If you 'lose' the object, you may use the magnifying glass icon on the top left, and that will fit the whole content on the screen. Zoom Out: CTRL + - key, or SHIFT + CTRL + Mouse move.

Zoom In: SHIFT + CTRL + + key, or SHIFT + CTRL + Mouse move.Like you're handling the object in front of you with one hand. This will move the object freely across different axis.

SHIFT + Mouse move: Move the object on the screen without changing the perspective.

Here are the two most important controls, using the Touchpad navigation style: On FreeCad, you can see the axis position on the bottom right of the screen, and the top right shows a cube with a more user-friendly view of the same information. Wait - what is an extrusion? We'll get there in a moment. In many cases, Z might simply represent the extrusion width. You'll typically work from a top view of the object you're designing Z in this case is the axis that represents the depth of the object. Most of us are familiar with X and Y, but when designing 3D objects you'll work with a third axis: Z. When designing 3D models, one of the most important things to get used to at first is the Z axis, and how to navigate different perspectives. Then, make sure you're using the Touchpad navigation style, at the bottom right of the screen: To experiment with the interface, you can create a new model in File -> New, then open the Part Design workbench and click on the Cube icon to create a new solid cube. In any case, once you get familiar with the general concepts of how to work with the interface and manipulate planes and perspectives, you'll be in a much better position to explore the available workbenches and experiment with different methods of designing objects.

If you want to follow along, now is a good time to get FreeCad installed on your computer before moving ahead.įreeCad has a very 'raw' interface in my opinion, it can be hard to figure out things on your own as it happens with other software you might be used to work with. In this post, which is part of an introductory series about FreeCad, we'll see the basics of the software, some important concepts, and how to navigate the user interface. It is available for Linux, Mac, and Windows users. An Introduction to 3D Design with FreeCAD: NavigationĪs the name suggests, FreeCad is a free CAD software, a parametric modeler that can be used to design 3D objects for printing.

Freecad print