Gone are the days of your typical PDF. Adobe is cranking up the possibilities with Acrobat Version 8 3D and they’re on top of the issues to make you look as cool as possible.
I wrote previously about Acrobat 8 3D. At that time it was great with small to medium size models, but there were some issues that made converting large models, particularly assembly files, difficult which resulted in large PDF file sizes. The PDF files sizes were quite a bit larger than the original file, which made it harder to use as a collaboration tool. That is no longer the case.
The Perfect Size
After talking with the Adobe Acrobat development team about this and providing them with large assembly data to work with, they’ve made major improvements to 3D model conversion that has been released in the new upgrade. The latest version is 8.1.1. The test was a 17.1 MB assembly file (10,858 parts, 578MB total). Here are the results.
| Conversion | Acrobat 3D 8.0 | Acrobat 3D 8.1.1 |
| PRC Tessellation Uncompressed | 113MB | 25MB |
| PRC Tessellation Compressed | 39MB | 10MB |
| PRC B-rep Uncompressed | N/A | 65MB |
| PRC B-rep Compressed | N/A | 15MB |
That is a huge decrease in file size and makes it much easier to send via email and package into a product release. If you’ve had trouble with your files sizes before, try the update and see if you get better result. I think you’ll be happy with the outcome.
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Mmmmmm…. sancks…. Oh wait, what the heck are those!?
Mmmmmm…. sancks…. Oh wait, what the heck are those!?
Seriously, though, 10, 25MB files are still “on the edge” a bit for email. Lotus Notes not a problem, but I’d hesitate about sending it to any Outlook clients.
My company had problems with the bigger Solidworks files. We just converted the assembly file to a Parasolid, and Adobe accepted it. It is good to see that Adobe has found a solution.
My company had problems with the bigger Solidworks files. We just converted the assembly file to a Parasolid, and Adobe accepted it. It is good to see that Adobe has found a solution.
arrr! you got me Bruce. spelling corrected. 10MB is big, but for some of the models I work with, that is a lifesaver. It’s more than a pretty picture to. It’s a real 3D model. you can measure it, rotate it, section it, and export parasolids. huge improvement and has really helped workflow.
I look forward to the day when I can send PDF models to new customers and not have to explain how to install or use eDrawings. I know, you can send the embedded eDrawings viewer, but it is just one more thing to “confuse” the customer.
I look forward to the day when I can send PDF models to new customers and not have to explain how to install or use eDrawings. I know, you can send the embedded eDrawings viewer, but it is just one more thing to “confuse” the customer.
Mike, that’s what I had done initially as well. Even on smaller assemblies I was getting surfaces showing up that were not suppose to and parts coming in at the wrong locations. It’s definitely been improved.
Do the recipients have to have Adobe 3D to do all that with the model? Or just the regular reader? Is is just publishing that you need the 3D license for?
Do the recipients have to have Adobe 3D to do all that with the model? Or just the regular reader? Is is just publishing that you need the 3D license for?
Tie-rod.pdf
Butch, no doubt. It would have been nice if SolidWorks/eDrawings had created the relationship with Adobe to combine functionality. We use eDrawings to, but it’s always the PDF that are used.
Bruce, you need the version 8 viewer to view them. You can make the 3D PDF from SolidWorks (2007 and up). Just select the 3D PDF checkbox after selecting the PDF filetype. The file sizes from SolidWorks are bigger for some reason though. It helps to have the full versions if you want to control security or make smaller PDFs, create markups and edit text. Here’s an example of a 2MB file that was compressed to 197kb. (right-click, save as…) Tie-rod.pdf
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