Extract text from ROU files
To convert your ROU file to another format, you need SAi EnRoute or other Cad software.
To convert other file formats to the "CNC & PCB Design" file type, you need software like SAi EnRoute or a similar tool.
The .ROU extension serves two distinct, high-precision industries, often causing confusion when trying to open a file without context. Most commonly, it is a proprietary project file created by SAi EnRoute, a CAD/CAM software used for CNC machining, sign making, and fabrication. These files contain complex 2D vectors, 3D surface reliefs, and specific toolpath strategies. The major downside is that .ROU files are locked to the EnRoute ecosystem; you cannot open them directly in AutoCAD or Adobe Illustrator without first exporting them, which requires an expensive license.
Alternatively, in electronics design (EDA), a .ROU file stores routing data for Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs), often generated by Cadence Allegro or following the Excellon format. These files define the physical path a machine takes to cut the board from the panel. While often text-based, they are unintelligible to standard document viewers.
For CNC workflows, the best practice is converting the geometry to DXF or DWG for universal CAD editing, or to AI for graphic design work. To drive a machine, the toolpaths must be output as G-Code (.TAP, .NC). For PCB archiving and verification, converting the raw route data to PDF or standard Gerber (.GBR) formats ensures the design can be reviewed without specialized EDA software.
Convert.Guru analyzes your ROU file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted JPG, ROZ, ZIP, WFP, RLD and HPRJ files.
If you want to convert ROU file to CSV, JSON, XML, YAML, YML, TOML, INI, CFG, CONF, DAT, DB or SQL, you can use SAi EnRoute or similar software from the "CNC Router Design Project" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert DBF, XML, SQLITE, XLSX, SQL, TSV, ACCDB, YAML, MDB, CSV, ODS or JSON files to ROU, try SAi EnRoute or another comparable tool in the "CNC Router Design Project" 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 ROU converter.