Point Styles Using Blocks with Attributes

Point Styles Using Blocks with Attributes

ethanE3D65
Contributor Contributor
2,107 Views
14 Replies
Message 1 of 15

Point Styles Using Blocks with Attributes

ethanE3D65
Contributor
Contributor

I have been tasked with creating point styles from the company's current blocks so that symbols will be autogenerated using the description key manager. The current blocks contain survey symbols along with attribute text. However, the text doesn't appear when used in the point style - only the symbol. I can convert the text to MText within the block and it then displays but scales odd. Height of symbols in block need to be displayed at .1 with the text being a consistent height of .07. Any suggestions? Please see the attached block

0 Likes
Accepted solutions (3)
2,108 Views
14 Replies
Replies (14)
Message 2 of 15

Joe-Bouza
Mentor
Mentor
Accepted solution

Forget the attributes. Redefine the block with out them. Define the Point label style to replicate the attributes previously used

Joe Bouza
Did you find this post helpful? Feel free to Like this post.
Did your question get successfully answered? Then click on the ACCEPT SOLUTION button.

EESignature

Message 3 of 15

AllenJessup
Mentor
Mentor
Accepted solution

I agree with @Joe-Bouza. What you're being asked to do is like paddling upstream in the rapids. Trying to create a 'Point Style" that uses a Block attributes is something I don't believe is possible, could be wrong. You'd be working against the whole Point Style concept.

As Joe said. You can create a Point Style that looks like the old Blocks with Attributes. You can Create Blocks From COGO Points using  AeccConvertPointsToSdskPoints. But those will just be Blocks. Not a Point Style.

Allen Jessup
CAD Manager - Designer
Did you find this post helpful? Feel free to Like this post.
Did your question get successfully answered? Then click on the ACCEPT SOLUTION button.

EESignature

Message 4 of 15

ethanE3D65
Contributor
Contributor

Good to know. The problem I am having with the point styles is that when set to use drawing scale (the symbols need to have a height of 0.1 for record maps) the text included in the blocks doesn't allow the symbol itself to be scaled properly as point styles use the height of the symbol for this scaling. The text in the original blocks, being located at the upper left of the symbol, seems to throw this scaling off. Other companies that I have worked for never included text with their symbols as a marker style so wasn't ever an issue before. In my opinion, text shouldn't be necessary with the symbol anyways since that is what the legend is for but I am trying to make the bosses happy. Currently I have been changing the drawing scale size in each individual point style marker till they come close to being similar in size and the text included in the block still legible. This has been a cumbersome endeavor. Any suggestions? 

0 Likes
Message 5 of 15

MikeEvansUK
Advisor
Advisor

You could include the Easting, Northing and Elevation set as Fields linked to a nested block objects insertion point. 

 

These would not be visible in the Cogo but would be once the Cogo Point is exploded (twice) and the attributes are synchronised.

 

This could be helpful in sharing data elsewhere but no more than a Csv file which can be dumped from the point group without the agro and would include all relevant details.

 

Mike

Mike Evans

Civil3D 2022 English
Windows 7 Professional 64-bit
Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-3820 CPU @ 3.60GHz (8 CPUs), ~4.0GHz With 32768MB RAM, AMD FirePro V4900, Dedicated Memory: 984 MB, Shared Memory: 814 MB

0 Likes
Message 6 of 15

ethanE3D65
Contributor
Contributor

If they are intent on using these blocks that contain text for topographic symbols, I guess I could always use them for the point style marker to be autogenerated by the description key manager, then explode them at the end to make the attributed text visible. I've always preferred keeping them as point styles for ease of editing at later points when a topographic survey may go to an ALTA or other such map but this may be the work around I'll have to use. Thanks 

0 Likes
Message 7 of 15

rl_jackson
Mentor
Mentor
Accepted solution

The only objects that should be in the block are the objects that make up the symbol. You don't need to include the text objects for point #, elevation or description those are handled by the Point Label Style. Now I see with you block for the Electric Pull Box that you want to have a symbol for the pull box then a description for the box. Your symbol is 0.075 if you delete the text and set the Point Style to drawing scale and set the height to 0.075 it will scale correctly. Then you would have a Point Lable Style that would place the description next to the Point Style for EPB. Basically, you have a symbol a pull box and if you use that for all pull boxes then your description is all that changes. which means you have one block for electric, telephone traffic water etc....


Rick Jackson
Survey CAD Technician VI

Did you find this post helpful? Feel free to Like this post.
Did your question get successfully answered? Then click on the ACCEPT SOLUTION button.

EESignature

0 Likes
Message 8 of 15

Pointdump
Consultant
Consultant

Hi Ethan,
In Express Tools, use TXTEXP to explode the text into linework. Then re-save the block. Now the "text" will scale same as block.
Dave

 

TxtExp_1.png

 

Dave Stoll
Las Vegas, Nevada

EESignature

64GB DDR4 2400MHz ECC SoDIMM / 1TB SSD
NVIDIA Quadro P5000 16GB
Windows 10 Pro 64 / Civil 3D 2025
0 Likes
Message 9 of 15

ethanE3D65
Contributor
Contributor

This is a very good idea. To understand you correctly, I will have less blocks but more label styles as I will create a label style for each topographic field (electric, gas, telephone, sewer etc). Then I will simply define both the point style and label style to be inserted by the description key. 

0 Likes
Message 10 of 15

ethanE3D65
Contributor
Contributor
Going to try this too. Good idea. Thanks
0 Likes
Message 11 of 15

rl_jackson
Mentor
Mentor

If you just added the text for to the symbol you'll only need a single style for that... That text would be controlled by the field code. Which would be controlled by the description key. 1 point style 1 point label style. Both go to layer 0 and the description key places the block on the electric layer or the water layer or the telephone layer etc......


Rick Jackson
Survey CAD Technician VI

Did you find this post helpful? Feel free to Like this post.
Did your question get successfully answered? Then click on the ACCEPT SOLUTION button.

EESignature

Message 12 of 15

ethanE3D65
Contributor
Contributor

This makes total sense and I like it alot!!! Thanks 

0 Likes
Message 13 of 15

ethanE3D65
Contributor
Contributor

Just tried this method and it worked. Thanks

0 Likes
Message 14 of 15

ethanE3D65
Contributor
Contributor

This idea worked great and minimized both the number of blocks and point label styles. Makes for a clean tool space and block editor. 

Message 15 of 15

ethanE3D65
Contributor
Contributor

I appreciate all of the help on this everyone. Gave me some great ideas and made me look at using these tools in different ways. 

 

0 Likes