PrintPal Real-World 3D Map Generator
True-scale terrain and building maps from OSM data, exported as multicolour 3MF
Opens printpal.io
About PrintPal Real-World 3D Map Generator
PrintPal is better known for AI model generation, but its Real-World 3D Map Generator is a data driven tool with no AI guessing. You draw a region on a live map and it builds true scale terrain from open elevation tiles plus real building footprints from OpenStreetMap.
Areas can be up to about 4 km across with buildings or up to 50 km for terrain only. You set the longest side in millimetres, base thickness and vertical scale, choose whether to include buildings and how tall they are, and style roads, footpaths, water and parks. Export is either a multicolour 3MF with terrain, buildings, roads and water assigned to separate filament slots, or a single STL, with an option to split terrain and buildings into separate files.
Browsing the map is free, but generating and downloading needs a paid PrintPal subscription. It suits people already paying for PrintPal or who want AMS-ready city maps without extra setup.
What you can make
- City maps with buildings
- Terrain relief maps
- Multicolour AMS map prints
- Campus and neighbourhood models
How to use it
- Sign in to PrintPal and open the map generator
- Draw your region on the map
- Set size, base, vertical scale and features
- Export multicolour 3MF or STL
Good
- Multicolour 3MF with features on separate filament slots
- Real data, not AI approximations
- Option to split terrain and buildings
Not so good
- Requires a paid subscription to download
- Building mode limited to about 4 km across
- Account needed
What you'll need to print it
Materials and parts that give the best results with PrintPal Real-World 3D Map Generator.
Multicolour PLA for keychains and HueForge
Dual- and tri-colour silks give a single-nozzle printer colour shifts with no extra hardware, and a matched colour set is what lets HueForge and colour lithophanes blend thin layers into a full image.
- Bambu Lab PLA Silk Multi-ColorCo-extruded dual and tri colours that shift with the viewing angle; great for keychains and name tags.
- SUNLU Multi-Color Silk PLA (dual/tri/four-colour)Budget dual-, tri- and four-colour silk for colourful prints without an AMS.
- Bambu Lab PLA CMYK Lithophane BundleFour 1 kg spools (cyan, magenta, yellow, white) made for colour lithophanes and handy for HueForge-style layering.
Multicolour filament systems
An automatic filament changer prints multi-colour signs, keychains and HueForge pieces without you standing by to swap filament at every colour layer.
- Bambu Lab AMS liteFour-spool open unit for the A1 series; the cheapest way into Bambu multicolour.
- Bambu Lab AMS 2 ProEnclosed four-spool unit with built-in filament drying for Bambu's enclosed printers.
- Creality CFS (Creality Filament System)Creality's multicolour unit for K2-series printers; expands to 16 colours with RFID and moisture-proof storage.
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