topic Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only in AutoCAD Forum

hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

GilesPhillips — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 12:22:12 GMT

I have a custom hatch pattern that works fine, but when launched/imported from the tool palette I get the "Hatch spacing too dense, or dash size too small." response.

The pattern is drawn to scale annotatively, so is initally quite dense as you cannot preselect annotative scaling on hatches in the tool palette (this is irritating in itself), but this isn't a problem unless launched from the tool palette. If I set the scale of the hatch to 1.65 it will work, but below that I get the error.

pat files attached for reference.

Any ideas on how I can fix this - I don't really want to go down the (Setenv "MaxHatch" ....) route, as these palettes are being rolled out to Autocad and LT users, and I don't know if LT users can do (setenv.. ) commands. Likewise I'd prefer not to have one patch importing at a different scale..

Cheers..

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

wispoxy — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 13:00:09 GMT

Create a custom hatch, the only option for AutoCAD LT without doing MaxHatch.
http://www.ellenfinkelstein.com/acadblog/creating-custom-hatch-patterns/

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

GilesPhillips — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 13:05:41 GMT

um - it is a custom hatch pattern that I'm having problems with..

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

wispoxy — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 13:27:01 GMT

If you're doing it custom you can't get that error. You're changing the properties value to get that error. Did you even read my link? If you did read it, please share your hatch pattern code.

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

GilesPhillips — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 13:28:37 GMT

I used that link to help create the hatch pattern in the first place. Inserting a hatch using the pattern in question normally works fine, it's only when inserted using the tool palette that you get the error.

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

wispoxy — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 13:32:12 GMT

Still waiting for your hatch pattern code.

Also, in AutoCAD LT, use SETENV and enter a valid number.

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

GilesPhillips — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 13:34:39 GMT

The hatch pattern is attached to the first post, if for whatever reason it's not working here it is longhand (and attached to this post):

*SENL-CABLETRAY, SENL Cable tray
0,0,0.8,0,1,0.4,-0.6
90,0.7,0.6,0,1,0.4,-0.6
90,0.2,0.1,0,1,0.4,-0.6
0,0.5,0.3,0,1,0.4,-0.6

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

wispoxy — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 13:37:28 GMT

and did you do this?
In AutoCAD LT, use SETENV and enter a valid number. Find the hatch variable.

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

GilesPhillips — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 13:38:52 GMT

No, as I don't have access to an LT installation at the moment - I'd also stated in the original post I'd like to avoid messing around with environmental variables if I can get the pattern to work another way.

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

wispoxy — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 13:40:32 GMT

I'll be more specific
SETENV > MaxHatch > 1000000

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

wispoxy — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 13:41:30 GMT

Ok, the answer is then: No, you can't

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

wispoxy — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 13:43:08 GMT

And yes, LT users can do setenv commands

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

dbroad — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 13:46:02 GMT

For me, your hatch works fine. I tried it, using AutoCAD 2016, at a bunch of different scales and with boundaries varying from 3" x 3" to 47000'-0" by 47000' -0". I have not set the maxhatch variable to my knowlege and (getenv "MaxHatch") returns 1000000. I could not trigger the message you mentioned but have seen it before.

A couple of questions:

1) What is your AutoCAD version?

2) Is the associative switch (on hatch ribbon tab) selected?

3) Is your annotation scale set appropriately before you select your pick points?

4) Is the annotative switch (on hatch ribbon tab) selected?

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

GilesPhillips — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 13:54:09 GMT

Hi,

1. Acad version is 2015 (as is LT)
2. Associative switch is on
3. annotation scale is set to 1:50 or 1:100 in experiments so far
4. Annotative switch is off initially

It might help you to re-create the problem by working in metric scales. In my example I created a rectangle 1000x200 in size, however the tool palette command fails before you have an opportunity to select the region.

Tool palette settings:

Tool type: Hatch
Type: Custom
Pattern Name: SENL-CABLETRAY
Angle: 0
Scale: 1
Auxillary Scale: None
Spacing: 1 *
ISO pen width: 1.00mm *
Double: No *

The last 3 options are greyed out and not accessible.

If I increase the scale to anything above 1.65 the command works.

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

dbroad — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 14:39:52 GMT

I cannot get the message you are seeing. Spacing should not be applicable with a custom hatch. The scale should be 1. I don't see a custom hatch selection on my tool palette unless I open the hatch options dialog. For this test I used AutoCAD MEP 2015 as AutoCAD. You should be able to turn off those kind of warnings if nothing else works.

