Editing parts from assembly in STEP-format

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chrisb
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Re: Editing parts from assembly in STEP-format

Post by chrisb »

jehojakim wrote: Mon Jan 03, 2022 2:46 pm
What I meant to say is about the labour converting all the 1000 items by hand into parts with the dimensional (constraint) data present. A amount of labour not feasible in my personal situation, and not worthwhile the goal.
As soon as you have opened the step file, the things inside are FreeCAD objects. They just don't have any (changeable) history. What is it finally that you want to do with these 1000 items? Perhaps can that information lead us further.
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jehojakim
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Re: Editing parts from assembly in STEP-format

Post by jehojakim »

As soon as you have opened the step file, the things inside are FreeCAD objects. They just don't have any (changeable) history. What is it finally that you want to do with these 1000 items? Perhaps can that information lead us further.
Not all, but the majority of the components would get other dimensions, and as a result the placement of components can be different, too. So if there are no dimensions (constraints) appended to the items, I cannot change them.

I would like to stress here that my experience wtih FreeCAD is short, so my understanding of all it's possibilities is less than should be. I appreciate your patience!

with best regards, jehojakim.
jmaustpc
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Re: Editing parts from assembly in STEP-format

Post by jmaustpc »

jehojakim wrote: Tue Jan 04, 2022 12:07 amdimensions
Yeah, bad word to use, everything has a dimension,
jehojakim wrote: Tue Jan 04, 2022 12:07 am (constraints)
Yes, no constraints ...or editable properties ... to define those dimensions

But that is a limitation of STEP files, not FreeCAD, which goes back to my earlier point, that STEP files just give you little more than not directly editable dumb solids. Yes you can have an assembly but it is a dumb assembly by which I mean just little more than a group of dumb solids each with a simple placement defined relative to the total assembly.

Your expectations are not reasonable, if I am understanding you correctly, because when the original creator of the file exported it to STEP from whatever CAD native file format they were using, by definition they removed all editable properties or constraints etc.

If you want to easily just edit the dimensions of your solids then you need the original native format file that still contains the properties and constraints to be edited.

Since most CAD applications use their own closed proprietary file formats and seem to make any interoperability as difficult as possible, presumably to try to force you to have to get ripped off paying their insane price and regular fees to continue using their stupid program, then you better hope that the original was not modelled in a 10grand per seat per year stupid CAD program! Of course you may be able to get a satisfactory result with a file type conversion program or add on etc.
jehojakim
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jehojakim

Post by jehojakim »

Yeah, bad word to use, everything has a dimension,
That is probably caused by me not being a native speaker of English - the Dutch equivalent, "afmetingen", would be a perfect word in this context.
But that is a limitation of STEP files, not FreeCAD, which goes back to my earlier point, that STEP files just give you little more than not directly editable dumb solids. Yes you can have an assembly but it is a dumb assembly by which I mean just little more than a group of dumb solids each with a simple placement defined relative to the total assembly.

Your expectations are not reasonable, if I am understanding you correctly, because when the original creator of the file exported it to STEP from whatever CAD native file format they were using, by definition they removed all editable properties or constraints etc.
Surely, I did not *expect* this was possible, let alone that I would blame FreeCAD it is not. On the other hand, it would have been a pity if it *had* been possible, and I never knew because I never asked.

The drawing of the Ratrig Killerbee CNC-portal was originally made in Fusion 360, and made publicly available by the company that sells this machine. Apart from opening it in Fusion (which is Windows/MAC only), it can be downloaded in a number of formats, STEP being one of them.

But the drawing is of a smaller version of the machine I have ordered, so I have to alter the dimensions (can I use this word here?) to resemble my machine.

Thanks again, and thanks of course to the devs of Freecad, for making it such a fantastic program.
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