I know, the appropriate NG would be one of the computational ones, but I thought I'd try the shortcut (i.e., asking youse guys...)
Is there any way to extract the actual vectors from a .pdf file? I've been asked to take a drawing, that all I have is a .pdf, with dimensions written in, but not enough - I'd like to scale it, so that I have some kind of length reference.
Is this possible?
Thanks, Rich
Dear Rich Grise:
You can save it as postscript if you have Acrobat (not Reader). Perhaps there is some way to convert this back into vector graphics.
As long as you are clear to "those who asked" that it is "just a guess"...
Assuming you have Acrobat, format the document for the largest print format you have available. Save it as a JPEG. Import the JPEG into your CAD program. Scale the image until you get the same length for different stated dimensions that they printed. "Measure" away.
Assuming you have Acrobat Reader, zoom the drawing until it fills the screen, at least the parts you care about. Hit [Prt Scr]. Open your CAD program, and insert the graphic from the clipboard. Scale as described above.
I strongly urge you to contact the supplier of your PDF with your guesses. They may warn you about bad ones...
David A. Smith
When you get the real answer, come back and tell us!
It seems to me writing or printing to a postcript file should work. I just tried this with one of my Acrobat files, created from a Word document into which I had pasted two vector files from my spice program, a schematic and some data plots.
I opened the file in Acrobat and did a Save As, specifying a PostScript File (*.ps), and then I opened that file with a text editor, and there were the ASCII PostScript commands, including all the vectors with location info. You'd have to learn some PostScript to manually parse the commands, and extract the information. The .ps file was 4400 lines long. :-) Hmm, I'll bet there are plenty of free programs that'll do that task for you. Let us know what you find out.
I think you can also print from Acrobat reader to a PostScript printer, but clicking "print to file" in the dialog to get an ASCII .ps file.
--
Thanks,
- Win
Provided the PDF isn't locked.
...Jim Thompson
-- | James E.Thompson, P.E. | mens | | Analog Innovations, Inc. | et | | Analog/Mixed-Signal ASIC's and Discrete Systems | manus | | Phoenix, Arizona Voice:(480)460-2350 | | | E-mail Address at Website Fax:(480)460-2142 | Brass Rat | |
Google for "pdf to dwg"
There seem to be quite a few programs that say they can retrieve the vector information.
Lance
*****Rich Grise thought carefully and wrote on 7/14/2006 6:43 PM:
Pstoedit (needs ghostscript installed) will extract vectors from .pdf no problem, and write as .dxf, .xfig, .hpgl, etc. *provided* that the .pdf was produced from a vector original. If it started life as raster, say from a scan, you're screwed, unless you want to try extracting as a raster format and using autotrace. YMMV
All free/open-source.
--
"Electricity is of two kinds, positive and negative. The difference
is, I presume, that one comes a little more expensive, but is more
durable; the other is a cheaper thing, but the moths get into it."
(Stephen Leacock)
Dear Winfield Hill:
I believe that AutoCAD will also import a postscript file, without additional programs. Now whether it does it as something that looks like a drawing...
David A. Smith
What's the deal with you and X-No-Archive ?
No deal
-- "Electricity is of two kinds, positive and negative. The difference is, I presume, that one comes a little more expensive, but is more durable; the other is a cheaper thing, but the moths get into it." (Stephen Leacock)
Actually, right here seems to have worked. ;-)
Unfortunately, I don't have Acrobat itself, but the first answer was, duh, google for "pdf to dwg".
Who'd a thunk it! :-)
I've downloaded a converter, and they're done already. Turns out there's no real scale in the original, but I do have one dimension I can refer everything to and scale the whole thing, which was kinda the point. (i.e., on one of them, it reports a
12.0000" dimension as 115.00000, and in another, it reports the 12.0000" as 74.50000 or so, but that's not a problem now, as long as I have a reference.)Thanks! Rich
Bad form to anwer my own post?
Not when I have so many answers, all of which are right. :-)
Thanks to all! Rich
You print the PDF file to disk to capture the underlying PostScript. Then you modify or adapt it any way you like.
Hundreds of free tools and examples on my website.
Start with
-- Many thanks, Don Lancaster voice phone: (928)428-4073 Synergetics 3860 West First Street Box 809 Thatcher, AZ 85552 rss: http://www.tinaja.com/whtnu.xml email: don@tinaja.com Please visit my GURU's LAIR web site at http://www.tinaja.com
ElectronDepot website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.