The task of inserting PDF files in AutoCAD arises for a simple reason - it is a very common format for presenting information, slowly but surely, it still gained popularity in the computer world.

The functionality of the program AutoCAD allows you to integrate a PDF file.

If you need to insert a quality document for informational support into the AutoCAD drawing, then it is quite possible that the PDF document will be received from the scanner. Here we only pay attention to the fact that the scan should be placed at least with a resolution of 600 dpi in order not to lose the quality of the graphics after insertion.

Before insertion, it is also important to select the mode of the AutoCAD system - “Model” or “Sheet”. Actually, the principles of work in each mode are the same, but the choice of the mode is already a sign that the user exactly imagines what information is inserted and what it is for. Usually, the insertion is done just in the “Sheet” mode, in other words, the contents of this external file are intended for printing on one sheet together with the developed documentation.

Algorithm for inserting PDF files into an AutoCAD drawing

To solve the problem of how to insert a PDF, you first need to get used to the terminology - in this design program, such actions (and not only with the format in question) are called “import”. Thus, import PDF into AutoCAD as follows.

Go to the main menu of the program and select "Import".

A window opens on the right, in which the very first sentence is the work with PDF. We select it and, thus, we start the command "PDFIMPORT".

Next, in the command line, select the "File" mouse. The window opens to access the contents of the hard disk, now you need to select the file itself to be imported. After selection, click on the "Open" button.

Next, proceed to the main operations, the settings. The import window opens.

ATTENTION. In this window, the contents of the inserted document is displayed as a thumbnail, which can be multi-page. Of course, the insertion of files of this format is a progress in the development of AutoCAD, for quite a long time in the history of the program there was no such possibility. But you need to be very clear about what to do with the information being inserted, if it is multipage.

The general conclusion is - insert - import single-page PDF-documents, and you will have no problems with information, nor with the perception of the program and the results of its work. After all, PDF-documents can contain several dozen pages! And what to do with these pages after inserting them into the drawing? It is not by chance that the first versions of the application in question allowed only the first page to be imported (in fact, many other applications that try to import the non-native PDF format behave this way).

When conducting insert settings you can:

• specify the insertion point - by default, the insertion is made to the beginning, although in the future, of course, the inserted one can be moved to any other place;
• select the scale of insertion - it is proposed “one to one”, you can increase or decrease the scale, but when you increase the scale, the quality of raster objects in the file is often lost;
• rotate the contents of the import;
• recognize vector geometry in the file, and if it is closed, use a solid fill;
• allow the properties of the lines of the source file to be applied, it is primarily about the thickness of lines;
• assign the insertion of all content as a single block, which is recommended to do always to work with this information as a single object;
• assign text processing of type “True Type” to ensure their correct reproduction;
• allow to recognize raster graphics;
• assign the placement of all file objects in the current AutoCAD layer;
• create a new layer for each object;
• focus on the layered organization of the PDF file;
• assign the transformation of single linear and arc elements to Avtokad polylines;
• assign a solid fill to hatch conversion.

Using the “OK” button, the contents of the PDF file are inserted into the drawing.

Now, some of the objects inserted can be edited with the usual tools of AutoCAD itself.

ATTENTION. The success of importing a PDF file into a dwg-drawing depends on many factors, ultimately, on the compatibility of versions of formats and their health. We strongly recommend that before you insert PDF into AutoCAD and start working with the imported file, check its operability. Suppose you open it in Acrobat Reader (the most famous viewer of such files, you can use any other, which are many), try to open it in Photoshop.

In any case, you need to know exactly the contents of the file, at least how many pages it consists of. You should not perform the import, if you do not even imagine the size of the file in the pages - the success of such an operation is very doubtful from all points of view, first of all, from the point of view of its reasonableness.