Process and materialspecific component visualisation

What is component visualisation on the PROTIQ Marketplace?

With our visualisation function, you can already see what you will end up holding in your hands during the ordering process. PROTIQ now offers you the option of visualising your component in advance in the look of the desired material and production process. Not only is the colour of your 3D model adapted to the selected material, but the surface is also adapted to the selected technology. For example, you will see the typical rough surface of materials from laser sintering and a significantly smoother component for stereolithography materials.

To use our free component visualisation, you do not need to register or create a customer account. Simply upload your 3D model on our homepage and click through the various materials.

The advantages of our "print preview"

• Real-time visualisation of your designs: See your 3D models immediately with realistic textures and colours - approximately how the components will look with the selected materials and production technologies. This realistic visualisation allows you to get an accurate picture of your final product before it even goes into production.
• More informed decision making: With the ability to model the final look of your component, you can make more informed decisions about design and materials.
• Efficient ordering process: Visualisation speeds up the design decision and ordering process. This means faster realisation from idea to finished product for you and more efficient customer service for us.

How do you use our component visualisation?

To visualise your components in different materials, upload your 3D models to our homepage as usual. In the next step, click on "Material selection" and choose a suitable material from our wide range of materials. A tip: You can use our filter functions on the left-hand side to search for exactly the materials from our database that match your requirements.

Once you have decided on a material, click on "Supplier" and select the manufacturing partner that best suits your needs. If you now click on "Select", you will return to the component overview.

You will now see a preview of your 3D model in the right-hand window. If you click on the new "Print preview" button there, you will jump to the component visualisation. Here you will now see a preview of your component in the look of the selected material and the desired production technology. At the top left of the window, you can see which material is currently displayed. If there is no preview for this material yet, this information will also appear here.

If you want to display your component again in other materials, simply click on "Material selection" again and change your selection here.

Limits of the component visualisation

While we endeavour to offer you as realistic and detailed a picture as possible of your future products with our component visualisation, it is also important for us to inform you about the limits of the new function.

Visualisation as a preview: It is important to note that our component visualisation provides a preview that aims to give you as accurate an idea as possible of what your final component will look like. Nevertheless, variables such as the alignment in the installation space, post-processing steps or colour deviations of your screen can lead to the final component deviating from the preview in some details.

Variety of materials: The PROTIQ Marketplace is characterised by an extraordinary variety of materials and manufacturing processes. Due to this diversity, it is not yet possible for us to offer a visualisation for every single material. We are continuously working on expanding our visualisation library in order to be able to offer you an even more comprehensive range of preview options in the future.

Process-specific limitations: Certain manufacturing processes, such as CNC milling, present specific challenges that make it difficult to predict the exact appearance of the finished component. In these cases, we would rather not show you a component preview than generate an incorrect image.