by this value plus the rotation of its predecessor.

Manipulators:

• Corner of the rectangle where copies lie. Moving this point results in a change on Step along X and Step along Y

parameters (number of copies remains the same).

= IN - = OUT


-V:1.3.0 | 31

3

Polar Copy (*)

Duplicates selected objects and positions the copies along one or more concentric circles (lying on the XY plane)



You can use Object Selection to modify a single copied object.


• Total copies: total number of copies given from the values inserted in the Polar copies and Radial copies parameters.

Copies:

• Polar copies: number of polar copies (i.e. copies along the circle).

• Radial copies: number of copies in radial direction (i.e. number of concentric circles).

Positioning:

• End Angle: circular sector covered by copies.

• Radial step: distance between copies in radial direction (i.e. distance between concentric circles).

• Radial Shift: translation in radial direction applied to alternate.

• Rotation: each copy is rotated around Z axis by this value plus the rotation of its predecessor.

Manipulators:

• Center of the circle where copies lie. The distance between this point and original objects defines the radius or the

circle.

= IN - = OUT


32 | Enicaperficaedsustanondinisesnonimetdolore

3

Mirror Copy (*)

Duplicates selected objects and mirrors the copies.



You can use object selection to modify a single copied object.


Mirror plane:

• Rotation: rotation of the mirror plane around Z axis. Mirror plane is always perpendicular to XY plane.

• Offset: translation of the mirror plane origin from the center of the bounding box of original objects.

• Mirror Left: moves the mirror plane on the left of selected objects (perpendicular to X axis).

• Mirror Right: moves the mirror plane on the right of selected objects (perpendicular to X axis).

• Mirror Front: moves the mirror plane on the front of selected objects (perpendicular to Y axis).

• Mirror Back: moves the mirror plane on the back of selected objects (perpendicular to Y axis).

Manipulators:

• Origin of the mirror plane: allows to move the mirror plane interactively.

It is linked to Mirror plane offset parameter.

• Orientation of the mirror plane: allows to rotate mirror plane around Z axis.

It is linked to Mirror plane rotation parameter.


= IN - = OUT

-V:1.3.0 | 33

34 | Appendix

4 Appendix

ShortcutsNew . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+N

Open file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+O

Save . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+S

Undo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+Z

Redo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+Y

Cut selected objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+X

Copy selected objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+C

Copy Instance of selected objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .CTRL+I

Paste copied objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+V

Delete selected objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Del

Select all objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+A

Deselect all objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ESC

Find objects by name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+F

Group selected objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+G

Ungroup selected objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+U

Full screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ALT+SHIFT+Return

Repeat last command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . <Space>

Activate Translation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . T

Activate Rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . R

Activate Scale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . S

Translate selected objects by 1 unit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+arrow keys

Rotate left/right the camera by 45° . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Left/Right arrow keys

Rotate up/down the camera by 45° . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Up/Down arrow keys

Select object (deselect others) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Left click on object

Activate selection rectangle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Left click on the 3D View (not on an object)

Force selection rectangle activation . . . . . . . ALT+left click on the 3D View (even on an object)

Toggle object selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+left click

Add object to current selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SHIFT+left click

Orbit (camera rotation) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Right click

Pan (camera translation) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+right click (or middle click)

Zoom (continuous) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SHIFT+right click

Zoom (step) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mouse wheel

Zoom window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+SHIFT+right click

Open NAUTA user manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F1

DWSsrl-ViadellaMeccanica,21-36016Thiene(VI)Italy-Phone+390445810810-Fax+390445372191-www.dwssystems.com

Documents

NAUTA User Manual · 1 3D View: it is the main component of NAUTA+® user interface. It shows a 3D representation of the objects to be built and allows advanced interaction with them