Custom Slab Profile with chamfer

[Anonymous]

Is it possible to create a custom slab type that has a chamfer, eg 25x25mm all around, or is it possible to modify a slab after placement to add/subtract this? 

I have done this a different way using solids, by creating a 3D solid, then creating a 25x25mm polyline, sweeping that around a path same size as the first solid, then subtracting one from the other, but is the same result possible using the slab function?

I am guessing this is done by editing slab edges or profiles or overhangs but I just cant figure it out.

Using 3d solids is fine for now as I am using acad sections but if I were to use MEP sections I believe it would be better to use the slab function rather than 3d solids. I believe I also may be able to easily convert by solid to mv part for MEP sectioning but still I would like to know if the original query is possible. If this has been asked before, I haven't been able to find the answer, but please feel free to direct me to the link thanks.

Example below:

 Idesired result

[christophe.legrand]

Hi,

Why not convert your 3D part in Slab ?

[Anonymous]

Hi Christophe,

Thanks for your reply. If you mean converting the 3d solid to an mvpart, yes I can do this, but like the 3d solid it becomes a static object rather than a dynamic object which can be reused. I would like to add this profile to my library for reuse at different sizes of slabs.

I have found 2 other workarounds but neither are exactly what I am after:

Chamfer A below, involves using 2no slabs, one above the other. The top one is 25mm deep with chamfered edges and directly below a standard slab to make up the desired over all depth. both are dynamic for reuse, but not ideal.

Chamfer B below is similar to the original 3d solid in that I use a polyline swept about a path which is then used a subtractive body modifier to edit the slab and create the chamfer. This is not suitable for reuse as when I change the slab size the body modifier chamfer does not become dynamic and resize with it.

Maybe this is as far as MEP can go with this issue, but I am hopeful there is a more permanent fix which I can add to my libraries for future use. 

[christophe.legrand]

Hi,

I mean draw a 3D solid and convert it in a slab, not a mvpart.

You need to go in "Archi" workplace. Then select you 3D solid, right click and "convert in a slab".

I use this solution when i need to create a little bit complex slab. It's quicker.

The only difference is that your slab is fix. you can't change dimensions, and what you see in properties palette is not corresponding.

But i made HVAC, not architecture, so it's enough for me 

[Victoria.Studley · Accepted solution]

Hi @Anonymous,

I know this solution is several years old, but the workflow should be the same. Could you try this?

• Chamfer slab edge

I'm also going to move your post over to the AutoCAD Architecture board, since the community there is more familiar with modifying slabs.

If one or more of these posts helped answer your question, please click Accept as Solution on the posts that helped you so others in the community can find them easily.

[Anonymous]

Hi there,

I can see how this workflow should work, but is it possible CAD MEP doesn't have the same options available as Acad Architecture?

When I draw a polyline and right click I don't have the option to convert this to a profile, (see below)

   

Although when I skip this step and go into the style manager, there is options to change the fascia and soffit profiles (although not selectable)

[Victoria.Studley]

Hi @Anonymous,

If you switch to the Architecture workspace (click the workspace gear in the lower right on the statusbar and choose Architecture from the list), does the feature then show up in the "Convert to..." right-click menu?

If one or more of these posts helped answer your question, please click Accept as Solution on the posts that helped you so others in the community can find them easily.

[Anonymous]

I had previously tried that, as changing between workspaces often does change the options available, in the ribbon bar for example, but unfortunately the list of options available "to convert to", when right clicking a polyline, remains the same regardless of which workspace is active.  

Perhaps what a am trying to do is beyond the scope of Acad MEP and is only available in Acad Architecture....

[David_W_Koch]

AutoCAD MEP is built on top of AutoCAD Architecture.  You should have everything you need.

The problem is, assuming that your image shows the polyline that you want to convert to a profile, is that your polyline is not closed.  Profiles require a closed polyline.  In the image below, on the left side, I try to convert an open polyline.  I only get one Convert To menu, for AutoCAD MEP conversions.  On the right side, the same poyline, but closed, offers two Convert To menus; the top one is the AutoCAD Architecture one, and it offers a conversion to a Profile Definition.

[Anonymous]

David,

Thank you for this, I would never have figured that out.

I believe I am almost there but I can't quite get the desired result I am after so I have attached the CAD file, maybe someone could tinker with the edges to show me how to do this?

Shown is:

The desired result with a non editable 3D solid, fit the purpose but no good for re-use

A,B,C,D are all dynamic slabs with edges modified but non give the desired result!

[David_W_Koch · Accepted solution]

The attached file gives you the desired result, but perhaps not all of the functionality that you are expecting.

The fascia Profile polyline has to include the full depth of the Slab.  You can have it auto-adjust the height to the edge height (measured perpedicular between the top and bottom faces of the Slab), but that will scale the entire profile, not just the height, so I left it turned off in the Slab Edge Style I created.  To maintain a 25x25 bevel, you will need a separate Profile and a separate Slab Edge Style for each slab thickness.

The insertion point for the Profile should be at the top, inside corner, as noted in the attached file.  I gave the Slab Egdes a -25 offset so that the Slab defining line is at the face of the Slab Edge.  You may prefer a different arrangement.

[Anonymous]

Thanks David and Vstudley,

This is good enough for me!

I like to explore Acad and its features to develop reusable dynamic custom parts to make my job more streamlined, but since moving from Acad to AcadMep in the last few months, I have been spending an awful lot of time exploring MEP and find it quite convoluted (if that's the right word). For the previous 2 years I have been using Revit Architecture alongside Acad in a previous role, (albeit in a different industry, Facades) and although it was a bit of a step up also, I believe Revit to be a more progressive package with MEP appearing to be outdated, would that be a fair assumption? Although I have not explored Revit MEP enough to make a direct comparison with Acad MEP to make a fair comparison either. Acad MEP is not a bad package and is more than adequate for my current role, but I look forward to the inevitable progression to Revit MEP in the future.