How to Draw a Site Plan in Autocad 2014

Importing and Exporting CAD Files

PRO If you're a SketchUp Pro user, you can import or consign CAD files, which use the .dwg or .dxf file formats.

Before yous import a file, information technology's helpful to know what CAD entities SketchUp Pro does and doesn't back up and how to prepare your CAD file for best results. Then, you can walk through the bones importing steps outlined in this article. Later on yous're washed importing, check out Starting with a CAD File in SketchUp Pro, which offers several tips and tricks for handling imported CAD geometry.

If you're exporting a SketchUp Pro file to a CAD format, how you consign a CAD file depends on whether it'due south a 2D file, such every bit a floor plan, or a 3D model. In this article, you also discover how SketchUp data is exported into CAD format.

Table of Contents

1. Understanding what CAD elements SketchUp can import
2. Preparing a CAD file for import into SketchUp
3. Importing a CAD file into SketchUp
4. Agreement how SketchUp data is exported to CAD format
5. Exporting a SketchUp Model every bit a second CAD file
6. Exporting a SketchUp Model as a 3D CAD file

Agreement what CAD elements SketchUp tin import

The following table outlines what CAD elements SketchUp does and doesn't support. If an chemical element isn't supported, SketchUp simply ignores it when you import the CAD file.

Supported CAD Entities	Unsupported CAD Entities
Arcs	Proprietary ADT or ARX objects
Circles	Dimensions
Entities with thickness	Hatching
Faces	Text
3D faces	XREFs
Layers
Lines and supported Line Styles
Materials
Polyline-based solids
Nested blocks
AutoCAD regions
Point
Ellipse
Spline
Raster Image

Preparing a CAD file for import into SketchUp

When yous accept a few steps to cheque and prepare your CAD file before import, you lot can brand sure all the data you lot need imports into SketchUp and streamline the import process. The post-obit sections outline what you need to look for and how to resolve whatever potential conflicts between CAD elements and SketchUp.

Tip: You don't want to lose details in your original CAD file. Remember to create a copy of the CAD file and prepare that copy for importing into SketchUp.

Change unsupported elements

If you demand to import unsupported CAD elements into SketchUp, try exploding those elements in CAD so they get primitive CAD cartoon elements that SketchUp does support.

For example, when you explode CAD objects into block entities, they import into SketchUp as components. If you explode the CAD cake entities into polylines, the polylines import into SketchUp equally lines or polylines.

Delete unnecessary layers

In an imported CAD file, SketchUp automatically discards any entities that have no 3D relevance, such as text, dimensions, hatching, and so on. However, SketchUp won't discard the layers holding these entities. To avoid a agglomeration of empty layers in SketchUp, you lot may want to purge whatsoever unused layers through Statistics on the Model Info dialog.

Move geometry close to the origin

In SketchUp, geometry that's many miles or kilometers away from the origin (0,0) can cause operation problems. To avoid these problems, cheque the placement of geometry in your CAD file earlier you import the CAD file into SketchUp.

For example, say you're importing Autodesk AutoCAD DWG files, such every bit civil site plans, in gild to work with the contour lines. If the graphic or geometry is far away from the origin, move information technology shut to the origin before importing the CAD file into SketchUp.

Alternatively, deselect the Preserve Drawing Origin option in SketchUp's DWG/DXF import options, as explained in Importing a CAD file into SketchUp, later in this commodity.

Reduce the file size if needed

By and large, CAD files import into SketchUp successfully when the file size is 15MB or less. When you import larger CAD files, the import can take a long fourth dimension or may fail. Conversely, the smaller your CAD file size, the quicker and easier the import. Also, afterwards a complex CAD file is imported into SketchUp, you lot may notice that SketchUp's performance slows downwardly. That'southward because lines and faces in SketchUp contain more data than their CAD equivalents.

Tip: For best results with imported CAD files, keep the size of imported files to a minimum. Here are a few tips for minimizing a CAD file earlier y'all import it into SketchUp:

• Import only the necessary geometry. SketchUp models can exist designed to be every bit accurate as models in CAD. Yet, SketchUp is non designed for the same blazon of line-intensive drawings washed in CAD software. In your CAD file, clean upwardly or remove whatsoever content that you don't need to employ afterward you import the CAD file into SketchUp. You might simplify the CAD file to just walls — and maybe doors and windows if yous want to model those in your SketchUp file, too.
• Separate levels of detail amid different CAD files. If your CAD file holds lots of necessary geometry, consider whether you pause one file into a few smaller files. For case, i imported CAD file can contain site plan data, some other tin accept a floor plan, and a final file tin can have a specific detail.

Check the unit of measure

If possible, find out the unit of mensurate used to create the CAD file. When you import the CAD file into SketchUp, you need to know whether your file uses inches, anxiety, or a metric unit of measurement. That way, you tin can match the SketchUp model's units to the CAD file's units and thus maintain the calibration and dimensions of your imported CAD geometry.

In SketchUp 2018 and afterwards, y'all also have the option to import the model using the units specified in the CAD file. In the Units dropdown, select Model Units from the list, which tells SketchUp to attempt to match the units saved in the CAD file. If SketchUp is unable to make up one's mind what unit of measurement was used to create the CAD file, it will default to 1 CAD unit equals 1 inch in SketchUp.

