CREATING AND USING ONLINE 3D OBJECTS
One of the big problems for hands-on online teaching is that students can't get their "hands on" the interesting objects you'd like them to experience - animal shells, feathers, nests, and so on. However, there is a virtual way to give students more of a hands-on experience with an object. Look at the example below - this is a scanned model of a T-Rex skull jaw from the online 3D model site Thingiverse. In most cases, folks will download this file (it's called an .stl file) for 3D printing. But you can also use this file to generate a movable, scalable, 3D view that can be placed in a webpage and viewers can manipulate the file (rotate, enlarge, shrink) using a mouse or touchpad. Try it out.
Step 1 - The file:
This is for the object you want to make "3D." It's called a .stl file and there are 3 ways to get it:
How-To
It seems like this might be a difficult process, but it's not that hard. There are 3 basic steps:
- Get the .stl file for the object you want to display
- Upload the file to the Sketchfab site and copy the file it creates
- Insert the file into your website/blog. Creating your own website is free and very easy to do - take a look at the Creating Your Own Website page on this blog.
Step 1 - The file:
This is for the object you want to make "3D." It's called a .stl file and there are 3 ways to get it:
- Download existing design files
- Design (or edit) your own 3D files
- Scan existing objects to create a 3D file
These files will almost always be in STL format. The STL (stereolithography) file format is the starting point for 3D printing. STL files are produced by 3D scanners and many 3D design programs, and it's the format of the downloadable 3D printing files found online. It's also the starting point for creating the 3D view of an object. For this section, we'll just go over the downloading option.
Download existing files.
The best site for finding existing (and free) STL files is Thingiverse.com. The site has thousands of 3D files. It's searchable and there are some tabs for different categories such as Education. After you've selected a file, you'll be taken to the item page where you'll find lots of helpful information about printing the object. To download the object, click on the Thing Files tab. There you'll see the download link. Things to watch out for: Make sure you choose the latest version of the file, make sure it's the STL file (sometimes there are files for laser cutters), and make sure you choose the files you want/need - some objects may be comprised of several pieces, each having its own file.
Step 2 - Sketchfab:
Step 3 - Add the object to your webpage:
The final step is to add the HTML code you just copied to your webpage. If you're using Blogger, it's very simple. First, create a New Page on your blog. The first menu bar item on the New Page page is an icon of a small pencil with an option triangle next to it. Click the small triangle and choose the HTML view option. Then just paste the HTML code you copied from Sketchfab onto the page. Once it's copied, use the triangle to go back to the Compose view. You should now see the 3D image screen. It will be blank gray with a Go arrow in the center. To test your 3D image, Update your new page, then go to View the Blog from your main editing screen.
Download existing files.
The best site for finding existing (and free) STL files is Thingiverse.com. The site has thousands of 3D files. It's searchable and there are some tabs for different categories such as Education. After you've selected a file, you'll be taken to the item page where you'll find lots of helpful information about printing the object. To download the object, click on the Thing Files tab. There you'll see the download link. Things to watch out for: Make sure you choose the latest version of the file, make sure it's the STL file (sometimes there are files for laser cutters), and make sure you choose the files you want/need - some objects may be comprised of several pieces, each having its own file.
Step 2 - Sketchfab:
This next step involves uploading the scanned file to Sketchfab. Sketchfab is free but you'll need to create an account (username and password.) Here's a good intro to Sketchfab:
Once you've created your account and logged in to Sketchfab, you'll choose the Upload option on the screen. Then the Browse option to select your file. Then you'll choose the Edit Model option - this takes a minute or two as Sketchfab goes through the processing stages. Once it's done you'll see your image appear in a small screen and you can test it by resizing and rotating. The next step is to click the Publish button in the bottom right corner. Now, you have two ways to share:
- If you just want to send folks a link so they can see your file and work with it, just select the Copy Link option. Then you can paste the link into an e-mail.
- If you want to embed the file in your web page, click the Embed button just below the image. This opens up a window with a lot of strange looking text - that's HTML code. Just move your mouse over the text and a small Click to Copy Text button will show up. Click the text and now it's ready to be pasted into your web page.
The final step is to add the HTML code you just copied to your webpage. If you're using Blogger, it's very simple. First, create a New Page on your blog. The first menu bar item on the New Page page is an icon of a small pencil with an option triangle next to it. Click the small triangle and choose the HTML view option. Then just paste the HTML code you copied from Sketchfab onto the page. Once it's copied, use the triangle to go back to the Compose view. You should now see the 3D image screen. It will be blank gray with a Go arrow in the center. To test your 3D image, Update your new page, then go to View the Blog from your main editing screen.
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