please fix the object doctor!

[3dworks]

after not getting any reply from techsupport for many weeks about this topic and loosing much time with crashes, i decided to report here.

 

please try if object doctoris crashing FZ for you as well if trying out the attached layer. my settings are pretty standard with option to merge coplanar faces and set to fix problems.

 

i am frequently looing hours of time when cleaning up manually imported DWG's which need to be used as reference objects to build up complex models. these are typically construction plans provided by my different clients and they almost all have the issue that they will crash when using this tool.

 

on the long term this is a situation which is driving me away from FZ, as the time lost to fix these things is just not within my calculations and unfortunately, this is part of my standard workflow. what we need are tools that work, not a crashing application. this is the more frustrating as importing a complex DWG can take up a really long time. i compared importing of complex DWG's  with a well known animal named competitor and there the same file which took 30 minutes to import in FZ took just 20 seconds and looked much better (exactly as on the referenced PDF).

 

ok, have to rewrite again all the text after safari asked me if i want to use flash for this dialog. please fix the forums as well...

 

 

 

FZ86_objectdoctor_crash.fmz.zip

[FZnoob]

I tried it and while it didn't "crash" it did lock up the program. Which in the end is basically the same thing.

[vva]

using fZ 8.0.2 (10027)

I have no problem

 

but you can use the "Unmesh Tool" as well

vva

[Des]

Hmm, as a general personal rule, I never use the object doctor on imported 2d geometry.

But I do import massive DWG files on a daily basis and build my models from tracing them.

 

My workflow is;

1) Import the DWG, say it's Ground Floor Plan for instance.

2) Save the DWG as fmz.

3) Purge unused layers.

3) Set layers to "Highlight Picked".

4) Turn off unnecessary layers like Dims and Hatching and other crap.

5) Select the plan.

6) Create a new file and with "Paste on Active Layer " selected, paste it into a layer called say "2d Ground Plan" inside a layer group called say "2f Info". The group is so you can switch on and off the 2d info as required.

7) Set the Layer group to render as wireframe and render as shaded surface as OFF.

7) Use Select by Criteria to select other unwanted elements.

8) Apply a material called say "2d Stuff" without any reflection.

9) Select the plan at the Points topology and set the Z value to 0 to make sure the plan is perfectly flat.

10) Select the plan at the object topology and use the "Reference Object" tool in the Organise palette.

 

Now the plan is snappy and super fast for speedy modelling. Creating fresh 3d models from tracing is ALWAYS better than trying to extrude for instance imported geometry.

 

On a side note, I am always amazed how bad the quality of most CAD files I receive. The other day I received a DWG file with over 800 layers with lines in both 2d and 3d space making the imported geometry look like a spaghetti mess when viewed from the side but looked fine in plan view.

Also, regarding your comment on other competitor software handling imported files better, that has not been my experience while importing into Acad a BIM file (both software is the same company!)

The imported file lost a lot of information and contained the same dodgy geometry as when brought into Fz.

 

I always ask for both DWG and a PDF to compare what I get as to what it's supposed to look like.

And, we will always have problems with other people drawings as long as the creator of the file has no interest in quality drafting. Rubbish in - Rubbish out.

 

Rant over.... 

 

Des

 

[FZnoob]

On a side note, I can bring in wrl files from Artios 3D and the Object Dr does indeed work on those.

[Andrew West]

I am with Des on the workflow.  Some of my clients send me massive files with numerous old plans and elevations attached.  I immediately send it back to them and tell them it is not in my contract to fix all their drawings and clean up their garbage.  After that they learn to send me clean files without dimensions and other useless info.  To add one more tool to this I also find that some of their drawings are 3D with lines extending thousands of feet into space.  Select the entire plan or elevation and use the Derive-Project tool to flatten it all onto one plane.

[ingoerik]

In addition to Des i also fix the dimensions by selecting them all and give them the right text size, and then explode them. The same with text that FromZ sees as notes. That speeds up screen redraw.

 

And to Andrew, to avoid those endless 3D lines just import the dwg as 2D.

[3dworks]

Hmm, as a general personal rule, I never use the object doctor on imported 2d geometry.

But I do import massive DWG files on a daily basis and build my models from tracing them.

 

My workflow is;

1) Import the DWG, say it's Ground Floor Plan for instance.

2) Save the DWG as fmz.

3) Purge unused layers.

3) Set layers to "Highlight Picked".

4) Turn off unnecessary layers like Dims and Hatching and other crap.

5) Select the plan.

6) Create a new file and with "Paste on Active Layer " selected, paste it into a layer called say "2d Ground Plan" inside a layer group called say "2f Info". The group is so you can switch on and off the 2d info as required.

7) Set the Layer group to render as wireframe and render as shaded surface as OFF.

7) Use Select by Criteria to select other unwanted elements.

8) Apply a material called say "2d Stuff" without any reflection.

9) Select the plan at the Points topology and set the Z value to 0 to make sure the plan is perfectly flat.

10) Select the plan at the object topology and use the "Reference Object" tool in the Organise palette.

 

Now the plan is snappy and super fast for speedy modelling. Creating fresh 3d models from tracing is ALWAYS better than trying to extrude for instance imported geometry.

 

On a side note, I am always amazed how bad the quality of most CAD files I receive. The other day I received a DWG file with over 800 layers with lines in both 2d and 3d space making the imported geometry look like a spaghetti mess when viewed from the side but looked fine in plan view.

Also, regarding your comment on other competitor software handling imported files better, that has not been my experience while importing into Acad a BIM file (both software is the same company!)

The imported file lost a lot of information and contained the same dodgy geometry as when brought into Fz.

 

I always ask for both DWG and a PDF to compare what I get as to what it's supposed to look like.

And, we will always have problems with other people drawings as long as the creator of the file has no interest in quality drafting. Rubbish in - Rubbish out.

 

Rant over.... 

 

Des

 

des, great post, and well - 100% same workflow here! only rarely doing number 9 because mostly geometry is flat already - but that's a good reminder. i gave up extruding from imported geometry since i started using FZ almost 20 years ago.

 

i am using object doctor on single layers which are otherwise too cluttered (because for example representing large filled areas) but still necessary in my reference object. unfortunately, most DWG's i'm getting from clients are not well layered and using all kinds of 'patch' fills which, when removed, are missing information in the plan.

 

i am also always asking DWG + PDF - otherwise, no chance to see how the should look without that reference. btw i noted that our main competitor with the animal name displays imported DWG's looking 99% as the PDF. something i wish for FZ as well, of course.

 

my main fight is with those parts in DWG's which can't be fixed by object doctor - but which are cause later for the reference object being removed by FZ because "corrupted" the next time the file is loaded. unfortunately, this is happening quite often lately. i have noticed that only objects which 'pass' the object doctor are safe. i am also having issues when selecting unwanted geometry like points for example with the 'by criteria' tool. simply lot's of those will not be found for some reason. if i select all and then look at the selection info, those appear in the list, but  the 'select by criteria' tool will not find them. maybe this is related to some objects being locked for some reason - have to investigate further.

 

EDIT: and yes: it is good practice to complain for bad layered / executed drawings to the client, but unfortunately in  some cases, they will not really improve on this when sending the next version, with the excuse that that's the best they can do with their software... i really wish FZ gets finally import presets, so we can switch betwenn import settings easyly and don't have to set those 5 km off origin offsets manully for each client again and again.