CAD Formats Opened by ArchiCAD

DWF File (.dwf)

Drawing Web Format, a 2D vector graphics format created by Autodesk for use on the World Wide Web which supports hyperlinks, layer information and views. This is also the recommended format when publishing views that will be redlined through the Internet or on an Intranet.

The DWF file will contain all drawing elements with some exceptions and limitations:

pictures: due to format limitations, only straight pictures can be written to a DWF file,

cameras will not be included.

DXF/DWG File (.dxf, .dwg)

DXF and DWG files are the most widely used CAD file formats.

ArchiCAD opens all DWG file formats starting with AutoCAD 2000.

If you choose this file type, the Settings button appears in the Open dialog box, which opens the DXF-DWG Translation Setup dialog box.

For details, see Opening DWG/DXF Files.

However, in most cases you need not adjust these translation settings, because the default setup will give you the desired result when opening a DXF/DWG file.

Note: If you are working in AutoCAD and open a DWG that was originally saved from ArchiCAD, an Alert may appear. However, you should go ahead and work with the saved DWG in AutoCAD - no stability problems should result.

MicroStation Design File (.dgn)

If you choose this option and select a DGN file, the DGN Open dialog box lets you specify the unit conversion factor, the name of the configuration file (optional) and whether you would like to use the level symbol correspondence defined in the DGN file.

Options and Notes:

Dimension elements are converted only if you break them up in MicroStation before the conversion using the Drop Dimension command. The conversion of associated dimensions cannot be completed because their internal structure is not known.

Tag elements are not handled at all because of lack of information.

Custom lines are not converted in the current version, as MicroStation can use more elements than ArchiCAD in this type of element.

Shared cells become library parts in ArchiCAD. They are placed in a folder called “DGN_filename.LIB” (where DGN_filename is the name of the original DGN file), which is created and saved by the conversion process. If such a folder exists, it will be emptied first.

Image files assigned to the DGN file are not converted.

The reference point for text elements is always located in the bottom left corner of their box, because the text measurement algorithms of MicroStation are not known. This can lead to problems for associative points.

As the Spline generation algorithms are very different in the two applications, the shapes of the converted splines will differ somewhat from the originals.

During conversion, all elements on all levels are converted, regardless of the visibility of the level in the DGN file.

You have the option of using a configuration file. For the text to be positioned correctly, use a monospaced font both in MicroStation and ArchiCAD.

Files referenced by the DGN file can be also converted.

Sample Configuration File

#------------------------------------------------

#ArchiCAD <--> MicroStation conversion config file

#------------------------------------------------

# Config file syntax:

# # Comment

# [Section name]: [Layers], [Fonts], [Linestyles], [Pens], [ColorTable]

#------------------------------------------------

# ArchiCAD Layer name = MicroStation Level number

#------------------------------------------------

[Layers]

Electrical = 27

Dimensioning = 28

#------------------------------------------------

# ArchiCAD Pen weight = MicroStation weight number
#------------------------------------------------

[Pens]

0.1 = 2

0.5 = 7

#------------------------------------------------

# ArchiCAD Font name = MicroStation Font index

#------------------------------------------------

[Fonts]

Courier New Western = 2

Arial New Western = 3

#------------------------------------------------

# ArchiCAD Linetype Name = MicroStation Linetype index

# For Custom defined linestyles you have to give either a negative index,

# or the line style’s name in MicroStation, or both

#------------------------------------------------

[Linestyles]

Solid Line = 1

Double = -3 Rail Road

See also Save as MicroStation Design File (.dgn).