Convert CAD model for use in Flash/Papervision?

Question

I need to convert a CAD drawing of a product into a form that is usable by Papervision3D (or an equivalent 3D engine) in the Flash Player.

Are there any tools that do this? I understand that the Collada DAE format is supported in Papervision3D, but I don't know what steps/tools are involved (export directly from AutoCAD?).

Also, would be nice to know of any potential pitfalls involved (export options, simplification of 3D object needed, etc).

Answer 1

Swift 3D is proprietary software and it's up to the vendor to update it.

I would recommend giving Blender a go along with Dennis Ippel's Actionscript Exporter.

Here are some advantages in my view:

1. Blender is free/opensource
2. Instead of exporting to Collada, you just have an actionscript class you can immediately instantiate (no loading/parsing steps) and you wouldn't expose your models easily.
3. The exporter works for most actionscript 3D APIs (Away3D, Sandy, Alternativa3D, etc.), so you can change your API later if it doesn't suit your needs. Also, Dennis keeps his exporter up to date with the APIs.

As a side note, Papervision also supports OBJ and 3DS formats among others.

HTH

Answer 2

It seems that your best bet will be to look at a 3rd party tool like Electric Rain's Swift 3D program which can convert from 3DS/DXF to Papervision3D 2.0 project files. Check out the feature list here:

http://www.erain.com/products/swift3d/features/