LINE TYPE SCALE

[Anonymous]

Does anyone know how to change the linetype scale? I've tried the Global Line Scale in the Style and Standard Editor, but it appears to do nothing. Thanks.

[Anonymous]

I know how to change the linetype scale, im sorry to say i dont really understand your problem though. Have you tried changing the "line weights" in the "Layers" part in the styles editor? You should also check your "object defaults" and the "available styles" sheet under your "standard" (The top box) to make sure theres nothing missing. This shouldnt be a problem but its the only thing i can think of at this time. Also, always remember to "save" your changes when youve made edits to the styles. Dont use "update" as that usually sets it back to you previous settings and scraps the changes youve made.

[steve_lindley]

I'm sorry to say I have the same problem as twblack. I want to change the line type scale - NOT the line weight. I have a section line, which I have set a line weight for in my styles editor at 0.18mm. Please don't get hung up on the weight I've applied - I have good reason for this. However, the scale of the chain is then much reduced, so when I print - even at A1, the chain is barely recognisable. It looks almost continuous. I wish to change the scale to see fewer 'links' in the chain.

Likewise, I have multiple centre lines in different views - some of which suffer the same problem. Changing the Global scale, puts the scale up for everything.

I'm using 2015 Pro.

There's a huge number of posts that touch on this problem in different ways and most were posted years ago - much like this one. Surely Autodesk should have picked up on this by now?

[sackleyJDXL9]

I'm having a similar problem. I talked at length with one of Autodesk's resellers, who was very knowledgeable about the guts of Inventor; however, we found that apparently Autodesk doesn’t address the issue from the perspective of those who view the printed drawing (purchasing or manufacturing personnel, for example). Changing the line weight is not the problem. It’s the linetype scale.

When I place a view onto the graphics window, it comes in at a scale, and all of the line types are scaled according to its view scale. The view scale can be changed, but changing the view scale will also change the appearance of the non-continuous lines. However, the scale of the lines in an .idw should not change based on the view scale. It should be based on the scale of the drawing border.

I'm using Inventor Pro 2020.

[JDMather]

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@sackleyJDXL9 wrote:

However, the scale of the lines in an .idw should not change based on the view scale.

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Can you Attach part and drawing that illustrates this issue (and perhaps some screen captures or a Screencast Recording)?

Everything should work as expected  - so I am not sure I understand the issue.

[sackleyJDXL9]

After further digging, I realize my description of the problem was wrong. The line scale works the way it should when the Scale by Line Weight is selected. However, the line weights in #2 and #3 are thicker than I want them to be (Scale by Line Weight is selected). The thickness in #1 is my preference (Scale by Line Weight is not selected). 

This is as far as I got:

In #1, the Layer Style CTR has its Line Weight set to 0.010 inches, with the Scale by Line Weight selected. The line weight is good, the scale is wrong.

In #2, the Layer Style CTR has its Line Weight set to 1.000 inches, with the Scale by Line Weight selected. The line weight is wrong, the scale is good.

In #3, the Layer Style CTR has its Line Weight set to 1.000 inches, with the Scale by Line Weight unselected. The line weight is wrong, the scale is wrong.

[johnsonshiue]

Hi! Are you talking about how they look like in Inventor or how they are printed on paper (or PDF)?

If you are talking about the display in Inventor, go to Tools -> App Options -> Drawing -> check "Display line weight" -> Settings -> select "Display true line weight."

Please share the files that exhibit the behavior if above option does not help.

Many thanks!

[sackleyJDXL9]

Thanks for sharing that tip. I see what those options are doing. However, the "Display true line weight" is not what I'm looking for. But this is showing me another aspect of this variable.

With your tip, I'm wondering about the "Display line weights by range" option. What property change will drive the visual thickness to jump from one of the four values to the next? As shown in my example, #1 displays the desired thickness (but the wrong line type scale). If I adjust the line weight in the Styles Editor, I can get the desired line type scale, but the line weight appears wrong.

I'm talking about how the lines appear when printed from a drawing, not how they're displayed in an Inventor model/assembly.

