Drawings from CAD Key to AutoCAD (3D) to Inventor

Hello,

My compnay used before CADKey. And the previous designer converted somehow all drawings to AutoCAD (3D).

We are currently working on the same project and I need those drawings. It is very annoying to have CADkey drawings converted to AutoCAD (3D) because you will have unorganised drawings with all lines over each other. I still can make out the drawing, however visually its ridiculous.

Anyhow, all drawings are not solid drawings, but they are in 3D.

How can I convert these drawings to Inventor parts drawings. Or how can I convert them to solid drawings in AutoCAD and then to Inventor.

Let me know if you have any clue.

Thanks!

If the drawings are not 3D solids then what are they? Surfaces or meshes?

Personally I think you'd be better off redrawing everything in Inventor.

The drawings are like lines connected together in 3D mode. I believe that when you convert CAdkey to AutoCAD you get a 3d drawing with only the edges showing.

Just imagine a 3D box with only the edges showing. You can still rotate the box in 3d mode, but its not solid or a surface.

Redrawing everything would take a lot of time.

Can you post an example drawing? You can erase a lot of it and just leave a basic object or two we can play with. Thanks.

Do you have CADKey? Does it have a Save (or Export) as STEP, IGES or ACIS format file?

Here is an example: Drawing2.dwg

Thanks. Care to answer JDM's question?

I looked at your drawing. Everything appears to be lines. There is no magic button in AutoCAD that will "convert" all the lines into a solid. There are a few things that could be done to create a solid from what you have now but it would not be a one step process.

Now what?

I'm feeling generous today. Here is your drawing back.

Solid conversion.

SolidConversion.dwg

No lines were redrawn in the creation of this solid. No animals were hurt either.

Do you have CADKey? Does it have a Save (or Export) as STEP, IGES or ACIS format file?

I have CADKey but it does not save as Step or any of the following you mentioned up there...

What about Export?

BTW...you don't necessarily have to redraw everything to obtain a solid from within AutoCAD itself. The question is can the original file be Exported from CADKey in a form that can be brought into (Imported?) Inventor? If the answer is "Yes" then you have at least eliminated one step.

Thanks,

How did you do it?

Thanks,

 

How did you do it?

Well it wasn't magic that's for sure. Why, it was so simple a..........

Once I reoriented the object ,to take the strain off my neck, I used the Pedit command to connect lines and arcs into a single continuous polyline profile of one side (the long one). I extruded this profile. I copied the circles at the base of the original to my new solid, extruded and subtracted them to create the holes. For the notch at the top I basically did the same thing (had to add one line) as I did before and that was to pedit the lines and arcs into a single continuous polyline, extruded that and subtracted it from my object. Done. It probably took a few minutes at most. JDM could probably do it faster but since I wasn't getting paid to do this I took my time. LOL

I have CADKey but it does not save as Step or any of the following you mentioned up there...

How old is this seat (of CADKey)? I find it hard to believe that it doesn't save in any of the standard neutral CAD file formats.