Opening and Editing Non-SOLIDWORKS CAD Data

3DEXPERIENCE users can open can open a product structure of different CAD applications. The different CADs supported by Design with SOLIDWORKS are: CATIA V5, INVENTOR, SOLIDEDGE, CREO, NX, ALTIUM, and CADENCE. For each assembly node, a temporary SOLIDWORKS assembly file is created.

Opening Non-SOLIDWORKS Data CAD from SOLIDWORKS

Based on the type of data you are opening, the kind of geometry used to open that CAD varies.

  • To open NX, SOLIDEDGE, INVENTOR, and CATIA V5 data 3DEXPERIENCE platform uses the native file.
  • To open CREO, ALTIUM, CADENCE, and native 3DEXPERIENCE data 3DEXPERIENCE platform uses the following logic order to choose the stream format to open:
    1. SLDPRT
    2. CATPart (ExactGeometry)
    3. sldxml
    4. step
    5. xCADPivot
    6. CGR
Using native file or ExactGeometry formats it is assumed that the geometry identifiers are stable. Hence, SOLIDWORKS mates referencing xCAD native geometry or 3DEXPERIENCE ExactGeometry are stable. But the identifiers are not stable if mates reference a geometry of a step format conversion.

Editing Non-SOLIDWORKS Data from SOLIDWORKS

For 3DEXPERIENCE CAD format product structure, you can perform any one of the following actions:
  • You can insert any component irrespective of CAD origin.
  • You can add, delete, replace, and move or place an instance.
  • Any other modification performed from SOLIDWORKS is not persisted in the 3DEXPERIENCE platform. For instance, you can create mates but they are not saved in the 3DEXPERIENCE platform.
For other CAD format product structures, you can perform any one of the following actions:
  • You can add or replace an instance of the same CAD Format as the parent.
  • You can delete, move or place an instance.
  • Any other modification performed from SOLIDWORKS is not applicable in the 3DEXPERIENCE platform. For instance, you can create mates but they are not saved in the 3DEXPERIENCE platform.
For 3DEXPERIENCE CAD Format or any non-SOLIDWORKS CAD Format, the VPMInstance Title does not change at save.