CAE Converter

Extract text from CAE files

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Drop or upload your .CAE file

Online File Converter

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How to extract text from your CAE file

Click the "Select File" button above, and choose your CAE file.
You’ll see a preview, if available.
Click the "Convert file to..." button to extract text information.

Convert CAE to another file type

To convert your CAE file to another format, you need Abaqus/CAE or other Cad software.

Convert a file to CAE

To convert other file formats to the "FEA Model Database" file type, you need software like Abaqus/CAE or a similar tool.

About CAE files

The .CAE extension primarily identifies the Abaqus Model Database, a proprietary binary format created by Dassault Systèmes for its Abaqus/CAE Finite Element Analysis (FEA) suite. This file serves as the project container, storing the complete simulation environment - including part geometry, material properties, meshing rules, and boundary conditions.

Common Challenges:

Proprietary Lock-in: .CAE files are binary and unreadable by standard text editors or third-party CAD software like SolidWorks or AutoCAD without conversion.
Version Incompatibility: Files are strictly forward-compatible only; a database saved in Abaqus 2024 cannot be opened in Abaqus 2022.
Data Access: Simulation results are not stored in the .CAE file (they reside in ODB files), meaning the .CAE file alone is insufficient for viewing analysis outcomes.

Best Conversion Targets:

For CAD/Interoperability (.STEP / .IGES): To use the geometry in other CAD tools, open the file in Abaqus/CAE and export the model to STEP (STP) or IGES. This preserves the 3D shape but loses analysis data like mesh constraints.
For Solvers & Editing (.INP): Convert to an Abaqus Input File (INP). This is an ASCII text format describing the model, which can be manually edited or submitted to the Abaqus solver without the GUI.
For Electronics Repair (Boardview): A subset of .CAE files are ASRock Boardview schematics. These are not 3D models but 2D PCB layouts used for motherboard repair. These must be opened with specialized viewers like BoardViewer or OpenBoardView.

Convert.Guru analyzes your CAE file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.

Users also converted RPT, EDZ, INP, ZMF and MDL files.

FAQ

If you want to convert CAE file to DWG, DXF, DGN, RVT, RFA, SKP, 3DM, STEP, IGES, SAT, X_T or X_B, you can use Abaqus/CAE or similar software from the "Finite Element Analysis Storage" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….

To convert SLDASM, DGN, PRT, IAM, X_B, CATPRODUCT, SLDPRT, RVT, ASM, DWG, CATPART or DXF files to CAE, try Abaqus/CAE or another comparable tool in the "Finite Element Analysis Storage" category.

The CAE Converter Story

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 CAE converter.