File Import/Export

We added IFC and 3D Manufacturing Format (3MF) import, as well as the File Export Selected dialog for exporting .VPB, .OSB, .FBX, .3MF, and .JT files, which includes a progress bar to see where in the exporting process things are. Use this dialog to remove specific features or convert files when exported for easier downstream processing.

Video captions: In Autodesk VRED 2024.1, we further worked on our ongoing UI modernization to improve the customer experience. For improving your data pipeline, we are adding several new import and export features and new formats.

First, when exporting a .VPB or .OSB file, you can now set different options to include or exclude several items. And, also, converting automatically into a mesh is possible, if you don’t want to give out the original surface data. And many more.

Also, for the existing Autodesk FBX and the new Siemens Jupiter Tessellation (JT) and 3D Manufacturing Format (3MF) export formats, we implemented option windows where you can select several features to include or exclude within the exported file. This simplifies your workflow massively if you want to downstream your data or simply convert the scene.

When importing data, we have implemented two new file formats. First, we are now able to import 3D Manufacturing Format (3MF) files. This file type is heavily used in the additive manufacturing area and replaces older formats, which cannot accurately reflect current additive workflows. That can be helpful if, for example, you need to visualize a file that is meant for 3D printing.

The second file format is IFC (Industry Foundation Classes). It is an industry standard that can include building and civil infrastructure data. IFC is used in the architectural area and made for cross-platform workflows for many different teams, like on a BIM project. This means you can now easily bring Revit data into VRED, via the IFC format. This gives you much better results compared to exporting an Autodesk Revit file to Autodesk FBX. Plus, you can load additional information like materials and metadata.

File Export Selected Dialog

Use the File Export Selected dialog for exporting .VPB, .OSB, .FBX, .3MF, and .JT files and removing specific features or converting files when exported for easier downstream processing.

For the Autodesk FBX file format, in the the Geometry Options section, you can convert NURBS surfaces to mesh geometry on export, without changing the current scene structure. You can also remove certain features from the scene.
For the JT file format, in the the Geometry Options section, you can export NURBS surfaces either as surfaces or convert them to mesh geometry on export. If you want to keep the NURBS data and an additional mesh representation, this is also possible.

Note:

VRED scenes exported as JT will lose all metadata stored on geometry. JT only allows metadata to be stored at a group level. Therefore, when an Autodesk VRED file with metadata stored on geometry is exported as (Siemens Jupiter Tessellation) JT, then reimported into Autodesk VRED, the file will be different, as metadata gets lost if stored on geometry level.

Once exporting begins, a progress bar appears, indicating where in the exporting process things are. Use Abort at any time to cancel the process.

JT export

Exporting a File

The file format selected will determine the options in the Export Selected dialog. See Export Selected for descriptions of each.

Select the content to be exported in the Scenegraph.
In the Menu Bar, select File > Export Selected.
In the Export Selected As dialog, navigate to a location, name the file, click Save as type and select a file format, then click Save.
In the Export Selected dialog, set any custom options.
Click Export.

3D Manufacturing Format (3MF) Import/Export

3MF is an industry consortium working to define a 3D printing format for design and engineering applications to send full fidelity 3D models and additive manufacturing data to a mix of other software, hardware, and services. The goal of 3D Manufacturing Format (3MF) is to provide a specification that eliminates the issues with previously used file formats, such as STL, that were not optimized for industrial additive manufacturing workflows.

When importing 3D Manufacturing Format (3MF) files, they will contain color and texture information, which can also be exported out of VRED.

3D Printing Examples in 3D Manufacturing Format (3MF) Format

IFC Import

In general, IFC is a standardized, digital description of the built environment, including buildings and civil infrastructure. It is an open, international standard, meant to be vendor-neutral, or agnostic, and usable across a wide range of hardware devices, software platforms, and interfaces for many different use cases. The IFC schema specification is the primary technical deliverable of buildingSMART International to fulfill its goal to promote openBIM®. Today, IFC is typically used in the AEC space to exchange information from one party to another for a specific business transaction.

When importing an IFC file, expect measurements, materials and correct naming of the materials, NURBs, node naming conventions, and metadata to all be included. An imported IFC model will be individual surfaces, not one large mesh.

Revit to VRED file exchange using the IFC file format

Python for Exporting Nodes

We added new methods for exporting nodes. Look at vrFileIoService, vrdFileExportSettings, and vrdFileExportSettings::SurfaceExportMode. Some basic examples have been added to vrFileIOService showing how to import and export files, as well as how to change these settings. See vrdFileExportSettings and vrdFileExportSettings Example for additional information.