Civil 3D – Part Builder Part 3

We will pick up where we left off from Part Builder Part 2.

Open our saved part “Wingwall sloped” from the last session.  The image below should be representative of what we had before.

Model Parameters

The Model Parameters are the nuts and bolts variables that control the size of the part. The parameters are either dimensions or offsets that are controlling the size and angle of features, or parameters that the user has defined. Expand the collection heading, and you should be able to see all the parameters stored in the part, as well as the values currently assigned.  Lets create some user defined parameters to help us in our equations.

Right click on the Model Parameters collection, and select ‘Edit…’

The Model Parameters dialog will appear, allowing changes, additions, and deletions to the existing parameters.  On the right you will see buttons, all of which are self explanatory, with the exception of the ‘Calculator…’ button.  This allows you to pull variables form a list (without having to remember and type them), and evaluate the result of a proposed equation.  Any time you need to map a parameter to another, you can use this feature instead of typing if you wish.

Autodesk University Reasons #6

I have written a lot about Autodesk University recently.  I can write volumes more about it, but I been reminded to cut it short. There is no doubt I love the experience, as I know all of you will too. 

I have fought a good fight to try and get there, and even this late in the game, I would jump at the chance and work out the disaster there if I got the chance to go.

The thing that begins to plague me now is all the new professional relationships I had hoped to solidify this December.  I will have to continue working on them, and hope for a great 2009.

I would like to remind everyone about my Reasons on Instructors…Seriously read it again, and go to check out those instructors.  Last year was incredible.

With that said, it is time to deliver the final point in our series

#6 the most important reason to attend

‘Cause I Wanna Go!!!

Have a great Thanksgiving, and a wonderful AU 2009.

Happy Thanksgiving

I wanted the opportunity to wish all my readers a very Happy Thanksgiving.  We have only had this page up for a short time now, but the support has been wonderful. 

In light of everything, I’d like to send out a thank you to Dana Probert, Peter Funk, and Barbara Bowen at Autodesk, James at Engineering Efficiency, Christopher at Civil 3D Reminders, Dennis Jeffery, Kevin dePfyffer and all the people that supported me here and on the Discussion Groups.

I am venturing into a new project, and as soon as something comes of it, I will share the surprise with everyone. I am hopeful that it may prove to be the next phase of this new direction I have taken my Autodesk Product career on. It will likely take some time away from this production, but don’t worry, I will continue to add content here.

Today I plan to release the last AU reasons post, and Part Builder Part 3 tomorrow.

I have almost all my assistance issues closed out, except a few stragglers.  If you are being assisted, send me some emails and let me know what how the new procedures are going.

Check out what Dana has been up to lately….Friday Whetstone 11-21-08

If you have the opportunity to spend Thanksgiving with your family, don’t hesitate.  I was going to see my cousin Courtney and Sarah and her new family in Vegas, but that will not happen this year.

God Bless you all!

Noah, the Ark, and Permitting

A bit of humor for all those who daily fight through the red tape in the civil industry.  ‘Lovely wife on camera’ sent this to me.

http://home.att.net/~hideaway_today/t133/noah.htm

 

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Civil 3D – Part Builder Part 2

Today we continue from where we left off in Part Builder Part 1.

Before we proceed, I’d like to note that a wing wall may not be everyone’s biggest desire.  I needed it, and I felt that it would proved a fairly well rounded view of things. It needs equations, and gets worked laterally instead of vertically, which make it more of a challenge.

Sitting on the axis of 2 different careers I can see this type of workflow from 2 different perspectives, and want to provide everyone with a bit more information that may have been unavailable.

• The 3D modelers understand the construction methods.  What they need to understand is the limitations stopping them from working naturally through this process.
• The Civil 3D techs know about odd application limitations, but need to understand how the construction methods, dependencies, and calculations work.

If you don’t get something out of this session, it will be because you already had a good working knowledge of Part Builder, or you failed to post your questions here.

The 3d Model (which is what you came for, right?) is created using the following procedures:

Create a Work Plane, Create Geometry, Add Dimensions, Add Constraints, Create Profile, Modify Dimensions, Create Modifier, and Configure Parameters.  We will discuss the first six today.

Open the part for the last session, named Wingwall Sloped.

Create a Work Plane

Let’s begin by creating the Top Work Plane.  I always like to get my Top plane in first.  Either I am working on it, or visually referencing it.

