How do I name a point in AutoCad 2015,

[Anonymous]

If I have lots of points to transfer, how do I name a point in AutoCad 2015, so I can identify it on my data logger? As it is now, my logger installs them at random, with no order at all so I have to click each point to view it's properties, match the coordinates from the long list, then change it's i.d to something I will recognize out in the field.

Many thanks in advance

[Alfred.NESWADBA]

Hi,

>> how do I name a point in AutoCad 2015,

A point does not have a property for a "name". If you need something point-like with attributive data in it you can use blockreferences with attriutes.

>> so I can identify it on my data logger?

Sorry not to understand or to know what (your) "data logger" is.

Can you clarify what you are doing more detailed?

When you have some points from the field with some info you know (like name or id), how do you capture the points in the field? Don't you have the option to assign name/id/... out in the field so your digitial data contains all you need without searching points and adding these data afterwards?

- alfred -

[19jjh71]

Hi I had a similar issue but I've worked out a sort-of solution. Use the TEXTNUMBER Lisp routine attached which puts a number by each point incrementing by 1 each time. The coord of this text number is same as point you clicked on. Then when you do the DATAEXTRACTION, keep the X,Y,Z and VALUE and it will spit this out into your .csv file to upload into the data logger. Voila! You can also print out the dwg with the numbers next to each point.

[Anonymous]

Hi Alfred,

I am the site engineer on a road improvement scheme and my task is to set out this section of road by marking out the points with levels. I am provided with the outline (see attached drawing) by the architect. I save the required section of the drawing as a DXF file, then I have to transfer these points, coordinates, elevations to my handheld Field controller/logger, via my USB dongle, and take them out on the field with me. The logger then communicates with my robotic station to locate the points. So, as you will see in the drawing I have numbered the points in the order I will set them out, by inserting text, but this is just on the drawing, when I transfer them onto the controller they are just completely at random, no order at all, as in left to right, clockwise or anti clockwise, and I can transfer the text but this is also random and it won't show up in the points list on the logger. When it is transferring them over, at first it says, 'found a point with no name' and asks me to give it a name, but it doesn't tell you which point it is you are naming, it could be any one of them. So you give it a prefix, say A636,Nth.1 for the first point, then it will number the rest in chronological order, but not in any order of semblance. Then I have to scroll through the list and check the coordinates against the point on the drawing and then rename the point. So I thought there would be some way I can name each point in properties and give it an I.D.

Many thanks,

Ian

[Anonymous]

Hi 19jjh71,
Thanks for your suggestion, I am an absolute beginner with Autocad but I'll give this a try, though I am transferring them to my logger as a DXF file, not CSV, there isn't a CSV option in the file types list. So I'll give it a go in DXF anyway,
Thanks again,
Ian

[Alfred.NESWADBA]

Hi,

>> then I have to transfer these points, coordinates, elevations

Change your workflow (if possible) from points to blocks with attributes, then you can add values for point-id (or something like code for left/right, outer/inner, ...) to the attributes and export that values to CSV. That gives you much more flexibility and control.

And there are some tools out in www that gives you then the option to renumber ID-values e.g. by just clicking in the order you like the have the numbering.

Good luck, - alfred -

[Anonymous]

Hi Alfred,
Thanks for your suggestion. I'll have a look at that but myself and another tried that last year because that's how he transferred using a Trimble kit and if my memory serves me right, I don't think CSV files are in Topcons options list, I think it's just DWG, DXF, and various versions of Topcon's own files. But I'll have another check at work tonight.

Kind regards,

Ian.

[kasperwuyts]

CSV is nothing special by the way, it's just a text file with a bunch of comma separated values that you can open and edit with notepad.

[Anonymous]

Hi Kasper, Thanks, I use CSV's for my bank statements and I edit them using Excel, but I can't use them to transfer stuff to my Topcon Field controller as it's not an available option in the list of files,

Kind regards,

Ian

[Anonymous]

Are you working exclusively in AutoCAD or do you have access to Topcon Tools software?  This can import dwg/dxf and then export to total stations/controllers and may be a solution for you.

[Anonymous]

Hi Neil, thanks very much for your response. I do have Topcon's Toplink, but it's not compatible with the software I'm running, Magnet, and even though the Toplink manual I've downloaded says you can convert to CSV, there isn't a CSV option in the list, you can customise formats as well but when I try to , it says invalid format. So, for now, this problem, or rather trying to solve it is proving too time consuming and I need to admit defeat (for now) and throw the towel in. The only way I can see is to print out the drawing and then write down the point numbers allocated by the logger and take the drawing with me. But thank you very much for your time and assistance thus far.
Kind regards,
Ian.

[Anonymous]

Sorry Alfred, forgot to mention in my last post, but some of the designated points from the architect have got block attributes, and I transferred them over to the logger, almost successfully, but the coordinates were 1000's of metre's out in both planes. And I've just had a thought, I'll see if it's transferred over pro-rata so I can change the real time values to compensate. There may be a solution looming

[19jjh71]

You can always phone topcon technical support. They will probably be more than happy to help. 


Sent from Samsung Mobile

[Anonymous]

Thanks, I spoke to them a while ago and they said the only way they know of is to upgrade my software program to their latest version, costing £1000 plus vat, plus a days training at nearly same again. So I'll stick to pen and paper until I can work it out. I'm almost there, I can transfer id's using textnumber but it doubles the coords value, in turn doubling the dims, so I need to work on halving the scale, which I'm working on

[Alfred.NESWADBA]

Hi,

>> but the coordinates were 1000's of metre's out in both planes.

Out in relation to what? What are the coordinates in the drawing and what is then the result you describe for "out in both planes" (what coordinates do you get? Show us XY in AutoCAD and XY of your final result for some positions so we can see what happened to your values).

Just to mention one possibility often happens for those Windows systems that are set to use commas instead of points as decimal separator: is it possible that you values are mixed too? With other words when you speak about "1000's of meters out" could it be that these values are a result of multiplication with 1000?

- alfred -

[Anonymous]

Sorry for being a bit vague Alfred, I've tried it with a few different
drawings and it actually doubles the 'x' and 'y' values but the 'z' stays
the same, so that bit's ok. But with it doubling the values then it also
doubles the distance between each point, so I need to master it in 1:2
scale and then when I transfer it over it should be the correct values.
When I click on the points properties it's correct, but when I transfer it
over, that's when it doubles. So 'x,y,z', 433587.361, 429795.315, 43.757
transfers over as 867174.722, 859590.630, 43.757.
This is only when I transfer it over as a block, or using textnumber
command, so it's these commands which are making the location double but
not the elevation.

Kind regards,

Ian

[Alfred.NESWADBA]

Hi,

that's strange, there is anything in the workflow that makes the *2 multiplication, but I don't know anything directly in AutoCAD that does something like that.

As it's a constant multiplicator you might get rid of that using Excel. As I don't know at which part of the workflow this multiplications happens, I'm sorry not to have more ideas.

- alfred -

[Anonymous]

19jjh71, the TEXTNUMBER worker great for us! Is there a way to group select existing points and have them numbered as opposed to having to number them one by one?  We are using a  Sokkia robotic total station and a Panasonic tablet running Microsurvey to build an office building in washington D.C.  We are verifying the location of hundreds of electrical and plumbing sleves per floor in addition to the structure its self.  Thank you! 

[19jjh71]

Hi not that I know of. Anyway it only takes ten minutes to name a hundred points and at least you know you're picking the ones you want. Another tip if I didn't mention it is to put the numbers on their own layer so when you want to extract the data you can just select them all at once.