DRAWING
BOUNDARIES
CONNECT PLANS PRODUCTION PROCESSES USING MICROSTATION
TOPICS
Civil Drawing Boundaries and Non-civil Drawing Boundaries
-
create plan sheets along an alignment or a path.
Managing Named Boundaries
edit properties or move.
When to use Civil Plan versus From Drawing Boundary
Unusual Scales
WHAT ARE DRAWING BOUNDARY SEEDS?
Models drawing-type and sheet-type.
Sheet model seeds have four (4) elements in each:
Border cell
Title block cell
Sheet Number cell
Bordernotes or Borderfull cell (construction class)
Civil drawing boundaries are placed relative to an alignment location and stationing values
Non-civil drawing boundaries are placed related to an XY location
Drawing Boundary Seeds are delivered in a design library. Create Drawing command uses drawing boundary seeds to
automate creating sheets, attaching references, and clipping, scaling and rotating reference attachments.
Elements are delivered in the seeds because it is easier and faster to delete or turn off what you don’t want.
WHY NOT JUST
PLACE A NAMED
FENCE?
The drawing boundary seed sets:
which models to use in the drawing creation,
the detail scale of the sheet,
the orientation of the sheet,
the annotation scale of the drawing model,
And create drawing will automatically create models for
multiple sheet and attach the source graphics as a
clipped and rotated references!
When the drawing boundary is used
to create a drawing - that's where
the difference and efficiencies come
out to play!
A drawing boundary seed creates an intelligent, permanent fence. When used to create drawings, the drawing boundary
acts as the view port or clip boundary.
NON-CIVIL DRAWING BOUNDARY SEEDS
MicroStation
Non-civil in OpenRoads Designer
When the type of boundary is set to “From Drawing Boundary”, both MicroStation and ORD provide the same list of five
(5) ODOT non-civil drawing boundary seeds. ODOT seed names begin with an underscore so that ODOT boundary seeds
sort to the top of the list. Don’t use boundary seeds that don’t have an underscore in the name.
“CIVIL PLAN” DRAWING BOUNDARY SEEDS
When the type of boundary is set to “Civil Plan” in ORD, the drawing boundary seed list is more than one page long! Use
the scroll bar. You will see
TYPE = FROM DRAWING BOUNDARY (non-civil)
MicroStation
OpenRoads Designer
The top row of icons sets the type of boundary. The most commonly used type of non-civil drawing boundary for both
MicroStation and ORD is “From Drawing Boundary”. Non-civil drawing boundaries do not have a scale in the name.
SINGLE , GRID OR ARRAY METHOD (non-civil)
SINGLE
Detail
Single sheet sketch
ARRAY
More than one boundary “along a path”
Only two methods are routinely used: Single and Array. Array is useful when working in plan view and there is a path along
which you wish to cut sheets.
An OpenRoads Designer dialog is shown on the right with more types of named boundaries at the top.
ALONG A PATH ARRAY (non-civil)
MicroStation CONNECT
OpenRoads Designer
Both MicroStation and ORD can place a non-civil drawing boundary “Along a Path”. “Path” is a generic term and could
mean a complex chain drawn using MicroStation or a civil geometry (alignment) that is displayed as a reference.
The MicroStation dialog on the left looks almost the same as the OpenRoads Designer dialog on the right.
ALONG A PATH ≈ CIVIL PLAN
MicroStation Along a Path
OpenRoads Designer Civil Plan
OpenRoads Designer Place Named Boundary tool is shown on the right with Civil Plan tool selected. MicroStation (on the
left) is set to use “From Drawing Boundary” tool with the method of “Along Path”. Check out the similarities: you get to
select the path or geometry and the sheet overlap can be adjusted.
HOW BOUNDARIES
ALONG A PATH ARE
PLACED
Leading boundary edge placed at start
location (- ½ overlap) green x is start
location
Midpoint of leading boundary edge
intersects the path
Midpoint of trailing boundary edge
intersects the path
100% of overlap between sheets on path
Boundary edges are only perpendicular to path if no curve within the boundary of the sheet.
DEMO
Use ORD in OPNP file; attach
reference to CAD Base file; attach
references to Container Files; place
Civil Plan named boundaries that
match preliminary cuts
TOPICS
Civil Drawing Boundaries and Non-civil Drawing Boundaries
-
create plan sheets along an alignment or a path.
Managing Named Boundaries
edit properties or move.
When to use Civil Plan versus From Drawing Boundary
Unusual Scales
MANAGING NAMED BOUNDARIES
Named boundaries are stored in the model in which they are created. ORD organizes the groups by the type of named
boundary. Boundaries created by MicroStationare “Other Groups”.
