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Importing STEP Surface issues

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Message 1 of 9
CelticDesignServices
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Importing STEP Surface issues

My client has 100's, if not thousands of files they recieved from a partner that were created in Catia.

These are all STEP surface files and they seem to be a mess for the most part. As it's been explained to me, some of if not all these files are actually from some animation type file they used as a "fly-through" presentation. This seems to result in each face being a bunch of triangular surfaces which as you can guess, makes the file extremely large.

 

Anyways, they are working thru importing all these files into Inventor and converting them into solids so they can be used (I know, I know, I don't understand why they refuse to request solids as oppsoed to surfaces, but it is, what it is).

Seeing this was taking a very long time, one user decided to send a file out to a friend who uses Solidworks and had him import it. He claimed SW was able to not only open the file, but it auotmatically restitched the "triangled" surfaces into one surface and by doing so, decreased the file size by about 50%.

 

Of course now, he's got the powers that be here to agree to bring in a temp seat of SW to demo this. His wet dream would be to rip Inventor out of here in favor of SW.

 

Anyone have any info on this and how Inventor could import these files in some better way?

 

Zipped file is too large to attach here (3.6kb), trying to find a different way.

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Jim
Celtic Design Services, LLC

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8 REPLIES 8
Message 2 of 9

If you can send me an example file I can try it in SolidWorks.

I recommend you have a VAR come in and show the process (on your real files).
In my experience it works to some degree on simple files, but I'll wager it isn't going to work on most of your files unless the geometry is all boxes and cylinders.

Get proof before purchase.

 

jmather_at_pct_dot_edu


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Message 3 of 9

Thanks JD,

 

I'll send you the file.

 

I'm insterested to know the results in SW (I'm processing the same sample file as we speak in Inventor)

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Jim
Celtic Design Services, LLC

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Always for hire - celticdesign01ATyahooDOTcom
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Celtic-Design-Services-LLC/184666001666426
==========================================================
Please use the "Accept as Solution" and "Give Kudos" functions as appropriate to further enhance the value of these forums.

Go raibh maith agat (in other words...Thank you!)
Message 4 of 9

JD,

Any word on this?

Did you happen to get the chance to play with this?

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Jim
Celtic Design Services, LLC

Inventor/AutoCAD/Vault WorkGroups
Always for hire - celticdesign01ATyahooDOTcom
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Celtic-Design-Services-LLC/184666001666426
==========================================================
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Message 5 of 9

I don't recall getting any files?


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Autodesk AutoCAD 2013 Certified Professional
Certified SolidWorks Professional


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Message 6 of 9

Ugh....did i forget? Most likely.

Let me see if I can send you one now.

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Jim
Celtic Design Services, LLC

Inventor/AutoCAD/Vault WorkGroups
Always for hire - celticdesign01ATyahooDOTcom
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Celtic-Design-Services-LLC/184666001666426
==========================================================
Please use the "Accept as Solution" and "Give Kudos" functions as appropriate to further enhance the value of these forums.

Go raibh maith agat (in other words...Thank you!)
Message 7 of 9

JD, just sent you a step file in question for you to work with.

 

Thanks,

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Jim
Celtic Design Services, LLC

Inventor/AutoCAD/Vault WorkGroups
Always for hire - celticdesign01ATyahooDOTcom
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Celtic-Design-Services-LLC/184666001666426
==========================================================
Please use the "Accept as Solution" and "Give Kudos" functions as appropriate to further enhance the value of these forums.

Go raibh maith agat (in other words...Thank you!)
Message 8 of 9


@CelticDesignServices wrote:

 He claimed SW was able to not only open the file, but it auotmatically restitched the "triangled" surfaces into one surface and by doing so, decreased the file size by about 50%.

 

Of course now, he's got the powers that be here to agree to bring in a temp seat of SW to demo this.


 

I took a look at the STEP file you sent me.

Garbage! Garbage in any CAD program.

 

When the powers that be bring in the temp seat of SW to demo this it should be interesting.

 

I tried an automatic repair in SWx and it failed.  A manual repair (stitch in Inventor , or Knit in SWx) would be essentially identical work.

 

But any repair is not going to magically change faceted faces of arcs into to curves. 

The geometry of this part is trivial - it would probably be faster (and more correct - see above) to model from scratch using the given information rather than trying to fix the original.

 

My guess is your Inventor users don't have very much experience in the Repair or Construction enviroments of Inventor (I only know a couple of people in the world who do).  To be fair, it is an advanced topic.

 

If there is an Easy Button in SWx for this - I haven't seen it.  It must be in a later release (running 2011), but I doubt it.

 

Import Diagnostics.png

 

 

 

 


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Message 9 of 9

Thanks JD!

 

Yeah, I'm in the very same "model" I sent you, going thru it in Inventor's repair mode and you are correct, complete garbage. And this is one of the very few "small" files (just under 3MB, most are pushing 200MB). I'm afraid to even take a look at the other files.

 

They are planning on using these just as reference models (to locate our files off of) so I doubt they will ever consider recreating these. I've pushed for them to get STEP solids or even the native Catia files these were created from. But for whatever reason they say that these are the files we have to work with.

 

Either way, thank you again for taking the time out of your personal schedule to look into this and solidify what I was thinking all along. Problem is I will still have to deal with these and the claims SW can fix them easily....at least until the temp seat gets here.

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Jim
Celtic Design Services, LLC

Inventor/AutoCAD/Vault WorkGroups
Always for hire - celticdesign01ATyahooDOTcom
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Celtic-Design-Services-LLC/184666001666426
==========================================================
Please use the "Accept as Solution" and "Give Kudos" functions as appropriate to further enhance the value of these forums.

Go raibh maith agat (in other words...Thank you!)

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