VPHybridCAD combines the benefits of raster-to-vector conversion with intuitive editing and design of both raster and vector content. Even colored/gray scale drawings can be processed in continuous workflows to scan - clean - edit/modify/revise - vectorize - rasterize - archive. softelec has tailored separate product solutions for your individual requirements: please refer to the VPHybridCAD Product Finder to view the available product options.


The following overview gives brief explanations of major functions:

One Product includes Two Licenses

While the stand-alone installation provides fast execution of operations and easy handling, the installation with AutoCAD, BricsCAD, or ZWCAD let VPHybridCAD solutions work together with the main program or with other AutoCAD/BricsCAD applications. All VPHybridCAD solutions always provide both options in just one license.

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Multipage TIFF:

Of course, you can load multiple documents with VPHybridCAD, or documents which include multiple pages. Each document may contain various independent images. You can manage your Multipage-TIFF with an easy to use set of tools.

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CAD-like Command Line Interface:

Provides accurate input e.g. of coordinates for design and drawing modifications or element placement.

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TWAIN and Large Format Scanner Interface:

 A built-in scanner interface renders direct control of the scanning process with many large format scanners (Colortrac, Contex, Océ, Vidar, Xerox, and others), plus all TWAIN enabled scanners. Documents of any size may be scanned in monochrome, gray scale, or color.

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Clean, Edit, Scale of Raster:

For fast cleanup, enhancement, and modifications of raster files (e.g. scanned TIF files), these efficient functions are available:
  1. Auto cleanup: Intelligent automatic despeckling, hole filling and alignment (deskew)
  2. Manual cleanup: despeckling and filling holes with immediate correction option
  3. Window cut/crop, raster rotation, mirroring, inversion, and scaling
  4. Smoothing, thickening, thinning to improve raster structures, e.g. for dithered scans
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Basic Hybrid Editing & Plotting, and Various Managers

For fast modification of raster files these efficient functions are available:
  1. Raster selection inside polygon, or rectangle, or connected pixels
  2. Selected raster can be moved, scaled, and rotated
With Layer Manager and Project Bar, you can easily switch on/off certain layers and assign specific entities to layers. Other Managers for controlling Line Types, Colors etc. are also available.

The plot/print output allows full hybrid plotting (vector plus raster entities) via your windows installed printer or plotter. Print settings include whole drawing/image, current view, free scaling, and fit to page width.

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Enhanced Hybrid Editing:

In addition to the basic hybrid features (mentioned above), VPHybridCAD includes an ultimate hybrid editor for raster and vector drawings. See that there is no difference in editing raster or vector entities (objects). Edit both at the same time and increase your productivity.
  1. One-click selection of raster entities, like line, circle, arc etc.
  2. Intelligent object selection modes for complex raster structures
  3. Raster and vector entities (objects) can be moved, copied, scaled, rotated, and merged
  4. Rasterization of whole hybrid CAD drawings, or parts of it
VPHybridCAD exports/imports the RasterDWG Format, where raster and vector data are saved in a single DWG file (AutoCAD/BricsCAD/ZWCAD hybrid file). This open format expands CAD's standard DWG to a universal hybrid data format. This unique feature guarantees easy distribution of hybrid drawings (just one single file!) among collaborating parties, in local networks, or via Internet/Intranet. See download area for a free RasterDWG driver!

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Intelligent Object Snap:

Another professional hybrid design feature:
Multiple snap options to vector objects are CAD standard. However, with VPHybridCAD technology you can even snap to nearest points, intersections, etc. of raster objects. Of course, you can switch snap modes on and off individually .

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Drag'n Drop of Raster and Vector Entities:

Picking a vector object and moving and/or copying it, you probably know from other CAD software. But VPHybridCAD handles even scanned raster entities in exactly the same way!

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Full Set of CAD Drawing Functions:

This is where CAD (Computer Aided Design) comes from: accurate drawing functions like line, ortholine, circle, splines etc. for both: raster and vector!

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Color Management:

Gray scale and color images contain additional information, other than b&w drawings. VPHybridCAD offers new and powerful, but very easy-to-use tools to handle this information:
  1. Color manipulation
  2. Color separation
  3. Automatic and interactive color reduction
  4. Automatic/semi-automatic vectorization and contour conversion of color images
  5. Extraction and conversion into b&w raster files
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Split/Merge Raster Files:

File Merge, including "Smart Stitching", calibration, adjustment and scaling. Easy Merge positioning by interactive graphical guidance.

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Rubber Sheeting:

A must for GIS applications, where precise alignment and scale to reference points is required. Recovering distortions of any kind is unbelievable fast.
  1. Fast and easy-to-use function for b&w, gray scale, and full color (24 Bit) images
  2. Accurate alignment to unlimited reference points
  3. Several automated and interactive input modes for reference points or coordinate values
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Interactive Tracing:

Conversion of selected raster elements or raster areas into CAD vector entities, such as lines, arcs, circles, text, etc. or into polyline/spline contours.
  1. Both, CAD tracing (for lines, circles, arcs) or contour tracing (for altitude lines, area outlines, shapes, etc.)
  2. Automatic tracing even across intersections and gaps
  3. Automatic elevation assignment for contours (3D)
  4. Automatic deletion of traced raster structures
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Auto-Vectorization, OCR:

VP HybridCAD provides the fastest raster-to-vector conversion speed and highest recognition accuracy available today:
  1. Window and polygon area selection for vectorization
  2. Wizard-guided definition of parameters for multiple re-use with similar drawings/images
  3. Unmatched recognition capabilities for lines, line width and arcs, circles, line types, text (OCR), hatch patterns, and arrowheads
  4. Automatic layer assignment e.g. by line width, recognized CAD entity etc.
  5. Unique "Combine-to" tool to "repair" raster and text fragments to enties
  6. Easy trimming or extending of lines at corners and intersections
  7. Automatic sequential text review, incl. quick editing options
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Symbol Library:

Folders can be defined to build up a symbol library (even in a network with concurrent user access). These may contain any graphical structures for repetitive use, such as machine parts, furnitures, electrical symbols, logos, etc.
Access to symbols is easy and supported by thumbnail display, descriptions, and drag'n drop handling. Symbols can be raster or vector, or both. Vector symbols are AutoCAD/BricsCAD/ZWCAD compliant.

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Symbol Recognition, Block Management:
  1. Automatic search of symbols in legacy drawings and replacement by blocks or imported symbols from a library (CAD blocks)
  2. Recognized text strings associated with the symbol are assigned as attributes
  3. Blocks can be copied, rotated, scaled, or moved. They may also be exploded into their separate entities
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Redlining:

The Redlining module offers easy to use pre-designed standard objects for graphic mark-ups and commentary text to be placed on a document. Access rights can be specified and assigned according to a user hierarchy for editing and reviewing.

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Batch Manager:

Unattended automatic raster file cleanup/deskewing, format conversion, distortion correction, and/or raster-to-vector (R2V) conversion processing of multiple drawings (images).

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Dimensions:

The Dimension Manager allows for an extensive setup of various dimension types: linear, aligned, radial, diameter, dimensions, etc.
You can toggle between automatic or manual mode for each dimension value.

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Custom Commands:

You can setup an unlimited range of individually created commands and shortcuts. Custom Commands can also be used for defining an individual workflow, such as:
Scan - Clean - Vectorize - Export, by just pressing the keys 1 - 2 - 3 - 4.
Also, Custom Command buttons can be designed individually.

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Limited Raster Sizes: A2/C:

VPlite has been designed for those who need to process only smaller b/w drawings up to DIN A2 (C size). Applications may range from technical documents to cadastral maps.

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