kicad-developers team mailing list archive

[Lorenzo Marcantonio <l.marcantonio@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Sun, 5 Sep 2010, Alex G wrote:

> > So far, I have a program (perl, of course :-) that can read and
> > parse an IGES file (Global, Directory and Parameter sections),
> > and I've begun adding processors for the simpler IGES
> > Entity types (Color, Xform matrix, Point, Line, Arc).

At least I'm not the only one in the perl camp :D

> > Each Entity is pretty simple, but the possibility of having nested (and
> > reusable) Entities, and the exceptions, will complicate matters somewhat
> > :-(

And 'simple' can be an understatement when you have to actually compute
tabulated ruled and shell surfaces (but that's an issue even for STEP).

> > manufacturers, or will an IGES-to-VRML converter be of limited use ?

IGES is as of today mostly limited as a military archival format, the
job was designed for... it seems that the industry is moving on with
STEP (or even with STEP XML). OTOH our mold manufacturer simply wants
STL, so your mileage will vary :D

> It's surprising if 3D models are even available, let alone in IGES. Most
> manufacturers give partially complete pdf's.

3D models from farnell and RS are simple triangulations, too.

> I only know of Molex at the moment, but considering the thousands of
> parts they make, I'd take this converter to be pretty useful. Then every
> time they release a new line of connectors, we can just convert their
> models.

There is an underlying problem: molex gives high resolution models which
give you lots and lots of triangles... I don't know if you want them for
a 3D previewer (maybe for a detail render but I don't know if an
interactive view could handle lot of them).

I've seen ads about cad libraries for EDA and it said 'each component in
six levels of detail'.


--
Lorenzo Marcantonio
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