FW: CATIA-to-STL (was: IGES to STL)

From: Dark, Jeffrey T (Jeff.Dark@PSS.Boeing.com)
Date: Tue Mar 17 1998 - 17:38:03 EET


Dan,

use the 4.1.7 translater here at Boeing and my guess is that if you're
getting 7Mbyte files, your engineers are translating the solid at full
scale (with a small sag value ~.001) and then scaling it down. This
creates way more facets than necessary on the scaled down part. We have
no problem with large STL files unless we get them from somebody else.
Most of our STL files are less than 1 Mbyte (with Boeing sized parts!).

Jeff Dark
Tech Focal/Lead Engineer
BCAG Rapid Prototyping Center
Boeing Company M/S 17-PE
ph: (206) 655-4366
Fax: (206) 655-0934
jeff.dark@PSS.boeing.com

> ----------
> From: Victor Moreno[SMTP:vmoreno@becky.nemak.com.mx]
> Sent: Tuesday, March 17, 1998 7:19 AM
> To: DAN DAVIS, RAPID PROTOTYPE
> Cc: 'Brandon Jacobsen'; 'RP Mailing List'
> Subject: Re: CATIA-to-STL (was: IGES to STL)
>
> DAN DAVIS, RAPID PROTOTYPE wrote:
> Brandon, Victor and all:
> I do have the v4.1.7 CATIA translator, but find that it creates
> really,
> really large STL files (i.e., a quarter scale, 10-spoke cast aluminum
> car wheel was over 7Mb).  Do you find this also?
> I've heard that this was a problem at Chrysler in the past and they
> switched to the Brockware translator.  I was wondering if this is
> still
> the case or is it that my engineers do not know what settings to use
> for
> the translation?
> Please keep in mind that I am not really a CAD expert -- I know just
> enough to get into trouble.......
> Regards,
> > Dan Davis
> > Division Head, RP&M
> > Perusahaan Otomobil Nasional Berhad (PROTON)
> Hicom Industrial Estate
> Batu 3 PO Box 7100
> Shah Alam, Selangor D. E.
> 40918 MALAYSIA
> > +60 3 515-3906 direct line
> > +60 3 515-2380 direct fax
> > +60 12 277-5770 hand phone
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > ----------
> > From:         Brandon Jacobsen[SMTP:brandonj@eagledesign.com]
> > Sent:         Monday, 16 March, 1998 19:32
> > To:   DAN DAVIS, RAPID PROTOTYPE
> > Subject:      Re: IGES to STL
> >
> > Dan,
> >
> > I am not familiar with brockware's CATIA to STL translator, but we
> > have done extensive work with the CATIA STL package
> > available in v4r1.7 and up.  It is a little costly but it is an
> > excellent stl translator.  The major advantage of the CATIA
> > translator is that you are 99.99% guaranteed a good STL file if you
> > have a Volume or solid.  And an offset function that takes
> > a single stl of a skin and gives it thickness, which is great for
> > rapid tooling.  If you have any questions please feel free
> > to call.
> >
> > Brandon R. Jacobsen
> > Eagle Design & Technology, Inc.
> > phone: (616) 748-1022
> > fax: (616) 748-1032
> >
> > "If one synchronized swimmer drowns, do the rest have to drown too?"
>
> >
> >
>  
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> --
>    Part 1.2       Type: application/ms-tnef
>               Encoding: base64
>  
>  Hi there friends:
>  DAN you are certanly right,    sometimes the  .stl files  are 
> large,    but  this depends of course of the resolution that you need
> to use for your applications,   In our case,  we use the   .stl  files
> as an input  in a software for  solidification  analisis  (
> MAGMA software )  although  the geometries are complex and relatively
> large files,  we haven't  found any troubles  using  the files that
> comes from CATIA.
> By the way ,  we normally have a terrible time trying  to close the
> geometry  (surf's gaps)  in order to  get  the   volume or  solid-e 
> needed for the STL utility,      any trick  to speed that task  will
> be very appreciated.
> Thanks,
> Regards.
>  
> -- 
> _________________________________________________________________
> Victor Cuauhtemoc Moreno
> Design Engineer      
> NEMAK  Corp.
> Tels: (52 8) 318 52 00  ext. 5359,    
>       
> e-mail : vmoreno@nemak.com.mx
> ________________________________________________________________
>  
>

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