Save in a SketchUp-compatible CAD file format

When SketchUp imports a CAD file, SketchUp strips the data to its basic geometric components. So no matter what AutoCAD file format you apply (such every bit 2013 or 2018), the end result is essentially the same. To maximize compatibility between a CAD file and SketchUp, however, saving your CAD file in the Release 13 or Release 14 format works best.

Importing a CAD file into SketchUp

After you've checked and prepared your CAD file, you're ready to import it into SketchUp. The post-obit steps walk you through the import procedure for your operating arrangement:

1. In SketchUp, open the SketchUp model into which you want to import your .dwg or .dxf file.
2. Select File > Import. An Import dialog box appears.
3. Navigate the the place your difficult drive where your CAD file is saved.
4. From the Files of Blazon drop-downward listing, select AutoCAD Files (*.dwg, *.dxf).
5. Select the file y'all want to import.
6. Click the Options button. The Import AutoCAD DWG/DXF Options dialog box appears, equally shown in the following figure.
7. (Optional) In the Geometry area, select your preferences for the following options:
   • select Merge Coplanar Faces to tell SketchUp to automatically remove triangulated lines from planes.
   • Selecting the Orient Faces Consistently box tells SketchUp to analyze the direction of imported faces and orient the faces so that their direction is compatible.
8. (Optional) Select the Preserve Drawing Origin checkbox to identify the imported geometry at the origin divers in the .dwg or .dxf file. Go out the checkbox deselected if you want to place the imported geometry almost the SketchUp origin.
9. (Optional) To import geometry at the right calibration, select the unit used in your CAD file from the Units drop-down listing. Your options are Model Units, Inches, Feet, Yards, Miles, Millimeters, Centimeters, Meters and Kilometers.

   Tip: If you don't know the units used in the original file, select Model Units so that SketchUp turns one CAD unit into 1 inch in SketchUp. Or use a big unit blazon, such as feet or meters. Then you can resize the model every bit necessary later on it's imported.

   Warning: If you select a small unit, such every bit millimeters, merely the model was originally intended to display in feet, you can unintentionally create itty-bitty faces that will be lost on import. For SketchUp to recognize a face, the face must be .001 square inches or larger.

10. Click OK in the Import AutoCAD DWG/DXF Options dialog box.
11. Back in the Import dialog box, click the Import button, and SketchUp Pro begins importing your CAD file.

Tip: When importing a LayOut file created using the "Consign for SketchUp" characteristic, utilize the Merge Coplanar Faces option for make clean imported faces.

Tip: Yous can also drag and driblet importable files into the drawing area. Later on you drop the file, any relevant Import dialog box opens and then you lot can select your desired options.

SketchUp For Web

Afterward you've checked and prepared your CAD file, you're ready to import it into SketchUp Store. The post-obit steps walk y'all through the import process:

1. In SketchUp Store, open the SketchUp model into which you want to import your .dwg or .dxf file.
2. Select the File icon (). An File menu appears, select Insert
3. You can select the Trimble Connect icon or the Computer icon for a local file.
4. (Optional) You can as well drag & driblet a file from an Explorer or Finder window directly into SketchUp Shop.
5. If you choose to open up the file locally, navigate to the place on your hard drive where your CAD file is saved.
6. Select "All Files" as the desired format.
7. Select the file you desire to import.
8. The Import AutoCAD DWG/DXF Options dialog box appears, equally shown in the following figure.
9. (Optional) Select the Preserve Drawing Origin (#1 Above) checkbox to place the imported geometry at the origin defined in the .dwg or .dxf file. Leave the checkbox deselected if yous want to identify the imported geometry near the SketchUp origin.
10. (Optional) In the Geometry area, select Merge Coplanar Faces (#two Above) to tell SketchUp to automatically remove triangulated lines from planes. Selecting the Orient Faces Consistently (#3 Above) box tells SketchUp to analyze the direction of imported faces and orient the faces so that their management is uniform.
11. (Optional) To import geometry at the correct scale, select the unit used in your CAD file from the Units drib-downward listing (#4 Above). Your options are Model Units, Inches, Feet, Yards, Miles, Millimeters, Centimeters, Meters and Kilometers.

Tip: If you don't know the units used in the original file, apply a large unit type, such as feet or meters. Then you can resize the model as necessary after it'south imported.

Alarm: If you select a minor unit, such as millimeters, but the model was originally intended to brandish in anxiety, you can unintentionally create itty-bitty faces that will be lost on import. For SketchUp to recognize a face up, the face must exist .001 square inches or larger.

12. Click Import brainstorm the import process.

Tip: If you have a floor plan or other vector graphics in an Adobe Illustrator (.eps) file, you lot tin can export the .eps file to .dwg or .dxf format in Illustrator. Then import the vector graphics following the preceding steps. If, in Adobe Illustrator, you commencement reduce the number of ballast points that define curves, yous tin amend the file'south performance in SketchUp. In particular, when you lot extrude faces from curves that contain lots of line segments, the SketchUp file size tin can increase dramatically.

