Inventor Solid Exported To Solidworks Only Get Surfaces

[Anonymous]

So I've pulled my hair out over this for months. I've looked up every "resolved" solution and tried it. I've rebuilt the part from scratch at least 5 times. STILL, every friggin' time I SEE a solid part, when I export it to the people on the other end using Solidworks ALWAYS get surfaces only!!

Unfortunately, it's a proprietary design, so I'm not at liberties to public post the file. But perhaps someone can give me some key pointers to address for (what should be a simple issue).

So here is what I'm dealing with and doing:

1-I have a solid X_T assembly file provided to me.

2-I delete all the assembly components I don't need (is there a specific way I should do this? Should/Could I save/export the whole thing as a solid first??)

3-Cut down (using circular extrude cut function) the section of one assembly's solid part that I wish to modify.

4-I design my sketches on the surface that I wish to build up from.

5-I set my layers x-dimensions out and make a new sketch

6-I loft my sketches (it doesn't allow me to do a normal loft unless click the NEW SOLID button)

7-Rather than give me just thick walls, I end up with a full body extrusion. So I sketch on the new surface the area of the bodies center that I wish to cut and then extrude-cut backwards the center body back to the last plane/layer.

8-I add my last layer sketch and then extrude it forward.

9-Misc tweaks to shapes and designs. SAVE

Now when I do a cross section from every axis. It's solid. I export it as a STP, X_T and re open it...SOLID. I send it to someone using Solidworks. Surface only!!

What am I missing????????

kelly.young has edited your subject line for clarity: Exported files not solid!!

[chris]

Sounds like it's a translation issue with Solidworks... I wouldn't worry too much about it, sometimes you, or someone else, just need to fix things on their end. You say your design is not open to sharing, can you make a generic part, see if you can recreate the issue and post that part?

[JDMather]

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@Anonymous wrote:
6-I loft my sketches (it doesn't allow me to do a normal loft unless click the NEW SOLID button)?

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Post screen shot of only the feature browser with Solid and Surface body folders expanded before you export.

Post screen shot same as above, but now of the file that you exported, imported back into Inventor.

[JDMather]

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@Anonymous wrote:

... I wouldn't worry too much about it, ...

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Not sure I understand that logic?

[chris]

Arte you on subscription? If so, you can try and use the "Suite Workflow" (send to 3D Max as solid), once it's in 3D Max, export using .sat and see if that yields a usable result...

[mcgyvr]

Can't you post a "non-proprietary" example using similar workflow that exhibits these same problems?

It would be helpful to have an ipt file and the resulting xt/step files..

[chris]

well, I have had the reverse of this with Solidworks... they tried every option to export their info for me to use in IV, nothing worked... in the end, I just had to use what they sent, there was no way to fix it and make it useable in IV. it's not like he's saying that no information is being produced, it's just being produced as surfaces.... yes, I know not the best answer, but he can't sit there doing the same thing over and over until he retires, lol

[JDMather]

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@Anonymous wrote:

... once it's in 3D Max, export using .sat and see if that yields a usable result...

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Inventor will export ACIS (*.sat).

I think I would fix the issue in Inventor and export as Parasolid for SolidWorks.

[chris]

Yes, I'm aware that IV will export a .sat file... but if "indeed" IV is causing translation issue, it would be better to try at least (1) example of exporting the data from a different program, plus I've used this method with .obj and .iges in the past to "fix" issues with exports. so it's worth a try.

[chris]

Here's an example of my current issue. I have a C7.1 Teir 4 Acert Engine model from our sister company that was provider by the CAT engine reseller. The entire engine model is surfaces, containing over 6000 little surfaces. When opened in SW, these surfaces are grouped together in the browser by part #:

12345-6789-surface 1

12345-6789-surface 2

ect.

so each "area" of the engine is like this. My goal is to try and get the data out to MODO so I can render the top level design with the Engine. For the past 5 days I've no luck with getting this geometry to work in any usable form for applying materials or organizing in the MODO browser. So I started exporting from SW using the formats I know IV can open to then import into IV and then export back out of IV, hoping to get a better or different translation to use in MODO... nothing has worked. 3 different type of .iges exports, 2 different types of .step exports... obj's, stl's .sat, etc. none out of either program worked with importing into MODO. Finally I isolated and exported the radiator surface from SW as .iges. I then opened that iges file in IV, (which created and showed all the surfaces in the browser, 165 to be exact. I then “sent” to 3D Max as solids… 3Dmax opened the file no problem, and exported from there as .obj. This .obj translation from 3D Max produced (1) files in MODO “but” it retained the contiguous surfaces for easy selection in

MODO…  problem solved… (for me)

edit: the part I forgot to mention was that both SW and IV were exporting .iges / .step. and .obj files that were causing MODO to crash... but 3D Max created one that worked, that's why I mentioned the above workflow as a possibility.

3D MaxFilesInventorMODO

[johnsonshiue]

Hi! Without seeing the actual files, it is almost impossible to determine who is at fault. Any translation issue can be due to issues at Importing end or Exporting end. It is possible SWX does not translate the geometry properly. It is also possible INV does not export it properly. INV can open SWX files directly. Did you try direct translation?

Could you send me the INV files directly ([email protected]), so we can investigate it further?

Many thanks!