GearHeads Corner

Hi everyone

I have some trubles processing my GM designs when mixing them with other (designed) parts. It always boils down to one problem: GM does not support any export as a solid. From the forums I see that others have this problems and that it is on the radar. However there is no satus about it. So I had the hope when opening a sugestion maybe the someone would keep an eye on it and keep us posted on the eventual progress.

Here my sugestion:
It would be great if GM supports export to a solid format. Sugested is STEP. I have no preference on binary or ascii.

I am more than happy to support in terms of testing.

Regards
Martin

Martin:

The problem is that STEP is an extremely complex implementation, I believe its made as a spec by Siemens
and even trying to read the spec is eyeglazzingly bad.
  I continue to see if I can make an implementation of it, but with no luck so far.

Thx
Art

You might take a look at the source level of FreeCad as I did.

http://www.freecadweb.org
http://sourceforge.net/projects/free-cad/

Primarily you'll want to export just single solid models and simple assemblies from relatively straight forward geometry definitions.  Doing this uses only a very small subset of the Step file specification and, as long as you follow the basic rules, you'll export water tight solid step file models and those should import fine into virtually any solid modeling program.

Kent:

When I look through such code ( not just in FreeCad ) , it becomes apparent Id have to almost use the entire program, the structures are just so interwoven in the way its executed. Im still looking but its a slog to get step in the codebase..

  (Cant find the output module for step files in freecad, only the import to Brep..

Art

I'm use to prowling about in this kind of software. Give me a week or so and I'll see what can be broken out and how it needs to be driven to generate a step file.

Kent:

Sounds great, Id like to include it if indeed it can be culled.. Looks awfully interwoven into the fabric of generation though...

Art