Start a base drawing, configure the description key set, and import a survey point file.
Transcript
00:03
At the base of any Civil 3D project
00:06
is an existing conditions drawing that contains site data and elevations generated by a land survey.
00:12
Surveys come in a variety of options, such as aerial, photometric, laser, or GPS surveys,
00:20
but they are all generally made up of points that represent real objects on the site.
00:25
To prepare for importing this information, or survey point file, into Civil 3D,
00:31
you need to set up a base drawing and configure the appropriate settings,
00:35
including layers and styles, the coordinate system, and description keys.
00:41
Begin by creating a new drawing from a template.
00:44
From the Start tab, expand the New drop-down.
00:48
In this example, select the included AutoCAD Civil 3D Metric NCS template,
00:53
which follows the national CAD standards for civil engineering projects.
00:58
From the ribbon, expand the Layers drop-down to see that the layers are already set up according to national CAD standards.
01:06
Several styles are also set up.
01:09
Note that your styles need to be set up in your drawing before using any Civil 3D objects
01:14
to ensure that the objects display properly.
01:18
Next, you must specify the coordinate system.
01:22
For this project, you will be working with real-world coordinates from a survey file.
01:27
If you are unsure, ask your surveyor which coordinate system was used to capture the existing conditions.
01:34
To set the coordinate system, from the Toolspace, Settings tab,
01:38
right-click the drawing name and select Edit Drawing Settings.
01:43
In the Drawing Settings dialog, ensure that the drawing units are correct,
01:47
then use the drop-downs to select from the list of Categories and the Available coordinate systems.
01:54
Notice that the coordinate system code is inserted automatically
01:58
after you specify a category and coordinate system.
02:02
If you plan to use the same coordinate system across multiple projects,
02:06
recording the code for ease of access is recommended.
02:09
Then, you can simply type it in, rather than navigating the drop-downs each time.
02:15
Click OK to save your selections.
02:18
Next, set up the description keys.
02:21
This is a style that should be set up by your BIM or CAD manager.
02:25
Description keys define the properties of the points that will be created from the imported point file.
02:31
If it has not been set up, from the Toolspace, Settings tab, expand Point,
02:37
then expand Description Key Sets.
02:41
Right-click the key set that you want to use, and then select Edit Keys.
02:45
From the Description Key Editor, you can create new keys to apply a set of properties to points that match a specific code.
02:53
Right-click any Code and select New.
02:56
A new code is listed.
02:58
Click in the Code column,
03:00
and then enter part of the raw description that will match what the surveyor used,
03:04
such as “IP” for iron pin.
03:07
Typing an asterisk (*) after the code will match all raw descriptions that start with the same code,
03:12
ignoring any letters or numbers after the asterisk.
03:16
This allows you to enter something like “tree*” and then specify what kind of tree for several different trees.
03:25
In this way, Civil 3D will output the same tree symbol for every point that starts with “tree”,
03:30
rather than different tree symbols.
03:33
Next, to set the style, click in the Style column.
03:37
The Point Style dialog opens.
03:40
Symbols will automatically be applied according to the point style that you select.
03:45
For example, for IP, expand the drop-down and choose Iron Pin.
03:51
Click in the Point Label Style column for IP to automatically label the point.
03:56
From the Point Label Style dialog, expand the drop-down and select a label style.
04:02
If you only want the description, as in this case,
04:05
then select Description Only, and click OK.
04:09
Next, enable Layer to automatically place the points with that description on a specific layer.
04:15
In the Layer Selection dialog, since you are using national CAD standards,
04:20
type V to locate all layers that start with V.
04:24
Then, choose the appropriate layer from the list.
04:28
If necessary, you can select New and type in a new layer to apply to the settings.
04:33
Click OK.
04:35
Next, set the Scale Parameter.
04:38
When enabled, a parameter in the survey file is located, and the symbol specified in the Style column is scaled accordingly.
04:46
For instance, if a tree has a caliper of 8 and the surveyor enters “8 in”,
04:52
it will scale that tree symbol up 8 times.
04:55
When you are done setting properties for all of your codes,
04:59
click the check mark at the top of the Panorama window.
05:02
Now, you can import your point files.
05:05
From the ribbon, Insert tab, Import panel, click Points From File.
05:12
In the Import Points dialog, click Add (+).
05:14
In the Select Source File dialog, select the point file, and then click Open.
05:21
Back in the dialog, under Specify point file format, select the appropriate format.
05:27
Again, you may need to communicate with the surveyor to find out how the information was entered.
05:34
Here, since the surveyor entered the point number,
05:37
then the northing, easting, elevation, and a description—and they are comma delimited—select the last format in the list.
05:46
The Preview updates to show how the data will look when it is imported.
05:51
Click OK.
05:53
Zoom in to review the points that were imported.
05:56
Notice that some points have a symbol and others have only a point marker,
06:00
according to the description key files that you set up.
06:04
Now you know how to start a base drawing, define a description key set, and import survey points.
