SolidWorks 2011 Parts Bible - Matt Lombard [298]
Gaining experience with imports
When SolidWorks imports data from another CAD program, the result is an Imported feature in the FeatureManager. The example shown in Figure 23.3 is the situation you are typically looking for: the result as a single solid body. Frequently, imports do not come in this clean. When imports start giving you trouble, you will see errors on a single body, or possibly multiple bodies, or even surface bodies. SolidWorks can address some types of errors automatically, and you can address some manually. From time to time and for various reasons, you might get a part that is such a mess that you just want to try a different method for importing it (for example, different import or export settings, or a different file type).
The best way to start to feel comfortable with imported data is to be exposed to a wide range of files, some that work and some that don't. This chapter is not intended to be a short course on import repair, but repair is certainly part of the reality of working with imported data. When imports fail, it is not often because of SolidWorks; it is often because the parent software fails. SolidWorks import tools are very good and have improved over time.
Understanding the results of imports
When you import geometrical data into SolidWorks, you can get a number of different types of results:
• Single solid body in a part file
• Assembly of multiple parts
• Multiple solid bodies in a part file
• Surface bodies in a part file
• Combination of solid and surface bodies in a part file
When you get an assembly of parts, SolidWorks uses the default template that you have designated in Tools⇒Options⇒Default Templates, creates new parts, and saves them to your hard drive automatically.
Some imports also create a report file with the extension *.rpt or *.err. This file includes statistics about the entities and precision of the data, filename, units, the originating system, and also some information about errors that occurred during the import.
Figure 23.5 shows the first section of a report written for the import of an IGES file.
FIGURE 23.5
Report files can help you understand the contents of the imported file.
Demonstrating some data import
I am going to import a few parts that don't come in perfectly and ask you to follow along with the files on your DVD. This is not so much a click-by-click tutorial as a “watch over my shoulder” demonstration with commentary.
Starting with a Parasolid import because these are the fastest and easiest, open the part called Chapter 23 Robot Arm.x_t from the material on the DVD for Chapter 23. You can open translated format files in a couple of different ways. Many people look for an Import or Translate option in the File menu, but it's not there. You can use the Open command, and select Parasolid from the Files Of Type drop-down list. That is one way to do it, but it is slow. I prefer to open a translated file using Windows Explorer, and drag-and-drop the file onto the SolidWorks window.
After you open the file, you will notice a couple of things. The first thing that stands out to me is that the model displays in Shaded mode, regardless of how you have the display set. For example, I like to use Shaded With Edges, but imports always set it back to Shaded.
The next thing to notice is the Imported1 feature in the FeatureManager. In this case, the import was clean, so there are no warnings (yellow triangles) or errors (red circles). This is not always a good indication of the state of the part, though, because some errors that SolidWorks knows about are not displayed on the Imported feature icon. To investigate closer, right-click the Imported1 feature and select Import Diagnosis, or click Import Diagnosis from the Evaluate tab of the CommandManager.
In this case, the model really is clean. Running Import Diagnosis