Import a 2D STL File

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Matthias Wölfleder
Matthias Wölfleder on 19 Dec 2019
Answered: Ravi Kumar on 2 Jan 2020
Hey everyone!
I would like to import a 3D STL file as 2D geometry.
I found something in the MATLAB documentation (https://de.mathworks.com/help/pde/ug/stl-file-import.html) that says "When you import a planar STL geometry, the toolbox converts it to a 2-D geometry by mapping it to the X-Y plane.", but if i create a plot, it is still in 3D.
Here is the code i tried:
model = createpde;
importGeometry(model,'Insole.stl');
pdegplot(model,'EdgeLabels','on')
The 3D Part is an insole which contains several splines, could that be a problem?
I would be happy if someone could help me!
Kind regards,
Matthias

Accepted Answer

Ravi Kumar
Ravi Kumar on 2 Jan 2020
Hi Matthias,
Your geometry in the STL file is indeed 3-D. I am assuming you want just the one of the flat faces for two 2-D analysis. To do this you need to export just that face as STL. I do not know the option in Autodesk to do so, but typically if you have the CAD in STEP format then you can select a particular face and save just that into to STL file.
Regards,
Ravi

More Answers (2)

Ravi Kumar
Ravi Kumar on 19 Dec 2019
The keyword here is "planar". Is your geomtry planar?
Regards,
Ravi

Matthias Wölfleder
Matthias Wölfleder on 20 Dec 2019
Thank you for your answer!
Maybe i misinterpreted the word planar. My geometry is a simple flat extrusion from a draft as you can see in the attachment. I used Autodesk Inventor to create this, but there seems no opportunity to create a planar surface .stl in Inventor. Is there any other way to import just the 2D draft into Matlab?
Regards,
Matthias

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