Microstation dgn support.

Civil3d will export to dgn.

My processes are actually fairly archaic but I'll chime in anyway.

I've used Spectra (TDS) DCs for years. From there I export a dxf which MicroStation imports easily. Anything fancier than that and I'm lost.

Bentley's
Power Survey
Power Civil
InRoads
Open Access
MxRoads
Geopak

Bentley owns them all.

Topcon Magnet Office writes a DGN.

leegreen, post: 396555, member: 2332 wrote: Bentley's
Power Survey
Power Civil
InRoads
Open Access

You forgot PowerInroads and PowerGeopak.

TBC will import dgn, but will not export as far as I know.

I think Carlson will do that in 2017 version

Autocad 2013 is able to publish in dgn format. But I used it once only and was years back

Try:
http://www.carlsonsw.com/solutions/land-survey/simplicity-sight-survey/

leegreen, post: 396555, member: 2332 wrote: Bentley's
Power Survey
Power Civil
InRoads
Open Access
MxRoads
Geopak

Bentley owns them all.

Topcon Magnet Office writes a DGN.

Hi Lee,
About the Bentley survey software ... I'm a little lost at what is today available at then Bentley store. That might be different for Europe and North America.
I had a Power Survey demo some years ago and liked is (we are still using Fledwordks - from the 90's for certain jobs)
but when I check the Bentley site there seems only Inroads survey and Geopak left ... is that correct?
From what I read and see in the online manuals Inroads seems already a little outdated ... but might still do it's job.
(We'rte used to a lot more F2F control codes then what's available in Inroads)

@ all others,
Thanks for all the instant replies,
love this board!

Any Liscad guru's on board??

Christof.

christ lambrecht, post: 396603, member: 284 wrote: Hi Lee,
About the Bentley survey software ... I'm a little lost at what is today available at then Bentley store. That might be different for Europe and North America.
I had a Power Survey demo some years ago and liked is (we are still using Fledwordks - from the 90's for certain jobs)
but when I check the Bentley site there seems only Inroads survey and Geopak left ... is that correct?
From what I read and see in the online manuals Inroads seems already a little outdated ... but might still do it's job.
(We'rte used to a lot more F2F control codes then what's available in Inroads)

@ all others,
Thanks for all the instant replies,
love this board!

Any Liscad guru's on board??

Christof.

You are gonna want Power Geopak. With this software you can import survey data, create field books, adjust and import with all the F2F capabilities. This software is not cheap, but it can do it all, including import .las, .xyz and other LiDAR, point cloud data. There are tons of training videos out there and you can actually download workspaces from US DOT's websites that has all the line work commands already configured.

You may, be able to purchase Power Survey and run on top of Microstation, but I don't have experience with that process, just experience with Power Geopak.

Also be aware, other softwares will export to a .dgn format, but that is not native and clients know the difference and may have problems with your deliverable (i.e., if you draft in Carlson or C3D and export .dgn).

christ lambrecht, post: 396603, member: 284 wrote: Hi Lee,
About the Bentley survey software ... I'm a little lost at what is today available at then Bentley store. That might be different for Europe and North America.
I had a Power Survey demo some years ago and liked is (we are still using Fledwordks - from the 90's for certain jobs)
but when I check the Bentley site there seems only Inroads survey and Geopak left ... is that correct?
From what I read and see in the online manuals Inroads seems already a little outdated ... but might still do it's job.
(We'rte used to a lot more F2F control codes then what's available in Inroads)

@ all others,
Thanks for all the instant replies,
love this board!

Any Liscad guru's on board??

Christof.

Chris,

I too used Fieldworks in the 90's, along with C&G Survey inside of Microstation. The current version that looks and feels like FieldWorks is re-branded as PowerSurvey. StlSurveyor and others are incorrect. PowerGeopak was NOT born from FieldWorks, and you certainly should NOT ever "draft in Carlson or C3D and export .dgn". Your deliverable will most likely not meet the clients CADD standard.
[USER=7070]@StLSurveyor[/USER] - Actually PowerSurvey is quite cheap, only $1500, when compared the cost of InRoads suite and GeoPak Suite cost around $12,000.

