Generate mutiple AutoCAD drawings from data stored in an Excel file.

Dear smarties

I read a few articles here and there regarding a way to generate multiple drawings from an excel file, but no one had explained step by step on how to do it. So, I am lost half way. I am very new to this kind of things, but I will try to follow, so please go slow on me.

here is what I want to fix:

1. I need to automatically generate 10 drawings both in dwg and pdf copied into a folder.

2. All the variables (VAR1 to VAR3) are stored in an excel file. refer to the attached files as an example.

3. I only need to create one original drawing, which will be used to generate all the 10 drawings.

Please help

EXCEL-VAR.xls

ORIGINAL-DWG.dwg

Your excel is no where near what you need

Sheet size x y

start pt x y

points x y

points x y

points x y

points x y

BIGAL, thanks a lot for your reply.

I may be wrong with the excel file I shared, but I don't know any better.

As long as I explained what I wanted, so if there is anything that I should add in the file, please let me know.

Could you please help me with a working sample and all the steps that I need to follow to get it to work?

If your doing closed shapes then just enter in excel the difference in X Y then you need to write a script from this entry or copy column. You need to use "concatenate" in excel.

This is what I was looking for a real good example http://www.cadtutor.net/forum/showthread.php?93854-Cad-and-Excel&highlight=excel

BIGAL

Thank you for the example, but you didn't understand what I am trying to achieve. Let me re-explain what I want:

I have a drawing in AutoCAD (Already drawn) with a drawing number VAR01, the variable width of the shape VAR02 and the variable height of the shape VAR03.

Meanwhile, I have all the variables VAR01, VAR02 and VAR03 in a spread sheet.

I want to generate all the shop drawings automatically from that spread sheet without the need to actually draw every drawing separately one by one especially if I had 100s of drawings to generate.

Would you have a solution to that?

I blieve I understand you, a shape 3 side a shape 4 side a shape 5 sides you can not have a auto solution, (you can but not right now) you need to post a excel that means something not just var1 var2 var3 etc we dont have a clue. I am more than happy to say you can draw an object from excel data, but it must make sense. The example I posted as a beam 4 lines and holes in it just cahnge some numbers in excel and get next beam.

BIGAL

I know there is a way using either AutoLisp, VB and/or connect Excel/CSV files to AutoCAD with a small code that to connect and run the generation of the shop drawings.

Your solution is not what I am after and I am not planning to enter coordinates to DRAW anything but only to replace text/Block/etc within the original shop drawing and print out all the rest in either pdf or dwg into a folder.

As you can see, that's very different that what you were suggesting, but thank you for trying to help.

Ok my final real big hint others know what I am talking about search here for "SHAFT" & Excel. Autocad about 10+ years ago supplied a sample drawing called "shaft" and a excel called "shaft" change the values a cell in the excel and watch the drawing of a shaft change in Autocad. I have no idea why they no longer put it in their samples.

Its a dynamic block linked to a excel.

Trying to find, a google post "Does anyone remember the shaft.xls sample which used to ship with R12 " it is here.

search for Ibeam3d.dvb in c:\programfiles\Autocad\Autocad...xxx \samples\vba

VBAMAN and load Ibeam3d

1. I need to automatically generate 10 drawings both in dwg and pdf copied into a folder.

2. All the variables (VAR1 to VAR3) are stored in an excel file. refer to the attached files as an example.

3. I only need to create one original drawing, which will be used to generate all the 10 drawings.

 

 

Please help

 

 

hi, my $0.02 of workaround

1. actually you can save your VAR in *.txt or *.csv

VAR1 VAR2 VAR3

Dwg1 Dim1 Dim11

Dwg2 Dim2 Dim12

Dwg3 Dim3 Dim13

Dwg4 Dim4 Dim14

2. use read-line to obtain contents then split as list

;example:

(setq dwg '(("VAR1" "VAR2" "VAR3")
    ("Dwg1" "Dim1" "Dim11")
    ("Dwg2" "Dim2" "Dim12")
    ("Dwg3" "Dim3" "Dim13")
           ("Dwg4" "Dim4" "Dim14")
    )
     ) ;_ end of setq

3. copy the source drawing according to list

(if (and (setq fn (findfile [color="red"][b]"ORIGINAL-DWG.dwg"[/b][/color])) (setq l (fnsplitl fn)))
 (foreach x (mapcar 'car (cdr dwg)) 
   ([color="blue"]vl-file-copy[/color] fn (apply 'strcat (subst x (cadr l) l)))
   ) ;_ end of foreach
 ) ;_ end of if

now we open the newly created drawing, example "Dwg3.dwg"

all handles are identical for each copied drawing,

(mapcar '[color="blue"]handent[/color] '([color="red"]"1f6"[/color] [color="#006400"];VAR1[/color]
	   [color="red"]"1f9"[/color] [color="green"];VAR2[/color]
	   [color="red"]"212"[/color][color="green"] ;VAR3[/color]
	   ))[color="green"]
;(<Entity name: 7efa13b0> <Entity name: 7efa1408> <Entity name: 7efa1490>)[/color]

4. finally, since new drawings have been created,

BIGAL can give some advise using script to modify entities?

Ok I realise now how to do it 3 steps and yes you can have single cell entries like 200 50 100

1 make a dynamic block for each basic shape 3, 4, 5 side etc

2 pretty sure Lee-mac has dynamic block update code

3 use something like getexcel.lsp to read spreadsheet

see d1 d2 d3 these are your Vars I dont play with dynamic blocks so can not help much.