Arch OBJ
Description
Additionally to the standard FreeCAD OBJ exporter, the BIM Workbench features an alternative exporter that exports coplanar faces as whole OBJ faces, instead of triangulating Shape-based objects, like the standard exporter does.
Exporting without GUI
Exporting without the graphical interface is possible from the command line, using the Mesh Workbench exporter only.
In this example, a STEP file is imported, the colors of the Shape are saved, then a mesh is created from it, the colors of the original object are re-applied to the faces of the new mesh, which is then exported to OBJ format. Since this is done with the Mesh Workbench, the result is a triangulated mesh.
import Mesh
import MeshPart
import Import
data = Import.open("example.stp")
shape = data[0][0].Shape
shape_colors = data[0][1]
mesh = MeshPart.meshFromShape(Shape=shape, LinearDeflection=0.1, Segments=True)
face_colors = [(0, 0, 0)] * mesh.CountFacets
for i in range(mesh.countSegments()):
color = shape_colors[i]
segm = mesh.getSegment(i)
for j in segm:
face_colors[j] = color
mesh.write(Filename="new_example.obj", Material=face_colors, Format="obj")
More information
Tutorials
- 2D drafting: Sketch, Line, Polyline, Circle, Arc, Arc by 3 points, Fillet, Ellipse, Polygon, Rectangle, B-spline, Bézier curve, Cubic Bézier curve, Point
- 3D/BIM: Project, Site, Building, Level, Space, Wall, Curtain Wall, Column, Beam, Slab, Door, Window, Pipe, Pipe Connector, Stairs, Roof, Panel, Frame, Fence, Truss, Equipment
- Reinforcement tools: Custom Rebar, Straight Rebar, U-Shape Rebar, L-Shape Rebar, Stirrup, Bent-Shape Rebar, Helical Rebar, Column Reinforcement, Beam Reinforcement, Slab Reinforcement, Footing Reinforcement
- Generic 3D tools: Profile, Box, Shape builder..., Facebinder, Objects library, Component, External reference
- Annotation: Text, Shape from text, Aligned dimension, Horizontal dimension, Vertical dimension, Leader, Label, Axis, Axes System, Grid, Section Plane, Hatch, Page, View, Shape-based view
- Snapping: Snap lock, Snap endpoint, Snap midpoint, Snap center, Snap angle, Snap intersection, Snap perpendicular, Snap extension, Snap parallel, Snap special, Snap near, Snap ortho, Snap grid, Snap working plane, Snap dimensions, Toggle grid, Working Plane Top, Working Plane Front, Working Plane Side
- Modify: Move, Copy, Rotate, Clone, Create simple copy, Make compound, Offset, 2D Offset..., Trimex, Join, Split, Scale, Stretch, Draft to sketch, Upgrade, Downgrade, Add component, Remove component, Array, Path array, Polar array, Point array, Cut with plane, Mirror, Extrude..., Difference, Union, Intersection
- Manage: BIM Setup..., Views manager, Manage project..., Manage doors and windows..., Manage IFC elements..., Manage IFC quantities..., Manage IFC properties..., Manage classification..., Manage layers..., Material, Schedule, Preflight checks..., Annotation styles...
- Utils: Toggle bottom panels, Move to Trash, Working Plane View, Select group, Set slope, Create working plane proxy, Add to construction group, Split Mesh, Mesh to Shape, Select non-manifold meshes, Remove Shape from Arch, Close Holes, Merge Walls, Check, Toggle IFC Brep flag, Toggle subcomponents, Survey, IFC Diff, IFC explorer, Create IFC spreadsheet..., Image plane, Unclone, Rewire, Glue, Reextrude
- Panel tools: Panel, Panel Cut, Panel Sheet, Nest
- Structure tools: Structure, Structural System, Multiple Structures
- IFC tools: IFC Diff..., IFC Expand, Make IFC project, IfcOpenShell update
- Nudge: Nudge Switch, Nudge Up, Nudge Down, Nudge Left, Nudge Right, Nudge Rotate Left, Nudge Rotate Right, Nudge Extend, Nudge Shrink
- Additional: Preferences, Fine tuning, Import Export Preferences, IFC, DAE, OBJ, JSON, 3DS, SHP

- Getting started
- Installation: Download, Windows, Linux, Mac, Additional components, Docker, AppImage, Ubuntu Snap
- Basics: About FreeCAD, Interface, Mouse navigation, Selection methods, Object name, Preferences, Workbenches, Document structure, Properties, Help FreeCAD, Donate
- Help: Tutorials, Video tutorials
- Workbenches: Std Base, Assembly, BIM, CAM, Draft, FEM, Inspection, Material, Mesh, OpenSCAD, Part, PartDesign, Points, Reverse Engineering, Robot, Sketcher, Spreadsheet, Surface, TechDraw, Test Framework
- Hubs: User hub, Power users hub, Developer hub