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Company logos

E

ekesz13

New member
Hey all. After searching thru some posts, I haven't found what I am looking for. Here is my question:



We have companies send us there logos or text, mostly in jpeg format,
that they want us to have it cut into a sheetmetal part or the
like. I always end up importing the jpeg as a background in
SOLIDWORKS, copying it by hand, then exporting it as a .iges for use in
PRO-E. There has to be an easier way. The customer always
wants to see it cut into the sheetmetal or plate in the model, so I
always need a set of datum curves to use as a cut or protrusion.
I can't get away with just importing it into the drawing.



Any suggestions? What do you guys use or do?



Thanks!
 
I use Illustrator to open the original file and then export this as a dxf file - generally works pretty.


Otherwise I have used Rhino to open a native illustrator (linework) and from there export as iges or dxf.


cheers.
 
The Illustrator - Rhino path works pretty well. Rhino can open an Illustrator file, where al the splinesof a logo are converted well. Put it on the right spot regarding the coordinate system and save the Rhino file as an IGES. This one can be imported in either a part or a drawing. Create an extra coordinate sytem to place it correctly. Don't use DXF, they will split up in too many entities.


But you are right that importing company logo's is still a PITA. When receiving a blurry JPEG, you shouldn't trace it over in any program. It is a lot of work and the results can be disappointing, especially with complex logo's.


When you receive such a non-usable JPEG, it is probably from a technician or project leader.In most cases something that he has saved from his own company website.Don't blame him, he couldn't know what you need. Just grab the phone and ask for the marketing or graphics department of your customer. They probably have some logo's in different file formats (outlines,EPS, AI, PSD, PDF, GIF)that can be of use. Huge companies sometimes have complete how-to-guides of their corporate identity. When they are willing to help you, ask them also to send it in the correct size.


Huug
 
View attachment 685THERE is a posibiliti to put on to a surface a logo


In your case the question is simple;with what precision you need


Sometimes when the logo is not simple or is more than simple texti do curves like in the picture attached


So in model setup colors and appearance


I hope that help


CristelinoView attachment 686
 
kwadesign and Hugg-

Thanks for the info. I do not have either Rhino or Illustrator,
but I do have access to Illustrator at home. I will try
that. The customers that I am doing this for are small, usually
start up companies, small manufacturers, etc. They expect us to
do all the work and have nothing to help us out. Do you guys have
any examples of what you did? I would love to see it.



Cristelino-

I am not sure of the method you describe, as I would need to use the edges of the sketch to cut or extrude thru the part.
 
Okay guys, I found that Rhino lets you download a trial version.
Now, it won't let me import a .jpeg or any other Raster file that I
see?? What method do you use? Thanks in advance.



-EDIT-



I reread the post and saw that you guys recommened importing the raster
file into illustrator and saving it as line art. What file
extension is that? I save it as an .ai file, a .eps file and a
.dxf file. Rhino would not open any of them. What steps am
I missing? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.



Edited by: ekesz13
 
Well, that did not work for the jpeg image I have. I have an
image that is shaded block letters, not a outline drawing. It
does not work when going into Rhino. I get this message:

" There are no objects that fit the AI standard in the file C:\.....file.AI"



Now, I sketched some line art, saved it as an Illustrator 3.0 and
imported it and it works in Rhino. The point is, if I don't have
line art, how can I make the jpeg into line art in Illustrator??
I have a couple days left before I will have to sub this job out, any
help is appreciated.
 
You SHOULD have line art. If you don't have it, get it at the graphics department or the marketing agency of your customer. Or create it yourself in Illustrator.


There are some "tracing" apps available, that can convert bitmaps into vectors. But don't expect much of it.


Huug



Edited by: Huug
 
I have a raster to vector program. I can run it thru it if you like. Don't know that it will do you any better but can give you iges or dxf. Pretty sure it will accept most formats
 
Huug-

I don't know how to use Illustrator, but maybe I will have to
learn. If it is just tracing, that is what I am currently doing
in Solidworks, so maybe I can't improve my current method. The
company doesn't have a graphics department or marketing agency, they
are too small. They have "a guy" who did there sticker work for
them, but the files they sent me were blurry jpegs. Maybe I need
to push harder on them. Man this shouldn't be this
difficult. I will keep working on it.



Wsylvester-

Yeah, I don't know how it will work. What program? I tried
to use AlgoLab R2V, and it didn't work at all. Spit out a bunch
of garbage.
 
yep agree the whole process is too complex - and also would agree that if you can't get the original linework for the logos then your current process is just as effective. One of the guys here used to do it that way and it worked fine him.


ProE likes to market to product designers but they have some seroius holes in their functionality when it comes to industrial design.
 
kwadesign-

agreed! What a hole it is!



wsylvester-

Thanks man!



Hopefully this will all be over soon! I know how to quote the
next job, or at least put a provision in there for "customer must
supply line art"
smiley2.gif
 
Download WinTopo from the web or any raster to vector conversion software. Import the Jpeg and convert it to vectors. You will need to play with the various settings but you should be able to get a good outline vector drawing. Export the vectors with iges or dxf and then import into drawing mode or part mode. I use drawing mode and manually clean up the data. I then export just the entities I created and import them into a part. Create a composite curve thru the imported curves and then layer off the import. You now have good curves to use any way you like.


If you are running WF, and have ISDX you may import a sketch (jpeg,bmp,tif) into an ISDX feature and then sketch over it. The image below shows examples of the imported sketch from our Ind. Designer and a logo created using the method described. This is an injection molded part with logo.


Good Luck


Bill Tuman, Project Engineer, R & D Department, Sears Seating


View attachment 689
 
btuman-

I will have to try that. I got some help from wsylvester and also
got a friend to change one of them into line art using
Illustrator. Once he did that , it went into Rhino and then into
Pro-E without a hitch. Now I just have to figure out the steps
myself for using Illustrator to make a fuzzy, shaded jpeg into line art.
 
Illustrator curves tend to be quite complex once exported to a 3D app. They are then harder to edit in the 3D app (if one needs to). They also tend to create more complex geometry (simple curves create simple/cleaner geometry).


Personally I rebuild logo curves in Alias Studio (since it's my primary tool anyway) but I guess Rhino or ISDX would do as well.
 
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