CATIA to Flux

Bring your CATIA project to Flux and continue it here. Import your parts and products as 3D models. Flux edits them, designs new parts around them, and adds electronics and firmware in the same project.

Export your models from CATIA

In CATIA V5:

Open the part (.CATPart) or the product (.CATProduct).
Select File → Save As.
In Save as type, select stp.
Click Save. For a product, CATIA saves all of its parts and their positions in one STEP file.

In CATIA on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform:

Open the physical product.
Open the 3DEXPERIENCE menu (the compass or the top bar menu) and select Export.
In Format, select stp, then click OK.

Import the STEP file into Flux

Attach the STEP file to a message in the Chat panel and tell Flux what to do with it.

Import the attached STEP assembly and keep each part in its original position.

Import the attached CATIA bracket and add two M4 mounting holes 30 mm apart.

Import the attached enclosure STEP file and design a PCB that fits inside it.

To do it in the UI:

Open your Flux project, or create a new project.
In the Inspector, open Assets, click Manage Assets, then click Add Item.
Upload the .stp file (or the .step file). In Assets, Flux accepts .step, .stp, .stpz, .iges, .igs, and .brep files.
Open the View panel and use the 3D view to see the model. For an assembly, Flux keeps each part in its original position, with its color and repeated instances.

You can also attach the STEP file to a message in the Chat panel and tell Flux what to do with it.

To add a component with its 3D model to your part library, select Flux menu → Import → Part… and upload the symbol and footprint files with the matching .step or .stp model. See Mechanical Design.

What you can do with your design in Flux

Flux is an AI hardware engineer. After the import, your CATIA model is part of a Flux project. Ask Flux to work on it. Flux works on the mechanical parts, the electronics, the firmware, and the manufacturing in the same project.

Turn the imported model into a complete device

Use the imported CATIA part or assembly as the fit reference for a PCB. Then add firmware for the board and a wire harness for off-board sensors or actuators where the assembly needs one.

Ask Flux to design a PCB that fits the imported CATIA enclosure or mechanism. Include its mounting points, connectors, and clearances.
Ask Flux to design firmware for the microcontroller and peripherals on the new board.
If the assembly has off-board sensors or actuators, ask Flux to design a wire harness between them and the board.

Using the imported CATIA assembly as the fit reference, design a PCB that fits inside it and aligns with its mounting points and connector openings.

Create firmware for the microcontroller on the new board. Use the imported CATIA model to list the sensors and actuators.

For the imported CATIA assembly, design a wire harness between the PCB and the off-board sensors and actuators.

Edit the imported model

Tell Flux what to change. Flux measures the imported model and converts its parts into editable CAD code. It saves each edit as a new model and keeps your original file unchanged in the project. In an assembly, Flux changes the part you name and keeps the other parts where they are.

Make the imported bracket 5 mm wider and keep the hole positions.

Add stiffening ribs to the inside of the imported cover, 2 mm thick and 20 mm apart.

Move the connector cutout on the housing 10 mm toward the front.

Design new parts and mechanisms

Ask Flux for custom parts that fit your imported model: brackets, mounts, housings, hinges, and mechanisms. Flux builds them around the real 3D models of your parts and boards. It uses screws, standoffs, and other hardware from the Flux part library.

Design a mounting bracket for the camera module that bolts to the imported frame with M4 screws.

Design a latch for the access door in this product.

Build assemblies and complete products

Ask Flux to build multi-part assemblies and complete products, from a handheld device to a robot arm. Flux places the parts by face, edge, or axis constraints, and places the board and its components in the assembly.

Build a drone frame from the imported center plate: four arms, motor mounts, and a battery tray.

Place the flight controller board on the center plate with vibration dampers.

Check fit, strength, heat, and mass

Ask Flux to check the fit and the clearances between parts and to find interference. For a part under load, ask Flux to analyze the stress and the deflection. For a part that gets hot, ask Flux to analyze the heat conduction through the part. Flux also calculates the mass, the center of mass, and the inertia. Flux reports the results with numbers and images. See Simulation.

Analyze the stress and the deflection of the drone arm with 15 N thrust at the motor.

Calculate the mass, the center of mass, and the inertia of the drone frame.

Check that the battery tray clears the propellers by at least 5 mm.

Simulate air flow, liquid flow, and cooling

Ask Flux to simulate the air flow and the temperature inside an enclosure with vents, fans, or heatsinks. Flux also simulates liquid cooling and the pressure drop in channels, and the drag around a product.

Simulate the drag of the imported cover at 15 m/s.

Simulate the air flow over the motor drivers from the propeller downwash.

Design the electronics, firmware, and cables

Flux designs the electronics inside your product in the same project. Ask Flux for the requirements, the parts, the schematic, and the PCB layout and routing. Ask Flux to write and test the firmware for the microcontroller. Ask Flux for the wire harnesses between the boards and the other devices, with a quote from a harness manufacturer.

Design the power distribution board for the four motors that fits on the center plate.

Write firmware for the flight controller that reads the receiver and the IMU.

Design the wire harness from the power board to the four motors.

Render your design

Ask Flux for a still render, a turntable video, or an exploded-view animation of your models. You can also ask for a product video of your device.

Make a still render of the drone in carbon fiber on a gray background.

Make an exploded-view animation of the frame.

Ask Flux to export the model in the format that you need.

Export the drone frame assembly as a STEP file so I can open it in CATIA.

Export the camera bracket as an STL file for 3D printing.

Export the Gerber files, the BOM, and the pick and place file for the controller board.

To do it in the UI:

Select Flux menu → Export → Mechanical → PCB 3D model to export STL, STEP, STEP compressed, GLB, COLLADA, BREP, VRML, or XAO files. Open the STEP file in CATIA to continue the work there.

Ask Flux for 3D-printing quotes from vendors such as Craftcloud, JLCPCB 3D printing, and PCBWay 3D printing, and for laser-cut and sheet-metal quotes from SendCutSend and OSH Cut. Ask Flux to order the 3D-printed parts from Craftcloud. For the board, ask Flux for PCB quotes and orders. See Export and manufacturing.

Get 3D-printing quotes for the battery tray and the camera bracket in nylon.

Get a laser-cut quote for the center plate from OSH Cut.

Order 4 camera brackets from Craftcloud.

CATIA concepts in Flux

In CATIA	In Flux
Specification tree	Flux saves each edit as editable CAD code that your engineers can open and change.
Product (`.CATProduct`) and parts	Models in a Flux project. Every project has a URL, and Flux keeps its history.
CATIA structural analysis	Ask Flux for the stress, the deflection, and the heat conduction of a part.
CATIA flow analysis	Ask Flux to simulate the air flow, the liquid flow, and the cooling.
CATIA electrical design	Flux designs the schematic, the PCB, and the wire harnesses in the same project as the mechanical parts.
CATIA rendering	Ask Flux for a render, a turntable video, or an exploded-view animation.
Mates and constraints	Ask Flux to align the parts by face, edge, or axis constraints.
Measure tool	In the 3D view, press M to start Measure Distance.
Section view	In the 3D view, expand Analysis and turn on Cross Section.
Display styles	In the View panel, open Display and choose X-Ray, Solid, Realistic, or Blueprint from Materials.
Mass properties	Ask Flux for the mass, the center of mass, and the inertia.

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