Parasolid Solid Modeling Kernel

Available for: Import and Export
File formats: Text (x_t) and Binary (x_b)
File extension: *.x_t (text); *.x_b (binary)
Versions supported:
     Import: 13.1 and previous
     Export: 8 (compatible with 8.x), 9 (compatible with 9.x), 10 (compatible with 10.x), and 11 (compatable with 11.x), 12 (compatable with 12.x), 13 (compatible with 13.x)
Supported data: Solid Parts, Assemblies of Solid Parts, standalone surface data (import only)
 
General Notes:
  • Parasolid is developed by Unigraphics Solutions (Cambridge), formerly known as Shape Data - www.parasolid.com.



 

 
Compatibility
 Application Versions and the Parasolid version they are based on:
     SolidWorks 95: 6.2 and 7.0
     SolidWorks 96: 7.1
     SolidWorks 97: 8.0
     SolidWorks 97 Plus: 9.0
     SolidWorks 98: 9.1 (compatible with 9.0 and 9.1)
     SolidWorks 98 Plus: 10.0
     SolidWorks 99: 11.0
     SolidWorks 2000: 11.1
     SolidWorks 2001: 12.1
     SolidWorks 2001Plus: 13.0

 
     Unigraphics v11.0: 7.0
     Unigraphics v11.1: 7.1
     Unigraphics v12.0: 8.0
     Unigraphics v13.0: 9.0

 
SolidWorks Specific Notes:
  • Parasolid - Solid body "history" is not translated - Even though the Parasolid file format supports exchange of solid data between Parasolid based systems, this data only defines the solid body itself (faces, edges, and vertices), and does not include historical data on how the solid was created.


 

Troubleshooting the Parasolid import process:
  • Ensure that the Parasolid file consists of Solid or Surface data. SolidWorks does not currently support the import of Parasolid files consisting purely of curve or point data.


 

Troubleshooting the Parasolid export process:
  • You may need to change the file extension in order for the receiving system to recognize this as a Parasolid file. SolidWorks uses *.x_t (text) and *.x_b (binary) as the file extension for Parasolid files, whereas some Parasolid based systems use *.xmt_txt (text) and *.xmt_bin (binary) file extensions.
  • SolidWorks can export Parasolid v8 (compatible with v8.x), Parasolid v9 (compatible with v9.x), 10 (compatible with 10.x), and 11 (compatable with 11.x). Make sure that the receiving system is based on a version of Parasolid compatible with the version exported from SolidWorks. For example, it is not possible to read a Parasolid v9 file into a system based on Parasolid v8. The version of Parasolid exported by SolidWorks can be selected in File, Save - set to IGES - Options.
  • If assemblies exported as Parasolid files from SolidWorks are displayed incorrectly in another system please ensure the receiving system supports import of hierarchical Parasolid assemblies (i.e. assemblies containing sub-assemblies). If not then choose "Flatten Assembly Hierarchy" from File, Save - set to IGES - Options before exporting from SolidWorks which will eliminate the sub-assembly structure by resolving all of the parts into a single top-level assembly.

 Common Parasolid Questions & Answers:
  • Question: Should I use the Parasolid, IGES or STEP format for exporting data to other systems?
    Answer: Given the choice Parasolid should always be used because Parasolid based systems can directly read this file without first converting from a neutral file format such as IGES or STEP, resulting in extremely reliable data transfer. Please first ensure that any CAD/CAM/CAE system you wish to communicate with supports the Parasolid file format.
  • Question: How can I find out what version of Parasolid my file has been saved as?
    Answer: First, look at the Parasolid file in a text reader (like Notepad). The version information is located AFTER the header and is shown in green below. Often, users mistakenly look at other information in the text file, that does not describe the saved version. For instance all of the selections shown below in red describe the current version of Parasolid which the generating system uses. The version of the Parasolid data exported can be different than the version from which it is generated. Therefore, only look at the information shown below in green for the correct exported version.

    **ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz************************** **PARASOLID !"#$%&'()*+,-./:;<=>?@[\]^_`{|}~0123456789************************** **PART1; MC=x86; MC_MODEL=x86 Family 6 Model 5 Stepping 3, GenuineIntel; MC_ID=unknown; OS=Windows_NT; OS_RELEASE=unknown; FRU=Parasolid Version 11.0, build 211, 12-14-1999; APPL=SolidWorks 99-1999312; SITE=; USER=unknown; FORMAT=text; GUISE=transmit; KEY=WHAT VERSION; FILE=WHAT VERSION.x_t; DATE=Fri Jan 21 13:46:40 2000; **PART2; SCH=SCH_1100211_11004; USFLD_SIZE=0; **PART3; **END_OF_HEADER***************************************************************** T51 : TRANSMIT FILE created by modeller version 110021115 SCH_900000_90080 12 1 43 0 2 0 0 0 0 1e3 1e-8 0 3 0 1 0 1 4 5 6 0 7 8 0 70 2 0 1 0 0 4 1 20 4 9 9 1 T 13 4 29 0 1 0 10 0 0 11 0 51 5 28 0 10 12 0 0 -.034272602739726 -.00922054794520 548 .02 0 0 -1 .0523087912098027 -1 0 0 31 6 5 0 8 13 0 0 +.034272602739726 -.00 922054794520548 .02 0 0 1 1 0 0 .0523087912098027 19 7 7 0 1 11 0 14 V16 8 4 0 ? 15 0 16 6 0 0 1 17 15 17 15 15 0 18 8 0 0 +16 16 18 0 ?19 8 0 13 0 0 1 17 19 20 19 19 0 21 16 0 0 +31 13 23 0 16 0 6 0 +.034272602739726 -.00922054794520548 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 .0523087912098027 15 20 26 0 19 10 0 17 21 22 21 21 0 19 16 0 0 -15 22 17 0 21 23 0 14 23 16 24 ?0 25 22 4 26 -0 0 0 25 14 81 1 24 43 27 23 0 0 28 0 29 14 25 1 28 ?23 10 17 4 12 +0 0 23 10 14 50 26 22 0 23 0 12 0 +.03427260273 9726 -.00922054794520548 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 13 14 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 10 14 10 25 30 ?25 0 31 4 5 -0 0 25 0 14 81 1 30 41 27 10 0 0 0 28 32 15 31 24 0 18 10 20 17 18 31 18 18 0 15 8 0 0 -80 1 27 0 33 8001 0 0 0 0 3 5 0 0