SolidWorks 2010 Bible

Chapter 30: Using Imported Geometry and Direct Editing Techniques

FIGURE 30.12

A Pro/ENGINEER part can be translated with a complete feature tree.

Handling import errors

Import errors are usually caused by differences between the exporting and importing CAD soft-

ware vendors. Some imports are more prone to errors than others. For example, the IGES format is

interpreted different ways by different software vendors, and is, therefore, very prone to errors.

Another type of error is the error due to tolerance or accuracy issues. Catia is notorious for having

very large tolerances on exported data. This is to enable Catia to work with large data sets more

easily, but it means that when the geometry is read into SolidWorks, which typically requires more

accurate data, you can see a lot of errors. The fact that the Catia to SolidWorks translation is one of

the most problematic in the CAD industry seems odd because SolidWorks and Catia are both

owned by Dassault Systemmes, but the difficulties have persisted for more than a decade, so it is

not a technological difficulty, it is a business decision.

Repairing import errors automatically

SolidWorks has a tool called Import Diagnostics. Import Diagnostics can run automatically or

manually to find the errors in imported data and to make repairs if possible. You can access Import

Diagnostics by right-clicking an imported feature in the FeatureManager, as long as there are no

native SolidWorks features that follow the imported feature. Figure 30.13 shows typical results

from a faulty import.