Import files using Direct Connect

When importing files using Direct Connect, certain file formats, such as IGES and STEP, translate better when .wire is used as the intermediary format rather than the default .apf.

DirectConnectImportMap is a string array that maps an import format to an intermediary format. By default, DirectConnectImportMap is defined to map IGES and STEP to .wire. That is, the following is defined:

optionVar -stringValueAppend "DirectConnectImportMap" "step:wire"
optionVar -stringValueAppend "DirectConnectImportMap" "iges:wire"

If, however, you want to use .apf instead as the import format for your IGES and STEP files, you can set DirectConnectImportMap as follows. This matches the behavior in Maya 2016

optionVar -stringValueAppend "DirectConnectImportMap" "step:apf"
optionVar -stringValueAppend "DirectConnectImportMap" "iges:apf"

If you want another file format, for example STL, to import using .wire, you can set DirectConnectImportMap as follows. This matches the behavior in Maya 2014.

optionVar -stringValueAppend "DirectConnectImportMap" "stl:wire"

You only need to set the optionVar once, as its setting is saved with your Maya preferences.

Note: ATF becomes unstable if you import an .iges file, followed importing a .step file or vice-versa. Try to import them as separate functions.

See also

• Import files with Autodesk Translation Format (ATF)