pdf-to-dxf

Live: https://ek-mc.github.io/pdf-to-dxf/

npm: https://www.npmjs.com/package/pdf-to-dxf

A robust, fully local PDF to AutoCAD DXF converter. It extracts vector paths and text from PDF files and converts them into DXF format.

This tool is part of the ek-mc civil toolset. It operates entirely on your local machine—no cloud uploads, ensuring your data remains private and secure.

Features

• Dual-mode: Use it as a standalone CLI tool or embed it as a React component.
• Local processing: Zero external API calls; your files never leave your machine.
• Local PDF.js worker: Browser worker is bundled/served locally (no CDN dependency).
• Vector extraction: Accurately extracts lines, curves (approximated as polylines), and rectangles.
• Text extraction: Preserves text elements with their relative positioning.
• Customizable: Supports page selection, coordinate scaling, and layer prefixing.

Installation

You can install pdf-to-dxf globally to use the CLI, or locally in your project to use the React component.

# Install globally for CLI usage
npm install -g @ek-mc/pdf-to-dxf

# Or install locally in your project
npm install @ek-mc/pdf-to-dxf

CLI Usage

If installed globally, you can run pdf-to-dxf directly from your terminal. Alternatively, use npx without installing:

npx pdf-to-dxf input.pdf [output.dxf] [options]

Examples

Convert a single file (outputs to drawing.dxf):

pdf-to-dxf drawing.pdf

Convert specific pages and apply a scale factor (e.g., from points to millimeters):

pdf-to-dxf plan.pdf plan_scaled.dxf --pages 1,2,3 --scale 0.3527

Exclude text entities:

pdf-to-dxf schematic.pdf --no-text

CLI Options

| Option | Description | Default | |--------|-------------|---------| | --pages <1,2> | Comma-separated list of pages to convert (1-indexed). | All pages | | --scale <num> | Uniform scale factor applied to all coordinates. | 1 | | --layer-prefix <name> | Prefix for generated DXF layer names. | PAGE | | --no-text | Exclude text entities from the output. | false | | --no-paths | Exclude vector path entities from the output. | false | | --help, -h | Show the help message. | | | --version, -v | Show the package version. | |

React Component Usage

The package includes a ready-to-use React component that provides a drag-and-drop interface for converting PDFs to DXF in the browser.

import React from 'react';
import { PdfToDxf } from '@ek-mc/pdf-to-dxf';

export default function App() {
  return (
    <div>
      <h1>PDF to DXF Converter</h1>
      <PdfToDxf 
        options={{ scale: 1, includeText: true }}
        onComplete={(result, filename) => {
          console.log(`Converted ${result.pageCount} pages. Downloaded as ${filename}`);
        }}
        onError={(error) => {
          console.error('Conversion failed:', error);
        }}
      />
    </div>
  );
}

Component Props

| Prop | Type | Description | |------|------|-------------| | options | ConvertOptions | Configuration options for the conversion engine. | | onComplete | (result: ConvertResult, filename: string) => void | Callback fired when conversion succeeds. | | onError | (error: Error) => void | Callback fired when conversion fails. | | className | string | Optional CSS class name for the wrapper element. |

Core Engine API

If you need programmatic access without the UI, you can use the core conversion function directly.

import { convertPdfToDxf } from '@ek-mc/pdf-to-dxf';

// Read your PDF into an ArrayBuffer or Uint8Array
const buffer = await file.arrayBuffer();

const result = await convertPdfToDxf(buffer, {
  pages: [1],
  scale: 1,
  layerPrefix: 'CUSTOM_LAYER',
  includeText: true,
  includePaths: true
});

console.log(result.dxf); // The resulting DXF string

License

MIT License. See the LICENSE file for details.