EDITING NAMED BOUNDARIES - MICROSTATION
Best Practice is to make edits in the Properties dialog. Must close and reopen the Named Boundaries dialog to see
changes. You can edit in the Named Boundaries dialog using a slow double-click.
Note There’s no pencil icon to make the Create Drawing dialog show it’s automatic in MicroStation!
EDITING NAMED
BOUNDARIES
MICROSTATION
Why bother to edit the names of
named boundaries?
Models will be created with
names using the Named
Boundary names
Create Drawing dialog is filled out by the drawing boundary seed.
EDITING NAMED BOUNDARIES - MICROSTATION
Named boundary names = Saved View names = Model name seed.
EDITING NAMED BOUNDARIES OPENROADS
DESIGNER
Best Practice is to make edits in the Properties dialog. Named Boundaries dialog does NOT refresh: close/reopen to see
changes. Best practice to edit named boundary names PRIOR to creating drawings.
Note The Create Drawing dialog will not display in ORD unless you click the pencil icon to make it show!
EDITING NAMED
BOUNDARIES
OPENROADS
DESIGNER
Why bother to edit the names of
named boundaries?
Models will be created by
combining the Plan Group name
with the Named Boundary name.
The Plan Group is automatically
named for your selected alignment
Alignment name named boundary
name
Named boundary name is used in the Model name seed.
EDITING NAMED BOUNDARIES OPENROADS
DESIGNER
Named boundary names => Saved View names => Model name seed.
MOVING NAMED BOUNDARIES
Move at right angles to the boundary sides
Wait until after drawings are created to alter size
Properties that are gray cannot be changed
When Civil Plan boundaries are placed, the alignment
stationing (civil) is recorded in the properties, but only used
for the initial placement of the boundary - there's no
synchronization - if the alignment stationing changes - nothing
happens to the boundaries or sheets that were cut.
DEMO
Use ORD in OPNP file; edit Civil
Plan named boundaries for name;
create plan sheets in a PL file.
Use MicroStation in a PL file to
create PDF.
TOPICS
Civil Drawing Boundaries and Non-civil Drawing Boundaries
-
create plan sheets along an alignment or a path.
Managing Named Boundaries
edit properties or move.
When to use Civil Plan versus From Drawing Boundary
Unusual Scales
WHEN TO USE “CIVIL
PLAN” INSTEAD OF
“FROM DRAWING
BOUNDARY ALONG
A PATH”
If you are using OpenRoads Designer, use Civil Plan
Will alignment stationing be helpful in laying out plan
view sheets? Use Civil Plan
Will you have associated profiles? Use Civil Plan
A path can be a complex chain, a
referenced element, or an alignment.
As we’ve seen from the demo, Civil Plan used in ORD can place boundaries similar to MicroStation using From Drawing
Boundary and Along a Path.
WHAT ABOUT UNUSUAL SCALES? - MICROSTATION
Drawing boundaries are sized according to the Detail Scale selected on the dialog. Use Custom… for any scale not listed.
Multiply the scale value in inches by 12 to get the scale factor. For example, 1”=25’ is the same as 1:300 (12x25=300).
Select 1”=100’ first, before setting a Custom scale.
Choose a drawing boundary seed
Set the Detail Scale to whatever you like, the drawing boundary size will automatically
adjust to your chosen scale.
WHAT ABOUT UNUSUAL SCALES? OPENROADS
DESIGNER
Drawing boundaries are sized according to the Detail Scale selected on the dialog. Use Custom… for any scale not listed.
Multiply the scale value in inches by 12 to get the scale factor. For example, 1”=25’ is the same as 1:300 (12x25=300)
Choose a drawing boundary seed like Plan Inch 100
Set the Detail Scale to whatever you like, the length of the boundary, offsets (width) and
overlap will automatically adjust to your chosen detail scale.
DEMO
MicroStation & OpenRoads
Designer: Place named boundaries
for 1”=25
TOPICS
Civil Drawing Boundaries and Non-civil Drawing Boundaries
-
create plan sheets along an alignment or a path.
Managing Named Boundaries
edit properties or move.
When to use Civil Plan versus From Drawing Boundary
Unusual Scales
QUESTIONS?
A LOOK AHEAD
November 9 - Civil Profile and Alternating Plan and Profile
What's special about Profiles?
What are Linked Profile Named Boundaries and Do You Have to Use Them?
Diverting Sheet models to Other DGN Files on the Create Drawing Dialog - DT, PL,
PF, PP