DXF-AAMA is a file format developed by the American Apparel Manufacturers Association in an attempt to solve the difficulties of using DXF files. DXF is the most commonly used format for the exchange of  drawing files . Unfortunately, since DXF does not contain neither scale or units, nor usually any method of reliably describing what needs to be cut, drawn, drilled, notched etc. in a pattern file, plain DXF files are normally not very useful. But if the DXF-AAMA format is used, files can contain many patterns either nested, or non-nested, in a form which can be easily processed and used by plotter operators. Properly used, DXF-AAMA is almost as good as the Vectorscript format that we mainly use. It is a format which is almost a standard, and if your customers can deliver files in DXF-AAMA format, you can be almost guar-anteed a nestable pattern at the end of it which is a first for DXF!There’s nothing in a plain DXF file to tell the person or program reading the file what units have been used. So 123.45 could be inches, feet, metres, furlongs or parsecs. This is not a huge problem as long as you know what units were used. So make sure that this is communicated on a drawing or note with the file.When patterns are imported into programs like Tangent, the user has the opportunity to set the correct units, so a job is cut to the right size.In a DXF-AAMA file, entities in a pattern are grouped together into a block (“anonymous block” in DXF-speak). (Almost the same as VW symbols or groups.) There’s more details on how to do this at the end of this section. Files can contain many blocks, each with an insertion point in the Entities section of the file. Using blocks, a file containing many instances of the same panel is much smaller than a similar fi
le without blocks.Each block has several layers used to describe the intent of the entities on the layer. These layers have specific names or numbers describing the intent of the layer and the tool used to plot the layer. (Names are clearer and easier to debug.)  DXF-AAMA “Classic” DXF-AAMA
DXF-AAMA units & scale
In “Classic” DXF-AAMA, layers can be called:
Number Name Tool
1 CUT, OUTLINE Rotary Blade
8 DRAW, INK Marker tool
11 INTCUT Rotary or drag blade
13 DRILL Drill punch
4 NOTCH Notch or drag blade
19 TEXT Marker
26 REF Reference
CUT layers contain the pattern outline which must be a single closed polyline or polygon. (This rule applies to VW outlines and outlines used in almost all nesting programs). This is essential to allow nesting. DRAW layers contain any plotted element sent to the marker pen and can contain any of the normal DXF entities such as polyline, line, circle or arc. INTCUT layers contain internal cut items and can contain any of the nor-mal DXF entities such as polyline, line, circle or arc.. These are sent to a different tool to the outline to allow cut ordering. Obviously these entities can be sent to the same rotary blade tool, but can be cut before or after the outline as required.
DRILL layers contain point data only, and are sent to the drill punch. NOTCHes are a garment specific item and are non-standard DXF. They would be hard to reproduce with a standard CAD package since they are formed by using a point for the insertion, with a direction and length stored in fields normally used for Z axis and radius coordinates. Where people want to draw a notch by hand in a CAD program, they would be best to include this as a simple cut on an INTCUT layer.
TEXT items are used for panel numbering and should contain an insertion point and the relevant text. Text items in DXF-AAMA files are handled the same way as text in a Vectorworks file. The text is substituted for vector based text, and controlled in the text options in Tangent preferences.
editordoesnotcontainamaintypeAny items sent to layers called REF, NONE, DIMENSION, INVISIBLE will be optionally ignored  or sent to tool 8 (grey) which will screen in Tangent, but not be cut. Users can put their normal drawing details in these layers and not have them cut.The AAMA format was developed for garments where most jobs are cut on a high ply cutter with a knife and possibly a drill. AAMA files ignore pattern features and tools commonly used in industrial textiles work including different diameter rotary blade cutters, creasing tools, internal cut tools and specialised tools such as grinders and sanders.  For that reason, we’ve added support for these items on extra layers called:Number Name Tool  CREASE Creaser  INTCUT2  Drag or rotary blade  INTERNAL Drag or rotary blade  RECIPRO  Recipro Cutter  DRAG  Drag blade 1001..  Unassigned**** Aeronaut’s Tangent software supports layer numbers from 1001 upwards. This provides users with the ability to add extra layers where necessary and to assign tools and different setups to these layers as required without conflicting with “classic” DXF-AAMA which ignores the additional layers.When you are setting up drawings for export to DXF-AAMA files, you can use these extra layer names and numbers to get greater flexibility.If you have customers who regularly deliver, or attempt to deliver, eccen-tric DXF files, getting them to use the DXF-AAMA format will help both of you get consistent results without the mistakes and confusion which can often result from uneducated DXF files.Always use the most basic DXF export you can find. Post DXF release 12, things started to get vague with all sorts of additional and undocumented  featur
es added to DXF files which few people understand. DXF release 12 is a published format and is the best to use.What’s missing? DXF versions
This section is written for people who are creating DXF drawings for import into Tangent or any other nesting and plotting program.Setting up a DXF-AAMA format is very very easy! The majority of prob-lems with DXF files are caused by people, not software. There are a things which will reduce these problems considerably. Communicate! Think!In most cases, an entire drawing is neither needed nor wanted. The pur-pose of the document is to generate tool paths for a machine. So bear that in mind when formatting and exporting. In most cases nobody will need to open the drawing in a CAD program, so eliminate what is not essential.Think about what is needed in a drawing, format and export accordingly. If you know a few things about the file which you are trying to exchange, it is far easier to translate it. You The Scale,The Units,The Fabric Width,All that’s necessary to create a DXF-AAMA file is to format the drawing in a specific way. The drawing needs to have a layer for each type of tool you want to use. The layer can be numbered or named with the special layer names detailed below (CUT, DRAW, DRILL etc.) Aeronaut recommends that even if your cutter has only got one cutting tool, that internal and external cuts are put on different layers. You can always choose to cut everything with the same setup but if all entities to be cut are in the same layer, y
ou have no choice.Bear in mind what the drawing represents… it is not something to be printed on paper or viewed on screen. The drawing is data for a cutter, and all lines represent tool paths. The more garbage there is in the file, the more likely you are to have problems.Once a drawing is set up correctly, save it as a template. Probably the best way to work is to copy patterns from the original drawing and paste into an AAMA template and then export as a DXF file.Creating a DXF-AAMA
file
Alternatively, entities which are not to appear on the cut pattern have to be put on a reference layer, made invisible or deleted. This applies to all title blocks, engineering details etc.
The four stages…These are the four essential stages to format for DXF-AAMA export.
1. Assign each entity to a layer.
2. Join the outer cut paths of patterns into a single closed polyline.
3. Group or make a block of all the parts of each pattern.
4. Export to DXF.
The stages which follow are for AutoCAD. Other software may use simi-lar or more modern names for these stages.  For help with AutoCAD, see docs.autodesk
1. Assigning and re-assigning layers:
To change the layer of one or more objects
• Select the objects whose layer you want to change.
• Click Home tab:  Layers panel: Layer Properties
• In the Layer Properties Manager, select the layer that you want to assign to the objects.
• Press ESC to remove selection.
In Vectorworks:
• Select the objects whose layer you want to change.
• In the object info pallette, select a layer name from the popup.

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