[johnsonshiue]

Hi! The way I understood how "Scale by Line Weight" option worked is that it only applies to non-continuous line type. You won't see the difference if the line is continuous. For example, the option can alter how "dashed line" looks. When he option is checked, the dash will be proportional to the line weight. If it is unchecked, the dashed spacing remains unchanged.

The line width is controlled by Line Weight option. If it does not appear so, something may be wrong. Check the printer setting. Try a smaller line weight like 1mm. 1" is too big.

Many thanks!

[will.astill]

Hi.

I don't think this question was ever answered properly, but I found this forum while searching for an answer to the same issue. I think, if I understand the issue correctly, that @Anonymous  was looking to set a style that made the line styles scale properly in the Style Definition.

Sometimes the scale (i.e. the spacing between the dashes and the length of the dashes themselves) looks awful and needs to be modified. The problem is that there's no ability to change the scale of a line type (it's greyed out - see left hand screen shot).

Example: Nice scaling (LHS), Terrible scaling (RHS).
(Note, these were altered by selecting "Scale by line weight" in the styles editor.)

 

Looking at my options in the styles editor, I can define a layer, with a Dashed line style and 0.13 mm thickness, but I can't adjust the scale of the line type. (See images below).

In my view, the solution to the problem would be to allow the line type scale to be selected in the layer definition so that we can customise the drawing elements to look how we want.

[johnsonshiue]

Hi Will,

Many thanks for sharing the findings! It looks like a bug to me. Based on the Help document, the "Scale" in Sketch Properties dialog should be enabled within Drawing Sketch. However, I cannot seem to be able to enable it. I will work with the project team to understand this workflow better.

Thanks again!

[will.astill]

👍Cracking 👍

Please note that the ability to override the scale on a global level (i.e. in the Style Manager) would also be very useful. If you can add it to the list of possible updates somehow.

[will.astill]

Also: A bonus tip for the thread that's only slightly off-topic...

I never realised that the BoM and the lineweights on drawings were related until I started using the BoM properly.

In Tools->Document Settings->BoM, setting the default BoM structure for an .ipt file will make it show up in a different line-type on a drawing.

For example, I used to manually adjust parts to use the "phantom" line-type in my drawings, one view at a time.

I then discovered that making my reference parts "reference" in the BoM made them appear this way automatically (and also meant that I didn't have to keep hiding them in the BoM).

Really must get around to those Autodesk University sessions...

[kacper.suchomski]

This is not a bug, but it should be fixed (changed) as soon as possible.

https://help.autodesk.com/view/INVNTOR/2024/ENU/?guid=GUID-6CC553C6-A25B-4154-BEBA-B713DE684AD4

[tonythm]

Hello @Anonymous 

You tick the Display Line Weight.

[johnsonshiue]

Hi Will,

Regarding the Properties dialog in the drawing, it is specific to drawing sketch, not other geometry or annotation type. In the drawing sketch environment, you may right-click on a sketch line -> Properties. There you may adjust the line type scale (dash spacing distance).

Many thanks!

[will.astill]

Thanks Johnson,

I only included that in the screenshot to show that it was greyed out. The feature I think would be an improvement would be the ability to change the linetype scale globally from within the style manager.

Did you get to the bottom of the reason why it was greyed out and couldn't be altered? I'm sure that I could change it in 2022 version.

[johnsonshiue]

Hi Will,

I could be wrong but I don't think it was enabled for Edge Properties. It is only for drawing sketch geometry. Do you still have access to 2022? If yes, please show me the workflow that the Scale checkbox is enabled.

Many thanks!

[will.astill]

Hi Johnson,

I don't have access to 2022 anymore I'm afraid but it's more likely that I'm wrong than that you are!

All I remember is that I've used the linetype scale factor to customise drawing lines in the past. Maybe it was on Centrelines or some sketch feature I'd made.

Regardless of that though, occasionally I would like to customise the default linetype scale used in the Styles library. Maybe put it in as a feature request?

[JSutherKAIDI]

Global Line Scale seems to be applied statically to the view upon creation. To test:

Adjust Global Line Scale -> Delete View -> Place View Again