Adding 3D printer for Inventor

Make mark up for adding 3D printer for Inventor

 In Autodesk inventor you can set up the size of your build plate for your 3D printer, so you can determine if your 3D Part will be able to print.

1.  First make sure that Inventor is closed down.
2. In the file explorer navigate to: C:\Users\(username)\AppData\Roaming\Autodesk\Inventor 2025
3. Right click on 3DPrinterDescriptions.xml & edit with notepad
4. Scroll to the bottom of the to the last entry above: </Printers3D>
5. Copy the line that looks like this and hit enter and paste that copied line: <Printer internalName="8D39294C-FA7A-40F4-AB79-19F506C64097" modelName="Ultimaker 2" manufacturer="Ultimaker B.V." technology="FFF" origin="BottomCenter" units="mm" depth="225" width="230" height="205" thicknessThreshold="1" defaultprinter="1" favorite="0" />
6. In that copied line there are some fields that need to be altered for your line:

1. <Printer internalName="8D39294C-FA7A-40F4-AB79-19F506C64097": This is a GUID(Globally Unique Identifer).  Each printer must have its own unique GUID.  Go to google and search for a free GUID generator.
2. modelName="Ultimaker 2": Type in model name or number
3. manufacturer="Ultimaker B.V.": Type in manufacturer
4. technology="FFF": This can only be FFF or FDM. FFF is more commonly used because FDM is a trademarked term by Stratasky. FFF stands for Fused filament fabrication and FDM stands for Fused deposition modeling.  They are both 3D printing technologies that involve melting a plastic filament and extruding it through a heated nozzle to build up a 3D object layer by layer. *
5. origin="BottomCenter" This is where your 0,0,0 is located
6. units="mm": most 3D printers are going to be mm
7. depth="225" width="230" height="205": These are the print dimensions based on your printers dimensions printable area.  Go to manufacture and get the correct dimensions.
8. thicknessThreshold="1": Thickness of the build plate.
9. defaultprinter="1": Keep this as 1
10. favorite="0" />: Change this to 1

7. Once these fields are changed save the 3DPrinterDescriptions.xml and close

8. Open Inventor and open a drawing or start new drawing

9. Navigate to Environments Tab> 3D Print panel

10. On the print panel click the dropdown and select other printers

 11. Find the printer that you just created and make sure that Use in current document is checked

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About the Author

Application Engineer, MFG<br><br>Drew Niemeyer began his professional journey after serving in the Marine Corps, transitioning into robotics and PLC programming for a foundry in 2013. In 2015 he joined a small company where he was introduced to AutoCAD, AutoCAD Electrical and Inventor-sparking new passion for CAD technologies. <br><br> Since then, Drew has focused his career on CAD, gaining extensive experience in various design tools and systems. In 2019, he began specializing as a CAD Administrator, developing expertise in AutoCAD Electrical (ACADE) and streamlining workflows to enhance user efficiency. His hands-on experience across diverse environments has equipped him with a deep understanding of CAD applications, enabling him to effectively support and educate customers with practical, real-world solutions.

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