How to import "Smooth" curve DWG to SketchUp?

Hello

I often got logo file .ai which I have to import to work in SketchUp.
My current workflow if to export .ai to .dwg then import to SketchUp.

Problem I always have is curve line is not smooth as original.
This sample case is example, I wonder why the curve from logo font is smoother than logo curve.

Is there anyway to import better curve ?

Thank you for your help.

Most case I will use Fredo Curvizard to fix it but it is not always work, like this sample.
So I wonder if there is a better way.


Using an online converter and your file - JPG to DXF

DXF imported into SketchUp (Options: Meters)

Since you already have the dwg, just set the import unit to meters.

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oh, I will try. Thank you very much !

The way the DWG importer treats bezier curves is rough. You have more control of the result if you first add a lot of control points and straighten the segments in Illustrator before exporting to DWG or DXF.

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@mihai.s @Anssi
Thank you, I get idea from your answer.

I am not sure which JPEG > DXF online converter is safe, so I got your idea to convert vector to image first. If you can share which website you use, that should be very helpful.

Finally, I got new method.

  1. First convert vector file to PDF
  2. then import PDF to Acad and save to DWG
  3. Import DWG to SKP and now curve is look a lot better :slight_smile:

You already have a vector file in AI, export it as DWG and in SketchUp set the import units as meters.

I used the online converter only because a dwg file was needed, but only the jpg you attached, otherwise this step is not necessary.

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Thank you, yes it is easier.
I test 2 times, first just export .ai to dwg then import to SKP, change unit is not different.

but if explode logo in Acad before saving, then it import as meter is work !
Thank you very much for your help :slight_smile:

Try this in AI (from sketchucation)

  1. Go to Object>Path>Add Anchor Points. (by default when you click this it adds an anchor point in the middle of every other anchor point you have) The smoother you want your curves the more Anchor Points you will want to add.
  2. Then go to Object>Path>Simplify and check the “Straight Lines” box. Bring your “Angle Threshold” down to 0. You can check the preview box and see how it looks.
  3. Export as a .dxf/dwg file and insert into SU.
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Thank you, This is exactly what I want to learn. Now I know how to check vector file before export to dwg. After adding more anchor points, import curve look better. However for best smooth curve, export to pdf first will provide most smooth result.

It is good to know, so I can have different workflow to choose, some times I don’t want to have too high poly to work with.

If you have already imported the dwg file and want to edit it to have smooth curves

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Wow! Very nice video! I like how you convert my sketch to SketchUp.

Thank you, Bazier tool is another one i need to learn and practice how to use. Thanks for this demo. It guide me how to apply this tool for this case study.

Glad you found the more anchor points in Illustrator. That’s what I was going to suggest.

How can I get just plan arcs from Autocad to not come in so boxy? They are not splines but come in as like arcs with 2 sides and it is a mess…I tried the set to meters thing and that didn’t fix the arcs.

Sketchup only does straight lines. There are no true curves. If the imported file contains true curves, they will be converted to segmented arcs.

Not entirely true . Take a look at the import. It did a nice job on the smaller arcs and a horrible job on the larger . This is really a mess to try to fix.

Zoom in real close on the good ones. They are segmented, just with more segments, so they look mo’ betta’.

Hi, I just tried this extension: s4u Import DXF

It’s a paid extension ($12 p year or $35 permanent) but it works nice. You have to play a little with the settings for the best result.

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I use many of s4u extensions. All of them work very well but I did not try s4u Import DXF yet.
Thank you for sharing your using experience. I will check it.

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It’s also very nice that s4u Import DXF keeps curves intact, and you can control the amount of segments of the curves.

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