Comments on TECHtalk: autocad, technology and gadgets: Spline to Polyline

I have looked for something that converts splines ...

2009-03-18T19:52:00.000-04:00

I have looked for something that converts splines to polylines for, oh, about 6 years now to no avail. Until This posting from 2005 was brought to my attention.

THANKS A TON! to those who posted the ---FLATTEN--- command. Select spline(s), type flatten, enter, n for not deleting hidden lines, enter, done. EASY! LOVE IT!

It worked like a charm. And when combined with a program that turns raster hand drawn lines into vector splines, we are revolutionizing the way in which the company I work at digitizes, and functions for that matter. We can cut total production time of our construction docs in half easily.

---See Wikipedia for "raster to vector conversion software" if interested.---

The only problem i had with this process was that after using the FLATTEN command the polylines generated had a lot of handles (more memory, slightly harder editing, etc.).

??? Does anybody here know how to quickly reduce the number of handles in a polyline???

When using the express tools Flatten: it appears...

2008-07-11T08:30:00.000-04:00

When using the express tools Flatten: it appears that if you select Remove hidden lines No will convert to LWPolyline. Yes will convert to the less useful Polyline.

thanks for the express tool tip!!!but i have one q...

2007-12-05T11:31:00.000-05:00

thanks for the express tool tip!!!
but i have one question, what's the difference of "no" and "yes" to delete hidden object?
many thanks
-v

I have tried all of these and the flatten command ...

2007-09-19T19:34:00.000-04:00

I have tried all of these and the flatten command is by far the best if you have the express tools.
I think the express tools is only available on the full version. Is that correct?
Thanks for the tip. It has been driving me crazy when trying to operate a CNC. Saving as a R12dxf creates very jagged linework instead of arc's. no good for CNC work.

I have splines with elevations assigned that I wan...

2007-08-15T11:03:00.000-04:00

I have splines with elevations assigned that I want to use in a surface. Flatten won't allow me to retain their elevation property. Thanks for the R12 tip.

the best command is flatten.

2006-05-02T16:37:00.000-04:00

the best command is flatten.

I try save as spline to R12 dxf, and reopen. it's ...

2006-04-24T06:07:00.000-04:00

I try save as spline to R12 dxf, and reopen. it's convert as 3D polyline, since then I can not join with other lines using PEDIT command [reach me:parhyang@nospam.yahoo.com]

! warning !the program 'spline explode' does not c...

2006-03-13T07:12:00.000-05:00

! warning !
the program 'spline explode' does not create tangential curves. a quick test show they do not meet tangentially

try the dotsoft (http://www.dotsoft.com/freestuff....

2006-01-30T08:28:00.000-05:00

try the dotsoft (http://www.dotsoft.com/freestuff.htm) SPL2PL.VLX

Try this external tool. It converts splines into l...

2006-01-23T05:37:00.000-05:00

Try this external tool. It converts splines into line and tangential arcs:
www.techni-soft.de/html/splineexplode.htm

Try this external tool. It converts splines into l...

2006-01-23T05:35:00.000-05:00

Try this external tool. It converts splines into line and tangential arcs:
www.techni-soft.de/html/splineexplode.htm

go to Express / Modify / Flatten Objectsand then s...

2006-01-18T11:04:00.000-05:00

go to Express / Modify / Flatten Objects
and then select the spline, then say "no" when it asks if you want to delete hidden objects, and it will convert the spline into a polyline for you.

Demo version of the utility SPLINEDXF could be fou...

2005-12-13T16:34:00.000-05:00

Demo version of the utility SPLINEDXF could be found at www.caddepot.com

Another method is to WMFOUT, then WMFIN.Use the UL...

2005-11-10T19:01:00.000-05:00

Another method is to WMFOUT, then WMFIN.

Use the UL corner of the viewport as the insertion point, and scale 2X.

step1- save as r12step2- open new r12 drawingstep3...

2005-11-09T20:32:00.000-05:00

step1- save as r12
step2- open new r12 drawing
step3- you are done!

The process could be simplifiesd: Step 1: Save the...

2005-11-08T17:10:00.000-05:00

The process could be simplifiesd:

Step 1: Save the drawing as R12 DXF. Within the Save dialog click Tools -> Options -> DXF Options -> Select objects. Then simply select splines to be written to a DXF file.

This one step replaces first three steps.

But this is not a good solution. The conversion approximates an AutoCAD spline (NURBS)as a polyline with hundreds of short line segments. PEDIT can smooth the polyline, but the number of segments even increases! Very bad for CNC. I have an alternate solution. My utility SPLINEDXF processes any DXF-file and converts all splines (if any) into smooth polylines with arc segments. Conversion tolerance is selectable. The number of segments is significantly less than by R12 DXF conversion. If you are interested, write me to:
k o m a r o v @ m a i l.l v i v.u a
(but pls. delete all spaces from my email address first)

Why not just use the flatten command on the spline...

2005-11-08T16:34:00.000-05:00

Why not just use the flatten command on the spline? It turns the spline into an lwpolyline.