Importing DXF vector drawings

[sascher]

Under Features and Benefits your website states "Import vector files (EPS, AI, PDF, etc) "
I am using Solid Works to create DXF files and would like to import them. Do you support any CAD based vector drawing files?
If not can you recommend a method for importing? If I import the DXF to AI and then try to import I receive an error "No contours found in the vector data."
Thanks for your help.

[Bhikkhu Pesala]

Only those vector formats listed are supported.

Try printing from Solid Works to a PDF printer driver like Cute PDF.

[sascher]

I have tried exporting the DXF to AI and PDF. When I then import I receive the error "No contours found in the vector data."
Attached is the PDF

[Bhikkhu Pesala]

Yes. If I import the PDF into PagePlus I can see, instead of two contours as expected, that it is composed of broken lines.

A PDF Exploded.png (8.18 KiB) Viewed 6452 times

I have "exploded" the construction lines so that you can see what the problem is. The A should be just two contours, one inner triangle, and one closed curve.

After connecting the lines together in PagePlus, the A imports as expected.

[sascher]

Of course the endpoints of the lines in the drawings are not broken apart but apparently something more has to be done within AI to join them together. I try creating compound paths but this doesn't work. Can you please tell me what steps I need to go through in AI to make the drawing acceptable to Font Creator? Thanks

[Bhikkhu Pesala]

Of course the endpoints of the lines in the drawings are not broken apart.

They are in the PDF. I don't have Adobe Illustrator, and have never used it, but the paths need to be continuous, not separate lines.

Have you tried drawing directly in FornCreator? It would save all these extra steps.

[sascher]

Thank you Bhikkhu,
As an industrial designer I use a parametric sketch tool from Solid Works that is very powerful but also very expensive... Now that I understand what the problem is, I need to find a better way to import the DXF/PDF/Ai files so that the paths that are generated are continuous. Did you have to join each point manually with the tool you use or did this happen automatically? This is a painful process in Ai although in the newest CS5 release it becomes much easier in that you can select all parts of a path and do a Object->Path->Join where as before you had to select each pair of end points and join them one at a time. I have the drawings sketched exactly as I want them - if I could only find an automated way of joining overlapping endpoints I would be a very happy camper. Any suggestions would be very much appreciated.

[Bhikkhu Pesala]

Did you have to join each point manually with the tool you use or did this happen automatically?

In PagePlus (or DrawPlus) I have to join the end points one at a time, but snapping makes it quite easy.

I can get a decent result pasting a 600 dpi bitmap of your font grabbed from the PDF.

Is it intentional that the contours have no fill? It imports with four contours instead of two, producing an outline font with very thin lines that would probably not show up at normal text sizes.

[sascher]

It looks like the best solution for me then will be to use SolidWorks to draw, Ai CS5 to join and Font Creator to assemble. I'm sure there is a more efficient way to join but for now this isn't too bad. Thanks again for your help.