Getting SolidWorks

Technical SolidWorks
1

I told myself I wouldn’t do this…but it seems that I do need to get a copy of Solidworks so that I can open and edit some robotic arm plans I’ve been downloading. I have been using Autodesk Inventor Pro up till now, but for some reason, most of the hobbyist sites post plans in Solidworks format. Sometimes Inventor picks them right up…sometimes not…or it distorts the scale in a strange way. So a couple of questions…

  1. Is there a way to get a copy of SolidWorks through FIRST like there is with Inventor?
  2. Can Solidworks open .ai files? I have not been able to find a way to do it in Inventor Pro.
  3. Can Solidworks directly, or indirectly (through some plug in) generate g-code?
    Noting is ever easy…
    Thanks,
    Doc
2

I can really only answer your First Question.

Fill out the survey and you will gte your copy of Solidworks for 1 year. that’s what we did and it works great!

3

i’ll take care of the other two

.ai is adobe illustrator files. That file type is used by graphic design programs only (not cad).

and u can buy a plugin for solidworks to get g code but not for free

4

Thanks Folks,

Peck --> I did find an internet reference that .ai files can be opened in Solidworks… Obviously since I don’t have it…I can’t confirm it.

But I’ll go the survey route and get the program.

Doc

5
  1. Can Solidworks directly, or indirectly (through some plug in) generate g-code?

We use a plugin called “VisualMill” which I have been VERY happy with. It essentially allows you to automatically generate and/or manually define toolpaths right within SolidWoks. It then can export G-Code directly.

http://www.visualmillforsolidworks.com/

6

Dear Mr. Lim,

I noticed that VisualMill is a commercial program. Can you tell me about how much it costs. We currently use a commercial program, MasterCAM, and it does what we need.

Like most of y’all, we’re a team working on a tight budget, and anytime we can find an “open source” program to fulfill our needs it’s great. Or, bless the big guys, when companies like AutoDesk and SolidWorks provide copies of their software for robotics students it’s equally great. But getting a lot of commercial programs, with their yearly update / subscription / maintenance agreements, stretches our resources…

Doc

7

How you generate the gcode probably depends on the machine you are sending it to. For example, to print an object with a plastic printer like a reprap, save it as an stl file, then use Slic3r to generate the code…

Other ‘free/open source’ generators here: http://replicat.org/generators

It takes a while to get solidworks, but we use it. The school contact has to request it, then they mail the discs.

If you need converted sooner, you can either email me the files, or send me a link to them, and I’ll load them into solidworks and save them in a format you can use. Send me a PM if you want me to convert…

8

The RETAIL costs for VisualMILL for SolidWorks are posted here:
http://www.visualmillforsolidworks.com/Pricing-List3.shtml

HOWEVER, they offer very deep educational discounts.

We paid a one-time license purchase fee (no recurring costs) for a 5-seat license.

I don’t think there are any educational prices publicly posted. You will need to contact MecSoft directly to get a quote. They’ve been quite good to us, all things considered, and their costs for us have been quite reasonable.