Tips for Writing Comprehensive Documentation for 3D Models

Documentation is vital for any 3D model, regardless of its purpose. Good documentation can distinguish between a model that is used and appreciated and one that is ignored and forgotten. 

There are many different ways to write documentation, but the most important thing is to be clear, concise, and comprehensive. Your documentation should be easy to understand and cover all aspects of the model.

1. Start by Explaining the Necessary Terms

This is one of the first things you must take care of when writing the documentation for your 3D model. If any terms in the documentation are not commonly known, you have to explain to them before you start with detailed explanations.

This usually takes the form of a detailed table containing all the terms and their explanations.

Here are some things that you can explain in the preliminary parts of the documentation:

1. Definitions of important technical terms
2. Explanations of abbreviations commonly used in the documentation
3. Descriptions of any formulas that appear in the documentation

If there are any terms or abbreviations that are not perennially featured in the documentation and are only mentioned once or twice, you can provide clarifications for them in the page footers.

2. Segmentize the Documentation

This is another tip you can apply to make your 3D model documentation comprehensive and easy to understand. If you write the different parts of the documentation without any sort of order, it can confuse the reader. When we say that you have to segmentize the documentation, it basically means adhering to the chronological order and explaining the different stages/steps/phases one by one.

In a 3D model, this would involve talking about the base level of the model first, then proceeding to the inner parts/components before coming to the topmost layer. Obviously, this sort of segmentation would not be very easy to do if the model happens to be a simple structure without any sort of levels and components, etc.

For example, if you are describing the model of a building, you can segmentize it by detailing the following in the correct order:

1. The outer façade with all its elements, i.e., the windows, door frames, and external fixtures
2. The structure itself, i.e., the material and method of construction
3. The wiring and plumbing setups that are arranged inside the walls
4. The inner fixtures

3. Use Easy-to-Understand Wording

This is more or less an essential step that you have to take when writing the documentation for your model. If the words you use in the documentation are not easy to understand, it will be nugatory of its very purpose. Normally, documentations often consist of technical jargon and complex mumbo-jumbo, but the less complicated you can make them, the better it is.

Here are some tips you can follow for keeping the written content in your 3D model documentation easy to understand.

1. Keep the sentences short. Try to keep the sentences under 10 words. Only if there is a particular explanation that requires more words to complete should you add on this number.
2. Don’t use complex words where you can avoid them. If there is no need to use difficult words in the documentation, try and avoid them altogether. Even if you have to use a couple of easy terms in place of difficult words, it is better.

For example, instead of saying “incomprehensible,” you can use the words “hard to understand.”

3. Keep the paragraphs short. Even if the sentences and wording itself are short and easy to understand, the readability can get wrecked if the sections are not properly broken up. Try to keep each of the paragraphs 4 – 6 lines long. Normally even these many lines are too much, but you can take it to this much in the documentation.

Now, the tips mentioned above can be great for applying when you’re writing the documentation itself. However, if you complete the document and find that it still looks difficult to read, you can try paraphrasing it.

In other words, you can review the problematic parts and reword them using easier synonyms and phrases. This will help you eliminate any readability issues you may have overlooked the first time.

Here is an example of how this would look like:

Original Difficult Sentence: The perusal of the external veneers on the model will make clear the complexity of the construction.

Paraphrased Sentence: By looking at the outer layers of the model, it will be clear how intricately it has been constructed.

Of course, depending on the situation, you may have trouble paraphrasing the hard sentences on your own. In such cases, you can take help from online tools instead.

Online paraphrase tools are made to rephrase and reword the entered text on their own using suitable synonyms and by shuffling the sentence structures. They basically do the same thing as an actual writer, but without requiring all the effort

Here is how we can paraphrase the same sentence as above and get a readable output:

Tool used: Paraphraser.io

You can see in the image how the tool paraphrased the content on its own while making it easier to read.

4. Add the Necessary Images and Graphics

When writing the documentation for your 3D model, always take care to add the graphics and images that are necessary for explaining a particular process or concept.

For example, if the model consists of many levels, some of which also have to be explained via cross-section diagrams, you can add the diagrams in the documentation when explaining the relevant parts.

Here are some things that you should take care of when adding images and graphics to the 3D model documentation:

1. If adding color is not required (for the purpose of color coding etc.,) then keep the graphics in simple black and white. In written documentation, understanding black-and-white diagrams is much easier than colorful drawings, etc.
2. Properly label all the parts in the diagram/image using readable text. The text should be large and legible, and the labeling should be accurate, i.e., the wrong features should not be pointed and labeled with the incorrect caption.

5. Always Remember to Add a Table of Contents

This tip may look chronologically misplaced, but it’s actually not. You can only make a proper table of contents once you are done with the content itself.

By adding a table of contents, you can make it easy for the readers to navigate through the documentation and easily find the part they want to read. It also helps the readers to understand what the documentation contains right from the start.

Three main things should exist in the table of contents:

1. The serial number
2. Name of the sections
3. Their relevant page numbers

6. Number the Pages of the Documentation Properly

Numbering the pages of the documentation sounds obvious enough, but you also have to take to do it properly. By properly, we mean using the right numbering format, placing the numbers in the top center or right corner of the page, and starting the numbering from the right place in the documentation.

The first page of the documentation that contains the title is not considered when you have to add the numbering. You need to start from the first page after the table of contents.

7. Be Particular About the Formatting of the Document

This tip is chronologically misplaced, but we’re mentioning it here nonetheless.

When we talk about the formatting of the documentation, we refer to the style and method in which the actual content is laid out. Some things that are included in the formatting include:

• Line spacing
• Font size
• Font style
• Indents
• Margins

And so on.

If you are writing the documentation as a member of a particular institute, you must adhere to the guidelines given in this regard by your instructors.

On the other hand, if you are not part of a particular group or institute, you can follow the generally accepted document style while keeping in mind the reading ease.

Best Software for Creating 3D Models

There are a lot of 3D modeling software available, each with their own pros and cons. For both beginners and professionals, we recommend using SelfCAD. SelfCAD is a 3D design program with a simple interface. Anyone, regardless of their experience can get started with software without having to spend a lot of time learning. 

In addition to the friendly user interface, SelfCAD also comes with many interactive tutorials that can help you in learning how the software works. There is also a powerful 3D rendering software that you can use to create 3D renders of your designs. The in-built slicer is also helpful in preparing your 3D models for 3D printing.

Conclusion

There you have it. As we said earlier, this post was not about a whole step-wise guide on how you can create documentation for your 3D model. Rather, it was a collection of tips that you can follow to improve the quality of the same.

When writing the documentation, you basically have to remember that the person reading it will not be as knowledgeable about the different concepts and technicalities as you. You have to consider the readers to have a very basic and ground-level understanding.

This will help you elaborate and explain everything adequately without shortening stuff. And of course, other than this aspect, you also have to take care of the other factor mentioned above. 

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