object selection, Exploded Blocks, DWG cleanup, Pattern Recognition, PDF import

[Anonymous]

Is there a way to select objects in a drawing. So often we import PDF drawings and convert them to DWG drawings. When this happens all of the blocks explode and do not hold any property that will allow them to be easily selected. We are looking to see if AutoCAD 2019 has any commands to select similar patterns and objects that are left behind as exploded blocks. Often we will have to start with a drawing that has exploded blocks that we want to remove from the drawing to get rid of the clutter and junk. We might be using the electrical drawing but we don't want all of the lighting fixtures and whips for the fixtures as well as the receptacles. Clean up can take hours on larger drawings. There has to be a way to recognize a pattern and replace it or delete it. If you want to replace a pattern with a new block you select the objects and then the command finds all of the similar patterns. If you want to delete garbage off the drawing the Command will find all similar patterns for you so you can press the delete button after the objects are auto selected by the pattern finder. I can do this in lesser programs that only manipulate a PDF drawing. Surely AutoCAD can do this? 

[TheCADnoob]

Ideally you would ask the person who gave you a PDF to give you the DWG.

Frequently they will not have the DWG because the person who gave them a PDF did not want them to have the DWG and as such your struggle is a designed outcome. This is one way to fight intellectual property theft.

That said its probably more frequently the case that the person who 'owns' the drawings has no clue why a DWG would be preferable to PDF. This is why you should ask them for the DWG and explain the importance.

Assuming you are past this point I haven't come across a pattern recognition feature. you might be able to swing by the codes in lisp/vba etc and ask them https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/autocad/ct-p/8

2019 does have a compare feature which you might be able to use if the drawings are standard and would allow for a comparison, but my guess is probably not.

To see whats new in AutoCAD 2019 go here https://www.autodesk.com/products/autocad/features

Lesser programs might be able to do it but they are dealing with a different data set than a converted PDF to AutoCAD file. Likely they are using other data than just geometry to make these substitutions. If some one does not have a solution based in AutoCAD I might suggest using one of the lesser programs to make your substitutions and then convert them to AutoCAD.

[john.vellek]

HI @Anonymous,

I see that you are visiting as a new member to the AutoCAD forum. Welcome to the Autodesk Community!

Are starting with vector-based PDF's ? If so, you might try a PDF editor that will let you delete layers.  This way you can create different version of your original PDF based upon the data you need to import.

For instance, when I open a layered PDF in my Acrobat, I can rt-click on a layer and tell it to never export. Or to Export only when visible.  Then I can export the PDF to a new PDF file and import that into AutoCAD.

I agree with @TheCADnoob that getting a dwg file would be optimal but I understand that it is not always possible. Perhaps my suggestion will help.

Please select the Accept as Solution button if my post solves your issue or answers your question.

[gotphish001]

As mentioned above the best solution is to ask for a dwg. Some companies don't want to give you those as they think you just want to steal the work they have done so far as also mentioned. If they won't give you a dwg because of these reasons then you can ask for a base drawing dwg file depending on what you are trying to do with it. In your example you mentioned getting electrical pdfs. A base drawing from that company might have all the notes and electrical information gone, leaving just a base floor plan. That way the company can be sure you aren't asking for a dwg to steal the work they already did and avoid fees or what not. I don't know what kind of work you are doing so it's hard to tell what parts of the dwg you will need. If you are putting duct work, then the base drawings you request might need to still show the fixtures in a drop ceiling so you don't try and put a register in the ceiling in the same location. If you only need to know where doors and walls are most companies are happy to give you dwgs with everything else eliminated as it protects their work and also will save you time in clean up. Never hurts to ask. You can put it in your contracts too that you request base drawing dwgs with certain items left on them.

[Anonymous]

Not really profound to ask for the DWG. If we could get the DWG we would not
be importing the PDF.

Thanks for your input.

[maratovich]

1. The PDF file format does not have blocks. Only individual items.
2. The removal of elements for replacement is very long. It is necessary to develop the program for you.
3. If only the picture is inside the PDF (scanning), then this is impossible.

[Anonymous]

If the PDF has layers then they will generally import and you can then
control the drawing better.

That is not the case 90% of the time. 90% of the time the whole drawing will
import on 2 or 3 layers and all of the objects are exploded and hard to work
with.

There is a company that has figured it out in Serbia, they have not got it
to work with 2018 yet.

Check out DWGExplore by CPP, I will probably buy this or try and write an
app ourselves depending on the cost and the availability.

Check out their youtube video, it is the stuff. AutoCAD needs to buy the app
and include it in their commands!!

This will make Autocad so much more powerful.

I offered to buy the app from them to put in our app CADGEN.

These guys have it all figured out and it will be worth 70 dollars per year
to me but more over I would expect AutoCAD to have it in their program.

Others have it figured out, certainly the programmers at AutoCAD could
figure it out or buy the app from these guys.

[Anonymous]

http://www.cpprs.com/store.html

this guy has it figured out. It would be awesome if Autocad were to implement this feature. Check it out.

[Anonymous]

http://www.cpprs.com/store.html

this guy has it figured out. It would be awesome if Autocad were to implement this feature. Check it out.

[Anonymous]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVfZ-stEEm0

Solid Edge has some pattern recognition. 

[Anonymous]

You guys are not understanding. In the time it takes to get people to respond and they maybe send us a DWG file we can convert the PDF and clean it up. When you are doing this to several drawings per day it would be great to have a pattern recognition add in that will recognize patterns so you can select multiple items and delete them in a simple and concise manner. There is a program available, we have had issues implementing it because the developer does not stay current with the latest versions of AutoCAD. And it will not work with our OEM version because we are running an add in program already and as an OEM version all addins must be part of the single add in. Multiple Add ins can not be ran in the OEM version. 

[pendean]

Or you can just purchase that add-on and support free enterprise instead of talking away their livelihood 🙂

Autodesk Feedback is over there BTW https://www.autodesk.com/company/contact-us/product-feedback

[Anonymous]

I 100 percent agree accept their add in will not work with my OEM version of AutoCAD. You are not aware of how OEM products work. You can not pair up add ins with the OEM so you have to have their code to add it to your add in. They are not going to give me their code.

[Anonymous]

If the PDF has layers then they import into the DWG and you get to use LAYOFF and the clean up is easy. That is not not what we are dealing with. We need pattern recognition to clean up PDF's that we import to a DWG. Everything explodes when you import. Some professionals are including the layers when they plot to PDF. If everyone did it would be amazing but that is not the case so we have a lot of clean up to do and we have to put our blocks on top of the engineer's devices so we need to have pattern recognition for that too. Replacing exploded blocks is a big thing that we do. We have it working now. But we would love for AutoCAD to make it a feature so we can have it in the OEM as well as the full version. 

[Alfred.NESWADBA]

Hi,

>> we need to have pattern recognition for that too. 

You can put that in the product feedback forum >>>here<<<.

From my side: When you want to have the original data then ask for the original file. A PDF is not a valid file format for CAD data exchange. It does not hold full double precision geometry, also not the geographic coordinated which I most often need ... and even if it would recognize some lines/arcs/... to belong to a block, what about the attributes then (I don't have any blocks without attributes).

We have an application that gives you the change to insert a block on top of some geometry and it replaces that geometry and takes text values in the modelspace and finds the corresponding positions inside the new block to know which attribute needs to be filled. That's not full automated as you have to place the block, but you have then a block with layers, attributes, exact geometry, ... 😉

- alfred -