Feel free to contact me if you want to setup a GoToMeeting. You will see the familiarity immediately, but only after some instruction. If you install PowerSurvey, there are few steps needed to make it look and feel like FieldWorks.

christ lambrecht, post: 396603, member: 284 wrote: Hi Lee,
About the Bentley survey software ... I'm a little lost at what is today available at then Bentley store. That might be different for Europe and North America.
I had a Power Survey demo some years ago and liked is (we are still using Fledwordks - from the 90's for certain jobs)
but when I check the Bentley site there seems only Inroads survey and Geopak left ... is that correct?
From what I read and see in the online manuals Inroads seems already a little outdated ... but might still do it's job.
(We'rte used to a lot more F2F control codes then what's available in Inroads)

@ all others,
Thanks for all the instant replies,
love this board!

Any Liscad guru's on board??

Christof.

Chris,

The latest version is called
Bentley PowerSurvey V8i (SELECTseries 4)

Hi Chris,

First time i hear of dgn deliverables. The only one i know who wants this data in Belgium is Tucrail.

I worked with microstation about 10 years ago. Found it good software but only recall that they work with cells instead of layers.

Greetings

[USER=1128]@Lee[/USER],

I noticed there did not change much. We used the TIW for importing our csv files, Also the FWD file looks identical ...
I have to say that in the field we code for another local software ... i did some programming that translates the csv to fieldworks coding, making use of the trick with the _character to reuse points allready in the fieldbook. At the demo some years ago it looked as if that no longer worked ...

are you familiar with these ?

the lin is imported bij the TIW to build the FWD.

Thanks for the info so far, very helpfull.

Hi Beuckie,

High Voltage undergound lines ....

10yrs is a long time ... Cells = Blocks & levels =Layers

greetz from Ghent,

christ lambrecht, post: 396627, member: 284 wrote: [USER=1128]@Lee[/USER],

I noticed there did not change much. We used the TIW for importing our csv files, Also the FWD file looks identical ...
I have to say that in the field we code for another local software ... i did some programming that translates the csv to fieldworks coding, making use of the trick with the _character to reuse points allready in the fieldbook. At the demo some years ago it looked as if that no longer worked ...

are you familiar with these ?

the lin is imported bij the TIW to build the FWD.

Thanks for the info so far, very helpfull.

Yes, we can still use those same TIW (Text Import Wizard) files to build the FWD. Not much has changed since FieldWorks, other than the file structure. No more Preferences and Styles files in seperate .ini, and no more fxp. All of this now resides in a single XIN file.

beuckie, post: 396626, member: 2245 wrote: Hi Chris,

First time i hear of dgn deliverables. The only one i know who wants this data in Belgium is Tucrail.

I worked with microstation about 10 years ago. Found it good software but only recall that they work with cells instead of layers.

Greetings

Beuckie,

From what I understand, here in the US, there are or were at one time 38 state Dept. of Transportation agency's requesting CAD deliverable in Microstation DGN.

StLSurveyor, post: 396605, member: 7070 wrote:
Also be aware, other softwares will export to a .dgn format, but that is not native and clients know the difference and may have problems with your deliverable (i.e., if you draft in Carlson or C3D and export .dgn).

This is huge! Just because your software has an export to dgn function does not mean it will be correct at the end-user level. Its typically quite obvious to the end user if a file has been created using another softaware and more often than not that conversion will not work properly. In my experience with Bentley Products you are better off and $ ahead to simply do the work using the proper software.

That's exactly what our microstation expert tells me all the time ... So true, I know.
Makes the decision on upgrading easier ... Bentley.

WA-ID Surveyor, post: 396703, member: 6294 wrote: This is huge! Just because your software has an export to dgn function does not mean it will be correct at the end-user level. Its typically quite obvious to the end user if a file has been created using another softaware and more often than not that conversion will not work properly. In my experience with Bentley Products you are better off and $ ahead to simply do the work using the proper software.

And it works the other way also. A number of clients ask for a dwg file. And although I can save a dgn as a dwg, there are a few hiccups. Generally in the level nomenclature, line weights and text justification locations. Aggravating but not really serious. I have had clients come up with dwg files that had screwy master units and even coordinate relocations from different origin points.