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

wispoxy — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 14:54:58 GMT

"No, as I don't have access to an LT installation at the moment - I'd also stated in the original post I'd like to avoid messing around with environmental variables if I can get the pattern to work another way" - @GilesPhillips

@GilesPhillips Not sure why you don't want to fix it the most quick and environmental way I mentioned earlier. First time I've heard that around the forums. Did a teacher put you up to this non-sense?

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

Alfred.NESWADBA — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 14:52:33 GMT

Hi,

>> It might help you to re-create the problem by working in metric scales.

It might depend on the drawing you are using, can you upload the drawing with your settings so we can then test how the hatch works with your drawing on our workstations?

>> I have a custom hatch pattern that works fine

>> I created a rectangle 1000x200 in size

Without doing any annotative settings the rectangle 1000x200 is filled black (in AutoCAD 2016) which means it is to dense.

With a rectangle 10x10 your pattern looks fine, at any scale. Using a rectangle with 1000x200 and M1:100 the resuling number of hatch-items (lines that make up your pattern) are 80*10^6 lines ... that is too much to display your geometry with some performance. Depending on the version of AutoCAD and servicepack this now results in either the message you got about to dense or in some versions filled like a solid.

All that without toolpalettes, I guess it is not depending on that, but let's see if that is different with your drawing and especially your scale settings.

- alfred -

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

GilesPhillips — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 15:05:48 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
I cannot get the message you are seeing. Spacing should not be applicable with a custom hatch. The scale should be 1. I don't see a custom hatch selection on my tool palette unless I open the hatch options dialog. For this test I used AutoCAD MEP 2015 as AutoCAD. You should be able to turn off those kind of warnings if nothing else works.

I think it is because you are applying the hatch using the hatch command rather than the tool palette.

Try the following workflow:

Draw two rectangles - 1000x200 is a nice shape
Fill one with the custom hatch SENL-CABLETRAY, make it annotative, associative and ensure the scale factor is 1.
Ensure you have a writable tool palette open.
Drag the hatch you have created onto the tool palette - you should see a tool with a preview of the pattern called SENL-CABLETRAY
Click the tool just created - you'll now get a comment on the command line stating "Hatch spacing too dense, or dash size too small."

To illustrate what I'd like to achieve, please continue the following workflow:

(Change the scale factor of the original hatch created to 2 - you should see the density/scale change as expected.) Optional
right click the tool created above, and change the scale from 1 to 2
Click the tool to activate it - you should now be able to select/drop the hatch in the second rectangle and it will be filled identical to the first if you have changed it.

So what I'd like to happen, is what you see and have done above, yet without having to change the scale of the hatch.

Attached is a template/dwg file I have been using, please try the above with the template (or not)..

thanks

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

GilesPhillips — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 15:21:41 GMT

Alfred - comments inline (I Hope you like green!)

Alfred.NESWADBA wrote:

It might depend on the drawing you are using, can you upload the drawing with your settings so we can then test how the hatch works with your drawing on our workstations?

Example file attached

>> I have a custom hatch pattern that works fine
>> I created a rectangle 1000x200 in size
Without doing any annotative settings the rectangle 1000x200 is filled black (in AutoCAD 2016) which means it is to dense.

Yep, agree with that - which is why the hatch needs to be annotative.

With a rectangle 10x10 your pattern looks fine, at any scale. Using a rectangle with 1000x200 and M1:100 the resuling number of hatch-items (lines that make up your pattern) are 80*10^6 lines ... that is too much to display your geometry with some performance. Depending on the version of AutoCAD and servicepack this now results in either the message you got about to dense or in some versions filled like a solid.

At 1:100 scale annotivity (is that a word?) the hatch pattern has 2 repetitions in the vertical direction (on a 1000x200 fill) when the hatch pattern has the associative scale 1:100 flagged - if I only have 1:1 flagged on the pattern then the density is such that Autocad replaces it with a solid fill.

All that without toolpalettes, I guess it is not depending on that, but let's see if that is different with your drawing and especially your scale settings.

- alfred -

Please have a go at the workflow I posted above, and let me know if you get similar results?

thanks

Re: hatch spacing too dense - from tool palette only

Alfred.NESWADBA — Tue, 05 Jan 2016 15:25:16 GMT

Hi,

well in your drawing I see one difference.

When using command _HATCH it creates the hatch, but as it is too dense it is displayed like a solid hatch

When using the toolpalette item it shows the "to dense" message ... and yes, so you can't select it to change it's pattern scale

Interesting 😉

I don't have a really solution, only the idea to not create the hatch on the toolpalette, but instead create an toolpalette item by a small LISP statement, which creates the hatch as like called from the command line.

- alfred -