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XML E-BOM at a glance

Full name

XML engineering bill of materials

Encoding

XML

Carries

Structure, positions, visibility, layers and attributes

Part geometry

Separate files, binary by default (.sab, .x_b)

Units

Millimeters when not specified

3D InterOp
Read Write

Connect interface

  • Building software with its own assembly model?

    3D InterOp is an SDK that lets your application import and export assemblies from 30+ CAD and BIM formats.
Element Role

Root

The main assembly, with a name, unique identifier and optional unit

Child

An instance or sub-assembly, with optional visibility, suppression and layer

Position

Rotation and translation relative to the parent

RefLink, Reference

Links from an instance to its component definition

Shape

Full file name and type of the part geometry file

UserDefinedAttributes

Attributes at assembly and instance level

  • Product structure

    Assemblies, sub-assemblies and instances

  • Transforms

    Rigid positions of each component

  • Visibility and suppression

    Hidden and suppressed instances

  • Layers and colors

    Instance layers, colors and transparency

  • Attributes

    User-defined attributes and configuration names

  • Assembly cuts

    Assembly-level cut features

Aspect XML E-BOM ASAT / ASAB

Layout

XML structure plus separate part files

Single monolithic file

Part geometry

SAT, SAB or other part files

ACIS bodies inside the file

Readable

Yes, structure is plain XML

ASAT is text, ASAB binary

Typical use

Feeding an application’s own assembly model

Exchanging complete ACIS assemblies

  • Spatial doesn’t provide an XML E-BOM viewer for end users. 3D InterOp is for software developers who want their own application to read and write assemblies.
  • Imprecise transforms

    Positions must be rigid, written with at least 12 decimal places and scaled to the XML unit, or components end up misplaced.

  • Missing part files

    The XML only references parts. If a part file is missing or moved, its component can’t be loaded.

  • Duplicate identifiers

    Each Root and Child needs a unique identifier within the file, or references become ambiguous.

  • ASAT / ASAB

    ACIS assembly files
    ASAT / ASAB
  • SAT

    ACIS text save file
    SAT
  • SAB

    ACIS binary save file
    SAB
  • STEP (STP)

    ISO 10303 product data exchange
    STEP (STP)
  • CATPart

    CATIA V5 part file
    CATPart
  • Product · 3D InterOp

    3D InterOp for CAD applications

    Read and write 30+ CAD, BIM and mesh formats inside your own application.
  • Add assembly import and export to your software

    Evaluate 3D InterOp on your own models with support from Spatial’s engineers.

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