Exporting layers directly to STEP format using grasshoper

Dear Grasshoper users,

I have been trying to parameterize a geometric model consisting of a large number of layers that it is destined to be imported later in a mesh generation software. In doing so, I have to pass through an export of my rhino model using the STEP format. The STEP format has the limitation that it does not preserve layers (as far as I could test) so I need to execute the export command as many times as the number of layers I want to export, and export each time the objects belonging to each layer. Then the import can be done layer by layer.

Does anyone of you can suggest a method of doing this in an efficient way, preferably in Grasshoper or eventually in Rhino ?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Jon Mirtschin on October 23, 2012 at 9:19am

What leads you to the conclusion that STEP doesn't contain layers?

If you open the file in a text editor (I've attached an example exported from Rhino), search for the text PRESENTATION_LAYER_ASSIGNMENT

You can also test this by deleting layers (except 1) in Rhino and importing the file, you'll see the layers generated. Attributes such as color by layer are lost though.

Maybe the software importing the STEP doesn't recognize this.

Cheers,

Jon

Attachments:

test.stp, 15 KB

Permalink Reply by Charisis Chatzigogos on October 23, 2012 at 9:50am

Dear Jon,

thanks for your response. I think you are right... Although I did not find the string you mention in my .stp file, it seems that layers are preserved in it, because I was able to locate the names of all the layers I had generated in my Rhino model with the associated geometric entities.

So, yes, it seems that STEP preserves layers and obviously it is the mesh generation software that does not reckognize them...

Even so, the initial question persists...

Permalink Reply by Ivor Ip on October 23, 2012 at 9:53am