Creo Elements direct Modeling Express export DXF???

[DR_5410695]

Hello, I am using the free Creo Elements direct Modelling express program and would like to save my 2D drawing in annotation as DXF. Unfortunately, I do not understand on your help page in which file I should change something so that I can save a dxf file. Can you offer me further assistance? Many thanks in advance and best regards Daniel

[Kotom-Eng]

Hello,

You cannot save directly to DXF from Modeling Express. But there is a workaround:

- Save in a bundle bd2.

- Unzip the bundle bd2 file. You will get a file name am_2d_0.mi

- Use the executable dxfdwg.exe located in C:\Program Files\PTC\Creo Elements\Direct Modeling Express 8.0\dxfdwg

[DR_5410695]

Thank you for the good news,

but I get a file that is not packed. Can you explain exactly what you mean by ‘Unzip the bundle bd2 file. You will get a file name am_2d_0.mi’.

Best regards Daniel

[Kotom-Eng]

The file bd2 is a compressed file that contains 3 files:

- am_2d_0.mi

- am_3d_0.pkg

- Thumbnail.png

The first is the 2D, the second the 3D and the third a little screenshot of the 3D.

7-zip can uncompress the file bd2.

[DR_5410695]

Thank you very much, now I'm a bit smarter 🙂 I also get the Mi file via the dxfdwg.exe translate but the content is empty. The new files also remain empty as SVG and DWG. What else can I do?

Many thanks for your help

Daniel

[Kotom-Eng · Accepted solution]

I forgot to tell to uncompress am_2d_0.mi as well. You will get a text file without extension am_2d_0. This is this text file that you should use with dxfdwg.

You should open a command terminal in the directory C:\Program Files\PTC\Creo Elements\Direct Modeling Express 8.0\dxfdwg\

and type in for example:

dxfdwg -o -f  C:\temp\am_2d_0 C:\temp\am_2d_0.dxf C:\temp\am_2d_0.log

[DR_5410695]

I'm delighted, thank you very much 🙂

I have experimented for about 20 hours without a solution 😞

But now the world is a little better again.

Best regards Daniel

[der_Wolfgang]

There is a much more easier way available since November 2023.  I recommend to watch out for news in the German CAD.DE forum as well. 

Have a look here https://ww3.cad.de/foren/ubb/Forum29/HTML/004939.shtml  and use the online translator you trust!

You can see Annotation as a kind of remote controlled ME10. Therefore Annotation can execute every ME10 command as well . 

So we simple call 

STORE <modus> SELECT '<partid>' CONFIRM DEL_OLD '<filename>' END

where <modus> in your use case is DXF. This command is send using a CEDM Integration Kit Function. 

In the post I pointed to is a lisp file mentioned you need to load when Annotation is loaded. Then there are 2 new entries in the file menu (opened with CTRL-S as usual). for DXF: Choose "Save 2D in general" as file type.

The user interface is available in English as well:  so don't worry too much about the German written thread.


For every of the SEVEN different types of drawing objects you can export them to FIVE different file formats.  This includes storing your drawing directly as DXF file.   No fiddling in the file system, no extracting of a BD2 file, no extra call of a translator needed at all.  Enjoy!