Hey! So, I’m trying to incorporate an object in a scene of which I have a CAD model in the SolidWorks format. After converting the same into an STL file using FreeCAD and importing that to Blender, it seems that the mesh topology is far too complex for something that physically doesn’t look as complex. The image below is of the mesh without any edits and at over 50,000 faces.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]274597[/ATTACH]
After using the Decimate modifier twice (once in Collapse and once in Un-Subdivide mode), I was able to bring the count down to about 15,000 and here is what the mesh looks like.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]274598[/ATTACH]
Notice the slight aliasing (if that is indeed the correct term to use) in the round corners. What can I do to further optimize the mesh topology? Also, if I try to enable Set Smooth on the mesh, it starts looking wrong.
Can I use the Shrinkwrap modifier to just snap planes to all the edges? Any ideas? How do I reduce this to the least possible face count, which shouldn’t be too high considering all the hard flat surfaces?
While waiting for your blend file to confirm, I’d however suggest to select everything and to press [X] --> Limited Dissolve. It helps a lot to simplify a mesh.
There’s never an easy and quick solution for optimizing models coming from CAD programs.
Looking at your screenshots, depending on what you mean to do with the model I’d advise to:
-retopologize it - reduce the amount of vertices by hand
-remake the object from scratch - will be easier by duplicating only the essential vertices from the original model - then reconnect them to achieve a simpler geometry.
-add a box on top of your model, unwrap it, add a texture in the uveditor and a material with transparency to the box and bake it (the normals, the textures and a full render for the alpha).