![]() Blurry, pixelated copies will still work, but, as we mentioned before, accuracy is important when doing this and that just isn’t guaranteed with low-quality images. Ideally, we want high-quality images for Solidworks. Simply put, the larger the file and the more colored pixels or dots per inch of the drawing, the better the quality. The clarity and quality of these images depend on their resolution. The typical image files we deal with such as JPG, GIF, and PNG are all examples of raster images. Raster images – also called bitmap images – are made up of colored pixels clustered together to form images. Those are the two main categories of images that we want to discuss. Raster and vector images are what we’ll be working with when trying to trace an image on Solidworks. Let’s try to cover the basics of these terms and file types first before diving into particulars. How Much Does Solidworks Cost? Pricing Explained We’ll be going over all of these methods in this article. This is recommended for more complicated images or if manually tracing over seems too tedious of a job. That way, you’ll be dealing with an imported and editable vector file rather than a raster image which you still have to trace over. For simpler geometry, this would be easy, but some challenges might arise when you’re working with machine-accurate objects or anything that has very little room for error.Įven though Solidworks’ own automatic tracing tool might not be able to handle them, there is third-party software, such as Scan2CAD, that can manage the raster-to-vector conversion process before importing the image into Solidworks. Luckily, you can use all the sketch tools in the program to just trace over the imported image manually. ![]() Automatic tracing would be harder to do for, say, full-blown technical images or physical photographs of objects. But this only usually works for images with solid edges and outlines. Just import your image file, a step that should be a breeze if your image file is in a format that Solidworks supports, and trace over the image.įor simpler images, Solidworks has an automatic tracing tool that should generate sketch lines that go over the outlines of the image. ![]() There’s a straightforward way of importing your image into Solidworks, and that’s through the Sketch function. With any imported image, the most important factor is the clarity of the image and the accuracy of the measurements as well as the dimensions, seeing as the end goal of a lot of these processes are workable 3D models that will sometimes be used to prototype certain machine parts using 3D printers or CNC machines. There could even be actual scans or photos of patterns or gaskets that need to be imported into the program for CNC work. Sometimes these reference images will be scanned copies of floor plans and details or hand-drawn sketches of details. With the top-down workflow incorporated into Solidworks, users will inevitably find themselves having to import 2D plans or sketches into the program to be used as references. The geometry gets connected in the regular manner, so things like double-clicking to select the entire chain can help save time.The Solidworks interface. In the example below you can see that two separate shapes were produced, but only one was required, so regular methods were used to remove what wasn’t needed. In some cases you might want to clean up the geometry to simplify it before creating an operation. As an image gets more detailed you’ll get more and more geometry. Even with a basic image, things like feathered edges can result in more geometry than you need. ![]() For example, importing a perfectly solid black logo against a perfectly solid white background should result in geometry outlining the perimeter of the logo. It looks at colour contrast and creates the geometry based on where it sees a certain amount of change. The Raster2Vector plug-in supports JPG, BMP, and SVG files. In the end you can use it to create an operation to cut the geometry whatever way you want. You might also want to project the geometry onto a 3D solid in some cases. Functions like scale, translate, and rotate can be used on the geometry to position it before adding tool paths. Once the image is imported you can use the geometry the same way as you would if you had drawn it in GibbsCAM yourself. ![]() You simply use the import button, locate the file, and the rest is done for you. This could be anything from a basic logo to a detailed picture. The CAM Solutions Raster2Vector plug-in for GibbsCAM gives you the ability to import raster images and have them converted to the vector geometry you’re used to. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |