remove 3d aspect from dxf/dwg

[Anonymous]

Hello All, 

my first time posting here so mind any information I lack. Also, I am new to CAD world. 

I have a 3D part which I downloaded from a manufacturer's website and need to use it in E-Plan as a graphic. .dxf/dwg formats are accepted. The issue I am having is when I save the file as a .dxf it won't import into E-plan. I opened the file in true view, when I rotated it, I still see it has "depth". See attached for a pic. 

 

What I am looking for is a way to "flatten" this piece into 2d rather than 3d .dxf. 

3D cad software: Fusion 360 

Eplan version : 2.7 

Windows 10 PC

Please advise. thank you 

[jhackney1972]

Please attach the file in question.  If you need to, zip it, if you cannot attach it to the Attachment section of a forum reply.

[Anonymous]

I have attached it

[jhackney1972]

I am confused, you attached a STEP model not a DWG/ DXF file and it does not resemble the screen capture on your forum post.  Did you send the wrong file?

Edit:  This is what your zip file contained.

[etfrench]

Step file won't help.  Attach your Fusion 360 file (File/Export/Archive file *.f3d and attach the output to the thread.)

If there are sketch entities not on the sketch plane,  you can move them to the sketch plane by first selecting them, then right clicking to bring up the context menu.  Select Move to sketch plane.

[Anonymous]

I attached the correct file in .f3d format and as .dxf

[jhackney1972 · Accepted solution]

Attached is the DXF after it has been flattened and a Fusion 360 file where the DXF has been inserted.  I believe the units were millimeters so that is what I told it to use.  The Fusion 360 file sketch indicated that there are some broken sketch entities and they did not make profiles.

[Anonymous]

how did you do that!!! that is perfect. thank you 

[Anonymous]

John, would you be willing to do a quick tutorial on how you did that? 

[jhackney1972]

You could say I probably cheated.  I own a license to AutoCAD and I used it to do the trick.  There is a command called Flatten that does in in one shot and in a couple of seconds.  I tried to do the operation in Fusion 360 but could never get it to finish.

[etfrench]

I tried as well.  It will work if you only choose a couple of lines at a time. (see post #5)

[Anonymous]

thanks guys, 

 I really need this feature for a project I am completing. Which version of autocad do you recommend? Flatten is all I really need and the ability to convert to DXF/DWG

[MRWakefield]

If you don't have a license for AutoCAD you can flatten the DXF using the 'scale' tool in FreeCAD. Open the DXF, choose a suitable environment (such as 'Draft') to work in, select all (in the 'Edit' menu) and scale using the following scale factors:

X=1

Y=1

Z=0

I've attached a screencast I did for someone else some time ago who had the same issue.

Hope this helps.

Ok, so the screencast failed to attach (as usual!!). Here's a link: https://autode.sk/2uLgvtf

[Anonymous]

thanks MrWakeField, 

the objects I am working with are graphics converted into lines making them far too complex. I am still interested in the autocad method if anyone can help me get started. 

[jhackney1972]

Here is a link to how to do it in AutoCAD.  I used AutoCAD 2020 the other day but the command has been around a long time.

[etfrench]

The FreeCad scale command worked fine for me.

[ClintBrown3D]

Hi Everyone

Just an update on Flattened DXF & Simplified DWG exports. With the July release of Fusion, DXF & Simplified DWG are now flat.

As part of the July "Quality of Life" update, we improved the DXF/DWG export. Furthermore, we included font controls for Attributes in the title blocks. We also made a change that stops accidental dragging of borders and title blocks. More on the blog here: https://www.autodesk.com/products/fusion-360/blog/july-2022-product-update-whats-new/#Drawings

I'd love to hear from you directly, and to get your thoughts on these improvements. If you're up for it, here is a link to my calendar, please book a 30-minute session with me, and we can chat on Zoom. I can also show you some of the new tools that are coming soon (see the public roadmap here). Or if a good old-fashioned email is more your style, feel free to ping me Clint. Brown {a} Autodesk.com