Import metric to imperial and scale viewports and annotative dimensions

[Anonymous]

Good afternoon,

I've imported a metric drawing in millimetres to imperial in inches. The drawing has scaled through correctly it would appear at first, as the imperial dimensions are correct, once I explode the block and the metric dimesnions convert to imperial. I can also convert the dimensions to imperial without difficulty; however the scale of the annotative dimensions does not appear to be correct, but I understand that this relates to the viewport scale within paper space.

I have inserted the drawing layout from the metric drawing and now have to reposition everything into the viewports within paperspace. I presume this is normal?

I would like to scale the viewport by using the imperial settings. The viewport on the metric version was 1:10, therefore I would view that a viewport scale setting of 1" = 1'0" would not be far of as I would think this would be the equivalent of 1:12. The problem is that the scale within the viewport is nothing like the 1:10 and the image is allot smaller. This then suggests to me that the insertion of the block may not be to the correct scale, although all of the dimensions read correctly.

I'll look forward to any assistance you can offer.

[steve216586]

1"=1'-0" is 1" paperspace = 12" modelspace, but 1:10 is actually 1" paperspace  = 10' modelspace or 1"=10'-0". That is why it is so small in your viewport.

[GrantsPirate]

What are the dimensions of the viewport?  

[Anonymous]

The 1:10 is the scale used in the Metric drawing, not the imperial drawing. I am using the 1"=1'-0" in the imperial drawing, as I have stated that I understand this to be 1:12, therefore would expect the scale between the imperial and metric drawing to be similar when viewing the layout in paper space. I am not using the 1:10 in the imperial drawing... am I missing something?

[Anonymous]

Ah so the layout has come in at approximatly 48' by 68'!

So I would have thought I would go into the page set up manager to set new parameters for the print...

So the question appears to be... how can I set up the page layout for an imperial drawing which has been imported from a metric drawing?

Thanks in advance for your help.

[GrantsPirate]

Scale it down by a factor of 25.4 to 1.  You will be near 22X34 I believe.

[Anonymous]

Thanks Grants,

I understand the scale factor required, however the page setup manager should be set so the its printing the layout on an A1 at 1:1 on the layout plot scale. If I scale the layout down then the plot set up needs to scale to fit which is not then printing to the scale set up.

[GrantsPirate]

The scale factor for a viewport is relative to PS.  If you have a metric title block but your model is done in imperial then you will have to use a scale factor somewhere.  If you don't want to scale down the titleblock then you need to apply the 25.4 scale factor when zooming in the viewport. So instead of a scale factor of 1/10xp you would need to use 10/254xp.

[steve216586]

I was trying to explain 1"=1'-0" scale is no where close to 1:10 scale. As I pointed out, 1:10 in an imperial units drawing is actually 1"=10'-0" or 1:120. Those scales are used in imperial drawings for large civil layouts.

[Anonymous]

So how do I set up a layout within the imperial drawing to have imperial settings and to print on an A1 sheet, whilst printing on an A1 sheet? or are you saying that this is not possible? 

I intend to insert the metric layout as a block and scale to size, so the page set up is also correct

[steve216586]

I tested this:

If you have an 11x17 paperspace layout, with an imperial viewport scaled at 1"=1" and the model fits adequately, when you then position the model in an A1 page layout at 1"=1" everything should still fit adequately.

Therefore, If you know the 1"=1'-0" scale is what you need to fit your model in the viewport then you should use that scale. What you will need to do is to select all your dimensions which were in the metric drawing and change them through PROPERTIES to the scale 1"=1'-0" and remove the 1:10 scale they had previously. The reason you have to do this is because you had to scale the metric block you inserted before you exploded it. The dimensions are sill holding onto the 1:10 scale.

Post the drawing if this makes little sense. I know it is difficult to describe through words.

[dgorsman]

Not sure if you are dealing with this specific problem or not, but its one I've run into a few times.  Paper space for metric drawings is always millimeters, and inches for imperial.  BUT in some cases a metric drawing may actually be using *meters* in paper space to avoid extra scale factors to deal with using meter units in model space (or when the person doing the drawing isn't understanding the model/paper scale relationships).

In short, your metric layout that you are inserting may not be the size you are thinking it is.

In VERY short - attach a stripped down sample so words don't get in the way.

[Anonymous]

Sample drawing attached

[Anonymous]

Can someone let me know if you're looking at this?

[GrantsPirate]

The custom scale factor should be 24.5/12xp, or 254/120xp.  You can add in the custom scales a new scale and use 24.5 for the paper space units and 12 for the drawing units.

Personally I would just use an imperial titleblock, problem solved.

[Anonymous]

Thanks Grants, but what I'm looking for is guidance on how to do this properly rather than a bodge fix.

I could bodge it myself by scaling down the paper space layout and adjusting the scale in the page set up, but this can't be the right way to do it...

So are you saying that the metric title block won't convert over to an imperial setting, therefore I need to set up the title block seperately for the imperial drawings?

[GrantsPirate · Accepted solution]

Well the kludge is on your end, trying to bring imperial work into a metric title block.  So a kludge is needed to balance the first one.

As I said, if you are going to have imperial model work then use an imperial title block (hint: scale the metric title block down to get it to 24x36 or what ever size paper you are after).

The other way is to xref the work in to the metric model space and scale it by 25.4.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for your help... I'll try an imperial title block as suggested, but would like to understand why it doesnt work as per the file set up. I know you're saying because its a metric title block, but what I don't understand is that the page layout is set up to 1:1 to print on an A1 sheet, so why does it matter if its an imperial or metric title block if the page set up is set to print onto an A1 at a scale of 1:1 in paper space?

[GrantsPirate]

Here is where I believe the confusion between metric and imperial title blocks comes from.  If you plot an A1 or an Arch D title block the size of the actual paper out of the plotter is approx. the same size.

But in autocad the program is only dealing in a unit and we tell it what we want that unit to be equal to.  So an A1 title block is 841 units X 594 units, an Arch D is 36 units by 24 units.  This is a big difference in size, by a factor of over 25, right? 

So imagine cutting a viewport into each of those title blocks that takes up most of the drawing.  The one on the metric drawing is huge compared to the imperial one.  But it works if the model space objects are drawn to mm in the metric or inches or feet in the imperial one.

Now if you mix those up then you are drawing an object that is only 72 units across (as per your example) and then showing that in a view port that is 841 units wide.  No choice but to bring the 25.4 scale factor into the picture in one way or another.  You either scale the title block down or you scale the model space objects, or you add the scale to the zoom scale factor through the viewport.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for your time Grants... another CAD issue resolved!