The Complete COLLADA to SolidWorks Conversion Guide

Multiple UV Channels Support:

COLLADA: Full support | SolidWorks: Partial support

SolidWorks Notes:

Limited multi-UV support, primarily through appearances and materials for visualization rather than game development workflows.

Impact:

Multiple UV channels allow the optimized and sophisticated use of various 3D modeling features at once. For example, one can use one set of UVs and 2D texture data to model a tiling texture or procedural material, and another UV set to leverage a global lightmap or occlusion map of the 3D model. In this example, a combination of tiled texture (UV channel 1) and baked ambient occlusion map (UV channel 2) is used. Without support for this feature, one needs to either give up the tiling property (e.g., by using a tool like RapidPipline to bake a single texture atlas), or give up the ambient occlusion map, as only one UV channel will be usable.

Normal Mapping Support:

COLLADA: Full support | SolidWorks: Partial support

SolidWorks Notes:

Basic normal mapping support through SolidWorks Visualize and appearance properties, but not extensively used in typical CAD workflows.

Impact:

Normal maps are used to model shading differences that are arising from small geometric details on a surface, such as fabric structures, visible gaps between bricks forming a wall, or rough rock surfaces. In this example, a normal map is used to model a fabric structure. Without support for this feature, the rendered fabric will look smoother than it actually is in the real world, as the fabric structure won't be visible.

Vertex Colors Support:

COLLADA: Full support | SolidWorks: Partial support

SolidWorks Notes:

Limited vertex color support, mainly through part coloring and appearance assignments rather than per-vertex color data.

Impact:

Vertex colors allow the attachment of colors to each vertex of a 3D model. This can be useful in scenarios such as scientific visualization, or when converting/meshing data from a colored 3D point cloud, for example. On the polygonal surface connecting the vertices, the respective vertex colors are usually smoothly interpolated. In this example, different colors are attached to the different corners of a cube. Without support for this feature, the cube won't have any colors.

Skinned Animations Support:

COLLADA: Full support | SolidWorks: No support

Impact:

Skinned animations are commonly used for 3D character models in interactive applications, such as games or virtual worlds. They make it possible to easily animate the 3D model using a helper structure based on virtual bones, composing a virtual skeleton for animation control. In this example, a skinned animation is used to pose a 3D character. Without support for skinned animations, the 3D model will remain in its default pose, such as the default T-pose.

Morph Targets Support:

COLLADA: Full support | SolidWorks: No support

Impact:

Morph Targets, or "Blend Shapes", are commonly used to animate facial expressions and soft surfaces, for example cloth under a cloth simulation. They model various states of the animations with different vertex positions. In contrast to skinned animations, morph targets do not use any virtual bones, but work solely on the vertex data. In this example, a facial animation is achieved through morph targets. Without suport for this feature, in this example, the face will not show the animation.

Standardized Format Support:

COLLADA: Full support | SolidWorks: Partial support

SolidWorks Notes:

SolidWorks uses proprietary file formats, though it supports many industry-standard import/export formats like STEP, IGES, and others.

Impact:

Standardization plays a huge role in 3D model formats. With a format being standardized, every application will have a clear way of how to load or store data using this format. This makes it easier to re-use the 3D model across different applications, but also to make sure it will still be accessible and usable after a couple of years.