Tim's Tip Using Rays and Model Space Viewports - Tracing Scanned Images

[timothy_crouse]

Here is a tip that will save you time when tracing scanned drawings that just will not cooperate in Raster Design especially when the primitives just cannot snap to the scanned line work.

1.  Insert your image or PDF into a drawing in model space.

2.  Scale Reference using the largest part of the scanned image you know, e.g. the outer perimeter of a building exterior walls

3.  Place two copies of the scaled imaged at an "X" and "Y" location in space, creating an empty space large enough to create the drawing

from the projected RAYS you will be placing on the "X" and "Y" copies of the image

3.  On the VIEW TAB select the Viewport Configuration button.  Select a configuration that works with your image placement setup.  I tend the have the scanned images appear on the right and on the left lower..  So now you will see two scanned images and a empty space in a third viewport.

4.  Setup your layers if you have not done so already,

5.  Select a scanned image viewport and enter the "RAY" command.   Project a few rays from the X and Y images into the empty space.

6.  Go to the empty viewport that shows the rays and use them by trimming and extending or creating new line work from snap points to start creating a projected image.

7.  A tip - don't get hung up on 6 digit precision placement of walls when tracing facilities, your efforts will be in vane.  if you have dimensions of an area use them but otherwise I would suggest placing the ray in the middle of the scanned lined then offsetting it based on the wall types in the facility.

8.  When you are all done erase the scanned images and purge the file.  

9.  As a final step I always place the lower left building point or projected point (e.g. where the furthest protruding objects would intersect in the lower left corner) at the 0,0 point in the drawing.

That's it, those are a couple good uses for RAYs and model space viewports.

I have attached a couple items I use throughout the process of tracing / creating facility floor plans:

Layer Block, note this is in STB format

Dynamic door block

Best Regards

Tim C.

[bullera]

Hey Tim, thanks for posting this.  It's always cool to see people come up with solutions like this.