Background

Many users get surveys provided in CAD formats (AutoCAD DWG,DXF ,DGN, etc) this wiki details the processs for converting a CAD file to an MX model.

Steps to Accomplish

1. Reference the CAD file into MX (Create a new MX plan display for this). Load the References tool (Tools>References>References).
   
   
   
   

   From the dialog box select Tool>Attach a reference file or select the Attach a Reference icon . Browse to the files you require referenced into MX. The following dialog box will appear which allows the scale to be adjusted if required. Select OK and the drawing will be referenced into the MX plan display.
   
   
   
   

2. Right click on the reference file and select Merge into Master and click in the window to proceed.
   
   
   
   

   Click into the View window to accept the Merge to Master.

   This will import the data from the reference file into standalone MX as Cad Elements which can be converted to MX Elements.
   
   

3. Load the CAD Import Wizard. Load from the CAD Import Toolbar or via the menu (MX>File>Import>CAD Data).
   
   

4. The first panel is the Cell Mapping Panel.
   
   
   
   This panel controls how to deal with cells (AutoCAD Blocks. The Mapping Type options are:
   
   To Strings: Where a cell in the drawing only has a single instance, this indicates that it may need to be dropped back from the cell representation for the elements to be correctly stored in MX.
   
   To Symbol: When a cell has multiple instances in the drawing, the cell should be converted into an MX symbol.
   
   Not mapped: Manual selection of this method is required to force this cell to be ignored.
   
   Cells mapped to strings must be further broken down into their constituent parts using Drop String Cells (AutoCAD Explode String Blocks).
   

5. The next panel is the Drawing Review Panel.
   
   
   
   A summary of the current drawing to be converted is displayed. This includes information which will affect the conversion of the drawing, and suggestions to improve the conversion.

   Drawing extents / coordinate base: this may identify the need for a coordinate shift or rescale of drawing units to match the model MX units.

   Number of elements 2D and 3D - It may be preferred to ignore 2D elements in the mapping / transfer and retain the original graphics of 2D elements as a reference when working in CAD.

6. The next panel is the Style Set Panel
   
   
   
   This panel defines the name of the default model and style set to be created. Both the model and style set default is the name of the current drawing.
   
   Selecting Use Existing Style Set will set the model to use a style set already associated with the model (this can be a company specific survey style set). If you leave this unticked a style set will be created based on the levels in the CAD file.
   
   If you select Use multiple features per level the MX feature levels created by the mapping will default MX features back to the original level.

7. The next panel is the Feature Details Panel.
   
   
   
   If you have selected Use Existing Style Set you will need to select feature names from the dropdown menu to match levels with features. Do this for all levels.
   
   

8. The final panel is the Report panel.
   
   
   This displays a report on the features found which will be converted to the MX model. This can be in feature set format, or a list of the object types.

9. Select Import and the CAD elements will be converted to MX elements in the selected model.

See Also

MX TechNotes And FAQs

Create a 3D Model from a 2D Model