CAD (computer-aided design) files are digital files that house 3D & 2D designs as well as information regarding materials, processes, tolerances, and other data.To get more news about mechanical cad drawings , you can visit shine news official website.
All use different CAD software, making interchange difficult for all– especially when geometric information and 3D annotations such as PMI (product manufacturing information) must maintain integrity.
Native CAD file formats from PTC Creo, Siemens NX, CATIA, SolidWorks, Autodesk Inventor, and others are proprietary and need to be translated & validated for downstream processing.Neutral CAD file formats, however, are interoperable between different CAD software. Today we look at the best 8 neutral CAD file formats, especially pertaining to mechanical CAD conversion. Capvidia is a firm believer in CAD formats that are standards (e.g. ISO, ANSI, etc. that ensure quality and consistency) and that are model-based definition (MBD) ready.
MBD CAD files include both the geometry and product manufacturing & quality requirements, which are normally done on 2D drawings.
By combining 2D drawing information into the 3D CAD model, it becomes the authoritative source for a product's lifecycle. This enables automation, data insights, and connectivity from design to manufacturing from a single source of truth that is both human and machine readable. STEP files are the most widely used & accepted neutral CAD format today, therefore, making it a standard across multiple industries.
Most CAD software supports importing & exporting STEP files, allowing it to be interoperable between different systems including CAM (computer-aided manufacturing), CAI (computer-aided inspection), and CAE (computer-aided engineering). 2. QIF (File Extension: *.QIF) QIF (Quality Information Framework) files are made for the digital manufacturing in the 21st century. It optimizes for semantic PMI which allows for human & machine-readable CAD leading to two main things: interoperability & traceability downstream.
3. JT (File Extension: *.JT) JT (Jupiter Tessellation) files are the most confusing of the neutral CAD format group. Although known for vis-rep, it can also have full B-rep and PMI, therefore making it MBD-ready.
4. 3D PDF (File Extension: *.PDF) 3D PDF files are popular for a reason. It’s a ubiquitous format, easily viewed on computers, smartphones, and tablets. Especially convenient for those who don’t have CAD systems or viewers.
5. Stereolithography Files (File Extension: *.STL) STL files are universal 3D formats that focuses on surface geometry and shapes but not for colors, textures, or other model attributes, which is good for rapid prototyping, 3D printing, and some CAM software.
6. IGES (File Extension: *.IGS, *.IGES) IGES files were the first neutral CAD file invented and deployed in the late 1970s/early 1980s.
Although an older standard technologically superseded by STEP & QIF, it’s still used today since it’s been around for a long time and is very widely supported. 7. ACIS (File Extension: *.SAT) ACIS files are 3D solid and surface CAD files from Spatial, a Dassault Systemes division. It is a geometric modeling kernel compiled in C++ and used in CAD, CAM, CAE, and CMM.
