Hello,
I want to transfer some files from SW 2011 to Mastercam 6, but I continually run into problems with tool pathing. I have tried .sldprt and .iges. The only format that started to work was the .iges wireframe (option - parametric spline, entity type 112). However, it turned out that many of the lines weren't connected.
I can just import a 2d drawing and work from there, but it would be more efficient for us to be able to export the file directly from SW without modification. How can I do this?
I, and many other users, use the parasolid format, which is the underlying format in Solidworks. There is a parasolid and a parasolid binary in the save as... options, and I haven't seen or heard of a difference in what shows up in MC. There is an option in MC to apply edge curves (wireframe) to all the edges, I usually just import the solid and create edge curves when needed.
A very cool feature of using this format is the ability to assign a coordinate system in SW so that the file lands in MC with the orientation you want. When you select Parasolid as your save as type, an options box appears. Click on that, and in the next window, at the bottom is an output coordinate system drop down, and select the coordinate system you want.
I must say, working like this is OK if your parts don't change, but feels very archaic working in a development environment when changes frequently occur and knowing there are CAM packages that work inside SW, including MC for SW. I am supposed to start moving on from this method, it just hasn't happened yet.