Under Modeling, Right Click the Work Planes folder and select ‘Add Work Plane…’

Civil 3D – Parcel label and ‘Pretty’ exhibit tip

Parcel labels are a real blessing when it comes to site plans.  Everyone is figuring out that I will use a description field for ANYTHING I can.  If I can transfer it to a style display, I’m all over it.

I’m working this project (the one that is delaying the current series I’d publishing for you all), and I had to prepare some exhibits for the lease. I was worried because I have a deadline in 2 days, and I still have other plans to complete.  It actually took little time to prepare. This is what I did:

Re-XML out all my sites. (Just to make sure the collection was accurate)

Formatted a letter sized border that would be attractive on a lease document.

Took the team’s overall master (the one with all the basic background and the improvement XREFs ), and saved-as to a new location. 

Opened new master drawing, imported sheet border, and set the views

Imported only the XML’s that I needed.  In the Prospector, I picked the Parcels Collection, selected ALL the parcels, and changed the Parcels Style, and Area Label Styles globally. 

The trick is that I always shave secondary labels in the description field, for occasions like this.  I either duplicate the name, or it might be something more generalized.  Once in a while I notice that things are getting cramped, and I can enter the Parcel name in the Description field, but stack it a bit narrower. There are ton’s of uses, and I kind of wish that there was maybe 1 other field, giving even more flexibility.  I have styles, that appear and organize the same, but one reads the Name field, and the other reads the Description field.

I don’t have time to re-label everything in a pinch.  When I bring in the XML parcels, they flop down, and I globally change the Parcels Style to something bold, and the area label styles to the Description display style. 

Often there is a desired subject parcel in the exhibit, so I throw the Parcel Style with a shade at that one, and regen.

Instant lease exhibits! It took me longer to type this, than it did to prepare the exhibit.

I love Civil 3D!

Civil 3D 2009 Menu

Civil 3D – Part Builder Part 1

I started a new Certification study project, and  came up with the desire to grade a corridor over an existing creek.  Yeah, DEP would be a problem, but let’s pretend I got the permit……. anyway.

I wanted a headwall and culvert combination to convey the creek safely past the improvements.  The OEM Headwall is flat, and cannot handle the amount of grading going on around it.  I, as usual, wanted something different than what was commonly available.  I want a concrete wingwall, sloped according to the finished grade. I had a BRIGHT IDEA!  I’ll use PART BUILDER!!

Fortunately for everyone, I have already spent a week of evenings going through this process, reading what others had to say online, looking for answers, and helping some individuals along the way. The only thing not happening is MY STUDIES. So I decided to make something good out of all the time I spent, and walk everyone through a basic, and not so basic, Part Builder creation.

New Part Creation

We need to start out with a new Chapter under the Structure Catalog.  (You don’t have to add a new Chapter, but once you get going and want to test different things, it makes cleanup much easier.) The name can be anything, but it should be representative or what it contains.  Right Click on the US Imperial Structure Catalog, and select ‘Add Chapter’.  The dialog will appear allowing us to enter the new Chapter name.

Civil 3D – (Bug) Parcel Descriptions in XML

I have noticed during XML imports of my Parcels, that the first space in the Description field gets nuked.  The remaining spaces seem to be ok, but the first one is gone.

As always be observant and careful.

Civil 3D 2009 Menu

Civil 3D – Don’t forget the Field Book in Group Sorting

Ever get frustrated by the HUGE list of point groups you have developed in that 2 year + project?  Survey guys a bit overzealous with the Groups?  Reordering them is time consuming, but you can sort them in the Toolspace item view. 

Simply click on the header of your choice.  The application will alternately sort the collection by Ascending, Descending, and Current Group Order each time you pick it.  One thing I like to do up is to list my Field Book data first thing in the description field.  Then I can sort by field book as well.

You can sort by Name, Description, Style, Label Style, Number of Points, and Classification.  I can see using classification in the various sorting and collections coming in handy as well.

 

Ok, back to my Part Builder topics……

Civil 3D 2009 Menu

Inventor – Horizontal and Vertical Constraints

We all know about constraints.  It make the world go round. 

I have a reasonable amount of twisted workarounds, but very little every day constructive examples.  So, I as thinking of AU (as ALWAYS) and was reminded of Dan Banach drilling productivity tips at us, and Horizontal and Vertical constraints were mentioned numerous times (seriously, take his class at AU).

Whether you are in training or didn’t pay attention to this feature, you should consider it.

This Horizontal constraint should be applied to geometry that passes through the horizontal plane from another reference feature. Refer to the image below.  I’d like the sketched geometry to be evenly distributed across this part.  The best way is with constraints.