Unable to open DWG file

[aris]

Just a quickie,

I have a dwg I would like to use in inventor.  Whenever I try to bring it in I get the following message:

"Unable to open DWG file.  If this file is already open in AutoCAD or another application, please close it and try again".

I don't have AutoCAD open and have even restarted my machine to no avail.

Any ideas?  Is this a bug that has a workaround? 

Ta in advance.

[mcgyvr]

Is there a "lock file" (hidden dwl extension I believe) of the same or similar name in the same folder as the Autocad drawing?

Have you tried to open it in Autocad?

[aris]

No hidden files in the directory and it opens ok in AutoCAD.

[mcgyvr]

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@Anonymous wrote:

No hidden files in the directory and it opens ok in AutoCAD.

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can you share the file here for others to try?

Is it an Autocad dwg? 

What version of Inventor do you have?

Is your version fully up to date?

[aris]

Inventor 2017 4.3 build.

File shared.

Thanks for looking.

[Mark.Lancaster]

@aris

I can open it without any issues.  What is your plan for this?

[johnsonshiue]

Hi! I tried dwg import, dwg underlay, and dwg open workflows. I could not reproduce the behavior either. It sounds like an install issue. Could you try repair install workflows?

1) Go to Control Panel -> Programs and Features -> find Autodesk DWGTrueView 2017 -> right-click -> Uninstall/Change -> Repair Install.

Does it work now?

2) If not try Repair workflow for Inventor Profession 2017.

Does it work now?

Many thanks!

[aris]

Hmm, no joy.

I will just replicate the sketches in inventor.

That's probable easier!

Thanks guys.

[johnsonshiue]

Hi Aris,

Could you describe the failure and the exact import options? It is possible the options are not checked properly. I assume you want to import the dwg as a sketch, right? Could you take a snapshot of the Import wizard dialog with the options?

There is another workflow, called dwg overlay. You start a new part and click on "Import" command in 3D Model tab -> Create section -> select the dwg file -> pick a workplane and origin in the part. The dwg file will be placed as a transparency in the part file. Then you can create a sketch on the same workplane and use Project DWG Geometry command under Project to project the circles to the sketch.

Many thanks!

[Anonymous]

HI I also ran into the very same problem this morning and I solved it by converting my file from dwg to dxf on autocad, after having done that I went back to inventor clicked file>open>import other cad formats>dxf and imported the dxf file but it opened on a new page wich was named as drawing 1 the drawing was laid on a white page, double click on the geometry inside the white block youll notice that youll be able to edit the drawing, then do a clipboard copy and paste on a new page or window..  My english is not that good but I hope it helps anyone who runs into this problem...

[Anonymous]

I'm also having this problem. Can someone please help?

[Anonymous]

If you get a moment, would you please mind trying with my file? I have created a second file...just a simple circle I drew on illustrator. Even that doesn't work for me. Could you try please?

[Anonymous]

I managed to open it but I first had to convert it into a dxf file format... dxf's dont give problems when importing into inventor. 

[johnsonshiue]

Hi! I suspect it might be related to inconsistent or incompatible DWG file format. What Inventor release are you running? To import the dwg file to Inventor, it has to be compatible. For example, if you try importing an AutoCAD 2018 DWG file (saved as 2018) to Inventor 2017, it will not work. It is because Inventor 2017 does not support AutoCAD 2018 DWG file. The same holds true to DXF files also. I suspect you export DXF file to a release that is compatible with your Inventor.

Many thanks!

[Anonymous]

Hi,

I'm trying to import it to inventor professional 2018 from illustrator 2108. There seemed no appropriate format to select. But I chose the most recent available in illustrator as is in advised in this tutorial which works.

Tried DWG and DXF... 😞 

[Anonymous]

Thanks very much for taking the time to look!

I also tried DXF which did not work for me 😞 ...  (details in my previous response to other user)

[johnsonshiue]

Hi Danny,

I tried opening the circle.dwg in DWG TrueView 2019 (free dwg viewer). The file opens empty with an error. This shows that the dwg file was not written in proper format or there is critical information missing. Please import the same dwg file back to Illustrator and see how it works.

Many thanks!

[Anonymous]

Hi,

Thanks so much for taking a look. Previously it was with illustrator 2017. Then I upgraded to 2018. Both times using these settings:

I could bring the file back into illustrator, but it doesn't work with inventor. So it's a mystery. 

However I can repot that I have got the DXF to work! Unfortunately, it's more or less useless to me because inventor doesn't seem to facilitate extruding illustrator line work - to my disbelief. With the DWG format, I have seen that you can turn off the visibility of the irritating spline handles within imported line work, and then use the profile.

However, at least with me, using DXF, when I uncheck the visibility as guided here in the DWG tut nothing, happens. The hard work I spent making the illustrator line work seems to be for nothing.

[johnsonshiue]

Hi! Please share the dxf file here so forum experts can take a look.

Many thanks!

[coreynAL74S]

I am having this same issue as of today. A customer sent me a dwg file. I can't directly open using Inventor, just comes up with a blank drawing template. If I try to import it using the Import DWG option I get the same error.