Understanding how SketchUp data is exported to CAD format

Before you export a SketchUp model to a CAD file format (.dwg or .dxf), you may find it helpful to empathise how SketchUp data is translated into the CAD format that you choose. Here's what y'all demand to know:

• SketchUp faces are exported as a triangulated polyface mesh with interior splframe hidden lines (if applicable). This conversion helps to simulate the advent of your SketchUp file, even when all exported faces are triangular.
• SketchUp uses the current units set in the Units pane of the Model Info dialog box equally a reference for translation to a .dwg or .dxf file. For example, if the current Model Info unit setting is Decimal and Meters, then AutoCAD must be set to decimal for the units to translate correctly equally meters when you open the exported file in AutoCAD.
• Duplicate line entities aren't created on pinnacle of a p-line entity.

Exporting a SketchUp Model as a second CAD file

When export your model view as a 2nd CAD file, you can choose the scale and a number of line options. The result is a 2D vector file in .dwg or .dxf format that y'all can open in your CAD program.

Follow these steps to export a 2d CAD file:

1. To maintain your model's scale in the exported file, in SketchUp, select Camera > Parallel Projection. Then fix your view to one of SketchUp's standard views by selecting Photographic camera > Standard Views and selecting an option from the submenu that appears. (Run into Viewing a Model for details about the model view options.)
2. Select File > Export > 2d Graphic.
3. Navigate to the identify where you desire to salve your exported file.
4. (Optional) Alter the file name if you'd like to proper noun the exported file something other than the SketchUp file's current name.
5. Select either the .dwg or .dxf file type. In Microsoft Windows, select this selection from the Save As Type drop-downwards list. On a Mac, use the Format drop-down list.
6. Click the Options button to set the scale and line options, which are explained in detail in the upcoming list. When you're washed, click OK in the DWG/DXF Hidden Line Options dialog box (Microsoft Windows) or the Export Options dialog box (Mac Os X).
7. Click Export and your CAD file is saved in your selected location.

In the following figure, y'all see the line options dialog box for your electric current operating system. The following list introduces your options then that the lines in your exported file meet your needs:

• AutoCAD Version: Select what version of AutoCAD you'd like to use to open up the exported file.
• Cartoon Scale & Size: The Full Scale checkbox is selected by default. However, if you deselect that checkbox, you can set up a custom scale. In the In Drawing box, blazon the actual measurement you want to utilize to gear up your scale. In the In Model box, blazon the value for scaling your exported model. For instance, for a scale of ane:4, type 1' in the In Model box and iv' in the In Cartoon box.
• Profile Lines: Here, y'all can customize how profile lines announced in your exported file. Yous can ready the line width as follows:
  • Select None to export contour lines at the standard width.
  • Select Polylines with Width to export profile lines as AutoCAD polylines. When y'all select this selection, you lot tin can go out Automatic selected so that the exported lines match the profile line width. If yous deselect Automatic, you can enter a custom width in the Width box.
  • Select Broad Line Entities to export profile lines every bit AutoCAD broad line entities.
  
  The Separate on a Layer checkbox, which is selected past default, creates a layer for contour edges. If you've used SketchUp layers to command visibility, note that SketchUp layer assignments don't interpret directly when you consign a SketchUp file to a 2nd CAD file.
• Section Lines: If yous export department lines or a section slice, these export options get bachelor. See Slicing a Model to Peer Inside for details about sections and how to export them.
• Edge Extensions: Some CAD applications might take problems recognizing line endpoints and intersections when your model uses SketchUp line extensions. Deselect the Show Extensions checkbox to toggle extensions off in your exported file. If you leave Testify Extensions selected and deselect the Automated checkbox, yous tin enter an exact length for line extensions in the Length box.

In Microsoft Windows, you can select the E'er Prompt for Hidden Line Options if you'd similar to set options in this dialog box anytime yous export a second CAD file. You tin also restore the default settings by clicking the Defaults button.

Exporting a SketchUp Model as a 3D CAD file

When you lot consign a SketchUp model every bit a 3D CAD file, you tin select what entities are exported. To export your model, follow these steps:

1. In SketchUp, select File > Export > 3D Model. The Export Model dialog box appears.
2. Navigate to the location where you want to save your exported file.
3. (Optional) Change the file name if you like. By default, the exported file uses the same name as your SketchUp file proper noun.
4. Select either .dwg or .dxf every bit the file format for your exported file. In Microsoft Windows, select your file type from the Save As Blazon driblet-down list. In Mac OS Ten, employ the Format drop-down list.
5. Click the Options button to open the Export Options dialog box, shown in the following figure. From the AutoCAD Version drop-downwards listing, select the version of AutoCAD you'd like to use to open the exported file. In the Export area, select the checkbox for each blazon of entity that y'all want to include in the exported file. Click OK when you lot're done.
6. Back in the Consign Model dialog box, click Export, and your file appears in the location where you chose to salvage it.

Tip: Export and Import with materials for better BIM interoperability and workflows using the .dwg format.

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Source: https://help.sketchup.com/en/sketchup/importing-and-exporting-cad-files