Rhino WIP Feature: DXF/DWG Improvements

[mary (Mary Ann Fugier)]

The Rhino WIP contains many improvements to AutoCAD DWG/DXF import and export.

Why the improvements?
There were a collection of issues that were addressed in the Rhino WIP.

• Object display color overrides were not exported to DWG.
• Extrusion objects were exported to DWG as surfaces and users wanted a curve with thickness export option.
• Hyperlink URLs that were assigned to object properties were not exported to DWG.
• Layers that were imported from DWG were not sorted.
• Import multiple DWGs did not notify the user about which DWG the Import dialog was referring.
• There were no Layer descriptions in Rhino, so AutoCAD layer descriptions were not imported.
• Rhino on the Mac lacked the customization of DXF export schemes.
• Picture objects were exported to AutoCAD without the textures.

What was improved?

• Texture files, used by Picture objects, are now saved to a subfolder where the file is written.

  

• Objects are exported with display colors.

  
  

• Extrusion objects can be exported as AutoCAD curves with thickness.
  

  

• Hyperlinks on objects are exported.

  
  
  
  

• Import sorts layers in ascending alphabetical order.

• Import handles multiple files by displaying the ‘filename’ in the import dialog.

• Layer descriptions are both imported and exported.

  
  
  
  

• Export schemes are now fully implemented on Rhino WIP for Mac.
  

More on Picture Objects Improvements
In the Rhino WIP, saving and exporting to DWG/DXF formats will save texture files, used by Picture objects, to a subfolder at the same location where the DWG/DXF files are written.

How does this work?

1. In Rhino WIP, when saving and exporting to DWG/DXF formats from files that have Picture objects, the Picture images are extracted and saved to a file.
2. The subfolder where files are saved is named filename_images under the folder location where the DWG/DXF file is saved.
   filename is the name of your DWG/DXF file.
   For example, if your file is ABC.DWG, then the image subfolder will be ABC_images.

Why is this important?
It is very convenient to have linked images exported, so that AutoCAD can resolve them as External Reference images. When the DWG/DXF is opened in AutoCAD or a number of compatible products, the External Reference image path can be resolved and the image loaded.

When the DWG/DXF is opened in DWG TrueView 2026, Autodesk Viewer, Autodesk 2026, and the subfolder is available in the directory where the images files are located, the images are found and loaded as External Reference image.

For example, here is the image attached as a Picture in Rhino and then exported from Rhino to a DWG. The scheme 2018 Natural was used. Then the DWG was then opened in AutoCAD and the picture was resolved as an External Reference image.

Note: Only the textures assigned to Picture objects are saved by DWG/DXF export. The textures may come from Picture materials or other material types that are deliberately assigned to Picture objects. The texture on a Picture material won’t be exported if it is assigned to a rectangular plane.

Examples

File in Rhino

File in AutoCAD

File in Rhino

File in AutoCAD

Try it:

1. Download this file.
   buildingV9.3dm (1.6 MB)
2. Open in Rhino WIP.
3. Click the File menu and SaveAs command.
4. Enter name and pick file location to save on your computer.
5. For the SaveAs file type, click the DWG file format.
6. For the Export Scheme, pick the 2018 Natural.
   
   
7. Click OK.
8. Open the DWG in AutoCAD or other compatible product.
9. Check the External Reference panel and locate your picture images.
   
   

[hitenter]

Very important that DXF import/export is finally getting improved!

[Paolo9 (Paolo)]

Hi McNeel team, thanks for the great news about the DXF/DWG export improvements in Rhino 9 WIP! The enhancements you announced—like better handling of textures, display colors, hyperlinks, and layer descriptions—are really appreciated.

I was wondering: do you also plan to implement the possibility to export layouts, with all detail views—essentially having Rhino automatically generate a kind of Make2D for each detail view directly into DWG/DXF?

Since many users in both architecture and engineering workflows would like to export complete, editable layouts to CAD (instead of using workarounds such as print-to-PDF and re-import), it would be great to know if this is already on your roadmap.

In short:

• Is the upcoming Flatten to 2-D functionality planned to extend to layouts, so they can be exported directly to DWG/DXF?

• If yes, in which Rhino 9 release or update can we expect it?

• If not, is there any recommended temporary workflow?

Thanks a lot for your continuous effort to improve CAD interoperability—looking forward to your updates!

[wim (Wim Dekeyser)]

Hi Paolo -

@Paolo9

Is the upcoming Flatten to 2-D functionality planned to extend to layouts, so they can be exported directly to DWG/DXF?

That feature request is on the list as RH-2462 Flatten to 2-D
This is currently on the 9.0 list and actively being worked on.
-wim

[weekenlwk (Weeken)]

Is there a plan to retrieve the nested layer when copying and pasting from AutoCAD?

[raoufdjema15]

@Paolo9

orted directly to DWG/DXF?

Hi,

Thanks a lot for these improvements, great news !

Still wondering :

1- as said previously by @paolo, are you planning to enhance layout compatibility ? importing a dwg file in rhino brings the layouts of the dwg file. But the other way around is not true. Meaning, can we have and option to export rhino layout in the dwg file, so that you get the layouts in the layout tab when opening the dwg file in autocad ?

At the office, rhino has become our primary design tool (architecture urban planing and landscape office based in paris). But the dwg-3dm workflow still have a few (small) issues :

2 - units. If my rhino file is setup in meters, and that i export a dwg, it will land in autocad in millimeters. This is not a huge problem but makes it a bit tedious when working with a lot of file and having to export them, change units to meters in every file, and send it to an engineer or a client.

3- xref and etransmit equivalent features. In autocad, you can link files as x-ref and export the whole package to an etransmit. In the smae fashion as an indesign assembly file. In rhino, we use worksessions or insertions to link files. But when we have to send work to a client (for instance) we send them the files separatly. It would be great if we had an option to send an assembly file (for instance an assembly of a worksession file) that an external user can open and have every file linked correctly to the main file.

I hope i’m being clear with my descriptions !

Thanks a lot

Cheers !

[Sondre_Øien]

Wanted/needed: The option to NOT import Xrefs. The dwg’s I import usually have lots of xrefs I don’t want or need, please give us the option to not import them.

[mary (Mary Ann Fugier)]

Hi @Sondre_Øien,

@Sondre_Øien

The option to NOT import Xrefs.

Thank you.
Logged here RH-90419/Add-Open-Option-LinkedBlocks-Yes-No

You will be notified here when there is an option to test.
Sincerely,
Mary Ann Fugier