Converting JPEG or Bitmap image to HPGL

If you're just trying to get the raster image into your drawing, then you can insert it as an OLE object. This is different from previous versions of autocad where there was a command for "Insert Raster Image"

Click Insert | OLE Object | Then click the radio button for "Create from File" and then the Browse button. You can browse to your Raster image and insert it that way.

Not sure if that's what you're looking for... Hope this helps

BA

Yea... I am able to import/insert the saved BMP image as an OLE object and modify it accordingly... But what I'm not sure how to do is then save this CAD dwg into a HPGL format.... Once I have it saved in this format, I can import it into the layout program that only supports an imported HPGL file..

Thanks for the reply!!!!

Sorry, I'm using the windows driver for my plotter and do not have the HP-GL drivers installed. I didn't see any way to get there from my machine either. If you have the HP-GL drivers installed, it seems that the answer, if available, might be found in the plot dialog. Do you know for sure that it's supported in LT?

Best of luck to you

No I'm not sure, but I will find out....

Thanks for your time and suggestions!!!!

I have a demo version of LT 97 and my export functions are disabled.

If you cannot export to HP-GL you can export to DFX and translate to HP-GL. I have done one myself but I am sure I have seen a few around.

Are you using HP-GL 2?

Last time I did some JPEG to Vector converting I used a Demo version of Turbo Cad. It did a good job of it.

Thanks for the suggestion, I will download the demo version of Turbo Cad and give it a shot...

Thanks again.....

looks like HPGL is a vector language and it is easy to convert from HPGL to bit maps and jpegs, I suspect the reverse is a lot harder as a bit map or JPEG has no vector data. So if two lines cross in a photo that does not mean they are joined, but once merged down in a JPEG they are.

http://www.visual-integrity.com/format-hpgl.htm - sorry, link no longer available

http://www.cadinfo.net/editorial/cadpdf.htm - sorry, link no longer available

http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&q=GraphicConverter+&btnG=Google+Search&meta=

Yes, going backwards is difficult. If you're in a rush there are services available online but all they're doing is importing the image and then sitting somebody there and tracing the lines they see...the more lines, the higher the price. A bmp or jpg carries no information about where a vertice is located so even someone tracing the lines is not going to give perfect accuracy but accuracty can be worked in if the original bmp/jpg is a technical drawing with correct dimensions.

It is not really that difficult.

The pixels in a bitmap is organized in rows and columns.

The drawing you want vectorized must be as clean as possible and the more complex the more editing and checking would be needed.

One scan line is taken at a time and the xy position of darker pixels is pumped into a data base.

when viewing the next scan line the relation to groups of dark pixels is noted.

At the end of the scan the vectors, line thickens and colour can be calculated quite easy. Annotations can be converted to text with an OCR procedure.

Vectorizing a picture of an object is more difficult but it always help to reduce the colour depth (reduce 256 colours to 16)

An edge can be detected where the colour changes.

Hope my color is not off colour.

Heh heh...technically possible for sure IF the drawing is very clear. Let me explain my opinion a bit more:

The drawings I've tried doing in the past have always been some 30 year old blueprints that were photographed, put on microfilm and then printed by someone who looked at the VERY muddy mess of a technical drawing and said to himself "this would look MUCH better if it was a CAD drawing" and sent a few hundred more along just for the sake of putting it all in the computer. All the software packages I sampled couldn't figure out what was drawing and what was 'mud'.

After using the program it was more work to correct the new drawing than to just have someone do the whole thing and learn about the item in the process.

Yep, been there...

I have had the "honor" of repairing old and damaged schematics scanned and saved in a raster format.... In the past, I have used paint or other similar utility programs to clean up the smudge, holes in paper doc, missing traces, text, etc.. in an effort to restore them to their original state...

Fortunately, in this case the image was clean and clear, (a new in-house graphic) and the process of recreating it in CAD was straight forward... I was just kinda hopin' that there was software available to do the conversion and reduce some of the labor intensity...

But with the pressure on, "need it yesterday" (as always). I had to produce an end result ASAP.... Like I said, not sexy but got the job done...

promc1

Hi promc1,

I use Paint Shop Pro by Jasc but it only reads HPGL files, not writes them.

I do not know if later "Corel" PSP will write HPGL files or not.

I was not a Corel fan so did not change.

Brad

Hi every one

HP-GL was developed by HP to drive pen plotters. It was pure vector graphics with instructions like PU - Pen Up , PD - Pen Down , PA - Plot Absolute , PR - Plot Relative etc.

We are using it everyday with a manual engraver that were computerised using a plotter. We are using a pascal program that converts from G code , DXF , NCI or whatever on the fly.

With the changing over to faster raster plotters the HP-GL was extended with some additional functions.

I would first like to say Thank You to each and everyone that replied to my query, your help in this matter was truly appreciated...

I needed to apply the image into a "hot" project, and wound up tracing the imported BMP image at home last night using AutoCAD.

I then defined a HPGL only plotter (generic HPGL in plotter manager), saved it to file, sent it to my work address, and then imported it into my application this morning...

May not have been the sexiest resoution, but it got the job done....

Thank again to all....

Next time you have to do a project like that, look into using GTXRaster CAD PLUS 9.1.

We use it to update old tif drawings. Runs inside Autocad. Not great, but quicker than redraw.

if you need a simple way to convert jpeg image, you can choose a suitable image converter to help you. please make sure it is compatible with your system.