00:03
At the base of any Civil 3D project
00:06
is an existing conditions drawing that contains site data and elevations generated by a land survey.
00:12
Surveys come in a variety of options, such as aerial, photometric, laser, or GPS surveys,
00:20
but they are all generally made up of points that represent real objects on the site.
00:25
To prepare for importing this information, or survey point file, into Civil 3D,
00:31
you need to set up a base drawing and configure the appropriate settings,
00:35
including layers and styles, the coordinate system, and description keys.
00:41
Begin by creating a new drawing from a template.
00:44
From the Start tab, expand the New drop-down.
00:48
In this example, select the included AutoCAD Civil 3D Metric NCS template,
00:53
which follows the national CAD standards for civil engineering projects.
00:58
From the ribbon, expand the Layers drop-down to see that the layers are already set up according to national CAD standards.
01:06
Several styles are also set up.
01:09
Note that your styles need to be set up in your drawing before using any Civil 3D objects
01:14
to ensure that the objects display properly.
01:18
Next, you must specify the coordinate system.
01:22
For this project, you will be working with real-world coordinates from a survey file.
01:27
If you are unsure, ask your surveyor which coordinate system was used to capture the existing conditions.
01:34
To set the coordinate system, from the Toolspace, Settings tab,
01:38
right-click the drawing name and select Edit Drawing Settings.
01:43
In the Drawing Settings dialog, ensure that the drawing units are correct,
01:47
then use the drop-downs to select from the list of Categories and the Available coordinate systems.
01:54
Notice that the coordinate system code is inserted automatically
01:58
after you specify a category and coordinate system.
02:02
If you plan to use the same coordinate system across multiple projects,
02:06
recording the code for ease of access is recommended.
02:09
Then, you can simply type it in, rather than navigating the drop-downs each time.
02:15
Click OK to save your selections.
02:18
Next, set up the description keys.
02:21
This is a style that should be set up by your BIM or CAD manager.
02:25
Description keys define the properties of the points that will be created from the imported point file.
02:31
If it has not been set up, from the Toolspace, Settings tab, expand Point,
02:37
then expand Description Key Sets.
02:41
Right-click the key set that you want to use, and then select Edit Keys.
02:45
From the Description Key Editor, you can create new keys to apply a set of properties to points that match a specific code.
02:53
Right-click any Code and select New.
02:56
A new code is listed.
02:58
Click in the Code column,
03:00
and then enter part of the raw description that will match what the surveyor used,
03:04
such as “IP” for iron pin.
03:07
Typing an asterisk (*) after the code will match all raw descriptions that start with the same code,
03:12
ignoring any letters or numbers after the asterisk.
03:16
This allows you to enter something like “tree*” and then specify what kind of tree for several different trees.
03:25
In this way, Civil 3D will output the same tree symbol for every point that starts with “tree”,
03:30
rather than different tree symbols.
03:33
Next, to set the style, click in the Style column.
03:37
The Point Style dialog opens.
03:40
Symbols will automatically be applied according to the point style that you select.
03:45
For example, for IP, expand the drop-down and choose Iron Pin.
03:51
Click in the Point Label Style column for IP to automatically label the point.
03:56
From the Point Label Style dialog, expand the drop-down and select a label style.
04:02
If you only want the description, as in this case,
04:05
then select Description Only, and click OK.
04:09
Next, enable Layer to automatically place the points with that description on a specific layer.
04:15
In the Layer Selection dialog, since you are using national CAD standards,
04:20
type V to locate all layers that start with V.
04:24
Then, choose the appropriate layer from the list.
04:28
If necessary, you can select New and type in a new layer to apply to the settings.
04:33
Click OK.
04:35
Next, set the Scale Parameter.
04:38
When enabled, a parameter in the survey file is located, and the symbol specified in the Style column is scaled accordingly.
04:46
For instance, if a tree has a caliper of 8 and the surveyor enters “8 in”,
04:52
it will scale that tree symbol up 8 times.
04:55
When you are done setting properties for all of your codes,
04:59
click the check mark at the top of the Panorama window.
05:02
Now, you can import your point files.
05:05
From the ribbon, Insert tab, Import panel, click Points From File.
05:12
In the Import Points dialog, click Add (+).
05:14
In the Select Source File dialog, select the point file, and then click Open.
05:21
Back in the dialog, under Specify point file format, select the appropriate format.
05:27
Again, you may need to communicate with the surveyor to find out how the information was entered.
05:34
Here, since the surveyor entered the point number,
05:37
then the northing, easting, elevation, and a description—and they are comma delimited—select the last format in the list.
05:46
The Preview updates to show how the data will look when it is imported.
05:51
Click OK.
05:53
Zoom in to review the points that were imported.
05:56
Notice that some points have a symbol and others have only a point marker,
06:00
according to the description key files that you set up.
06:04
Now you know how to start a base drawing, define a description key set, and import survey points.
