Export to OBJ and SketchUp file formats

[rDesign]

Vw2016 currently has the ability to Import OBJ and Sketchup .SKP files, but for interoperability between software packages it would be great to be able to Export to OBJ and SketchUp as well.

Edited September 7, 2016 by rDesign

[PVA - Admin]

Agreed. Workflows that include Vectorworks < > Sketchup are extremely commonplace now. Adding this to the request.

[rDesign]

Thanks JimW.

I put together the following list of recommended 'OBJ Export Options' (combination of Blender and SketchUp's 'OBJ Import / Export Options'). It should cover most of the required options for maximum interoperability.

OBJ Export Options

Export Only Current Selection

- If you make a selection in your model before you begin the export process, selecting this box exports only the selected geometry. When this option is deselected, the whole model is exported.

Export Edges

- When you select this checkbox, Vectorworks line entities are exported as OBJ line entities. If you leave this checkbox deselected, edges are ignored. (Usually, this checkbox is deselected because most applications ignore edges when importing OBJ files).

Normals

- Export face normals

Materials

- Export the texture MTL file along with the OBJ

Triangulate All Faces

- Select this option to break the output into triangles instead of multisided faces. (Some programs only have very basic OBJ support and only support triangles).

NURBS

- Export NURBS curves as OBJ NURBS rather than converting to geometry

Symbols / Groups as OBJ Objects / Groups

- Export each symbol / group as an OBJ object

Material Groups

- Create OBJ groups per material.

Units

- Select an option from the drop-down list to set the unit size in the OBJ file. If you want the units to be the same as those in your Vw model, you can leave Model Units (the default option) selected.

Swap YZ Coordinates (Y Is Up)

- swaps the Y axis and the Z axis so that the Y axis points up. For some applications, this orientation is the default. To leave the default orientation (Z is up), leave this checkbox deselected.

NOTE: Both 'Units' and 'Swap YZ Coordinates (Y Is Up)' options should also be added to the current 'Import OBJ' command.

Edited December 12, 2015 by rDesign

[Benson Shaw]

Neophyte here. What is meaning of "Write out"?

-B

[rDesign]

I copied those portions of the text from Blender. It means simply 'Export', so I revised those parts of my post accordingly. Thanks.