Extract text from metadata and model files (BIM)
To convert BIM models to another format, you need Sony Catalyst or other Data software.
To convert other file formats to the "Camera Metadata & Data Models" file type, you need software like Sony Catalyst or a similar tool.
The .BIM file extension is notoriously fragmented across entirely unrelated software ecosystems. In over 50% of cases, it functions as a camera real-time metadata file generated by Sony XDCAM systems. It is also heavily used as a JSON-based tabular data model definition for Microsoft Power BI Desktop, and as a 3D architectural object file used in Twinmotion or Chief Architect.
The main disadvantage of .BIM files is their extreme ambiguity. A file generated by a Sony professional camera is completely unreadable by an architect using a Building Information Modeling tool. These files are strictly proprietary. Depending on the source, a .BIM file can be a raw binary matrix, a SQL database, a ZIP archive, or raw telemetry data. This fragmentation means standard web browsers, operating systems, and basic image viewers cannot parse them. Furthermore, opening them often requires expensive or highly specialized software.
Because of this complexity, standard online converters fail to process them. You cannot simply convert a Sony metadata file into a standard PDF or a Power BI model into an MP4. For 3D architectural .BIM files, your best conversion target is usually the open IFC standard or DWG, which requires exporting directly from the native software.
This is why this file format is difficult to open or convert. Often only the original software can properly read or export the data. We inspect the file signature to determine if it is a Sony metadata file or an architectural model. If our analysis detects a supported underlying format - like JSON, ZIP, or SQL used by Microsoft or Bentley Systems - viewing the internal content or extracting raw data may still be possible.
Convert.Guru analyzes your BIM file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted RFA, BIMX, IFC, LDBIM, STATEMENT_PDF-3, RVT, BIN, BMP, BVF, ZIP, DWG, UNKNOWN and PDF files.
If you want to convert BIM file to PDF, DWG, PBIX, STEP, SKP, OBJ, FBX, DAE, 3DS, MAX, BLEND or MA, you can use Sony Catalyst or similar software from the "Metadata & 3D Modeling Storage" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert DWG, DAE, X3D, IGES, WRL, JT, SKP, 3DS, 3DM, OBJ, STEP or FBX files to BIM, try Sony Catalyst or another comparable tool in the "Metadata & 3D Modeling Storage" category.
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our BIM converter.