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Importing from 3D packages into Pro-E

tkd

New member
Hello. I am a 3D animator, not an engineer or Pro-E user. I have been approached by a company that is interested in manufacturing some of my 3D designs. The company uses Pro-E. As a test, I gave them a fairly simple object which I converted from my software (a polygonal Lightwave 3D object) into IGES by using the program Polytrans. My IGES object loaded into Pro-E as a wireframe, but the company needs
 
You can go from Pro/E to tesselated models but not the other way. Tesselated models are approximations of true geometry.



Polytrans can't convert Lightwave surfaces to IGES ?? You may want to investigate Polytrans a bit more, they claim to have more than 13 years experience with IGES.



http://www.okino.com/press/press_release_lw6.pdf





Check your model tree in Pro/E to make sure the surfaces aren't there.



Once you get your IGES you should be able to zip gaps and all the other good stuff that Pro/E has but your surfaces will always be tesselated...
 
Thank you for the reply. I don't think I did a good job of explaining. Yes, I can easily convert the Lightwave model into IGES format via Polytrans. I have done this successfully and given the files to the company, but they said that the IGES object loads in as wireframe only without surfaces. I assumed that the problem has to do with converting from a polygonal model into a nurb model, since (I was told) Pro-E is nurbs only. By tesselated, you mean that it will be triangular? Would a tesselated model pose a problem for making changes in Pro-E and then sending it for manufacturing quotations?
 
The company with Pro/E should be able to create surfaces. Under the #Applications #Legacy menu there are options for converting the wireframe to a solid.



If you have the option to oput your design to STEP format that will be much better for imput to Pro/E. However, if your software is based on surfaces then STEP is probably not an option.



Bernie Hayden

XKL LLC
 
I can see 3 possible causes here:



1) Polytrans is not converting the surfaces to IGES.



In which case check any Polytrans settings etc.



or



2) Pro/E is not reading in the IGES surfaces.



Have your Pro/E guy check your IGES-in file for a report of imported entities - this will list all points, curves and surfaces.



Make sure that your Pro/E guy isn't only importing curves.



Best way to open IGES in Pro/E is to open the file directly (ie Don't use insert).



or



3) The company with Pro/E has surface layer blanked.



Again have your Pro/E guy make sure any layers aren't blanked.







PS. Speling, think I you're the one that made a mistake - as is usual...
 
hi,

I am doing this kind of translation most of the time but, i do them from pro/e to 3ds max.

I create my basic designs in 3ds max. then i export the files as .stl and import them to pro/e. In pro/e, I finish the design using the imported geom as approx. reference and on completion, i export them again to .stl...then import them to 3ds max for the rendering...



so what i am trying to tell u is ....maybe you can try .stl format...they import as smooth surfaces in 3ds max ..but in pro/e, they are faceted.. so if u can do with faceted geometry then try stl..
 
Forget all this, both IGES and STL will work fine.



Regarding the IGES files it sounds like there are some operator issues on the Pro/E side.
 

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