Affordable professional raster to vector conversion software
Scan2CAD automatically converts scanned drawings into DXF files that can be edited in any PC CAD, CNC, GIS or mapping program.
For a Seven Day Trial and or more information, visit the Softcover web site.
Conversion results vary from one raster to vector converter to another. The best converter is the one that saves you the most redrawing time. Few converters give the same high level of useful results as Scan2CAD. Here are four reasons why it saves more time.
First, Scan2CAD recognizes more drawing entities than most converters:
By recognizing all these drawing entities Scan2CAD saves you more time than converters that make drawings up out of hundreds of short lines or just lines and arcs, as many do.
Second, Scan2CAD resolves many of the difficult recogntion problems that produce poor and untidy results in other programs, the ones that take so long to tidy up in CAD.
Diagram (a) below shows a very simple raster image, one that is a lot less complicated than anything you will work with in a real life vectorization.
(a) 
We converted this image using Scan2CAD and 12 other converters.
(b)
(c) 
Diagram (b) shows the vectorization produced by one of the other converters. In our test 10 programs gave results like Diagram (b) - or worse!
Diagram (c) shows Scan2CAD's conversion. It produced straighter lines and neater joins and corners. Clearly, a result like this will save you more redrawing time.
Third, Scan2CAD works on the basis that every conversion must follow your paper drawing with absolute precision wherever possible.
Many low cost programs trace blindly over the image. Others try to make sense of this mess by post-processing the trace. In juggling it around they produce vectors that no longer follow the detail on your drawing. Scan2CAD stays true to the original detail.
Fourth, Scan2CAD converts quickly. In an independent test (CAD&CG Magazine, Japan, Feb 2005), Scan2CAD vectorized a drawing in 7 seconds with more accuracy than a rival "professional" program that took 1.03 minutes.
Programs that are slower than Scan2CAD waste more of your time. They waste more time again when you do a second or third conversion in an attempt to improve on the first results.
Scan2CAD Pro provides increased support for PDF conversions, color conversions, text handling, and much more!
Scan2CAD Pro supported features:
Scan2CAD Pro loads and saves raster PDF files.
If the PDF file you are loading contains a single raster image, it will be loaded in the same way as any other raster image. If the PDF file contains many raster images, you can step through them and select the one you want to load.
Scan2CAD Pro can save any raster image type as PDF.
Scan2CAD Pro includes a 30,000 word US and UK Design Dictionary that searches vectorized text for unrecognized words. These are highlighted for quick editing.
You can add your own words to the Dictionary or even create your own Dictionary in any language.
Scan2CAD Regular loads color raster images but can only convert them to black and white DXF files.
Scan2CAD Pro can create color DXF files from color raster images. You can convert one, some or all of the colors on a color raster image.
Some raster to vector converters create color DXF files by vectorizing color images as though they were black and white and applying color to the vectors afterwards. Scan2CAD Pro uses color information while vectorizing, which means it is able to create more accurate color DXF files.
Scan2CAD Pro has a batch conversion facility that converts multiple raster images automatically. It will vectorize all the raster files in a specified folder.
The batch run can include pre-conversion raster tidying up commands, like despeckle, hole removal, smooth, etc., and includes options to run OCR and color vectorization.
Scan2CAD's command line support allows you to run Scan2CAD from other applications and automate virtually any sequence of Scan2CAD commands.
When you buy Scan2CAD, its OCR text recognition is able to recognize a range of standard fonts commonly found on many drawings.
However if your raster images contain fonts that Scan2CAD cannot recognize or does not recognize well, you can train Scan2CAD Pro to recognize them. This will save you hours of time, particularly if you have many drawings from a common source containing a specific font.
By training Scan2CAD Pro to recognize text automatically you can save yourself much of the hassle and time of having to edit unrecognized text later. And, of course, Pro's Spellchecker with Design Dictionary goes a long way to resolving, simplifying and speeding up this task!
You can train Scan2CAD to recognize as many fonts as you like. You can even train it to recognize handwritten text so long as it is not "joined up".
View Brochure (PDF) |Contact us for more information
For demo software or more information, visit the Softcover web site.
give us a call at 866-338-4464 and tell us what your scanning and plotting needs are and we will help you determine the most appropriate business solution to help you fill those needs!
Convert your Raster based scans to Vector files for use in CAD environments with Scan2Cad software from Softcover International Limited! Scan2Cad software is tried, tested, and Vista Compatible! Upgrade to Scan2Cad Pro and recieve additional features