Importing a DXF or DWG File

(The information in this topic contains file-specific information for the "General Import Procedure" covered in the "Importing CAD Data" topic.)

You can choose to import a .dxf or .dwg file.

PC-DMIS stores the units of DXF files is in the measurement property inside the DXF file. The measurement property is indicated by the text "$MEASUREMENT" in the DXF file.

Fixing a Missing Measurement Property

Some DXF files may omit the measurement property. In these cases, PC-DMIS assumes that the DXF file is in inch units. If the units of the DXF file units should be millimeter, and you import the DXF file into PC-DMIS, PC-DMIS scales the CAD model too large by a factor of 25.4.

To fix this problem, you can use the CAD Transform dialog box to scale the model by a factor of 1/25.4:

  1. Choose Operation | Graphic Display Window | Transform to access the CAD Transform dialog box.

  2. In the Scale box, type 1/25.4.

  3. Click OK to scale the model down by that factor.

For more information on the CAD Transform dialog box, see "Transforming a CAD Model" in the "Editing the CAD Display" chapter.

Fixing an Incorrect Measurement Property

Some DXF files may have an incorrect measurement property. For example, the measurement property may indicate inch units but the intended units are millimeters. If you import the DXF file into PC-DMIS, PC-DMIS scales the CAD model too large by a factor of 25.4.

To fix this problem, you can edit the DXF file in a text editor:

  1. Open the DXF file in a text editor, such as Notepad.

  2. Search for the text "$MEASUREMENT" in the file.

For example, the text could look something like this:

    $MEASUREMENT
     70
        0
      0

This measurement property defines the drawing units. The first number, that follows group code 70 defines the drawing units for the CAD model. It can be 0 or 1 and signifies the following:

0 = inch

1 = millimeters

  1. Modify the drawing units to the intended units: 0 for inch or 1 for millimeter.

So, in the above example, to change the CAD model units to millimeter, change the drawing units property from 0 to 1, like this:

    $MEASUREMENT
     70
        1
      0

  1. In your text editor, save your changes to the DXF file.

  2. In PC-DMIS, import the modified DXF file.